ABSTRACT
Fielde had been living well, an eager American wandering about Europe, exposed for the first time to the wondrous creations of an old Western civilization. Now that she was back in China, the exhilaration was tempered by a feeling that the good times were over, and her memories of Europe would have to fortify her against “the time of intellectual famine that is coming.” Europe so appealed to her that she thought she might stay, suggesting to Murdock that perhaps she could found a mission school in France or Spain, especially if she was judged not fit for missionary work in China, but the proposal quickly died, and she did not pursue it. She knew what lay ahead of her in China and she had half-heartedly tried to avoid the formidable task that was her lot. By the time she arrived in Swatow, in early 1873, she had embraced her “special mission” that would consume her every waking hour. In Bangkok, much of her evangelical work had been with men; in Swatow, women would be the focus of her efforts.
