August 1930
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The 4 ‘Red” Banners in China B y D r . F rank A . K eller * {Superintendent o f Hunan Bible Institute, China )
Î N a recent cable from Shanghai the representative of the Associated Press makes the following start ling statement : “ Flying banners reading ‘Down with Imperialism, Capitalism, Foreigners and Reli gion’, the ‘Reds’ have virtually stopped shipping above Hankow by peppering it with bullets from both sides of the Yangtse. Lawless bands are ravaging wide areas between Yochow and Changsha in the Pro vince of Hunan, following'in the tracks,of government troops who scattered rebel armies, and then departed to other areas of China’s civil war.” A well-known missionary; who has had special oppor tunities to observe conditions in the Province of Kiangsi, writes that seventy out of eighty counties in that province are now in the hands of thé Communists. This is the province where three consecrated and efficient Fin nish missionary ladies were murdered a few months ago, and where our dear friends, Mr; and Mrs. Robert W . Por- teous, were held in captivity for over three months—a bondage from which they have only recently been released. What a call to the Church of Christ is this rapid spread of Communism in China ! What a challenge to rise up and press forward into every part of that great land with the message of the Cross ! It is not only a call to the Church as a whole, but to each individual Christian. Oh, my Christian reader, what message has this crisis in China for you ? P eace in the M idst of W ar A letter just received from our Mr. Charles A. Roberts gives a vivid picture of the war conditions in. and around Changsha, the beautiful city which is the capital of Hunan, and the center of the work of the Hunan Bible Institute and the Biola Evangelistic Bands. Mr. Roberts writes : “ Governor Ho Chien returned to the city on Wednes day evening, the 18th of June. The Southern ‘Rebels’ were given all day Tuesday, the 17th, to evacuate the city, Ho Chien’s vanguard having reached the island early that morning. But the three Southern generals held out all day in the hope of securing more ready cash from the Chamber of Commerce, and so kept Ho Chien’s troops waiting. They even threatened to permit their troops to loot the city if the cash which they demanded was not forthcoming. “ Acting on consular advice, a number of foreigners went over to the island under naval escort, fearing what might happen during the night. At 9 :3Q P. M. I was sitting on our delightful porch, reading, when I heard fir ing in the distance. Colonel Hou, of Ho Chien’s vanguard, had dared his men to cross the river, which is very high. He offered $24.00 to each man who would cross the river and help to drive the ‘Rebels’ out. The challenge was ac cepted. “ After clearing the bund with machine guns, this ‘dare to die’ corps made a successful crossing. At 11 P. M. *Note—Dr. and Mrs. Keller, together with .two new workers, Rev. "and Mrs. Everett F. Harrison, expect to sail from Van couver on August 7th, landing in Shanghai bn August 24, 1930.
heavy firing could be heard in different sections of the city. A machine gun company reached the little lane which runs parallel to the military road and between it and the rail way, and started action just south of our main entrance. This instrument of death kept up its rattle intermittently until 1 :30 A. M. By 2 A. M. another machine gun com pany had reached a position north of our house, near the orphanage, and bullets whistled across the southeastern end of our campus. “ However, by 2 :30 A. M. everything was quiet. The next day the casualty list included more than twenty who were killed or wounded. Some people feel that the city was saved from looting by this vigorous assault o f the ‘dare to die’ corps. The young generals managed to escape from
the city about 11 P. M. in three automobiles that were ready and waiting for them at the auto station. “ On the following day an inspection of our buildings revealed the fact that three dormitories had been struck a number of times. Dormitory No. 1, perhaps, has the most interesting scar. Room No. 57 on the third floor faces south. A bullet cut a hole through the screen and window of this room, passed through the inside walls,'and out through the window of room No. 60 on the north. In neither room was.the glass shattered, but a clear-cut hole was made through each pane of glass.” This incident is of special interest because the student who occupied room No. 57 is Mr. Hsu K ’eh Ch’in, one o f the boys who is being supported by the “ Square Dealers. Class” of the Church of the Open Door, taught by Mr.. Jay Davis. Fortunately, Mr. Hsu was not in his room at the time. This exciting event occurred after the Bible School work of the year had been finished and the students had been assigned to the special student evangelistic bands in which they are now working in the fields of various mis sionary societies who eagerly seek their help during the summer vacation. How we praise God that in spite of all the unrest in many parts of China, Changsha has been
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