Sent from Wang Yun
10 Apr 1905
Description:

‘Dear Mr Brown,

Your kind letter with Miss Emythe’s [sic] enclosed reached me this evening. I don’t mind my photograph being reproduced & appeared, but I am sorry to say that as my good photos in single have all been given away, I have only left two bad ones & another in a group taken by my friend. Herewith I enclose them to you for the delivery on my behalf, to Miss Emythe [sic], who, if she finds any one of them suitable for use, may have it reproduced as she likes, & need not return to me the two single ones, but the one in the group. Should no one be suitable for reproduction, please let me know, & I may have a new one taken.

Please kindly excuse my having made a lot of mistakes on the way of judging of the Pekingese dogs the other day, as I could not keep committing them, because it was quite a new experience & an arduous task to me. When I was judging of the first class, I found that I was on the horns of a dilemma, & nearly dead at the spot. While standing up for giving the death blow, I feel my eyes rather blind, & could hardly see which one was the best. I should say that I took trouble for the purpose, & prefer to be blamed for being ignorant to being negligent. This lesson taught me a lot, & put an end once and for all to my consenting to such undertaking and more. Truly it is difficult.

Now I beg to tell you frankly that I had dismissed three dogs with unkindness on that day. – One black dog, very nicely looking, & distinguished in colour; but one eye was hurt or blind – one reddish yellow dog, well proportionately, I three times wished to put it at the first place; but red-nosed. – One deep yellow dog, with large head, wide breast, & short legs; but with one white paw.

If I would judge of them by the way of giving numbers separately according to the different parts of their bodies, those three might have chance especially the black one.

At present any criticism is useless, & I still feel disgusted about the mistakes that I might have done. But the only thing I can do for paying all the penalties is to make appologise [sic] to those whose good dogs were dismissed by me.

It is very kind of you that you are going to invite me to lunch, but I am extremely sorry to say that I am very busy in the Legation. We are not sorting out & reproducing all the despatches & documents that we have received & issued during the last three years in order to hand them over to the new minister who will soon come. I gratefully accept your kindness, & anticipate many thanks to you.

With kind regards,

Yours very truly,

H.P. Wang Yun.’