RED CHINA THE SELF-BOUND GULLIVER (SEE COVER) " COMMUNISM IS NOT LOVE 
! " CRIED MAO TSE-TUNG . " COMMUNISM IS A HAMMER 
WE USE TO DESTROY OUR ENEMIES ! " MAO, THE SOMEWHAT 
ENIGMATIC RULER OF RED CHINA, HAS CERTAINLY BEEN FLAILING IN ALL 
DIRECTIONS WITH HIS HAMMER OF LATE, BUT NOTHING MUCH HAS BEEN 
DESTROYED . EVEN NIKITA KHRUSHCHEV, MAO'S MOST RECENT TARGET, HAS EMERGED 
UNSCATHED FROM PEKING'S INCESSANT BLOWS . THE ONLY THING MAO HAS 
DONE WITH HIS PAPER HAMMER IS TO FAN NEW HATREDS FOR 
HIMSELF AND HIS RED REGIME . TINY ALLIES . NOT TOO 
LONG AGO, RED CHINA HAD FRIENDS GALORE . MANY OF THE 
UNDERDEVELOPED NATIONS OF ASIA, AND COLONIAL PEOPLES EVERYWHERE, LISTENED ADMIRINGLY TO 
MAO'S BOASTFUL PLANS OF A SWIFT TRANSITION FROM POVERTY TO PLENTY 
. THE LEFT WING IN WESTERN EUROPE AND THE U.S., DISENCHANTED 
WITH STALIN'S TERROR, SAW MAO AS A NEW AND NOBLER ARCHITECT 
OF A PEOPLES' SOCIALISM . IN THE UNITED NATIONS, IT SEEMED 
ONLY A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE RAMBUNCTIOUS AFRO-ASIAN VOTES OVERCAME U.S 
. RESISTANCE TO THE IDEA OF TAKING CHINA'S SEAT AWAY FROM 
THE NATIONALISTS ON FORMOSA AND GIVING IT TO THE COMMUNIST REGIME 
. BUT MAO FINDS LITTLE SYMPATHY ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD TODAY 
. HE HAS EMBROILED HIS HARD-PRESSED COUNTRY IN SIMULTANEOUS FEUDS WITH 
THE U.S., THE SOVIET UNION AND INDIA, THE THREE MOST POPULOUS 
NATIONS IN THE WORLD AFTER HIS OWN . IN FACT, HE 
HAS PLUNGED CHINA INTO AN ISOLATION SO COMPLETE THAT HE CAN 
COUNT AS CERTAIN ALLIES ONLY TINY NORTH KOREA IN ASIA AND 
EVEN TINIER ALBANIA IN EUROPE . IT SEEMS LIKE SHEER LUNACY 
FOR MAO TO CHALLENGE THE TWO GREATEST POWERS ON EARTH AT 
A TIME WHEN CHINA'S INDUSTRY AND AGRICULTURE ARE STILL STAGGERING FROM 
THE DISASTERS OF THE GREAT LEAP FORWARD AND BEFORE HE HAS 
THE ARMAMENTS TO ENGAGE IN ANY LARGE-SCALE CONTEST . BUT IT 
IS ENTIRELY POSSIBLE THAT MAO MAY HAVE COME TO FEEL THAT 
THE ONLY WAY TO BREAK CHINA'S ECONOMIC FETTERS, AND STILL ABIDE 
BY HIS HARSH IDEOLOGICAL TENETS, LIES IN A DRAMATIC CHANGE IN 
THE INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ORDER . TO THAT END HE HAS EMPHASIZED 
BOTH RACE AND COLOR IN HIS ATTEMPT TO WIN FRIENDS AND 
ALLIANCES . RED CHINA HAS ALWAYS DREAMED OF ONE DAY EMPLOYING 
INDONESIA'S OIL, THAILAND'S RICE, EVEN JAPAN'S TECHNOLOGY, AS FUEL FOR A 
HUGE ASIAN ALLIANCE THAT COULD SAFELY DEFY THE WEST . AND 
NOW MAO HAS BEEN EMPHASIZING COLOR AS A WAY TO ALIGN 
THE HAVE-NOT NATIONS OF ASIA AND AFRICA AGAINST THE WEST . 
PANDAS & TIGERS . IT WOULD SEEM OBVIOUS THAT MAO TSE-TUNG 
HAS ENOUGH TROUBLE AT HOME WITHOUT LOOKING FOR IT ABROAD . 
THE GREAT LEAP FORWARD, LAUNCHED WITH SUCH FANFARE IN 1958, WAS 
INTENDED TO BRING QUICK SUCCESS IN 1) BUILDING A PURE COMMUNIST 
STATE, AND 2) MAKING CHINA OVER INTO A FIRST-CLASS WORLD POWER 
. INSTEAD, THE LEAP'S FRENZIED MOBILIZATION OF PEASANTS INTO COMMUNES, THE 
SETTING UP OF BACKYARD BLAST FURNACES, AND THE 24-HOUR-A-DAY SPEEDUP IN 
THE FACTORIES NEARLY WRECKED THE NATION . TODAY, CHINA'S AGING RED 
LEADERSHIP (AVERAGE AGE : 63) KNOWS THAT IT WILL NEVER SEE 
THE PROMISED LAND, AND THAT CHINA MUST LABOR ON FOR AT 
LEAST A QUARTER CENTURY PERHAPS MUCH LONGER BEFORE ACCOMPLISHING THE SECOND 
GOAL . WHAT MANNER OF COUNTRY AND WHAT SORT OF PEOPLE 
MUST THE COMMUNISTS DEAL WITH IN TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH THEIR MISSION 
? CHINA, OF COURSE, IS ENORMOUS 14 TIMES THE SIZE OF 
TEXAS . IT EXTENDS 2,400 MILES FROM THE BANKS OF THE 
AMUR RIVER IN TOPMOST MANCHURIA TO THE TROPICAL JUNGLE BORDER WITH 
VIET NAM, AND 2,500 MILES ACROSS FROM THE INDENTED COAST ON 
THE CHINA SEA TO THE KUNLUN MOUNTAINS DEEP IN CENTRAL ASIA 
. INSIDE THIS VAST DOMAIN LIES JUST ABOUT EVERY VARIETY OF 
FLORA AND FAUNA IMAGINABLE, FROM ROLLICKING PANDAS TO PROWLING TIGERS, FROM 
THE INVIGORATING GINSENG ROOT TO GROVES OF THIN NANMU TREES . 
