Letter Home
May 22nd, 1920
WEINAN, SHENSI
My dearest Folks:
If you could but see your son now I am quite sure that you would not know him. My last letter to you was written at Shan-chow, and at that time I stated that I would start in a few days for Sian-fu.
The point I had been trying to reach for the last few months.
On the 18th inst. I left Shan-chow for Sian-fu. At that time I did not expect such conditions as I have found to exist or else I would not have made an attempt at this trip. It started raining the day I left Shan-chow, but as it was too early for the rainy season, I thought that the rain would last only a short time. However, it seems that the rainy season has come earlier than usual for it has been raining every day, and from the looks of the clouds, it is going to continue to rain for some time. I haven't a raincoat with me and each day I have gotten a nice soaking. But soakings are not to be considered when there are other things far more important.
My second day out of Shan-chow, about dark, I arrived at a small town which is located twenty li east of Tungkuan. As there were many robbers in this neighborhood, I was afraid to proceed further, then too it was raining hard so it was a case of necessity for me to stop. Much to my disgust, I found almost every shop in the town as well as all the inns occupied by soldiers and it was only after a strenuous effort that I found a place to sleep and feed my ponies. I found out from the soldiers who were government or Moukten troops that they had been fighting in Shensi but had recently received orders to stop and proceed to Kwan-yin-tang, but that when they had arrived at this point, they had been ordered to stand fast as more fighting was expected. At this time I couldn't get any good information about why they were fighting, but I did find out that Tung-kuan was in the hands of their commander and that the place was full of soldiers. In normal times it is almost impossible to get through Tung-kuan into Shensi on account of the robbers in Shensi. You see, if foreigners get into the province and are captured by the robbers, then the government is made to reimburse the person captured and this the government does not like to do, so they play safe and try to keep everyone out of the place. I might add here so as to make myself a little clearer, that in China soldiers and robbers are one and the same thing. I don't mean to slam the government or all of the soldiers, but almost in every case where there is a robbery or some foreigner is kidnapped, the work is done by soldiers. A magistrate of a little city I visited a few days ago said, "In China robbers and soldiers are the same thing. In other countries soldiers are kept for the purpose of keeping order and protecting the people and their country, but in China the only thing the soldiers do is to rob and fight their own people just for the sake of fighting and making some man rich." The magistrate almost stated the whole truth. I am a little off the subject, but I hope by this time you understand that soldiers are to be feared by all.
I stated above that it was hard to get through Tung-kuan in normal times. I knew from what the soldiers told me that it would be impossible for me to get through even though I had written the Commissioner of Foreign Affairs in Sian-fu as well as a Chinese friend asking them to do all they could to get me by. On the morning of the 20th 1 got up early and started for Tung-kuan. At that time I didn't know just how I was to get by, but I was determined to do so if possible. As you know, I visited Tung-kuan last February, and at that time I wrote you a description of the city and how it was located with mountains on one side, then two sides and the Yellow River on the other two sides, and that it was a wonderfully fortified place. Well, to enter the gate at Tung-kuan you must go up a little incline about 150 yards. While on the way to the city, I happened to think that someone had told me that once they had gotten by this point by going around the city wall. That was certainly a happy thought I had or else I would be on my way back to Shan-chow. Just as I reached the foot of the above mentioned incline, the soldiers at the gate who had already seen me, started down to have a look see. I turned off the main road and started at a nice gait for the ferry that crossed the Yellow River to Shansi. As there are soldiers stationed at this ferry, the ones coming down to stop me, stopped and went back. Well I kept on going until I reached the ferry or almost reached it, then I turned west and followed the river until I had gotten by the city. I kept off the main road until I was some five li west of Tung-kuan. I felt pretty safe then. It was a good thing the soldiers at the ferry were busy and didn't look around and see me. If they had turned, I would have been out of luck. I might state too, that once or twice during the last few days, I have sorter wished that they turned and sent me back.
On the main road, I found the way almost blocked with sol-diers coming from the west, all Moukten troops. At tiffin, I arrived at a little town, but found that every available place was taken by the troops. I could get no feed for the pony and the mules that were carrying my baggage were also out of luck. They weren’t the only animals that went hungry. Myself, my interpreter, my boy and mafu (mafu is the man who looks after the horses) all went without eating. In the middle of the day I never ate anything but a few sandwiches as it takes too long for the boy to fix me proper chow.
