"yaw-yaw" and laughter, bundled them all out
into the workmen's shed close by, where they might sleep in peace. It
occurred to my husband that some of these Chinese would be glad to have
their children brought up with the seven little orphans we had already,
so he went to Aboo, the Chinese magistrate, and offered to take ten
children into our house to be brought up as Christians, baptized, and
educated for ten years. The Chinese value education, and were very glad
to give them to us. I shall never forget sitting in the porch one
morning to receive my new family. Neither parents nor children could
speak Malay. They walked up the stairs, bringing a little boy or girl,
nodded and smiled and put the child's hand into mine, as much as to say,
"There, take it." One of our Chinese servants then explained to them
what we could do for the child, and that it must remain with us until
grown up. That day we took Salion, Sunfoon, Chinzu, Queyfat, Assin,
Umque, Achin, boys; Achong, Moukmoy, Poingzu, girls. The English nurse
we had brought with us to Sarawak had married Stahl, the carpenter, of
whom I spoke before, and Mrs. Stahl became the matron of the school when
we moved to College Hill, and had these ten Chinese children as well as
the orphans to care for. We were very busy sewing for them, with a
Chinese tailor to help. Blue jackets and trousers for week-days, and
black trousers and white jackets for Sundays, had to be made at once.
The girls wore trousers as well as the boys, only wider, and their
jackets reached to the knee.

At the end of a week they were all clean and neat. Their heads were
shaved every Saturday, and their long tails freshly plaited up with
skeins of black or red strong silk, made on purpose. At first a barber
came to do this, but soon the elder boys learnt to do it, and it was a
regular Saturday business. These ten children soon learnt to speak
Malay. Then we took five more, and after that one or two as
circumstances threw them in our way. The school at last numbered
forty-five, but there was not room in the mission-house for so many; we
did not get beyond thirty the first year of the school.

I scarcely think thirty English children could have been so easily
reduced to order as these little Chinese. School must have been paradise
to them after the hardships they had undergone, and that perhaps made it
easier to please them; besides, the Chinese readily submit to rule and
method. The day was laid out for t