Inn immigrants

Back to 200 years ago, in the twenty-third year of Jiaqing in Qing Dynasty, at the age of 22, he drifted at sea with the merchant ship "Guiguan" carrying tea, cattle and horses fo

Back to 200 years ago, in the twenty-third year of Jiaqing in Qing Dynasty, at the age of 22, he drifted at sea with the merchant ship "Guiguan" carrying tea, cattle and horses for more than three months, and finally came to Sydney. He is Mai Shiying, an China native who first arrived in Australia and lived here with his descendants.

Have a successful career in Australia

Mai Shiying is an original carpenter. At that time, the Qing dynasty closed its doors and gradually declined. He can completely support himself and his family by craft. One day, he saw a foreign ship in Guangzhou and listened to the crew and businessmen telling their experiences at sea. He couldn't help longing for the magic across the ocean.

Guangzhou was an important port for China's foreign trade in ancient times. The Qing government practiced "one-stop trade", and foreign businessmen were only allowed to trade in Guangzhou. For young Mai Shiying, everything is in the right place at the right time. At that time, Australia, with a population of only 25,000, was seriously short of labor. Mr. Blacksland, a famous early Australian colonist and adventurer, was short of manpower, especially carpentry, so he promised to pay Mai Shiying handsomely and took him to distant Australia.

He worked hard, and at the age of 25, like other free people living in Sydney, he got 30 acres of land from the government. At the age of 33, with years of savings and land, he opened the first Chinese-style inn, known as the "Golden Lion Inn", and became the first China native to successfully start a business in China.

Success is always luck in the eyes of others, and only you know the difficulties. At that time, Australian Chinese were very rare and were regarded as "aliens from the northern hemisphere". It is difficult to overcome language and cultural barriers alone.

? The picture above shows the farm where Mai Shiying worked.

Two transnational marriages

The Cantonese pronunciation of Mai Shiying's name is Mai Shiying. Foreigners don't understand that China people put their surnames before their names, so they spell his surnames as "Shying", and he gives himself an English name "John". Mai Shiying, a 27-year-old "oriental gentleman", has a well-off family. She married Sarah, an Irish woman who immigrated to Australia, and has four children after marriage.

Unfortunately, when the baby was born, 35-year-old Mai Shiying suddenly returned to China alone, perhaps to visit his parents or to have a wife in China. He didn't expect to say goodbye to Sarah. Five years later, Sarah died of illness and he returned to Australia. At the age of 46, Mai Shiying remarried, and his second wife was also an Irish immigrant, probably similar to Sarah. Unfortunately, she died six months after her marriage.

The picture above shows the church where Mai Shiying and Sarah got married.

Mysterious retirement in old age

His two wives died one after another. He must be very sad. At the age of 50, he left a suicide note, distributed his property to his son, and then suddenly disappeared. Some people think that he wants to "return to his roots" and return to his hometown in Guangzhou to support the elderly. It is also said that there is a China man named John Sheehan, who is similar in age and life experience to Mai Shiying, and may have changed his surname and remarried.

There is no way to prove right and wrong, but the existence of Mai Shiying proves that Chinese landed in Australia as early as 200 years ago. His descendants still use his surname Shi Ying and are fully integrated into Australia, but the blood of China people is still inseparable. Barry Shiying is the grandson of Mai Shiying's second son. Barry Shiying always felt that he had some connection with China. He and his descendants have been searching for their roots and ancestors.

The picture shows Barry Shiying remembering his father at home. Xinhua News Agency reporter Bai She

It has been 200 years since Mai Shiying's story, but more China stories continue to be written in Australia. The brave and industrious immigrant spirit and feelings of home and country of Shiying family have influenced China people from generation to generation. I hope that today's Shiying people will gain something as soon as possible on the road to root-seeking!

Previous recommendations

●?

After Boxing Day in England, Shuang 1 1 Shuang 12 are all floating clouds?

●?

What's the difference between China's family education in Dog Thirteen and western family education?

●?

Envy national husband Wang Sicong? This is a better way to narrow the gap with him.

●?

Eight British universities refused to enroll China students? It's so fake, I almost got cheated. ...

●?

What should I eat in England? These reasons for dark cooking are complicated. ...

●?

Haven't you seen the London New Year fireworks that you must see in your life?