STRICKEN CHINA

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVI, Issue 23263, 4 February 1939, Page 12

STRICKEN CHINA

PEOPLE'S SUFFEKINGS PROGRESS OF THE WAR MME. CHIANG KAI-SHEK'S VIEW DOMINION'S AID FOR ORPHANS A vivid picture of the sufferings of the people of China is drawn in a letter received by the Hon. W. E. Barnard, Speaker of the House of Representatives and chairman of the New Zealand Council for the "Adoption" of Chinese Children, from Madame Chiang Kai-shek, wife of Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, commander of the Chinese forces. In thanking the council for its contributions toward the relief of orphans, she reviews the progress of the war and the effects of the great migration which is taking place toward the west.

"We have received three instalments, one of 22,000 dollars, a second of 21,000 dollars, and a third of 48,000 dollars," Madame Kai-shek writes. "I send thanks and appreciation on behalf of my people and the war orphans who will benefit. The delay in personal acknowledgment of New Zealand's generosity has been due to my lengthy absence with the Generalissimo on various battle fronts. Care of Refugee Children

"About 14,000 war refugee children have been moved from the war zones into the western provinces of Szechwan, Kweichow and Kwangsi. The majority are in Szechwan. The refugee children have been divided into workable units of 300. As a rule that number comprises an orphanage, which is equipped with the simplest and barest of furniture in some building loaned for the purpose. . "Each orphanage has a suitable staff of teachers under the direction of a superintendent. A group of local women forms a committee for the direction of the lifo of the children.

"One of the most encouraging features of the physical and mental development of the children is the way in which the people of China have responded to the demands made upon them. They are ably seconded by the gifts and interest of overseas Chinese in all parts of the world, and, what is more noteworthy, by generous-spirited people of other nationalities like you of New Zealand. "Now removed as far as possible from the bombings by Japanese raiders, the refugee children are slowly recovering from the shock and disturbance of war. This is as the committee has planned, for it is not possible to educate and train children while they are under fire daily. As a rule the orphanages are off in the mountains, where good food and fresh air abound. Heavy Price Exacted "The further we are compelled to withdraw by superior Japanese armament and bombers, the greater becomes the distress of the people. The Japanese, in spite of world opinion, have not reduced in any way the relentlessness with which they are pursuing the people to demoralise and impoverish them if they fail to kill them. "We are continuing the resistance. In accordance with the only strategical policy that we could adopt, our forces are being withdrawn further and further westward when the pressure of the overwhelming equipment of the Japanese has threatened to effect annihilation of some of our forces. "Our policy is and has been to make the Japanese pay as heavy a price as possible for all the ground they cover. "We pay a heavy price, too, but that is inevitable, because our armament is outclassed by that of the Japanese. Therefore we are unable to meet them on anything like an equal footing in that regard. "The valour of our soldiers, however, has caused thfe Japanese to mobilise their whole nation and raise ' loan after loan for the purpose of accomplishing what they thought they could do in three months' time when they began their attempt to conquer China. Guerilla Attacks "We have been fighting now for over 17 months. Our forces have been compelled to withdraw from great areas of our country, but that does not mean that the Japanese are able to occupy the evacuated territory in peace, or'to exploit it. Guerrillas are operating from our fighting lines right to the coast in every pajt of China. In fact, wherever there are Japanese units there are armed Chinese to resist and harass them. "Japanese occupation is mostly confined to lines of communication and to some cities. Reports from independent observers state that their great plans for the exploitation of North China are falling to the ground for a variety of reasons. "In the course of my visits to the fronts in Hupeh, Hunan, Kiangsi and Kwangtung provinces during the past few months, my experience of what ruthless warfare can be has been tremendously enlarged. Japanese bombers are cruising all the time, destroying people and property remote from battle lines, and having nothing to do with military operations. They wrack havoc everywhere. "it is the philosophy of the survivors that is so striking. In no time they are building shacks on the ashes, or continuing their business in any section of their establishments which have escaped the effects of the bombs. I have seen shopkeepers resuming business with the top parts of their houses blown to atoms, with broken rafters, smashed furniture, and belongings dangling about them. Great Migration to West "The migration of people westward, is probably one of the greatest in human history. If you will look at a map of China, and run a rule down the railway-line from, say, Peiping to Canton, you will see that the bulk of China is westward of that line. East of it is the great agricultural section of China which is being ravaged by the Japanese. To the west of it the country, hitherto remote, is absorbing the great masses who have been forced to leave their homes and their farms in the east.

"These people are penetrating to the nooks and corners of the mountains west. They are taking with them as much as possible of their handicrafts, and we are helping them to get ast xnuch equipment there as we can so that industries can be re-started and so that the natural resources may in due course be utilised for the rehabilitation of our comntry. "There is every prospect of a new China being built up in this far west Not only are fanners and artisans pouring, into the region, but, also, the colleges and the intellectuals are re-estab-lishing themselves there. They will surely lay the foundation for new national aspirations. "The conditions in Japan aro known to be serious, bat what the end is going to be no one can tell. We in China are

fighting for thei heritage that has been handed down to us as all self-respecting people should fight for their hearths and their homes and their country. "Our one consolation is the great sympathy that is shown for us by the peoples "of the democracies. At least the generation that is now in its early childhood will know how kind the people of the western world can be, and outstanding among those people are you of New Zealand who have been so generous in your help. It is deeply appreciated nob only by me and the Generalissimo personally, but by the people of our country,"