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87

Sunday, 20 September

We spent the morning on the lower porch, looking out over the Chihli plain, discussing sundry details of the management and administration of the school in its new plant. My rather prosaic suggestions that we call the three main buildings East, West and South Halls until some more appropria names occurred to us met with approval. We talked to a number points of more or less vital interest. Many of the details were of little importance to the general faculty, and in the past Pettus would have settled them himself with little though of others, for there were few others in the old days. He has a reputation for non-cooperation which has been largely due to his having none to cooperate with Now he is practising cooperation with zeal, and is at times a bit pathetic in the things he brings up for group discussion. Those of us who have laughed at the people who disliked Pettus and would have nothing to do with him are more than delighted at the splendid spirit he is showing, which vindicates our faith and is changing rapidly the opinions of the world in which we move. Even the trivial things may be manag[[strikethrough]]a[[/strikethrough]]ed better for having had a wide experience brought to bear upon them, and it is well that all of us should be as nearly satisfied as possible. I rather flippantly remarked that the reatreat had cost Pettus nearly a hundred dollars and that we have decided the library fines should be a dime a day. But on the whole the week-end was a profitable one. 

In the afternoon we four men and Dorothy took a hike up over the hills and down to Pa Ta Ch'u and home again. On the way I picked up a couple rough quartz pebbles that I intend to use to keep my hand limber for writing Chinese letters. In the course of thrity years rolling them around in my good right palm they should begin to get smoothed off a bit. 

In the late afternoon and evening we got down to details of curricula and got them determined. I shall send circulars telling the exact courses for this semester with this issue of the memoirs.