Report of the China Famine Relief, American Red Cross, October
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Report of the China Famine Relief American Red Cross + October, 1920—September, 1921 Mustrated from Photographs TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Map showing location of Red Cross Operations 2 Letter of transmittal iii Chapter I. Background of the I'amine i . 6 II. Preliminaries to Red Cross Operations. " Work " versus " Free" methods of relief 7 Selection of territory and kind of work 8 Early organization . 9 Decision to pay in food rather than cash 9 Procedure with officials 9 Co-operation of Shantung authorities secured ii III. Size of the Job and General Plan I3 Population for which Red Cross assumed responsibility 13 Method of payment to workmen 14 Plan of organizing the workmen '4 Organization of Supervisory forces 16 Change from volunteer to salaried forces i/ Nationalities employed 1/ The standard ration i ^ Purchases, transportation methods 19 IV. Recruiting 22 Forms used . 25 Instructions issued to recruiting forces, village elders, gangs 28 V. Engineering • .32 Location and problem of right of way 32 Plan of purchase, line and grade, cross section ... 34 Mefbod of construction . - • 34 3" Organization .... Rate of pay 4° Methods of laying out work 4° Results, costs 42 Recommendations for upkeep. 44 Concerning macadam 45 Rules for Land Purchasing issued by Shantung Relief Society 47 Instructions governing piece work system 5° VI. Commissary 52 Billeting division 52 Foreign Supplies division 54 Stores division 57 Transportation division °2 VII. Health division ^^ Organization °'^ De-infestation ?° 88 Statistics 1 Chapter Page VIII. Pingtingchow Operation 93 Origin and general plan 96 Recruiting 98 Commissary 98 Engineering 106 Health 118 IX. Fenchowfu Operation 125 General and preliminary 127 Pingyao Road 136 Yellow River Road 136 Description of the route 138 Sample contract 142 X. Honan Operation 145 General plan 146 Construction methods 147 Sample forms 154 XI. Hantan Operation 159 Preliminary 159 Variations in the general plan 163 Engineering 1 66 Forms and instructions 172 XII. Tientsin—Paotingfu highway 18 Preliminary 181 Chronology of Paotingfu section 183 Tientsin section 187 XIII. Peking—Tientsin highway 190 XIV. Tingchow Wells 195 General plan 195 Method of construction 199 XV. Propaganda for highway maintenance 203 XVI. If we had it to do again ? 209 Reserve powers of the Chinese people 209 " Work " versus " Free" method of relief 210 Jobs suitable for famine labor 212 Size of jobs to be preferred 213 Method of pay 214 Payment in cash or in food 216 Supervisory personnel 217 Exclusive territory 218 Appraisal of results 218 XVII. The Accounting Department 220 Organization 221 Methods 221 List of Donations Received 232 Personnel List, American Red Cross, China Famine Relief 234 ( 11 LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL Director, Foreign Operation, American National Red Cross, Washington, D. C. Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith a report of the Operations of the American Red Cross, China Famine Relief, from their inception in October, 1920 to the closing of the oflfices in China, September, 1921. In making out this report, 1 have had in mind two classes of readers — (i), an American public to whose munificence this work of relief is due, and (2), those who may be charged with similar tasks in China in the future. It is a pleasure to report that while there has been considerable suiifering from hunger in the areas allotted to the American Red Cross, there has been no large loss of life, from either starvation or disease. With the sum of $1,000,000 U. S. Gold put at our disposal, supplemented by miscellaneous gifts, (the whole amounting to $2,400,000 Chinese currency), we have been able to reach directly approximately 900,000 people. Some 160,000 laborers have been employed upon our projects, the largest number at any one time being 95,000. These laborers have constructed 850 miles of highway, dug and lined 3,650 wells, and planted over 40,000 trees. The highways include nearly a hundred minor bridges, several hundred culverts, nearly a mjle of concrete paving, over a hundred concrete road crossings, thirty-one miles of heavy macadam, and nearly two hundred miles of heavy mountain construction where the highway is surfaced with gravel, cinders, or disintegrated rock. Nearly fifteen thousand tons of grain have been purchased in distant markets, transported to the scene of operations, carried into the interior, and there paid out in small quantities to the workmen and Iheir families. The conception, organization, survey, execution and disbandment of such an operation within the space of eleven months could not have been accomplished without the single-minded co-operation of large numbers of able assistants. From first to last, nearly three hundred persons were engaged in the work of