Thus grown women had extremely tiny feet, on which they could walk only with slow, tottering steps, which were thought to be extremely graceful.) The government needed a foot-inspector, a woman (so that she could invade the women’s quarters without scandal), with her own feet unbound (so that she could travel), who would patrol the district enforcing the decree. (NOTE: Among the upper and middle classes, it had for centuries been the custom that a woman’s foot should be wrapped tightly in bandages from infancy, to prevent it from growing. He arrived in a sedan chair, with an impressive escort, and told her that the government had decreed an end to the practice of footbinding. Lawson, Miss Aylward met the Mandarin of Yangchen. Gladys Aylward was left to run the mission alone, with the aid of one Chinese Christian, Yang, the cook.Ī few weeks after the death of Mrs. Lawson suffered a severe fall, and died a few days later. Gladys practiced her Chinese for hours each day, and was becoming fluent and comfortable with it. Some became Christians, and many of them (both Christians and non-Christians) remembered the stories, and retold them more or less accurately to other muleteers at other stops along the caravan trails. After the first few weeks, Gladys did not need to kidnap customers - they turned in at the inn by preference. They were given good food and warm beds at the standard price, and their mules were well cared for, and there was free entertainment in the evening–the inkeepers told stories about a man named Jesus. The other mules followed, and the muleteers had no choice. It went willingly, knowing by experience that turning into a courtyard meant food and water and rest for the night. They laid in a supply of food for mules and men, and when next a caravan came past, Gladys dashed out, grabbed the rein of the lead mule, and turned it into their courtyard. The building in which they lived had once been an inn, and with a bit of repair work could be used as one again. It occurred to the two women that their most effective way of preaching would be to set up an inn. Yangchen was an overnight stop for mule caravans that carried coal, raw cotton, pots, and iron goods on six-week or three-month journeys. They distrusted them as foreigners, and were not disposed to listen to them. Most of the residents had seen no Europeans other than Mrs. She arrived in Vladivostok and sailed from there to Japan and from Japan to Tientsin, and thence by train, then bus, then mule, to the inland city of Yangchen, in the mountainous province of Shansi, a little south of Peking (Beijing). She did not have enough moneg for the ship fare, but did have enough for the train fare, and so in October of 1930 she set out from London with her passport, her Bible, her tickets, and two pounds ninepence, to travel to China by the Trans-Siberian Railway, despite the fact that China and the Soviet Union were engaged in an undeclared war. Lawson and was accepted if she could get to China. Jeannie Lawson, who was looking for a younger woman to carry on her work. Then she heard of a 73-year-old missionary, Mrs. She worked at other jobs and saved her money. At the age of 26, she became a probationer at the China Inland Mission Center in London, but failed to pass the examinations. Gladys responded to the message, and soon after became convinced that she was called to preach the Gospel in China. She worked for several years as a parlormaid, and then attended a revival meeting at which the preacher spoke of dedicating one’s life to the service of God. Gladys Aylward was born in London in 1904 (or a few years earlier).
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |