GREAT UNION OF THE PEOPLE

21, 28 July, 4 August 1919

[Text] (I)

The state is at its worse; the misery of man is at its extreme; society is at its darkest. The means of remedy, of reform? While education, industry, effort, progress, destruction, and construction are all correct, the fundamental means is the great union of the people.

When we look back at history, no movement was not the result of the union of certain people. The bigger movements required bigger unions; the biggest movements required the biggest unions. Such union was most apparent at the time of reform or resistance. Always, the reform or resistance of religion, of the arts, of politics, and of society resulted from bigger unions. The outcome of victory or defeat depended on the strength or weakness of the union and on whether the principle of the union was new or old, true or false. The measure of uniting was always the same.

Most of the ancient unions were those of the powerful, of the aristocrats, and of the capitalists. The many kinds of "alliance" agreements in diplomacy, for instance, were the union of international powers. China's "Pei-yang Faction" and "Southwest Faction," and Japan's "Satsuma clan and Choshu clan," for instance, were the unions of domestic power holders; the political parties and parliaments of the various nations were the unions of aristocrats and capitalists. (While the upper house, being the house of the elders, was the den where the aristocrats converged, the lower house, with its voting rights restricted by property, was mostly monopolized by the capitalists). As for the trusts (Iron and steel trust, petroleum trust...) and corporations (the Japan Steamship Corporation, Manchurian Iron Corporation...), they were merely unions of capitalists. By the present time, the unions of the powerful, the aristocrats, and the capitalists have reached the limit; therefore, the state is at its worst, the misery of man is at its extreme, and society is at its darkest, resulting in reform, in resistance, and in the great union of the people.

Since the victory of the "political reform" in France as a result of the great union of the people against that of the royalists, the various nations followed suit and produced many "political reforms." Since the victory of the "social reform" in Russia last year as a result of the great union of the people against that of the aristocrats and capitalists, the various nations, such as Hungary, Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Germany, followed suit and produced many "social reforms." Though the victory is not yet complete, that it will inevitably become complete and spread worldwide can be imagined. Why is the great union of the people so powerful? Because the people of a nation are always greater in number than the aristocrats, capitalists, and other power holders. Since the number of aristocrats, capitalists, and other power holders is small, what they rely on to defend their own special interests and exploit the public interest of the people are knowledge, money, and force. Education in the old days was the special privilege of the aristocrats and capitalists, which the ordinary people had no opportunity to enjoy. Since knowledge was monopolized, the intelligent and uninformed classes were created. Money is the medium of living, and everyone should be able to get it. Yet the knowledgeable aristocrats and capitalists, by such means as "capital concentration," gradually directed it into the hands of the landowners and plant bosses. While they made land, machinery, and houses their own and called them "fixed property," they gathered money, the so-called moveable property, into their treasury (bags). The millions of common people, working for them, were given francs and pennies. Since those who work had no money, the rich and poor classes were created. With knowledge and money, the aristocrats and capitalists set up camps to train soldiers and plants to make guns. Under the excuse of "foreign aggression," tens of divisions and hundreds of battalions were recruited. Imitating conscription, they invented the "selective service system." Thus, the vigorous sons of the people became soldiers. When a problem was encountered, they brought out the machine guns to attack their incapable and weak old men. When the Southern army was defeated in Hunan, didn't they kill tens of their old men? The aristocrats and capitalists utilized such ingenious methods, and the ordinary people were afraid to express themselves. Thus were created the strong and weak classes.

Luckily the ordinary people surreptitiously studied some of their "secret" textbooks, and gradually acquired knowledge. Envying one comfort of the capitalists, the ordinary people eyed the farmland and plants where money came from. As for the soldiers in the camps, they were their sons, brothers, or husbands. When the soldiers aimed the machine guns at them, they shouted in a loud voice. Such shouts turned the bullets into mud. Unconsciously, they reformed home together hand in hand, changing together into staunch warriors against the aristocrats and capitalists. We only have to look at the hundreds of thousands of troops of Russia which suddenly substituted the red flag for the vulture flag to understand the profound reason therein.

