Cornwall Legh

Cornwall Legh, Mary Helena Cornwall Legh (May 20, 1857 - December 18, 1941) was a highly-educated English woman, who devoted herself after age 50, to missionary work in Japan and especially to the welfare, education and medical care of leprosy patients in Kusatsu, Gunma Prefecture, Japan.

England and Japan

She was born at Canterbury, England in a rich family whose central figure was a baron. Her father was a colonel and died when Mary was very young. She studied music and drawing in France, education, economics, languages and English literature in a Scotland university. She became a missionary, and after the death of her mother and having finished everything she thought she should have done in England, she came to Japan in 1907 at the age of 50. She inherited an enormous sum of fortune, but she was plainly dressed and ate plain food in Japan. Between 1907 and 1915, she worked as a missionary in and around Tokyo.

St. Barnaba Mission at Kusatsu(1915-1941)

In 1915, she visited Kusatsu at the strong request of a Christian belonging to the Koenkai (Light and salt society), which had been established under the influence of Hannah Riddell who had established the Kaishun Hospital for leprosy patients in Kumamoto. Cornwall Legh investigated the Kusatsu Hot Spring, one of the gathering spots of leprosy patients. It was a problematic town where leprosy patients gathered to cure the disease, but their life was that of demoralization such as gambling, violence and sexual enjoyment. Religious revolution was anticipated. Father Joseph Jean Augustin Bertrant of Fukusei Byoin first wanted to begin missionary work and build a hospital there, but met immediate opposition. Cornwall Legh started missionary work at Kusatsu in 1916. In the same year she established a kindergarten and a women's dormitory "Family of Love", at parts of a Japanese stype hotel. In 1917, she established a clinic (Dr. Kesa Hattori, Nurse Chiyo Mikami), followed by various homes and schools. The administration of the mission and all buildings were financially paid by her, although in later years, fundraising was also conducted. For instance, in 1929, Tomekichi Matsumoto, a president of a company donated much money enough for the building of a new clinic and the salary of a doctor for 10 years.

St. Barnaba Hospital

Cornwall Legh did not make haste in everything. Chiyo Mikami, previously a nurse of Zensho Hospital and appointed as the nurse of the "Family of Love" dormitory of the St. Barnaba Mission, advised to open a clinic. Dr. Kesako Hattori came and St. Barbana Hospital was opened.

The directors of the Hospital were:

• Dr. Kesako Hattori 1917-1923
• Dr. Sadao Sato 1924-1927
• Dr. Tokitaro Nakamura 1928-1929
• Dr. Ichiro Tsuruta 1929-1941

The dissolution of St. Barnaba Mission

Legh was worried since leprosy patients hospitalized in the St. Barnaba Hospital were against the dissolution of the hospital since the Kuryu Rakusen-en Sanatorium was opend in 1932. She celebrated her 77th birthday in 1939 and went back to England for health problems. Her place was taken by Mary B. Magill. After returning to Japan, she lived in warm Akashi, Hyogo Prefecture. The St. Barnaba Hospital was dissolved on April 13, 1941. She died on December 18, 1941 at Akashi.

Honours

• In 1928, she was given Blue Ribbon Medal.
• In 1939,she was given the 6th Order of the Sacred Treasure.
• In 1943,the hill presented by her was named "Cornwall Legh Park".

Admiration

Eiko Arai wrote that the combination of the missionary work and welfare in Kusatsu was magnificent. Legh respected the human rights of people with leprosy, and all she did was in the interests of these people. She respected the opinions of people, and she did not give priority to her principles.^[1]

References

• Photo album:A Story of Cornwall Legh, Conwall Legh Memorial Society, 2007. (in Japanese)
• Hansen's disease and Christianity, Eiko Arai, Iwanami Shoten, 1996.(In Japanese)
• The 60 years of the Yunosawa Colony by Kiyoshi Shimozaki and Ken Inoue, Repura 12,6, (in Kindai Shomin Seikatsushi 20, San-ichi Shobou, 1995.)(in Japanese)

Notes

1. ^ Hansen's disease and Christianity. Eiko Arai, Iwanami Shoten 1996 (in Japanese)

External links

• on Dec.1,2009Legh family HP

Persondata
Name	Legh, Cornwall
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	May 20, 1857
Place of birth	Canterbury, England
Date of death	December 18, 1941
Place of death	Akashi