While MC
and Evangeline (Eva) French
were home on furlough, Cable met Evangeline's younger sister Francesca
. The three women became a three-fold cord, which could not easily be broken.
Cable, Mildred, and Francesca French. Something Happened. Hodder and Stoughton, 1933.
110
Warner, Marina et al. “Introduction”. The Gobi Desert, Beacon Press, 1987, p. xi - xxi.
xiv
Friends, Associates
Helen Waddell
Friends from HW
's time at Somerville
included Maude Clarke
, whom she had known as a child and whose Oxford position had been one of the incentives to go there, and archaelogist Helen Lorimer
Occupation
Mildred Cable
MC
and Evangeline
and Francesca French
began their nomadic travels as itinerant missionaries, teaching Christianity throughout the provinces of Shensi, Kansu, Mongolia and Sinkiang, the Great Northwest of China.
Cable, Mildred, and Francesca French. Through Jade Gate and Central Asia. Constable, 1927.
1-2
Occupation
Mildred Cable
MC
and Evangeline
and Francesca French
made another journey, of over 6,000 miles, from Suchow to London via the Gobi Desert, Russia, and the rest of Europe for one of their leaves in England.
Cable, Mildred, and Francesca French. Through Jade Gate and Central Asia. Constable, 1927.
Platt, William James. Three Women. Hodder & Stoughton, 1964.
190-1
Author summary
Mildred Cable
China provided a centre not only for MC
's life but also for her writing. Of her nineteen works, published in the first half of the twentieth century, most describe her experiences as a traveller...
Residence
Mildred Cable
During a period of civil unrest in China, MC
and Evangeline
and Francesca French
returned home on leave to London via Siberia, Moscow, and Berlin.
Platt, William James. Three Women. Hodder & Stoughton, 1964.
174-6
Residence
Mildred Cable
MC
and Evangeline
and Francesca French
were ordered to leave China permanently, along with all other foreigners, because of the Sino-Japanese war.
Warner, Marina et al. “Introduction”. The Gobi Desert, Beacon Press, 1987, p. xi - xxi.
xvi
Platt, William James. Three Women. Hodder & Stoughton, 1964.
187
Textual Production
Mildred Cable
The Story of Topsy, Little Lonely
of Central Asia, a children's book by MC
and Francesca French
, was published.
Warner, Marina et al. “Introduction”. The Gobi Desert, Beacon Press, 1987, p. xi - xxi.
xviii
Textual Production
Mildred Cable
This book arose from MC
's experiences at the first mission she visited in China. While she retains sole authorship, MC
acknowledges the important role of the Frenchsisters
in the book's production, saying...
Textual Production
Mildred Cable
Most comment on The Gobi Desert disregards the question of its authorship in favour of discussing the three women's extraordinary lives together.
The confusion between the three is so great that the entry for MC
Textual Production
Mildred Cable
With her ever-present collaborator Francesca French
, MC
also wrote books that were used by the Bible Society
as instructional handbooks for new missionaries, including Ambassadors for Christ, 1935, and Towards Spiritual Maturity...
Textual Production
Mildred Cable
Through Jade Gate and Central Asia, the second collaborative effort between MC
and Francesca French
, was published while they were on leave in England.
Cable, Mildred, and Francesca French. Through Jade Gate and Central Asia. Constable, 1927.
prelims
Textual Production
Mildred Cable
MC
and Francesca French
published their most popular travel book, The Gobi Desert.
Warner, Marina et al. “Introduction”. The Gobi Desert, Beacon Press, 1987, p. xi - xxi.
xviii
Textual Production
Mildred Cable
MC
and Francesca French
published their last travel book, Journey with a Purpose, which documents their travels with Eva
in Australia, New Zealand, and India.