Letter from Alfred E. Stearns to Sao-Ke Alfred Sze, Chinese legation, Washington, D.C., July 1, 1927
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Title
Letter from Alfred E. Stearns to Sao-Ke Alfred Sze, Chinese legation, Washington, D.C., July 1, 1927
Subject
Letter from Alfred E. Stearns to Sao-Ke Alfred Sze, Chinese legation, Washington, D.C., July 1, 1927
Transcription
My dear Dr. Sze:
Your two letters of June 29 have just reached me, and, curiously, at a time when the Tsai children have been on the grounds here with me. They have been devoting the time intervening between the close of their schools and the opening of their summer camps, which they are entering this week, half in Andover and half at South Weymouth with Dr. and Mrs. Daniel B. Nye, who are old friends of their father.
Both of the Tsai children have been doing well this past year, Helen especially so. Mrs. Russell of the Whittier School tells me that she is one of the finest girls that she has ever had under her care, and this seems to be the general verdict of those who meet Helen. She is alert and intelligent, friendly and jovial, and always eager to do her best and gratify her father’s ambitions for her. Mrs. Russell thinks she should have another year but I am not quite sure that this will be the best plan, as most of the girls there are younger than Helen and I am inclined to think that it would be better for her to get into a somewhat larger school and with girls more nearly her own age. Admiral Tsai has written me that he doesn’t care to have her go to college; so that I am considering several of the best finishing schools known to me, notably St. Margaret’s up on the Hudson between New York and Albany and the Walnut Hill School at Natick, Mass. Helen seems to prefer the latter, and largely on account of the location, for she will then be a little nearer her brother and me. I have arranged for her to put in the next two months at Camp Onaway at Newfound Lake, New Hampshire, a girl’s camp of excellent standing and highly recommended to me by some of my friends who are familiar with it and with those in charge. Helen left for the camp only this morning, and I hope to run up there myself within a few days and see that everything is all right.
Alfred makes rather slow progress in his studies and is not always responsive to advice and suggestion. I doubt whether he will be able to do our work, even in the lowest class, next year, though he will be tested out at the end of the summer, for it is possible that he will have been able to build up a stronger foundation by that time. He is here at present, but leaves for his camp tomorrow morning. The camp to which he is going is located on the other side of Newfound Lake; so that he will be only a few miles from his sister who will probably be able to see him occasionally. The camp is in charge of Mr. Sanborn, the Superintendent of our local schools in Andover, a man of good character and refinement, and I am truly glad to have Alfred under his care.
Mary Sun and her brothers Arthur and Charlies called on me a few days ago. The Tsai children had just arrived; so that we had the pleasure of giving them all a chance to meet one another at my home. Mary seems in much better spirits than earlier in the year and apparently has been doing better in her work. She plans to spend most of the summer at the Cornell Summer School, and I asked her when she was here to get in touch with you and find out whether you were going to be at Ithaca or not. I was very anxious that she should be in touch with you if you did plan to be there this summer. During the winter I accepted an invitation from Elmira College to speak to their girls there at one of their Sunday exercises, and I did so largely for the opportunity the visit gave me to see Mary and find out from her teachers how she was getting along. The reports, on the whole, were favorable, though I judge from what was told me that Mary was finding the sledding a bit hard at first but would doubtless increase her momentum as she went further along.
As you probably know, Arthur Sun, together with Quincey Sheh, is to return to China in a few weeks. The latter, by the way, has made a very brilliant record at Bowdoin College and was the only boy in this class to receive the highest honors in English at his graduation.
Tom Sun has just finished his freshman year at Middlebury College and his marks indicate that he has done much better in his work than any of us, I think, had anticipated would be the case. He has also handled his money with greater discretion than formerly; so that I am quite pleased at this year’s development in his case.
Charlie Sun has done splendidly at Amherst, got high marks in all his work, and shown those same qualities of common sense and dependability that have won my confidence from the start.
If you have any further suggestions in regard to any of these words of mine, I do hope you will be perfectly free to offer them. It is not always clear to me that I am doing the best that can be done for them, though it has ever been my aim to do just that, at least so far as my best judgment would permit.
