Nursing in other Countries 303 ology, which China has long held, or to the position of women. Confucius taught that women were, indeed, human beings, but inferior to men, and his precepts inculcated the most complete submission of women to male control. Then, too, the belief in evil spirits as the cause of disease prevents the development of real nursing care, and condemns the sick to all sorts of painful and harrowing con- ditions, as found today by medical missionaries. The various mission centres in China developed hospitals during the nineteenth century (Canton, the first, in 1835) a-^d the teaching of nurses followed gradually. Nina D. Gage points out that women physicians first undertook the training of Chinese pupils. She mentions Dr. Combs, in Pekin, in 1873. By the opening of the twentieth century there were many flourishing hospitals with nursing schools where Chinese students were be- coming proficient in the art of skilled nursing. The Central China Medical Missions Association has been prominent in encouraging nursing. So many foreign nurses were busy in China in 1900- 19 10 that they formed "The Nurses' Association of China" and reported their proceedings in the China Medical Journal. Their aim was to define an acceptable professional standard, bring Chinese nurses into membership, and work for a central