The ordinary people saw through the three methods of the aristocrats and capitalists and realized that they practice them by means of union. They

also saw that they were few and we were many, and so they resorted to the great union. In regard to the actions after union, one faction was very violent, "using their own medicine," and waged a death struggle against them. The leader of this faction was a man born in Germany named Marx. The other faction was more moderate, did not seek instant results, but began by working toward the awareness of the ordinary people. Everyone must possess the virtues of mutual aid and voluntary work. As long as they would repent and were able to work, and would help, rather than hurt, others, it was not necessary to kill the aristocrats and capitalists. The intent of those of this faction was more extensive and profound. They wished to unite the entire earth into one nation and all mankind into one family. With harmony and friendship--not Japan's friendship--together, they would strive for prosperity in the world. The leader of this faction was a man born in Russia by the name of Kropotkin.

We must know that anything in the world is easy to do to start with. What is not easy is due to the influence of history--habit. If we can shout in unison, we will break down the influence of history. We must unite even more extensively and, when we encounter what we feel is wrong, we must force our ranks and loudly shout to the opposing side. We have already had the experience: Lu Jung-t'ing's [7120 2837 1694] shells would never hit the villains like Ts'ao Yu-lin [2580 306 7207]. But when we rose up and shouted, the villains stood up and trembled; they fled for their lives. We must know that our brothers of other nations constantly resort to this means to seek their interest. We must emulate them. We must form our great union!

(II) Small Unions as the Foundation

In a previous issue of this newspaper, the possibility and necessity of the "great union of the people" were covered. Today, the means of the great union will be discussed. It is the "small unions of the people."

What we want is a sort of great union, in order to resist those holding power and injuring others, and attain our own interest. Then, we must have all kinds of small unions to serve as its foundation. Man has the instinctive talent for union. It is the talent to form groups, the talent to organize society. "Group" and "society" are what I refer to as union. There are large groups and small groups, large societies and small societies, and large unions and small unions, the same thing in different names. That we must have a group, a society, and a union is because we want to seek our common interest. Due to the differences in our circumstances and occupations, the sphere of our common interest also varies. As there are large and small common interests, the means to attain common interest (union) also differs in size.

Gentlemen! We are peasants. We must form a union of those of our kind in order to seek the various interests of the peasants. The interests of the peasants must be sought by the peasants themselves. As those not engaged

in farming do not have the same interests, they will not help us. Farming gentlemen! How do the landlords treat us? Are the rents heavy or light? Is our housing adequate? Are our stomachs full? Is the farmland too little? Are there people in the village without farms? We must constantly seek the answers to these questions. We must form a union with those of our own kind, and concretely and openly seek the answers.

Gentlemen! We are workers. We must form a union with those of our own kind in order to seek the interests of the workers. The various problems connected with our labor, such as the amount of wages, the hours, whether there is equal distribution of profit, whether there is improvement in recreation..., all require answers. We must form a union with those of our own kind, and concretely and openly seek the answers.

Gentlemen! We are students. We have a hard time. Those teaching us treat us as enemies, trample us as slaves, and confine us as prisoners. The windows of our classrooms are so small that the light cannot reach the blackboard, making us nearsighted. The tables are unsuitable, and we suffer from "spinal curvature" after sitting over them too long. The teachers only want us to read more books. We read many books, but we cannot understand them, merely wasting the effort of memorizing. Our eyes are blurred, our brains confused, our blood deficient, and our complexion dull. We suffer from anemia and neurasthenia. Why are we so stiff? So dull? So wasted? They are all because the teachers force us to stay still and keep quiet. We are stiff like corpses. Physical pain is still secondary. Gentlemen! Please take a look at our laboratories! They are so cramped and so poorly equipped--a few pieces of broken instruments. It is impossible for us to do any experiment. Our Chinese language teachers are cantankerous. Quoting the classics endlessly, they do not understand the meaning. Unaware that it is not the 20th century, they continue to force us to perform the "ancient rites" and follow the "ancient laws" and stuff the classical dead literature into our mind. Our library is empty; our recreation field dirty. The nation is perishing, yet they still post announcements prohibiting us from being patriotic. Take the save-the-nation movement this time: We received much of their generosity! Alas! Why are destroying our body and spirit and making us miserable? If we do not unite now and pursue our "self-education," when will we do it? Sunk into an ocean of misery, we must save ourselves. The "self-education" invented by Rousseau is most appropriate. We must line up our comrades wherever possible and study by ourselves. We must not rely on the vicious teachers! Whenever anything happens, such as the outrageous conduct of Japan's and our domestic power holders, we will form ranks and shout at them loudly.