TO ITS PEOPLE, CHINA SIMPLY MEANS " HERE . " SINCE 
THE DAYS OF PREHISTORY, CHINA HAS TRADITIONALLY BEEN A WORLD IN 
ITSELF, SEPARATED FROM OUTSIDE BARBARIANS BY THE MOST PERFECT OF PHYSICAL 
BARRIERS . ON THE EAST AND SOUTH IS THE PACIFIC, THE 
LARGEST OF OCEANS . TO THE WEST RISES THE HIGHEST PLATEAU 
ON EARTH . IN THE NORTH STRETCH THOUSANDS OF MILES OF 
DESERT ; AND HERE, TO PREVENT REPEATED INCURSIONS OF HARD-RIDING NOMADS 
. CHINESE EMPERORS BUILT THE 1,500-MILE GREAT WALL . REBELLION'S HOME 
. THOUGH UNITED BY AN ANCIENT CULTURE, CHINA HAS NEVER BEEN 
AS MONOLITHIC AS IT LOOKS . AN EASTWEST LINE DRAWN ACROSS 
THE COUNTRY BETWEEN THE VALLEYS OF THE YANGTZE AND YELLOW RIVERS 
DIVIDES NORTH FROM SOUTH CHINA . NORTH OF THE LINE, SUMMERS 
ARE SHORT AND HOT, WINTERS LONG AND BITTERLY COLD, AND THE 
PRINCIPAL CROPS ARE WHEAT AND MILLET . THE MEN OF NORTH 
CHINA ARE OFTEN AS TALL AS AMERICANS, RELATIVELY PLACID, CEREMONIAL AND 
SAY THE SOUTHERNERS SLOW-THINKING . SOUTH OF THE LINE, THE CLIMATE 
IS HOT AND HUMID, AND THE PRINCIPAL CROP IS RICE . 
BROKEN UP INTO VALLEYS AND SMALL PLAINS BY INNUMERABLE MOUNTAIN RANGES, 
THE SOUTH IS THE HOME OF INDIVIDUALISM, ANARCHY AND MYSTICAL INTROSPECTION 
. THE SHORTSTATURED SOUTHERNERS SPEAK A MULTITUDE OF DIALECTS, ARE COMMERCIALLY 
ENTERPRISING AND PERENNIALLY REBELLIOUS ALMOST EVERY CHINESE REVOLUTION HAS ORIGINATED IN 
THE SOUTH . PRACTICALLY ALL CHINESE CITIZENS OF THE U.S . 
CAME ORIGINALLY FROM A SMALL SOUTH CHINA AREA NEAR CANTON CALLED 
TOISHAN, WHICH IS TODAY, CURIOUSLY ENOUGH, KNOWN IN CHINA AS " 
THE HOME OF VOLLEYBALL . / NATION'S BIRTHPLACE . CHINA'S 22 
PROVINCES BAFFLE FOREIGNERS BECAUSE SO MANY OF THEM SOUND ALIKE (HONAN, 
HUNAN ; KIANGSU, KIANGSI NSI, SHENSI) . MOST TYPICAL OF THE 
NORTHERN PROVINCES IS PERHAPS HOPEH, WHICH CONTAINS THE CAPITAL CITY OF 
PEKING . FROM ITS RUGGED BORDER WITH MANCHURIA, THE PROVINCE RUNS 
DOWN IN A SHELVING PLAIN TO THE SHALLOW GULF OF CHIHLI 
. VERY FEW EMINENT COMMUNISTS COME FROM HOPEH OR ITS NEIGHBORING 
PROVINCE OF SHANSI, WHICH IS NOTED FOR SACRED MOUNTAINS AND SUCH 
SPECTACULAR CAVE TEMPLES AS YUN KANG, WHERE A MILE-LONG CLIFF FACE 
HAS BEEN CHISELED INTO THOUSANDS OF BUDDHIST IMAGES . SHENSI IS 
REVERENCED AS THE BIRTHPLACE OF THE CHINESE NATION, AND WHEN THE 
COUNTRY WAS FIRST UNIFIED BY THE CH'IN DYNASTY IN 221 B.C., 
ITS CAPITAL WAS NEAR PRESENT-DAY SIAN . SOUTH CHINA IS A 
MUCH LARGER AND MORE VARIED REGION THAN THE NORTH . THE 
PEOPLE OF KIANGSI ARE THE SCOTS OF CHINA AND ARE SAID 
TO BE CLANNISH, STINGY AND QUARRELSOME . THEY HAVE HAD LONG 
EXPERIENCE OF COMMUNISM AND, PRESUMABLY, FEW ILLUSIONS, SINCE THE CHINESE SOVIET 
REPUBLIC WAS ESTABLISHED THERE IN 1931 AND HELD OUT AGAINST THE 
NATIONALISTS UNTIL 1934, WHEN MAO LED WHAT WAS LEFT OF HIS 
TROOPS ON THE 8,000-MILE LONG MARCH TO YENAN IN THE NORTH 
. KIANGSI'S SOUND-ALIKE NEIGHBOR, KIANGSU, HAD A REPUTATION FOR VOLUPTUOUSNESS AND 
EASY LIVING . THE KIANGSU CITY OF SOOCHOW WAS THE SYBARIS 
OF OLD CHINA, AND PROSTITUTES IN ALL PARTS OF THE COUNTRY 
TRIED TO IMITATE THE SOFT SOOCHOW DIALECT WITH ITS MUSICAL, ROUNDED 
VOWELS . LAND OF LEADERS . THE FRUIT-RICH PROVINCE OF SHANTUNG, 
HOME OF CONFUCIUS AND HIS FELLOW SAGE MENCIUS, IS INHABITED BY 
A STURDY PEASANTRY THAT SPEAKS A MANDARIN DIALECT SO HARSH AND 
UNMELODIC THAT CHINESE SAY, " BETTER TO QUARREL WITH A MAN 
FROM SOOCHOW THAN TO CONVERSE CIVILLY WITH A SHANTUNGESE . " 
