This is from Liang Dunyan, one of the first delegations of young Chinese students in America.

I am a pretty Little Kitten

My name is Fabby Gray

I live out in the country

Home twenty miles away

My eyes are black and hazel

My fur is soft as silk

I am fed each night and morning

With a saucer full of milk

Your friend

Liang Tun Yen

Hartford Feb 16th 1874

At the time this poem was written, Liang Dunyan had only been in America one year and five months.

One year after arriving in America the first group of students entered high school one by one.

Founded in 1804, the Monson Academy was known throughout New England. Rong Hong once studied here and after his time a dozen Chinese students were accepted into the academy. Decades ago, Monson Academy was destroyed by a fire with only this bell left. In 1971, Monson Academy merged with the nearby Wilbraham School, becoming today’s Wilbraham and Monson Academy.

The Monson School records from that time were nearly all burnt. But when Ms. Gray opened the door of the archives room for us, we felt we were touching the history of 100 years ago. The Monson archives unexpectedly held a photo of Shi Jinyong, unscathed by several fire accidents. He was in the first detachment, coming from Xiangshan, Guangdong and arriving in America at the age of 15.

Ms. Gray produced two notebooks with the signatures of Chinese students. On one page we spotted Shi Jinyong’s name. This is the message Shi Jinyong left his fellow students on October, 29th, 1875. In the middle there was a pencil drawing of Angels around the Bible, beside it a Chinese poem of the Tang Dynasty written with a brush.

In some unsorted files we found Shi Jinyong again. This time on a name card, on which was printed ‘S.C.Shin / Canton China.’ There was also an English letter written by Shi, addressed to a fellow student called Jennie, and dated October 5th, 1876. He told Jennie he planned to enter Sheffield Scientific School at Yale in a year’s time.

The evidence we found in Monson aroused our interest in Shi Jinyong. But we could not find any trace of him either at Yale University mentioned in his letter or in any other university with records of Chinese students’ attendance. Not until we looked through the unpublished correspondence of Li Hongzhang at Fudan University, Shanghai, was the mystery unraveled.

‘Shi Jinyong and three other students were called back. When Shi arrived there, he had cut off his queue and adopted western dress, which upset the government. We sent students abroad to cultivate talents for the country. People like Shi Jinyong who were so readily westernized wasted our previous efforts and posed threats for the future.’

In 1877, Shi Jinyong and another three Chinese students were recalled before their term was up because they were seen as over-westernized.

Despite such minor setbacks, the whole project was going forward smoothly. History had presented the best opportunity to the Qing government with their overseas education plan. More than 100 years ago, as the world was swept by the fierce competition of the Industrial Revolution, the young Chinese students were delivered into the center of the arena.

Philadelphia was the first capital of the United States and here the Declaration of Independence was signed. In 1876, the 100th anniversary of the United States, the first world exposition in U.S. history was held here. This Centennial Exhibition was of great significance to the United States, for the young republic was eager to demonstrate its evolution from an agrarian arcadia to a new industrial power.

The Qing Empire was one of the 37 participating countries in the Centennial Exhibition. Led by the Connecticut Educational Commission, the young Chinese students were also there and were received by the President of the United States.

On May 10th 1876 the exhibition was inaugurated. 160,000 people were present despite a driving rain. General Grant, the President of the U.S. and Don Pedro, the Emperor of Brazil, co-hosted the opening ceremony.

A Chinese visitor of the exhibition exclaimed that the world today had turned into one gigantic machinery factory. He was Li Gui, a customs official from China’s central coast. He came to the Centennial Exhibition as one of a delegation sent by the Qing Government. After he returned China, he wrote and published a book, New Records of Travels Around the World, telling of his experiences at the exposition and his journeys to other countries.

At the Centennial Exhibition, Li Gui not only witnessed the biggest Corliss Centennial Steam Engine, but water pumps, dredgers, sewing machines, looms, typewriters, fountain pens, slide projectors, post offices, machine-manufactured paper and the famous Krupp guns from Germany, They also viewed the Statue of Liberty, then still in the form of one arm only--a gift from France to the United States. And heralding a new epoch indeed were exhibited Thomas Edison’s newly invented electric light and Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone.

China occupied its own space in the Centennial’s general exhibition hall. In the front was a grand gateway carrying the title of ‘Great Qing Empire.’ In a rich assortment of archaic cabinets were displayed silk, ivory carvings, china, Chinese calligraphy and paintings. For those who were completely new to Asian civilization, the exquisite art and artifacts from the ancient oriental empire were especially enchanting.

Inspired by this eye-opening experience at the exposition, Li Gui reflected on the machine revolution and wrote ‘since ancient times in China machine-making techniques were libeled as diabolic tricks, which would only lead to wily scheming. But how wily would it be if the scheming were applied to benefiting the country and the people?