Ladies! We are women. We have sunk even deeper into the ocean of misery! Since we are also human beings, why are we not permitted to take part in politics? Since we are also human beings, why are we not permitted to have social contacts? We gather in holes and cannot step out of the front door. The shameless men and the hoodlums consider us as playthings, force us into

long-term prostitution, and destroy the freedom to love! "Chastity" is limited to women! There are many shrines for chaste women, but where are the temples for chaste men? Some of us gather in women's schools, but those teaching us are the shameless men and hoodlums. All day long they discuss "virtuous wife and good mother." It is for no other purpose than to teach us to specialize in long-term prostitution. They are afraid that we will not accept control. What misery! God of freedom, where are you? Please rescue us! We have awakened! The women must unite and sweep aside all the evil ghosts violating us and destroying our physical and spiritual freedom!

Gentlemen! We are elementary school teachers. All day long we teach class and are very busy. All day long we inhale chalk dust, and there is nowhere for us to relax. Elementary school teachers in such a big city must number in the hundreds, in the thousands, yet there is no recreation facility for our use. When we teach we must constantly improve our learning, yet there is no research organ established for us. The inflexible classroom hours are many, and there is no spare time, energy, or spirit to study. Thus, we become phonographs, performing and reciting what our teachers taught us in the old days. Our stomach is empty. The monthly wage of 5 or 10 yuan is even discounted. Some principally follow the method of "reducing military ration" and pocket the money allocated by the government. Without money, we become married widowers, living tens or hundreds of li away from our spouses. We are told that teaching elementary school is a lifetime career. Does it mean that we should spend our entire life as widowers or widows? According to the theory of education, the teachers and their families should live in the school in order to serve as models for the students, but it is impossible now. As we have no money, we cannot buy books, nor travel, and observe. No need to say more! Elementary school teachers are only slaves! If we do not wish to be slaves, the only way is for us to unite with our own kind and form an elementary school teachers' union.

Gentlemen! We are policemen. We also wish to unite with our own kind and form a union beneficial to our body and mind. The Japanese say that the most miserable are beggars, elementary school teachers, and policemen. We feel more or less the same.

Gentlemen! We are cart pullers. Our perspiration falls like rain. The cart owners charge so much for rent, while the fare we get is so little! How can we live? There is also a method of union for us?

The above are the trials of the peasants, workers, students, women, elementary school teachers, and cart pullers. Unable to endure the misery any longer, they wish to form all kinds of small unions in their own interests.

Among the small unions discussed above, the union of workers is a very large and general term. To put it in greater details, the following are of the lowest level in the workers' unions: Unions of railway workers, of mining

workers, of telegraph employees, of telephone employees, of shipbuilding workers, of steamship workers, of metal workers, of textile workers, of streetcar operators, of cart pullers, of building workers.... The workers of western nations all have small unions according to the occupations and professions. Such unions as the transport workers' union and the streetcar workers' union are found everywhere. Many small unions become a large union, and many large unions become the largest union. Thus, "associations" and "alliances" come into being. When it is for the common interest of a small number of people, a small union is formed. Due to the common points of interest among the small unions, a large union can be established. Studying, for instance, is the obligation of us students, and we form an academic union. The pursuit of liberation and freedom is something which concerns everyone. Thus, we must rally all kinds of people to form a large union.

