Some items from Elder V.J. Maloney, missionary in China for seventeen years, for the 85thanniversary of our work in China, as requested by Doyle Barrett, President South China Union Mission S.D.A.
Elder and Mrs. Vance J. Maloney, with their 5 year old son, Vance Jr., and 18 months daughter, Better Jean, sailed for China from Vancouver, British Columbia, May 1, 1924, on the good ship Empress of Russia.
Before we sailed, we spent one month at the White Memorial Hospital learning some simple treatments and things to do in emergencies. At the time Elder Orley Ford was home on furlough and was studying such treatments also. He had used them in South America, and his account of this work was a great inspiration to us.
After a stormy trip across the Pacific we made a stop in Yokohama and in Kobe. Our next stop was in Shanghai. We enjoyed meeting some of the workers in Japan. In Shanghai, we were there for a meeting Sabbath meeting. Elder C.C. Crisler spoke. We met many of the workers, Elder Barrows, Div.treas., Elder Evans, Division leader was out of the city. We also met Elder & Mrs. Jno.Oss, Elder & Mrs. E.R. Tiele, editorial dept of the Chinese Signs, Elders J.J. Strahle, Henderson, Miss Effie James, the Glen Luthers, and many others.
We arrived in Hong Kong May 20. Elder & Mrs. DeVinney met us at the boat. We were to sail the same day up the coast for Amoy and Kulangsu, so we were busy making the transfer from the big Empress ship to the little coastal steamer, the Hai Hong. We arrived in Amoy on May 22, being met by Elder B.L. Anderson and several Chinese workers. It was a busy day for the workers in Amoy as their mission director, Eder W.C. Hankins and his wife and two daughters were leaving for America the same day.
We soon began the study of the Amoyese dialect with Bro. So Kun Ti as my teacher, and Sr. N.P. Keh teaching my wife. I assumed my duties as sec-treas., of the mission and Elder Anderson was the director. The mission headquarters and the Bee Hwa school was located on the island of Kulangsu, a tiny island across from the city of Amoy. I am enclosing a picture of the big rock located about the center of the island and is the highest point. The little white house just below the rock was where we lived before the new mission house was built. Picture No.2 is made up of the following people, reading from right to left, Elder B.L. Anderson, Elder N.P. Keh, Christine and baby, Sr. B.L.
Anderson, Mrs. Maloney, R.M. Milne conducted a colporteur institute in the school.
In the South China Union, Elder DeVinney was superintendent, A.L. Ham was director of the Cantonese mission., J.P. Anderson of the Hakka Mission, PV. Thomas in the Kwangsi mission, with P.L. Williams secty-treas., who later became the Union secretary treasurer. C.C. Morris and Br. Clark were in the North Fukien mission, and Elder Floy Bates, later Dr. Bates was director of the Swatow mission. S.A. Nagel was in Waichow with the Hakka mission. When C.C. Morris was called to be superintendent of the South China Union, I was asked to be the director of the North Fukien mission. When Bro. Clark returned to the States, Bro. H.N. Quade came there as secretary-treasurer and to lead out in the school in Foochow. Enclosed is a picture of Dr. Miller boarding a plane at Foochow after a visit there on his was to Hong Kong. The next picture is one of Pastor Ging Ko Bing and his wife and two children. His wife was the daughter of Elder N.P. Keh. Two of the pictures enclosed show the rug and hat industries which Mrs. Maloney, (hooked rugs and panama weave style hats) which conducted in the Foochow school. The school turned out many good workers, including Ling Buong Sing, who is now retired and lives in Taiwan, and whom many of you know. One picture enclosed is a very good picture of a city wall, made of granite stone, with a moat, which surrounds the city of Hinghwa Fu in Fukien province.
Most workers remember with pleasure the unions meetings that were held. At these meetings, all the workers had a chance to meet together and enjoy fellowship. A review of the work was given and plans made for future work. In the South China Union these meetings were usually held at Canton. I am enclosing a picture of one such meeting, and one also of a union meeting held in Waichow. Enclosed also is a picture of V.J. Maloney, his wife, and two children, which was made in Foochow some years after they went to China.
After several years spent in Foochow, I was called to be secretary treasurer of the East China Union Mission. I served there during the presidency of Elders O.A. Hall, W.F. Brewer, and W.A. Strickland. Elder LeClaire Reed was home missionary secretary and W.A. Shaw headed the colporteur work. Elder K.H. Wood was head of the local mission, and later R.H. Hartwell. Enclosed Is a picture of some of the local workers, just to name a few, Sr. B. Miller, Mrs. Helen Reed Miss Barr, Mrs. R.H. Hartwell, Mrs. Shaw, Mrs. Maloney, and others. There is also a picture of the at that time New Shanghai sanitarium. Before it was completed they had a rather small building in the city. My wife, the two children and myself, all had an operation in the city building. The new san was being readied for occupancy. Due to the crowded conditions in the city, my entire family was moved out to the new sanitarium before it was officially opened. We were the first unofficial patients in the new Shanghai San.
Soon after moving to Shanghai trouble between the Japanese and Chinese started. Much fighting took place around the perimeter of Shanghai. Then what became known as “Blood Saturday” occurred. Accompanied by W.A. Shaw, I went to the N.V.K. boat company to cancel our son’s passage to America. While in there a China plane came to bomb a battleship that was anchored in the river just off the bund and opposite where the N.V.K. offices were located. Driven back by the antiaircraft fire the plane turned over the city and dropped a bomb near Nanking Road and the Bund in front of the big hotel. Brother Shaw and I saw it coming and ducked between the hotel and the building on the other side. The building was between us and where the bomb hit and killed about six hundred people. It was a frightful sight. Hashing on down the bund we saw two more planes coming. Turning away from the intense antiaircraft fire they veered over the French concession, and we saw two bombs leave the planes. They fell at the five point intersection. Our Chinese Signs Press workers had just been moved there from Ningkuo road so they would be safe. The two bombs killed almost a thousand people, including about twenty-two of our press workers. Hectic days followed. Most of the foreign workers were evacuated to Manila, leaving just a few in Shanghai. Later most of us came back to Hong Kong, and Brother Brewer and I went back to Shanghai. Several of us workers got permission to go to Ningkuo Road and remove some of the belongings of the Chinese and foreign workers out of there to the store room in Shanghai city proper. The bombs had done much damage, looters had also been in and taken some things. It was on one of these trips that the suit case of one of our Chinese workers who had gone to Hong Kong was packed and, unknown to the packers, a bomb fuse, unexploded, was picked up with the clothing. It went to Hong Kong and when picked up by the worker, it exploded in his hands and killed him.
Space has more than run out, so will close these notes on China when I was a worker there.