The sandwiches are made up the night before and I carry them along in my saddlebag. This time though I thought I would stop at Tung-kuan for the rest of the day so told my boy not to fix anything. About three o'clock we passed another town but could get no place to stop so kept on going. About 5:30 we arrived at Hua-yin. I stopped out-side of the city and sent my interpreter in to find a place to stop. After an hour, he returned saying that he had been all over the city but there was no place the soldiers had not occupied. It was too far to go on to the next city without doing night traveling, and that is certainly not advisable when there are so many soldiers running around. I decided that something had to be done, so I took the interpreter and we went to call on the magistrate and commander of the troops. I found the commander of the troops first, he was very nice to me. He found a place for all of us to sleep, told me all about the fighting, and just what was expected in the next few weeks. He also offered to send soldiers with me to the end of his command, but I declined the offer so he gave me a pass through all of his troops, which consisted of his card. Next I called on the magistrate. Poor fellow, he was scared to death of the soldiers. They had taken his yamen to live in and had left him only a few small rooms. Every time he wanted anything he had to go to the commander and ask for it. He did manage to get me some feed for the horses and made my drivers, who had refused to go further, continue on. This poor little city certainly was in a bad shape. All of the business shops and the houses had been turned into barracks, the streets were full of rubbish and filth and the never-ceasing rain had made them almost impassable. After a bad night with the bugs, I left for the next place which happened to be Hwa-chow. Here I will have to stop as it is nine o'clock and I must get up at three in the morning. 1 will finish when I get to Sian-fu, if I ever get there of the troops. I found the commander of the troops first, he was very nice to me. He found a place for all of us to sleep, told me all about the fighting, and just what was expected in the next few weeks. He also offered to send soldiers with me to the end of his command, but I declined the offer so he gave me a pass through all of his troops, which consisted of his card. Next I called on the magistrate. Poor fellow, he was scared to death of the soldiers. They had taken his yamen to live in and had left him only a few small rooms. Every time he wanted anything he had to go to the commander and ask for it. He did manage to get me some feed for the horses and made my drivers, who had refused to go further, continue on. This poor little city certainly was in a bad shape. All of the business shops and the houses had been turned into barracks, the streets were full of rubbish and filth and the never-ceasing rain had made them almost impassable. After a bad night with the bugs, I left for the next place which happened to be Hwa-chow. Here I will have to stop as it is nine o'clock and I must get up at three in the morning. 1 will finish when I get to Sian-fu, if I ever get there.
May 26th, 1920
SIAN-FU, SHENSI
I have just finished writing a few reports and while putting away my copies found this letter yet unfinished, so I will continue on from where
I stopped. At Hwa-chow my drivers struck again and their mules were really in such a bad shape, I hated to make them go on, so I released them and just trusted to luck that we would be able to get some other means of transportation. The next morning, after much difficulty, I finally found an ox cart going to Weinan and persuaded the driver and the man that had it engaged to let me put my stuff on the cart. My interpreter and myself rode on ahead and arrived at Weinan about three in the afternoon, wet as could be. The roads were in the worst condition yet. About 5:30 a cart came rolling in with my boy, mafu, and the baggage. The boy had decided that the ox cart was too slow, so he had used his head for a change and gotten an empty cart found on the road which was drawn by three good mules. We put up at Weinan the night of the 22nd and the next morning we managed to get away by four o'clock. It is about 140 Ii from Weinan to Sian-fu (a little more than 42 miles), but I was going to do the best to reach there that night.
After a hard day's trip, we all arrived at Sian-fu at 8 o'clock. There is no use of me telling you that we were all pretty much worn out by the time we got to our dealer's place. A ride of 42 miles is alright if you only have one day of it, but when you have been riding all day for four or five days and then end up with a big days travel, it sorter gets you down.
Sian-fu is one of the nicest places I have ever seen. Without a doubt it is one of the biggest, oldest and one of the most famous cities in the whole of China. I haven't seen Peking yet, but Peking will have to go some if it beats this place. The city is located on a small plateau which gives it an excellent opportunity for defending itself. The population is about 350,000 and the whole city is surrounded by a very big and strong wall. The gates to the city are really wonderful. In fact they are so big and massive I am at a loss to know just how to describe them. I haven't my Kodak either, but I will try and get hold of some pictures someone else has taken, and send you a few. I may stay here long enough to have my picture box sent out though, you can never tell. After a short time the Company will have to keep a foreigner stationed here and it may fall my luck to be that man.
Now Sian-fu has a population of one Norwegian who is with the BAT and who, by the way, I am staying with, one Englishman, a very nice man who is in charge of the Postal Service for the province. Outside of these two gentlemen there are no others except a flock of missionaries I haven't met yet so I don't know just who they are or what they are doing. I know that they have a hospital and a school here, but that is all. Now I have to stop again and go to a Chinese dinner. I will have to finish later.
May 30th, 1920
S1AN-FU
I have been trying to get a chance to finish this, but this is the first opportunity I've had and even now I should be doing something else. The Chinese dinner I mentioned above was the best and most eatable yet. It was a Mohammedan dinner. These people are a great deal cleaner than the Chinese. They don't eat pork, but they certainly do have good things to eat.
On the 28th I had another Chinese feed, but it was nothing like as good as the first one. The first dinner was given by our agent, the second by a man who has been to school in the States and is a pretty decent chap.
The postal commissioner here who I mentioned above has been in China some 30 odd years and during that time he has man-aged to collect a great number of curios. At the present time he values his curios at about $150.00, but no doubt when he sells his collection he will get 10 or 15 times this amount. This city and the country around here is where most all of the wonderful Chinese things come from. The Commissoner has taken me to 2 shops (curios) and I have certainly seen some wonderful things.
I am enclosing a letter I wrote in Cheng-chow giving the details of the military trouble that they have been having out here. At the present time, most of this trouble has blown over and within a few weeks everything will be quieted down. As traveling is safe now, I will leave here in a few days time for Cheng-chow where I will take a nice rest.
Love to all,
Jimmy
Epilog
After his first year in China, Jim continued at Chengchow for another two and then was transferred all over North China from the Yangtze to the Siberian border. He had home leave in 1923 and again in 1926 when he returned home by way of the Soviet Union. He wrote an account for the Meifoo Shield, th Standard Oil Company magazine, about that trip that has recently been referred to in Pioneers and Pacesetters: 100 Years of Mobil in China. He spent his leave working on the cabin in Elkmont. When he returned to China, his mother accompanied him, visiting for several months.
Jim met Jeannette Nelson in 1929 as he was leaving China for his third home leave. She was traveling with her mother, visiting different countries in Asia. When they left Yokohama for San Francisco, Jim was traveling on the same ocean liner. They met and were engaged before they left the ship. They married a few months later. Soon they were on their way back to Asia and Tientsin, China where their children, Jacqueline, Mayna and James Jr., were born. There were still trips into the interior, similar to the ones described in the diary, at least until they moved to Tsingtao where he became manager in 1934. The Second World War interrupted his work in China.
He resigned from the Company expecting to take up permanent residency in Nashville, Tennessee, but Standard Oil made him an offer to work in New York City, negotiating contracts for the Standard Oil with the U.S. government.
In 1945, six weeks after the Second World War was over, Standard Oil sent Jim to Shanghai to reopen its offices. He was now Marketing Manager and Marketing Attorney for Standard Vacuum Oil Company. It was a position he kept until he retired in 1949.
At the time of his retirement, he and Jeannette bought a partially abandoned house overlooking Lost Cove near Sewanee, Tennessee. The period they spent renovating it was the happiest ime of their lives. They had never owned real estate in China, so this was their first real home. They named it Mei Kan, which they interpreted to mean "beautiful view" in Chinese.
On fifty acres, they raised cattle and chickens, maintained an outstanding vegetable and flower garden, built a small lake where they fished with great pleasure, and entertained. Countless friends and relatives made their way to the mountains of southeastern Tennessee to visit them in Sewanee, and with their close friends Dana and Anna Nance, they hosted several reunions of "old China hands." For over 30 years they created a beautiful home their children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren loved to return to. They continued to travel, but never again to China.
In 1981, they sold Mei Kan and bought a smaller home in Sewanee where they lived with their daughter Jacqueline until Jeannette died in 1989 Jim died in 1995.