BEAUTIFUL SZECHWAN BOASTS THAT IT GROWS ENOUGH FOOD TO FEED FIVE 
PROVINCES, AND IT IS FILLED WITH TERRACED HILLS, RIVERS, COAL AND 
VALUABLE MINERALS . ANHWEI CONTAINS THE SUGAR-LOAF MOUNTAINS AND PINNACLED ROCKS 
MADE FAMOUS BY THE MISTY PAINTINGS OF CHINESE ARTISTS . TO 
THE COMMUNISTS, THE THREE MOST IMPORTANT PROVINCES ARE THE SOUTHERN STATES 
OF HUNAN, CHEKIANG AND KWANGTUNG, WHICH PRODUCED MOST OF TODAY'S RED 
LEADERS. MAO TSE-TUNG WAS BORN NEAR THE CAPITAL CITY OF CHANGSHA, 
AS WAS HIS NO . 2 MAN, LIU SHAO-CHI . OTHER 
RED HUNANESE : LABOR BOSS LI LI-SAN, ARMY COMMANDERS PENG TEH-HUAI 
AND LO JUNG-HUAN . KWANGTUNG, WITH ITS CAPITAL CITY OF CANTON, 
IS THE NERVE CENTER OF SOUTH CHINA . ITS MEN HAVE 
A REPUTATION FOR PUGNACITY AND BUSINESS ENTERPRISE, ITS WOMEN FOR SLIM, 
ALMONDEYED BEAUTY . WAY OUT WEST . BEYOND CHINA PROPER EXTEND 
VAST TERRITORIES THAT WERE CONQUERED CENTURIES AGO BUT OFTEN LIGHTLY HELD 
BY THE CHINESE . THE BROAD PLAINS OF MANCHURIA HAVE BECOME 
THE THREE PROVINCES OF KIRIN, HEILUNGKIANG, AND LIAONING . SHENYANG, FORMERLY 
KNOWN AS MUKDEN, IS THE PITTSBURGH OF CHINA, AND ITS STEEL 
MILLS ARE WITHIN SIGHT OF THE FELT-COVERED TENTS OF MANCHU HERDSMEN, 
WHO ARE NOW OUTNUMBERED ABOUT 30 TO 1 BY CHINESE IMMIGRANTS 
. AS WELL AS MOST OF GENERALISSIMO CHIANG KAI-SHEK'S UNSEATED KUOMINTANG 
CHIEFS . AT INNER MONGOLIA BEGINS CHINA'S FAR WEST, WHICH ALMOST 
EXACTLY RESEMBLES THAT OF THE U.S . PRAIRIE, DESERT AND TOWERING 
MOUNTAINS AND IS INHABITED BY THE CHINESE EQUIVALENT OF AMERICAN INDIANS, 
THE UIGHUR, KAZAKH AND KHIRGHIZ TRIBESMEN, WHO ARE DISTINCT IN RACE 
AND RELIGION (MOSLEM) FROM THEIR OVERLORDS . THE TRIBESMEN HAVE REPEATEDLY 
REBELLED AGAINST ALL CENTRAL GOVERNMENTS AND MAKE NO EXCEPTION OF THE 
COMMUNIST REGIME . LEAP'S LOSS . NO ONE CAN SAY WITH 
ACCURACY HOW MANY PEOPLE LIVE WITHIN CHINA'S BORDERS . THE COMMUNISTS' 
1953 CENSUS SAID 582 MILLION . THE CHINESE NATIONALISTS ARGUE THAT 
THIS FIGURE WAS TOO HIGH ; IN FACT, SAYS THE U.S 
. CENSUS BUREAU, IT WAS FAR TOO LOW, AND VIRTUALLY ALL 
WESTERN EXPERTS AGREE . IN ANY CASE, THE U.S . STATE 
DEPARTMENT BELIEVES THAT CHINA'S POPULATION IN JUNE OF THIS YEAR WAS 
SOMEWHERE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF 720 MILLION . THIS LAND AND 
THIS PEOPLE HAVE NOW LIVED FOR 14 YEARS UNDER THE RULE 
OF THE COMMUNISTS . THE GAINS HAVE BEEN CONVULSIVE : SCHOOLS 
BUILT AT THE SAME FRENZIED PACE AS TRACTOR PLANTS ; HOSPITALS 
RUSHED UP IN PROVINCES THAT HAD SCARCELY EVEN SEEN A DOCTOR 
; ROADS AND RAILWAYS THROWN OVER GORGES, THROUGH MOUNTAINS AND ACROSS 
DESERTS . THE PACE WAS SO FAST AND FRENZIED THAT IT 
RESULTED IN MISMANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE LUNACY TO THE EXTENT THAT THE 
COMMUNISTS HAVE LOST CHINA A GOOD FIVE YEARS IN ITS REBUILDING, 
AND THE NATION IS NOW ESTIMATED TO BE JUST ABOUT WHERE 
IT WAS IN 1957 IN INDUSTRY AND CROP PRODUCTION . EVEN 
IN 1957, SUPPLIES WERE JUST BARELY SUFFICIENT FOR NEEDS, AND SINCE 
THAT TIME, AT LEAST 70 MILLION MORE CHINESE HAVE BEEN BORN 
AND MUST BE FED, CLOTHED, HOUSED AND EDUCATED . PEKING HAS 
DUG INTO ITS SLENDER CASH RESERVES TO BUY WHEAT FROM ABROAD 
AT A TOTAL COST OF $782 MILLION . THE QUARREL WITH 
RUSSIA HAS BEEN EQUALLY DAMAGING . WHEN SOVIET ENGINEERS AND TECHNICIANS 
WERE ABRUPTLY CALLED HOME IN 1960, THEY NOT ONLY LEFT MANY 
CONSTRUCTION JOBS INCOMPLETE BUT ALSO TOOK THEIR BLUEPRINTS WITH THEM . 
