I was not long in doubt, however, for on a little side street 1 come upon the office in question and found the two men who were leaders of the movement, Although both were extremely busy they greeted me warmly and invited me to have lunch with them and also share their rooms for the night in case my bus back to) Changshu did not leave that day—an offer which, by the way, T was very grateful to have received, for they had anticipated conditions. correctly. The foreigner. Mr, Raymond Holcomb, and the Chinese, Mr. Lee Wang-pel, had both been engineers in Canton but had joined the ce-operatives. at the request of Mr. Alley, Associate Director of the Association, who had, they. Informed me, lived at one time 'During our Chinese meal they spoke eagerly and at great length fof the progress of their work to start heeded' industries in the rich but [backward Kiangsi region. They were working closely with the Kiangsi [Refugee Relief Association and the Bureau of Rural Reconstruction which had mapped out the district 25" miles south at Taiho for land development by refugees. But farm placement was only a small portion fof the present need. for goods were wanted in large quantities immediate-lly for the people of the region. who Were now cut off from outside sour ces. of supply.
Tt was to fil this requirement that {the industrial ce-operative movement had been launched. Many things were in the favour of the movement according to my enthusiastic hosts, since the people were axiom and fable to work, there were many who needed goods. and the region had large amounts of raw materials and resources not yet touched. As Holcomb expressed it, "The place is very ich, but the people conservative. 'They are living on the top of immense wealth, but stay poor. Iron, coal, lead, zine, manganese, tungsten, wolfram, sliver, gold, indigo, hemp and tobacco can be obtained.' There fare, however no machine shops except one refugee one from Nanchang which has a hand-turned Time and Ingenuity Required Thus, the difficulties that presented themselves would take time and Ingenuity to solve, for education on the ce-operative scheme was required, power had to be developed and har-essed to locally-made machines, and {technical skill had to discovered and used, "Meanwhile," Mr. Holcomb continued, "the ce-operatives were set ting up small units on old-time, for~ gotten lines until the modern style equipment should be made. This was the key to the great progress that had been achieved so far, and. this. was the method used to put people on their own feet In the shortest time possible."
'When I asked about the progress: made so far, Mr. Holcomb told me that four main headquarters had' been established in free territory since August, 1998, and that altogether there wene well over 100 actual producing units to date. The scheme was {o use the local resources as much as possible because transportation was so uncertain, and thus in Kian ce-operatives had been estab-fished to produce such things as sandals from rice straw, river boats, matches, paper, of from tea and seed-plants, and a remarkable new cloth of ramie Abre and cotton.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.