supervision, and to nearly all of these my personal thanks are due for the energy, loyalty, and initiative displayed in this humanitarian task. Because of the large number, it is possible to make only this general acknowl- edgment. But I wish particularly to mention the assistance rendered by the Director of Accounts in shouldering the responsibility for financial matters, in calling my attention to needs for safeguarding the avenues of expenditure, and in counselling me on matters of policy. Especial mention should be made also of the valuable aid rendered by the Ministry of Communications, in furnishing free transportation of grain and of personnel, whenever our needs could be forecasted sufficiently in advance to make the required requests ; in transmitting telegrams free for almost the entire period, and in donating my services. To the Chinese Maritime Customs, to the China Expeditionary Forces, U. S. A., and to the American Marine Corps, are due our thanks for iii ( ) many courtesies and assistance. There must also be acknowledged the rapid and effective co-operation on the part of many officials of the Chinese Government, particularly of His Excellency Tien Chung Yu, Governor of Shantung ; of His Excellency Yen Hsi Shan, Governor of Shansi ; of Mr. S. W. Lao, who had charge of right-of-way matters in Shantung; of Col. Y. C. Chao, who not only attended to right-of-way in Shansi, but also secured for us a considerable portion of the engineers, instruments and construction organiza- tion of the Shansi Highway Bureau. I must also express my appreciation for the confidence and support which the National Headquarters has invariably accorded to this Operation. Yours very respectfully, J. E. Baker, Director, American Red Cross, China Famine Relief. John Earl Baker, Director of Operations ( V ) — CHAPTER I BACKGROUND OF THE FAMINE BETWEEN the 33rd and 41st counties are so far from rivers that parallels, China depends for pack animals consume almost all the moisture principally upon the food they can carry in making the summer monsoon. In other words, round trip. the belt laying between fifty miles Lack of transportation not only north of Nanking and one hundred makes difficult the provisioning of the and fifty miles north of Peking, receives country in time of famine but it has most of its rainfall during June, July retarded the development of industry and August. The belt extends from so that to-day China is still an agricul- the coast to the continental plateau. tural country, typically. Hence, when An occasional snow in winter, an a crop failure or flood occurs, practically early beginning or a late ending of all the people are affected. There is the monsoon, is the only variation no well-to-do industrial class which is from this rule. If there is a good in a position to assist the country snowfall or two in the winter, one good districts. There are no large centers shower during April and May, each. of storage from which distribution can North China has a big year, — a crop be made,—no packing houses, no of wheat in June and a crop of millet elevators housing the crop of a prev- and kaoliang in September. If the ious year. snows or the showers fail, there is only Deficiency of transportation and one crop, —the fall crop. Frequently, industry is also typical of the deficiency it happens that the year's precipitation in credit arrangements. Indeed the is nearly all crowded into the last two one is partly the cause of the other. A weeks of July and the first two weeks of loan from one province to another is August. Then rivers burst their banks unthinkable. There is no machinery and, as most of them have beds higher for collection. Outside of the treaty- than the surrounding country, devas- ports, banking is essentially pawn- tating floods result. Once every forty brokering. Interestrates are ruinous, or fifty years, nature in her infinite 24 to 30 per cent. To become a bor- variety, withholds the midsummer rower is to become a slave. A farmer rains, and there is no crop whatever. inclined to be thrifty has no opportu- A population with accumulated nity to accumulate savings accounts property can withstand an occasional or other productive capital which dur- flood or drought, provided it has access ing the hard year can be turned into to sources of food supply on the funds with which to relieve his hunger. outside. But Chinese farmers have His sole opportunity of providing little accumulated property and a very against the evil day is to buy a rare deficient access to outside sources of vase, a piece of jade, or gold ornaments supply. Up to fifteen years ago, there for his women folk. Before the rail- was no railway system in China. There roads came, they starved in the midst are only six thousand miles of railway of these riches, if they were not able io China now. Whole provinces are to get to a navigable river leading dependent upon rivers and pack ani- from some crop-blessed region.