PEKING FINDS SPARE PARTS FOR SOVIET EQUIPMENT HARD TO GET, AND 
MUST CANNIBALIZE SOME MACHINES TO KEEP OTHERS WORKING . MANY FACTORIES 
ARE NOW DEVOTED TO MAKING SPARE PARTS INSTEAD OF NEW ITEMS 
. HEAVY INDUSTRY HAS HAD TO GIVE WAY TO LIGHT, AND 
AT LEAST TWO PLANTS FORMERLY MAKING RAILROAD CARS ARE NOW TURNING 
OUT RUBBER-TIRED HANDCARTS AND WHEELBARROWS . IRON MONUMENTS . AGRICULTURE IS 
CHINA'S JUGULAR VEIN, AND THE YEAR'S CRITICAL PERIOD IS THE WINTER 
CROP HARVEST, WHICH TAKES PLACE IN SPRING AND EARLY SUMMER . 
CURRENT ESTIMATES ARE THAT THIS YEAR'S CROP WILL FLUCTUATE AROUND THE 
180-185 MILLION TONS OF GRAIN ACHIEVED LAST YEAR A GOOD BUT 
NOT A SENSATIONALLY GREAT HARVEST YEAR . THE COMMUNES OF THE 
GREAT LEAP EXIST NO LONGER EXCEPT ON PAPER, AND THE COUNTRYSIDE 
IS DOTTED WITH RUSTING PILLARS OF PIG IRON, MELANCHOLY MEMORIALS OF 
THE BACKYARD FURNACES THAT MAO THOUGHT WOULD REVITALIZE CHINA . THE 
TYPICAL FARM UNIT NOW IS A PRODUCTION TEAM OF 25 TO 
40 FAMILIES, WHICH ARE GIVEN CONSIDERABLE AUTONOMY IN DECIDING WHAT AND 
WHEN TO PLANT . PRIVATE PLOTS WERE RETURNED TO THE PEASANTS 
IN 1961, AND ARE PRODUCING WELL FOR THE FREE MARKET . 
AS USUAL, THE COMMUNISTS KEEP CLOSE WATCH : THE STICK COMES 
DOWN IN THE FORM OF CLOSE REGULATION OF THE FREE MARKET, 
AND THE CARROT IS DANGLED IN THE GUARANTEES OF SLIGHTLY HIGHER 
PRICES FOR CROPS SOLD TO THE STATE OVER AND ABOVE THE 
COMPULSORY DELIVERIES . IN THE PAST AND IN THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE, 
EVERY HARVEST BECOMES A TIME OF NATIONAL BREATH HOLDING . IN 
A BORDERLINE ECONOMY LIKE THAT OF CHINA, ANY IMPROVEMENT IS IMMEDIATELY 
FELT, AND SO IS EVERY DECLINE . DOUBLE SELVES . BUT 
WHAT MOST THREATENS THE REGIME IS THE SQUANDERED RESERVES OF GOOD 
WILL AMONG MILLIONS OF CHINESE WHO HAD BEEN IMPRESSED BY THE 
COMMUNISTS' DISPLAY OF STRENGTH, INCORRUPTIBILITY AND IRON DISCIPLINE . MORE THAN 
BY PHYSICAL LABOR, THE CHINESE HAVE BEEN WORN OUT BY MASS 
BRAIN-WASHING SESSIONS, PUBLIC-ACCUSATION MEETINGS, COLLECTIVE CONFESSIONS, AND ENDLESS " STRUGGLE " 
CONFERENCES IN WHICH RELAYS OF REDS UPBRAID BACKSLIDERS . AS A 
RESULT, HARRIED CITIZENS DEVELOP WHAT ONE EXPERT CALLS " DOUBLE SELVES, 
AN OUTER, SUPERFICIAL SELF THAT CONFORMS TO COMMUNIST DEMANDS, AND AN 
INNER, MORAL SELF THAT REMAINS HIDDEN . " BUT IN GENERAL, 
RIGID DISCIPLINE FELL AWAY WITH THE COLLAPSE OF THE GREAT LEAP, 
AND FOOD RATIONS WERE INCREASED TO APPEASE A RESTIVE CITIZENRY . 
MORE RECENTLY, A NEW CAMPAIGN HAS BEEN INSTITUTED TO STAMP OUT 
APATHY . IT IS A MORE SOPHISTICATED PROJECT . THESE DAYS 
NO ONE URGES THE CITIZENRY TO COLLECT FLIES IN MATCHBOXES ; 
THE CRY IS : FIGHT WASTE, FIGHT CORRUPTION, FIGHT PRIVILEGE . 