Therefore, we must begin with the small unions when we want a large union. We must emulate our fellow beings of other nations, and form many small unions.

(III) The Situation of China's "Great Union of the People"

In the two previous installments we have discussed: (1) the possibility and necessity of a great union of the people and (2) the fact that the great union of the people is founded on the small unions. Now, in regard to China's great union of the people, do we have the awareness? Do we have the motivation? Do we have the ability? Can we succeed?

(1) In regard to China's great union of the people, do we have the awareness? The revolution of 1911 appeared to be a union of the people, but it was actually not so. The 1911 revolution was instigated by students studying abroad, encouraged by the Ko-lao Society and fought by the soldiers of the new army and patrol camps. It had nothing to do with the majority of the people. Though we supported their principle, we did not take any active part. Nor did they need us. But we gained an awareness. We found out that the sacred emperor could be overthrown and that the treacherous democracy could be established. If we had anything to say or anything to do, we could say or do it at any time. After 1911, we again overthrew Emperor Hung-hsien in 1916. Though he was undertaken by a minority, we realized that the errant Emperor Hung-hsien could also be overthrown. In recent years, there were the civil war between the North and the South and the World War; and things changed even more. The outcome of the civil war was that we acquired more ironclad evidence to show that the bureaucrats, military men, and politicians injured, poisoned, and exploited us. The outcome of the World War was that the people of the nations, due to the hardships in their living, suddenly undertook many actions. Russia overthrew the aristocrats and expelled the rich. The workers and peasants jointly formed a provisional government. The Red Flag Army fought everywhere and swept aside many enemies. The alliance changed its form as a result, and the whole world was shaken. Hungary rose, and a brand-new worker-peasant government appeared in Budapest. The Germans, Austrians, and Czechoslovakians

responded and waged a death struggle against their domestic enemies. The angry tide surged West and then shifted to the East. After the many general strikes in England, France, Italy, and America, large scale uprisings broke out in India and Korea. Then, there was the 4 May Movement in China between the Great Wall and Po-hai. Shifting the standards and banners toward the south, the movement crossed the Yellow River to the Yangtze, from Huangpi to Hankow, all the way to Tung-ting Lake and the Min River, the fire rising ever higher. Heaven and earth rose out of hibernation; the treacherous and the evil fled. Alas! We understood! We awakened! The world is ours; the nation is ours; society is ours. If we do not say it, who will? If we do not do it, who will? We must actively proceed with the urgent great union of the people!

(2) Is there the motivation for China's great union of the people? In regard to this question, we will directly answer yes. If you do not believe me, let us explain. The origin of China's union of the people must be traced back to the establishment of the Provincial Bureau at the end of the Ch'ing Dynasty and the formation of the revolutionary party, the revolutionary Al- liance. With the Provincial Bureau, there was the joint petition of the provincial bureaus in the provinces for an early parliament. With the revolutionary party, there was the appeal to those in China and abroad to launch an uprising and expel the Manchus. The 1911 revolution was a joint venture by the Provincial Bureau and the revolutionary party. Subsequently, the revolutionary party became the Kuomintang, and the Provincial Bureau the Progressive Party. It was the beginning of political parties in China.
Thereafter, the republic was founded. The central government convened the parliament, and the provinces also held provincial assemblies. At this time, the provinces formed three kinds of organizations: Provincial education, commercial, and agricultural associations. (Several provinces had labor associations; others included the workers in the agricultural associations, such as Hunan). Meanwhile, the counties also established county education, commercial, and agricultural associations. (Some counties did not do so). These constituted firm and effective unions. Other types of organizations were also formed according to the conditions and situations, such as, alumni associations of the schools, fellow-provincials' associations for those away from home, general and branch associations of students returning from abroad, "Shanghai Daily News" Guild, World Chinese Students' Association, Peking and Shanghai European and American Returning Students' Associations, and Peking Chinese-French Education Association.

