Old Highways in China (Cambridge Library Collection - Travel and Exploration in Asia)

In 1873, the Christian missionary Isabelle Williamson set out from Chefoo (Yantai),China, to spread the gospel to Chinese women. Her four separate journeys along the ancient roads of Shandong Province and Beijing are recorded in Old Highways in China (1884), a chronicle of the everyday lives of the women to whom she preached. 'My interest was chiefly in the women', Williamson explains, 'and I looked at all through a woman's eyes'. Reserving her missionary work for another publication, Williamson devotes this keenly observed book to the details of life in the villages she visited - the work, play, rituals, and stories of women and girls. It also describes Williamson's own remarkable travels, set against the stunning natural backdrop of northern China. An important witness to women's missionary work in China, her book is also testament to the intelligent eye of its author as she seeks to portray 'China's daughters'. In 1873, the Christian missionary Isabelle Williamson set out from Chefoo (Yantai), China, to spread the gospel to Chinese women. Her four separate journeys along the ancient roads of Shandong Province and Beijing are recorded in Old Highways in China (1884), a chronicle of the everyday lives of the women to whom she preached. 'My interest was chiefly in the women', Williamson explains, 'and I looked at all through a woman's eyes'. Reserving her missionary work for another publication, Williamson devotes this keenly observed book to the details of life in the villages she visited - the work, play, rituals, and stories of women and girls. It also describes Williamson's own remarkable travels, set against the stunning natural backdrop of northern China. An important witness to women's missionary work in China, her book is also testament to the intelligent eye of its author as she seeks to portray 'China's daughters' Cover......Page 1 Frontmatter......Page 6 PREFACE......Page 10 Contents......Page 14 ILLUSTRATIONS......Page 20 CHAPTER I......Page 22 CHAPTER II......Page 28 CHAPTER III......Page 36 CHAPTER IV......Page 41 CHAPTER V......Page 46 CHAPTER VI......Page 53 CHAPTER VII......Page 58 CHAPTER VIII......Page 64 CHAPTER IX......Page 74 CHAPTER X......Page 79 CHAPTER XI......Page 87 CHAPTER XII......Page 94 CHAPTER XIII......Page 101 CHAPTER XIV......Page 106 CHAPTER XV......Page 116 CHAPTER XVI......Page 131 CHAPTER XVII......Page 137 CHAPTER XVIII......Page 156 CHAPTER XIX......Page 160 CHAPTER XX......Page 167 CHAPTER XXI......Page 177 CHAPTER XXII......Page 186 CHAPTER XXIII......Page 199 CHAPTER XXIV......Page 212 CHAPTER XXV......Page 223 Cover 1 Frontmatter 6 PREFACE 10 Contents 14 ILLUSTRATIONS 20 CHAPTER I 22 CHAPTER II 28 CHAPTER III 36 CHAPTER IV 41 CHAPTER V 46 CHAPTER VI 53 CHAPTER VII 58 CHAPTER VIII 64 CHAPTER IX 74 CHAPTER X 79 CHAPTER XI 87 CHAPTER XII 94 CHAPTER XIII 101 CHAPTER XIV 106 CHAPTER XV 116 CHAPTER XVI 131 CHAPTER XVII 137 CHAPTER XVIII 156 CHAPTER XIX 160 CHAPTER XX 167 CHAPTER XXI 177 CHAPTER XXII 186 CHAPTER XXIII 199 CHAPTER XXIV 212 CHAPTER XXV 223 9781108015189 Cambridge Library Collection - Travel and Exploration Old Highways in China (1884) records the Christian missionary Isabelle Williamson's travels through Shandong Province and Beijing, preaching the gospel to Chinese women. A fascinating and understudied figure in nineteenth-century women's writing, Williamson seeks to capture in this book the everyday work, play, rituals and stories of 'China's daughters'.