NICE TO MOTHERS . SOME OF THE TRAPPINGS OF THE NEW 
PROPAGANDA CAMPAIGN ARE WEIRD . IN RECENT MONTHS, NEWSPAPERS AND MAGAZINES 
HAVE REJOICED OVER THE BEHAVIOR OF THE / GOOD 8TH COMPANY 
ON NANKING ROAD, " AN ARMY DETACHMENT ON GARRISON DUTY IN 
THE HEART OF WICKED SHANGHAI . THESE HEROES HAVE PRESERVED THEIR 
COMMUNIST PURITY FOR 14 LONG YEARS IN THE FACE OF INNUMERABLE 
TEMPTATIONS BY BOURGEOIS CAPITALIST DEVILS . WHEN " PROFESSIONAL LOAFERS " 
TRIED TO BRIBE THEM WITH WADS OF BANKNOTES, THE MONEY WAS 
SPURNED ; WHEN " OVERDRESSED WOMEN ACCOSTED THEM ON THE STREET, 
THE SOLDIERS ORDERED THEM AWAY . " ONE SOLDIER FOUND A 
PENNY AND PROMPTLY TURNED IT OVER TO THE COMPANY'S POLITICAL INSTRUCTOR, 
WHO EXPLAINED TO THE OTHERS : " ONE CENT IS ALMOST 
NOTHING, BUT IF HE HAD KEPT IT, HE WOULD HAVE A 
SHADY SPOT IN HIS HEART . / EVEN MORE EDIFYING IS 
THE CASE OF 22-YEAR-OLD LEI FENG, A SQUAD LEADER IN AN 
ARMY TRANSPORT COMPANY STATIONED IN MANCHURIA . IN THE BAD OLD 
DAYS, HIS FATHER WAS BURIED ALIVE BY THE JAPANESE, HIS TWO 
BROTHERS STARVED TO DEATH, AND HIS MOTHER HANGED HERSELF AFTER BEING 
RAPED BY A LANDLORD . IN THE GOOD NEW DAYS, LEI 
FENG WAS ALWAYS HELPING OLD LADIES ACROSS STREETS, BUYING RAILWAY TICKETS 
FOR MOTHERS WHO HAD LOST THEIRS, RUSHING OUT TO DO VOLUNTEER 
WORK ON DIKES AND CANALS, AND DIGGING WITH HIS FINGERS WHEN 
HIS SHOVEL BROKE . LEI FENG DIED LAST YEAR IN AN 
ACCIDENT BUT, FORTUNATELY FOR THE PROPAGANDISTS, LEFT BEHIND A 200,000-WORD DIARY 
FILLED WITH SUCH SENTIMENTS AS " I THINK MY PURPOSE IN 
LIFE IS TO WORK FOR A BETTER LIFE FOR OTHERS, " 
AND, " I AM ALL FOR THE PARTY, SOCIALISM AND COMMUNISM 
. " HAILED AS THE IDEAL COMMUNIST, LEI FENG IS INTENDED 
TO BE THE MODEL FOR CHINESE YOUTH WHO HAVE TROUBLE IDENTIFYING 
WITH THE GRIZZLED VETERANS OF THE LONG MARCH AND THE CIVIL 
WAR . IN THE PAST YEAR, AT LEAST 40 BOOKS HAVE 
BEEN WRITTEN ABOUT LEI FENG, AND 1,000 STORYTELLERS ROAM THE VILLAGES 
ENTHRALLING ILLITERATE PEASANTS WITH HIS EXPLOITS AND HIS LOVE OF MAO 
. COLLECTING COUPONS . BUT IF LEI FENG REPRESENTS THE MYTHICAL 
YOUNG CHINESE, WHAT IS THE REALITY LIKE .? ONE ANSWER CAME 
LAST WEEK FROM A U.S . TURNCOAT, BELGIAN-BORN ALBERT BELHOMME, A 
FORMER G.I . WHO HAD DEFECTED TO CHINA AFTER THE KOREAN 
WAR . AFTER TEN YEARS IN CHINA, BELHOMME AND TWO OTHER 
U.S . DEFECTORS, LOWELL SKINNER AND SCOTT RUSH, BECAME POLITICALLY DISILLUSIONED 
AND WERE ALLOWED TO LEAVE THE COUNTRY . BELHOMME SAYS THE 
AVERAGE WAGE AT THE PAPER FACTORY IN TSINAN WHERE HE WAS 
EMPLOYED WAS ABOUT $18 A MONTH . SINGLE WORKERS LIVED IN 
DORMITORIES WITH FOUR BUNKS TO A ROOM, FAMILIES IN ONEROOM APARTMENTS 
IN BLOCKS OF BRICK FLATS . DURING LUNCH BREAKS AT THE 
FACTORY, BELHOMME RECALLS, WORKERS " TALKED MOSTLY ABOUT FOOD, HOW TO 
GET FOOD, AND PRICES . " WHEN AN OFFICE WORKER REFERRED 
TO THE COMMUNIST CADRES AS " GOLDEN BOYS, " HIS REWARD 
WAS A TRIP TO A " LABOR-EDUCATION CAMP, " AND THEN 
TO JAIL . ON HIS RETURN TO THE FACTORY, HE WAS 
RE-EMPLOYED, BUT AS A COMMON LABORER . IN CHINA TODAY, FOOD 
IS PLENTIFUL IN SOME AREAS, SCARCE IN OTHERS . SO IT 
IS WITH ITEMS SUCH AS CLOTH . LAST YEAR, WHEN THE 
CLOTH RATION IN CANTON WAS ONLY 1F FEET PER PERSON ANNUALLY, 
IT WAS 7 FEET IN TSINAN . TO BUY COMMODITIES, WORKERS 
NEEDED COUPONS AS WELL AS MONEY : ONE COUPON, PLUS THE 
NECESSARY CASH PRICE, GOT A SMALL COOKING POT . EACH CITIZEN 
ALSO RECEIVED A TICKET FOR TWO BARS OF TOILET SOAP A 
YEAR, AND ONE OF LAUNDRY SOAP PER MONTH, AND THERE WERE 
RATION CARDS FOR COOKING OIL, FLOUR, SUGAR AND SWEETS . THE 
MEAT RATION IN TSINAN IS CURRENTLY THREE OUNCES A MONTH, AND 
GRAIN IS 37 POUNDS FOR MEN DOING " MEDIUM-HEAVY " WORK 
. (MOST TOWNS ALSO HAVE FREE MARKETS, AT WHICH FOOD IS 
AVAILABLE OFF RATION AT HIGH PRICES.) SAYS BELHOMME : / PEOPLE 
ARE NOT HUNGRY TODAY, BUT THEY ARE DEFINITELY NOT FULL . 
