Many Cities Completely Wiped Out or Deserted Chinese investigator who has travelled extensively through Honan, one of China's most pr perous provinees, declares that has been reduced to a state of anarchy by 400,000 bandits, who now virtually control this aren of 38,000 square miles, with an, people. figures are confirmed estimated population of 25 million
in part by American missionaries working in Honan, several of whom have recently" been robbed or kid-rapped by bandits, but who have generally managed to get along vith the outlaws.
'A number of large Honan towns Jend cities have been completely wiped out by bandits during the past year, and extensive districts southern Honan are deserted by' the former residents, who have abandoned land and property in fear of the bandit hordes. The government has managed to retain control only of those parts of the province immediately adjoining the JPoking-Hankow Railway, which passes through the centre of the province, but at times bandits have Lroken the railway and carried off station-masters and train crews for ransom, vapid rise of bandits has occurred during the past eighteen months, following the series of civil wars in Honan, which proved inconclusive and left large areas of the. province without the defence of cither government or rebel troops. At present, regular troops rem: close to the railway. The Chinese Investigator made an interesting. 'P-analysis of the bandits in Honan, whom he divides into five das The first class he calls "sol bandits;" because they are nominal ly enrolled in government armies, find draw government pay, but are bandits "on the side." He says the are common in southern Honan, and pose as soldiers during the day, but Jack ay robbers at night. The coond lass he alls "group. band ts." These are often bandits by, nhovitanco, following the calling of their forefathers, and have been Jcommon in Honan for generat They were almost entirely supprojg: Jed "by Marshal Feng" Vu-hsi controlled the provines go, but, following Fen collapse, they speedily reap The third class ave called" spear bandits" and wore formerly members of the Red Spear secret society, organized originally by Peasants to protect themselves feom professional robbers. As governments have become disorganized, the secret societies have tured robbers, because there was no other way (0 learn a living. The fourth class are called "communist bandits" because they have adopted a crude imitation Jo? Soviet rule. Apparently. their loaders were influenced at one time. by Russian agitators, and still retain much Soviet patter. They have organized several "counties" and have an army of their own, which they called the "Red protecting: fnrmy." However, they ao usually nothing but robbers at heart, 'The fifth class avo called' "defeat-led soldier defeated in civil wars, and who deserted, taking guns and uniforms with them. 'They are among the most lawless, because they are well-farmed, and' often capture large owns and kidnap. prominent resi dents by the hundreds. Government troops in Honan at present are no match for the bandits, and have left them to their own devices in very.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.