EMPRESS DOWAGER CIXI (1835-1908)

This calligraphy by Dowager Empress Cixi was accompanied by an invitation for lunch at the Forbidden City palace at 12:30pm on the 16th day of the first month to Miss Brewster. Mary Walker Brewster, who was born in 1887, was the daughter of Major General Andre Walker Brewster (1862-1942). He acted as military attaché to the American Minister to China, Edward H. Conger (1843-1907), whose wife became a friend of Dowager Empress Cixi. Miss Brewster later married James Donald Cassells, who was a Harvard graduate and a military officer.