/ THE GRIMNESS AND SCARCITY OF LIFE IN CHINA IS SOMETIMES 
BRIGHTENED BY EXPLOITS TESTIFYING TO THE INGENUITY AND DOGGED WORK OF 
ITS CITIZENS . CANADA'S DR . WILDER PENFIELD, ONE OF THE 
WORLD'S TOP NEUROSURGEONS, RETURNED LAST WEEK FROM RED CHINA AND TOLD 
OF A UNIVERSITY OF SHANGHAI MEDICAL TEAM THAT BUILT A HEART-LUNG 
MACHINE FROM SCRATCH IN 18 MONTHS . WHEN THEY TESTED IT 
WITH DOGS, THE ANIMALS DIED OF AIR BUBBLES IN THE HEART 
. THE CHINESE WENT BACK TO WORK, GUIDED ONLY BY ARTICLES 
IN MEDICAL JOURNALS, AND THREE YEARS LATER CAME UP WITH A 
FAR BETTER MACHINE WHICH HAS NOW BEEN USED IN 60 SUCCESSFUL 
OPENHEART SURGICAL CASES . PLANNED BLESSINGS . CHINA'S FUTURE DEPENDS LARGELY 
UPON THE PILLARS OF THE PARTY : THE ARMY AND THE 
STUDENTS . FROM ALL THREE MUST COME THE SKILLS AND DEDICATION 
NEEDED TO DEAL WITH THE STAGGERING PROBLEMS POSED BY OVERPOPULATION AND 
UNDERPRODUCTION . AT THE TOP OF THE PYRAMID IS CHAIRMAN MAO 
TSE-TUNG, WHOM THE PARTY ACKNOWLEDGES TO BE OMNIPOTENT AND INCAPABLE OF 
MISTAKES . THE PEOPLE ARE ENDLESSLY TOLD THAT MAO IS THE 
SUN, THE LODESTAR, THE LIVING BUDDHA, AND HE IS SAID TO 
BE FAR GREATER " THAN THE EMPTY, HYPOCRITICAL AND NEGATIVE JESUS 
CHRIST . " PEASANTS ARE TAUGHT TO SING : THE SUN 
IS RISING IN THE EAST . CHINA HAS BROUGHT FORTH A 
MAO TSETUNG . HE PLANS BLESSINGS FOR THE PEOPLE . AIYAYAO, 
HE IS THE PEOPLES' GREAT SAVIOR ! WHATEVER THE PROPAGANDA, MAO 
HAS WORKED FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS WITH THE OTHER SIX 
MEMBERS OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE OF THE 19-MAN POLITBURO WITHOUT AN 
INTERNAL BLOODBATH A RECORD UNMATCHED BY ANY OTHER MODERN TYRANNY, COMMUNIST 
OR FASCIST . AMONG THIS BAND OF BROTHERS, DISSENT IS POSSIBLE 
YOU MAY LOSE YOUR JOB BUT NOT YOUR HEAD . ECONOMIC 
CHIEF CHEN YUN OPPOSED MAO'S GREAT LEAP AND IT ONLY COST 
HIM A TEMPORARY FALL FROM POWER . THE OTHER FIVE COMMITTEEMEN 
ARE HEIR APPARENT LIU SHAO-CHI (TIME, OCT . 12, 1959), PREMIER 
CHOU EN-LAI (TIME, MAY 10, 1954), DEFENSE MINISTER LIN PIAO, VICE 
PREMIER TENG HSIAO-PING AND CONGRESS CHAIRMAN CHU TEH . UNHAPPY GENERALS 
. THE PEOPLE'S LIBERATION ARMY NOW 2,600,000 STRONG IS BY FAR 
THE MOST IMPRESSIVE PRODUCT OF RED CHINA, BUT THERE IS EVIDENCE 
OF DISSATISFACTION AT THE TOP AND BOTTOM OF THE ARMY . 
AMONG THE GENERALS, THOSE HAVING A GUERRILLA MENTALITY CONFLICT WITH THE 
PROFESSIONALS, WHO ARGUE THAT TO OBTAIN THE SUPPLIES NEEDED BY A 
MODERN ARMY, CHINA MUST COOPERATE CLOSELY WITH THE SOVIET UNION . 
DEFENSE MINISTER PENG TEH-HUAI, LEADING SPOKESMAN FOR THE PROFESSIONALS, WAS DISMISSED 
FROM HIS POST IN 1959, BUT REMAINS A MEMBER OF THE 
COMMUNIST CENTRAL COMMITTEE . THE SINO-SOVIET SPLIT SERIOUSLY HAMPERS THE AIR 
FORCE (3,000 PLANES, HALF OF THEM OLD-FASHIONED MIG-15 FIGHTERS), WHICH HAS 
BEEN DEPENDENT ON RUSSIA FOR AIRCRAFT, JET FUEL AND SPARE PARTS 
. THE SPLIT WITH MOSCOW DOUBTLESS UPSET MANY HIGH-RANKING OFFICERS, AND 
LAST MAY THE PARTY LAUNCHED ONE OF THE BIGGEST OF ITS 
PERIODIC CLEANSINGS OF THE ARMED FORCES . NINETEEN NEW ARMY REGULATIONS 
WERE ANNOUNCED . THEIR AIM WAS TO " PLACE THE ARMY 
UNDER ABSOLUTE PARTY LEADERSHIP AND TO GUARANTEE THAT THE ARMY WILL 
ADVANCE VICTORIOUSLY IN LINE WITH THE DIRECTIVES OF PARTY CHAIRMAN MAO 
TSE-TUNG . / PEKING POSTERS . RED CHINA'S EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM IS 
BASED ON PROMOTION OF THE BEST STUDENTS AND WORK FOR THE 
REST OFTEN AS " CULTURED PEASANTS " TO RAISE THE INTELLECTUAL 
LEVEL IN THE VILLAGES . THESE LUCKLESS STUDENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES 
HATE THE WHOLE BUSINESS, AND THE COMMUNIST PRESS IS CAMPAIGNING TO 
MAKE EX-STUDENTS " GLADLY " ACCEPT THEIR WORK ASSIGNMENTS . ONE 
PAPER RECENTLY HEAPED GLORY ON THE COLLEGE STUDENTS WHO SMIRKED SCARCELY 
AT ALL WHEN ONE OLD GRAD CAME BACK TO TAKE A 
JOB ON THE CAMPUS CLEANING THE TOILETS . THE SCHOOLS HAVE 
BECOME A CASUALTY OF THE GREAT LEAP . IN 1961-62 ENROLLMENT 
WAS CUT 20 PER CENT , AND THEN CUT ANOTHER 20 
PER CENT THE FOLLOWING YEAR . THIS IS A DANGEROUS BUSINESS, 
FOR IT WAS STUDENT DISAFFECTION THAT MADE THE COMMUNISTS' TASK ALL 
THE EASIER IN THEIR FINAL BIG PUSH AGAINST THE KUOMINTANG . 