With kindest personal regards, believe me
Very sincerely yours,
Your two letters of June 29 have just reached me, and, curiously, at a time when the Tsai children have been on the grounds here with me. They have been devoting the time intervening between the close of their schools and the opening of their summer camps, which they are entering this week, half in Andover and half at South Weymouth with Dr. and Mrs. Daniel B. Nye, who are old friends of their father.
Both of the Tsai children have been doing well this past year, Helen especially so. Mrs. Russell of the Whittier School tells me that she is one of the finest girls that she has ever had under her care, and this seems to be the general verdict of those who meet Helen. She is alert and intelligent, friendly and jovial, and always eager to do her best and gratify her father’s ambitions for her. Mrs. Russell thinks she should have another year but I am not quite sure that this will be the best plan, as most of the girls there are younger than Helen and I am inclined to think that it would be better for her to get into a somewhat larger school and with girls more nearly her own age. Admiral Tsai has written me that he doesn’t care to have her go to college; so that I am considering several of the best finishing schools known to me, notably St. Margaret’s up on the Hudson between New York and Albany and the Walnut Hill School at Natick, Mass. Helen seems to prefer the latter, and largely on account of the location, for she will then be a little nearer her brother and me. I have arranged for her to put in the next two months at Camp Onaway at Newfound Lake, New Hampshire, a girl’s camp of excellent standing and highly recommended to me by some of my friends who are familiar with it and with those in charge. Helen left for the camp only this morning, and I hope to run up there myself within a few days and see that everything is all right.
Alfred makes rather slow progress in his studies and is not always responsive to advice and suggestion. I doubt whether he will be able to do our work, even in the lowest class, next year, though he will be tested out at the end of the summer, for it is possible that he will have been able to build up a stronger foundation by that time. He is here at present, but leaves for his camp tomorrow morning. The camp to which he is going is located on the other side of Newfound Lake; so that he will be only a few miles from his sister who will probably be able to see him occasionally. The camp is in charge of Mr. Sanborn, the Superintendent of our local schools in Andover, a man of good character and refinement, and I am truly glad to have Alfred under his care.
Mary Sun and her brothers Arthur and Charlies called on me a few days ago. The Tsai children had just arrived; so that we had the pleasure of giving them all a chance to meet one another at my home. Mary seems in much better spirits than earlier in the year and apparently has been doing better in her work. She plans to spend most of the summer at the Cornell Summer School, and I asked her when she was here to get in touch with you and find out whether you were going to be at Ithaca or not. I was very anxious that she should be in touch with you if you did plan to be there this summer. During the winter I accepted an invitation from Elmira College to speak to their girls there at one of their Sunday exercises, and I did so largely for the opportunity the visit gave me to see Mary and find out from her teachers how she was getting along. The reports, on the whole, were favorable, though I judge from what was told me that Mary was finding the sledding a bit hard at first but would doubtless increase her momentum as she went further along.
As you probably know, Arthur Sun, together with Quincey Sheh, is to return to China in a few weeks. The latter, by the way, has made a very brilliant record at Bowdoin College and was the only boy in this class to receive the highest honors in English at his graduation.
Tom Sun has just finished his freshman year at Middlebury College and his marks indicate that he has done much better in his work than any of us, I think, had anticipated would be the case. He has also handled his money with greater discretion than formerly; so that I am quite pleased at this year’s development in his case.
Charlie Sun has done splendidly at Amherst, got high marks in all his work, and shown those same qualities of common sense and dependability that have won my confidence from the start.
If you have any further suggestions in regard to any of these words of mine, I do hope you will be perfectly free to offer them. It is not always clear to me that I am doing the best that can be done for them, though it has ever been my aim to do just that, at least so far as my best judgment would permit.
With kindest personal regards, believe me
Very sincerely yours,
Creator
Alfred E. Stearns
Publisher
Phillips Academy
Date
July 1, 1927
Rights
All Rights Reserved by Phillips Academy
Language
English
Type
Correspondence