Directory_and_Chronicle_1850 — Page 339

1850.

Reports of Medical Missions.

301

under his care. The Reports already published in the the Repository furnish detailed particulars of these efforts, up to the time when Dr. H. left for England in August, 1845. On his return in 1847, he re- newed his efforts to open a hospital in Canton out of the precincts of the Factories, and resigned his charge of the hospital at Hongkong and connection with the Medical Missionary Society," that he might endeavor in a quiet and unobtrusive manner, by friendly intercourse with the people and healing the sick, to obtain a permanent locality in the midst of the Chinese at Canton, and help to pioneer the way for other English missionaries to settle there." His success is thus stated:-

me.

In April 1849, after considerable difficulty in meeting with a house, one was at last obtained in an eligible situation, and at a moderate rent (for Canton) of 35 dollars per month; in the district of Kam-lí-fau, about a mile and a quarter northwest of the Foreign Factories; without the city walls (and not within them, as has been reported in the Medical Times), in the midst of a large and respec- table family neighborhood; with a good water entrance in front, and a constant thoroughfare in the street at the back. As considerable repairs were necessary before it could be rendered habitable (for it had previously been used as a puck- house), only a part of the house was rented at first on trial, as a Dispensary, by which plan the fears of the people were not suddenly excited, and their good- will was obtained. In June, the house was taken possession of, and no trouble arose out of it, except that at a subsequent period my landlord's son, a subal- tern in the army, was beaten by his superior officer, for not promising to expel

He refused to comply, asserting that he had only acted up to the letter of the Treaty, and that the people around were quite favorably disposed towards His superior officer gave him ten days to think upon the matter, and threatened further punishment on non-compliance. The poor man showed me the marks of the bamboo or his thighs, and he and his mother intreated me to send in a remonstrance to the British Consul, to prevent his receiving further indignity from this unprincipled officer. The Consul then acting thought it proper to refer the matter to H. E. So, the Governor, as a violation of the Treaty, and required that not only should my landlord's son be left alone, that the officer in question should be punished. Su in reply gave a very unsatis factory excuse for the conduct of this military officer, whom he said he had examined. This interference had the effect of establishing me more securely ; but as I expected, my landlord's son was punished for another alledged offense, and cashiered the army-another specimen, among thousands, of the injustice of the Chinese government.

me.

but

Since this date, there has been no opposition experienced by Dr. Hobson from his neighbors, nor have we heard of any further trouble given to the landlord. In order to show the manner of conducting this hospital, we make a few extracts from the Religious and Medical details, selecting such as best illustrate the characters of the patients.

On the 1st of April, 1848, a Dispensary was opened for the first time in the western suburbs of Canton, and was visited every alternate day for two months; the first day there were but four patients; the second, upwards of twenty; and after that never less than a hundred.

Finding the experiment to be successful of commencing with a dispensary, I had the premises fitted up for a dweiling-house, chapel, and hospital, and on the 8th of June 1 removed into it with my family, in the open day, without