COMMUNISM'S PROBLEM, AT THIS MOMENT OF INDUSTRIAL SLOWDOWN, IS THAT THERE 
IS A SHORTAGE OF TECHNICAL AND MANAGERIAL JOBS, NOT OF EDUCATED 
PEOPLE . THE COMMUNIST PARTY HAS VIEWED THE STUDENTS WITH CONSIDERABLE 
SUSPICION EVER SINCE THE PERIOD OF THE HUNDRED FLOWERS, WHEN STUDENT 
MANIFESTOS AND POSTERS DENOUNCING GOVERNMENT EXCESSES WERE SLAPPED ON EVERY SPACE 
AVAILABLE . SOME TATTERED BITS OF THESE INFLAMMATORY POSTERS STILL CLING 
TO THE WALLS AND CEILINGS AT PEKING UNIVERSITY, WHICH HAS AN 
ENROLLMENT OF 100,000 . AMONG THE THOUSANDS OF CHINESE REFUGEES POURING 
INTO HONG KONG IN THE PAST YEAR AND A HALF THERE 
HAS BEEN A SMALL TRICKLE OF ENGINEERS AND INTELLECTUALS, FORMER BELIEVERS 
WHO ARE NOW DISILLUSIONED . THEY ARE NOT PARTY MEMBERS, AND 
THE NUMBER IS NOT LARGE ; THE SIGNIFICANCE LIES IN THE 
FACT THAT IT IS THE FIRST TIME SUCH COMMUNIST-EDUCATED INTELLECTUALS HAVE 
BEEN FLEEING RED CHINA . SHEAF OF SECRETS . THE SINO-SOVIET 
EXCHANGES ARE REACHING SUCH A POINT OF BITTERNESS THAT IN EARLIER 
AND SIMPLER TIMES, BOTH NATIONS WOULD HAVE BEEN MOBILIZING THEIR ARMIES 
. YET, FOR ALL THE INTEMPERATENESS OF ITS LANGUAGE, PEKING HAS 
BEEN NOTABLY CAUTIOUS ABOUT GETTING DEEPLY INVOLVED BEYOND RED CHINA'S OWN 
FRONTIERS IN LINE WITH THE RED CHINESE AXIOM, " DESPISE THE 
ENEMY STRATEGICALLY, BUT RESPECT HIM TACTICALLY . " THE WEST GOT 
AN INSIDE LOOK AT RED CHINA'S PERSPECTIVE ON GREAT-POWER CONFLICTS BACK 
IN 1961, WHEN U.S . AGENTS OBTAINED POSSESSION OF A 40,000-WORD 
SHEAF OF SECRET BULLETINS THAT HAD BEEN ISSUED TO OFFICERS BY 
THE GENERAL POLITICAL AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT OF RED CHINA'S ARMY . IN 
ONE BULLETIN, LAOS WAS DESCRIBED AS AN IMPERIALIST CORK TO KEEP 
CHINESE INFLUENCE OUT OF SOUTHEAST ASIA . WITH TYPICAL SELF-CONCERN, THE 
CHINESE CALLED LAOS THE " FOCUS " OF THE " WORLDWIDE 
ANTI-IMPERIALIST STRUGGLE, " ALTHOUGH, FOR THE RUSSIANS, BERLIN WAS FAR MORE 
VITAL . BUT PEKING WELCOMED THE CEASE-FIRE ORDERED BY THE GENEVA 
AGREEMENTS . PARTLY, THIS WAS IN LINE WITH THEIR TRADITIONAL FORMULA 
OF FIGHT A LITTLE, TALK A LITTLE . THE CAPTURED DOCUMENTS 
DISCLOSED THE MILITARY TIE-UP WITH THE 1961 SPRING OF DESPAIR AT 
HOME, WHEN RED CHINA FACED INTERNAL UPRISINGS, WIDESPREAD FOOD SHORTAGES, AND 
MORALE PROBLEMS IN THE ARMY ITSELF . SOLDIERS GRUMBLED AT CONDITIONS 
IN THE VILLAGES, COMPLAINING THAT " AT PRESENT, WHAT THE FARMERS 
EAT IS EVEN WORSE THAN WHAT DOGS EAT, " AND CHARGING 
" VILLAGE CADRES WITH BEATING AND SCOLDING PEOPLE JUST AS IN 
THE OLD SOCIETY . " PEKING WANTED NO ADDITIONAL TROUBLE IN 
LAOS . WHERE'S THE BOMB ? ANOTHER REASON FOR CHINESE CAUTION 
WAS THE GLOOMY CONVICTION THAT MOSCOW WOULD WITHHOLD HELP . WARNED 
A COMMUNIST GENERAL, " IF THERE IS A WAR WITHIN THREE 
TO FIVE YEARS, WE WILL HAVE TO RELY ON THE WEAPONS 
WE NOW HAVE . " TODAY THE WEAPONS CHINA MOST DESPERATELY 
WANTS NUCLEAR WARHEADS ARE NOWHERE IN SIGHT . PEKING IS SO 
BITTER ABOUT MOSCOW'S RENEGING ON ITS 1957 AGREEMENT TO HELP CREATE 
A RED CHINESE ATOM BOMB THAT IT HAS BROADCAST DETAILS OF 
THE RUSSIAN ABOUT-FACE . CHINESE PHYSICISTS ARE NOW BELIEVED TO BE 
TWO TO THREE YEARS AWAY FROM DETONATING A NUCLEAR BLAST, FARTHER 
STILL FROM WHAT THE EXPERTS CALL A / SIGNIFICANT CAPABILITY . 
