Old Highays in China [Paperback]

The record of a Victorian woman missionary's travels through northern China, describing the everyday lives of Chinese women and girls.Old Highways in China (1884) records the Christian missionary Isabelle Williamsons travels through Shandong Province and Beijing, preaching the gospel to Chinese women. A fascinating and understudied figure in nineteenth-century womens writing, Williamson seeks to capture in this book the everyday work, play, rituals and stories of Chinas daughters.Old Highways in China (1884) records the Christian missionary Isabelle Williamsons travels through Shandong Province and Beijing, preaching the gospel to Chinese women. A fascinating and understudied figure in nineteenth-century womens writing, Williamson seeks to capture in this book the everyday work, play, rituals and stories of Chinas 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'.Preface; 1. Old highways; 2. Our first halting-place; 3. Rugged roads; 4. The Old Highway again; 5. Arrival at the city of Laichow-foo; 6. The town of Sa Hoh; 7. A genuine country fair; 8. Chinese ladies; 9. A grand archway il³?