96 
contact with his head office and v/hen one's chief 
is so busy with other things then naturally one 
gets that feeling that one's work is of not much 
account any longer and one gets that loose feeling 
of a homeless child in the street. And from other 
members of the Office one also receives but little 
information. Even explorers notes are not sent 
out any longer, I suppose on account of shortage 
of help in the Office, but the effect is the same. 
As regards bean-products, I am still on the 
lookout for novelties; a clever assistant I need 
to bring in more information. I have written al- 
ready to the University of Nanking for a good man, 
but Mr. Heisner wrote back that they hadn't any 
one suitable for this work of mine. However, I'll 
keep at it . 
As regards the drying of fruits and vegetables 
by the Chinese, these things are done in such prim- 
itive ways and under such appallingly unsanitary 
conditions that one marvels that this race has 
not been exterminated long ago. On one place one 
sees a lot of hides laying, coming from animals 
that have died from anthrax and which are covered 
with flies and next to it strips of squashes lay 
on a tray and the same flies alight all the time 
on these drying strips of squash. Next to a cess- 
pool cabbage and rape leaves hang on a line, etc. 
I notice your remark concerning raumes as used 
universally in Japan. This will be a nice piece 
of business for a young fellow who wants to ex- 
plore Japan. Here in China the xavnae or "Ching 
mae", as' it is called, is not as much in use. 
One gets it as a high class delicacy, when pre- 
served in syrup and it is eaten here and there 
in season as an appetizer, when salted, but it 
is not a common article of food. In the Chekiang 
Prov. especially there are big orchards of these 
plums and I'll see what I can find out when down 
South. 
I suppose you took several fotos of your 
raumes and of the various types of fruits. If 
so, I would like to receive a few copies. 
You want various types of preserved mumes; 
there are several in these small bottles in the 
collection that Mr. Young used to take care of; . 
please let them be gotten out. Then in Chinese 
stores one can get several types also, perhaps 
Mr. Henderson, whem he is on the hunt for bean 
cheese and bean sprouts, can lay his hands on 
some of these things at the same time. 
I'll be glad to receive this list of jujubes 
that Mr. Russell is working upon. 
December 31. 1^17. 