" BUT WORK PROCEEDS ON THE PROJECT, FOR PEKING HOPES THAT 
ACHIEVEMENT OF NUCLEAR STATUS, HOWEVER PRIMITIVE, WILL GAIN PRESTIGE AMONG THE 
UNDERDEVELOPED MILLIONS ON EARTH WHOSE RESPECT AND ALLIANCE THE RED CHINESE 
ARE OUT TO WIN . THE NOISE FROM PEKING SHOWED NO 
SIGN OF DIMINISHING AND CONTINUED TO FASCINATE THE NON-COMMUNIST WORLD WITH 
FRESH TALES OF OLD SKELETONS IN COMMUNIST CLOSETS . IN ONE 
ANNOUNCEMENT, RED CHINA TOOK FULL CREDIT FOR FORCING A WEAK-KNEED KHRUSHCHEV 
( " WHO HAD DECIDED TO ABANDON SOCIALIST HUNGARY TO COUNTERREVOLUTION 
" ) TO SEND RUSSIAN TANKS INTO BUDAPEST AND CRUSH THE 
1956 UPRISING . PEKING RADIO ALSO MADE AN UNPRECEDENTED REFERENCE TO 
IMPORTANT FACTIONAL DISPUTES WITHIN THE TOP RANKS OF THE CHINESE COMMUNIST 
PARTY . KHRUSHCHEV WAS ACCUSED OF OPENLY VOICING SUPPORT FOR / 
ANTIPARTY ELEMENTS " IN CHINA . WESTERN EXPERTS BELIEVE THE CHINESE 
" ELEMENTS " KHRUSHCHEV WAS SUPPORTING WERE MILITARY MEN WHO OPPOSED 
THE GROWING SINO-SOVIET SPLIT, MOST LIKELY FORMER DEFENSE MINISTER PENG TEH-HUAI 
AND HIS DEPUTY, HUANG KE-CHENG . KHRUSHCHEV IS ADDITIONALLY CHARGED WITH 
TRYING TO SELL PEKING ON A " TWO CHINAS " PLAN 
AS A MEANS OF SETTLING MAO'S QUARREL WITH GENERALISSIMO CHIANG KAI-SHEK 
. PEKING RADIO ALSO CONFIRMED EARLIER REPORTS THAT RUSSIA WAS STIRRING 
UP THE KAZAKH TRIBESMEN IN SINKIANG AGAINST THEIR CHINESE MASTERS . 
ONLY LAST YEAR, RED CHINA CHARGED, RUSSIA HAD LURED SOME 10,000 
KAZAKHS IN SINKIANG INTO CROSSING THE BORDER INTO SOVIET KAZAKHSTAN . 
DESPITE REPEATED PROTEST FROM PEKING, RUSSIA REFUSED TO GIVE BACK THE 
KAZAKHS BECAUSE OF " HUMANITARIANISM " A PRETEXT THAT CHINA CLEARLY 
REGARDED AS LUDICROUS . WHETHER OR NOT RED CHINA SUCCEEDS IN 
ITS GREAT DESIGN TO BE LEADER OF AN AFRO-ASIAN-LATIN AMERICAN ALLIANCE, 
MAO TSE-TUNG WILL NOT BE AROUND TO SEE THE RESULT . 
AT 69, MAO NOW NEEDS HELP IN WALKING . HE DISAPPEARS 
FOR LONG STRETCHES, REPORTEDLY TO MEDITATE IN HIS PAVILION FACING LOVELY 
WEST LAKE IN HANGCHOW . NO ONE REALLY KNOWS WHY HE 
GAVE UP THE CHAIRMANSHIP OF THE GOVERNMENT IN 1958 AFTER ONE 
TERM IN OFFICE . PERHAPS IT WAS TO DEVOTE MORE TIME 
TO HIS KEY JOB AS HEAD OF THE PARTY . OR 
WAS HE PREPARING AN ORDERLY TRANSITION FOR HIS SUCCESSOR ? SO 
DEEP IS THE CLEAVAGE BETWEEN CHINA AND THE SOVIET UNION THAT 
IT COULD HARDLY BE RESOLVED EXCEPT BY THE DEATH OR DISAPPEARANCE 
OF EITHER MAO OR KHRUSHCHEV . BUT, AFTER MAO, WHO ? 
THE IMMEDIATE SUCCESSOR IS ALMOST CERTAIN TO BE LIU SHAO-CHI, THE 
PARTY'S NO . 2 MAN . AFTER THAT, IT IS ANYONE'S 
GUESS . COMMENTS A CHINA EXPERT : " FROM THE OUTSIDE, 
ONE CAN SEE THE FORCES THAT MUST, OR SHOULD BE, COMING 
TO GRIPS IN THE ARENA OF CHINA'S INTERNAL POWER STRUGGLE . 
BUT WE CAN ONLY SEE THESE FORCES INTELLECTUALLY AND, I REPEAT, 
FROM THE OUTSIDE . WE CAN'T TRANSLATE THEM INTO REAL DEVELOPMENTS 
OR INDIVIDUALS WITHIN CHINA . " WAITING IN THE WINGS ARE 
THE YOUNG AND MIDDLE-AGED PARTY LEADERS PRAGMATIC TECHNICIANS RATHER THAN FANATIC 
DOGMATISTS WHO HAVE BEEN FRUSTRATED DURING THE YEARS OF OLD GUARD 
RULE . MAO AND THE VETERANS OF THE LONG MARCH HAVE 
SUFFERED FEW DEATHS . BUT A SERIES OF STATE FUNERALS IS 
OBVIOUSLY AND ACTUARIALLY, IN THE CARDS . CHINA'S FUTURE, AND THAT 
OF WORLD COMMUNISM, CLEARLY DEPENDS ON WHICH EMERGENT CHINESE COMMUNISTS WILL 
CARRY THE COFFINS . 