Mr Bulkley bought a baby elephant and wanted to ship it to New York to the Museum of National History, where he was a contributor. His wife was traveling on the same ship and he wanted to save the fare of a keeper for the baby elephant. He brought…
Margaret was back from Phuket and was getting ready for school. She wrote to her mother painting a picture of the school. The girls were very timid about sleeping in a room alone because they were afraid of spirits. Margaret recalls the night when…
In one of her letters Margaret wrote that she had always thought, and at some point felt, that she didn't do anything important. Kenneth was the one on the road all the time doing what really mattered. Kenneth joked that he was just dashing around.
Margaret writes to Elizabeth that she knows nothing more discouraging than missionary work. The failures loom so much larger than the puny successes. She tells of one of the strongest Christian couples in their church that had split.
Margaret cannot trust the younger woman who was working for her. She passed her second year exam and was starting her third year. She got a new servant, very capable. Her mother was Siamese and her father a Czechoslovakian who left the family and…
Margaret entertained two discourteous guests. They came over to the Landons for the weekend and Margaret worked hard to ensure they had a nice stay. Something spilled on the lady's dress and she was unhappy. They never sent a thank you note and tried…
Margaret ate durian after attending the King's daughters' meeting. When she first came to Siam she felt sick every time she smelled the fruit. After a few years she got used to it and couldn't have it enough. She describes how the fruit grows in a…
Margaret gives the background to her first story for the Literary Society, "A Grave for Frankie." Ku Pru told her the story. It was about her uncle who was a wizard. She told her that when the wizard's uncle died his son sat on his grave for three…
Margaret tells of the family animals. Izzy and Lizzy were two hornbills that Kenneth had brought home from his last tour. They liked fruits, especially the jack fruit. The Landons also had a small Japanese dog called Suzy, and a long, thin, Siamese…
Margaret tells of the compound, housework, market, and sewing. The compound had begun to look like what Margaret had hoped for (it looked like a park). Dan Bovee had done a great deal to bring this about. There was a man for cutting the grass all day…
Margaret was doing the cutting and the seamstress was sewing. She talks about the challenge of making underwear for Peggy that would not sag, solving the problem with a piece of elastic in the middle of the back. Some clothes were coming by mail…
Margaret recalls an article in a local newspaper in which she was misquoted. It was a reunion with Mrs. Boyd, who was visiting in Bangkok and whom Margaret had known since she was a little child. Margaret comments that in many occasion this happened…
Margaret talks about their first three years in Siam and their furlough coming up in just a year. She had just begun to feel that she was of use as a missionary. It was so hard without the language. Sometimes she got blue because of the lack of any…
Margaret wrote of picking a ripe jack fruit that was huge like a watermelon and entirely filled a pail. She briefly describes the fruit, larger than a durian fruit.
Margaret tells about the girls in the school who were rehearsing a play. She was watching one night when suddenly a little girl ran up on stage and began to dance. "I never saw anything funnier." The Siamese dance was very beautiful, but very formal,…
Margaret describes her stove, how slow it is, and the hard work it takes to cook on it. She tells of the market, especially the buying of meat and how she tendered beef before roasting it. Pork was more tender and they had it more often. She would…
Margaret tells the story of her first learning of Anna Leonowens. She tells us that she has often said that when she first read The English Governess in the Siamese Court during that 1930 visit in Nakhon, she really had no sense of a curtain’s going…
Margaret tells of the beautiful place where the McDaniels were planning to build a new house and a hospital. The ground, the trees, and the landscape were just beautiful. Dr. McDaniel is very progressive and energetic, and he was making great…
Margaret remembers a story from the trip of the King of Siam going to the US for an eye operation. After the surgery had been done, no bill was presented, and so the King asked for it. The surgeon said something like, "The King can do no wrong. I…
The Landons were trying to persuade the Thai Christians to tithe to support their new pastor, Charlie Hak, but the response was not good. Previous missionaries had created a lot of what the Landons called "rice Christians." They were not anxious to…
Margaret remembers the friends of the Landons (Ralph Verhaug, who married Katherine, Joe Wright, Muriel, etc.) The friendship went cold for the most part, though Muriel remained very faithful in writing. Margaret recalls how hard it was to not…
Margaret wrote to Evangeline, who was then living in Minneapolis with her husband Evan Welsh. Margaret speaks of her problems with her cooks. Ah Sim eventually took over. Kru Flora helped Margaret with the shopping.
Margaret says Bill's pet amusement at the moment was pushing Peggy's doll carriage around. One morning, Margaret found him washing Peggy's doll's hair. The two children looked almost like twins now because Bill weighed only one pound less than Peggy.…
Margaret talks about how the farmers cared for their buffalo. They would keep them under the house, perhaps. Groups of men would take their buffalo out to grazing areas to feed. No one milked cows, though they did have female buffalo. When the…
Margaret begins telling "what I call 'The Pakai Affair.'" To tell the story, she gives some background concerning mission history in Siam. Margaret tells of the history of the Presbyterian mission in Siam, the main figures, the mission stations and…