All kinds of academic societies (such as Ch'iang Society, Kuang Society, Shang-chih Society, China Vocational Education Association, China Science Association, Asian Civilization Association...), all kinds of occupational or professional associations (the various occupations and professions in industry and commerce, such as banking association, rice association...), research associations in the schools, such as the Painting Research and Philosophy Research Associations in Peking...dozens of them), and all kinds of clubs were the products of political liberation and ideological

enlightenment not permissible or possible in the period of government by one man. The above mentioned associations were all very simple--the "small unions" discussed in the previous installment. Recently, due to political unrest and foreign pressure, our awareness has been raised, and the motivation for larger unions has appeared, such as the National United Association of Education Associations, the National United Association of Commercial Associations, the United Association of Canton's 72 Guilds, the United Association of Shanghai's 73 Organizations, the United Association of "Shang-haih Kung-pao," the National United Association in the Field of Newspapers, the National Hope-for-Peace Association, the National United Peace Association, the Peking China-France Association, the People's Diplomacy Association, the Hunan Reconstruction Association (in Shanghai), the Shantung Association (in Shanghai), the United students' associations of Peking, Shanghai, the provinces, and the cities, the united association of all fields, the National United Students' Association.... Though many "gentlemen" and "politicians" who are not of the people are inevitably found in the various associations, societies, units, united associations, etc. (such as the national parliament, provincial assemblies, provincial education associations, provincial agricultural associations, National Hope-for-Peace Association, and National United Peace Association, which are completely gentlemen's or politicians' associations), the occupational or professional associations, academic societies, research associations, etc., are purely organizations of ordinary people and scholars. The united students' associations and the united associations of the various fields created recently are a sort of great unions of the people organized purely to deal with foreign and domestic power holders. I feel that here is the motivation for China's national great union.

(3) Do we have the ability to undertake China's "great union of the people?" Can we succeed? When it comes to ability, there are doubts. The Chinese people only concentrate on maximum, yet futureless, private profit. Those in commerce fail to form corporations; those working fail to establish labor parties; those studying only follow the old method of making carts behind closed doors and fail to do joint research. The Chinese people cannot under- take large scale organized enterprises. That politics is not properly hand- led needs no mentioning. The little achievement in posts and salt admin- istration must be credited to the foreigners. So long after the seas were opened for trade, we still do not have even a small ship which can travel to Europe. "Chang-sheng China" and "Ian-yeh-hsing." "We only come in one coun- try, operated at a loss every year. When they could not stand the loss, they recruited foreign capital. Railways managed by foreigners are superior in cleanliness, equipments, and personnel. Any railway managed by the Department of Communications becomes messed up. All travelers on the Peking- Hankow, Tientsin-P'u-k'ou, and Wuch ang-ch'angsha lines have to cover their nose and grit their teeth! As for the rest, the schools, self-government, or even a family, an individual is not properly handled. Jackals of the same lair; that's what they are! It is not easy to discuss the great union of the people! It is not easy to compete against the deeply entrenched power holders!

Even so, it does not mean that we basically do not have the ability. That
we do not have the ability has its reasons. It is because "we have not
practiced."

For thousands of years, the millions of Chinese people lived the life of
slavery, and only the "emperor" was not a slave. (Some people said that the
"emperor" was the slave of "Heaven.") When the emperor was in charge, we
were not allowed to practice our ability. Politics, academic learning, and
society all prohibited us from thinking, organizing, or practicing.

Today it is different. All aspects have been liberated--the liberation of
thinking, of politics, of economics, of men and women, and of education. We
all wish to see the blue sky from the depth of hell. The people of China
have great abilities! The stronger the pressure, the greater the reaction.
After a long suppression, the eruption will be quick. I would like to make
a wild statement: The reform of the nation of China in the future will be
more thorough than any other nation; the Chinese society will be brighter
than any other; the great unity of the nation of China will be achieved ahead
of any area and any nation. Gentlemen! Gentlemen! We must exert ourselves!
We must strive forward! Our golden world, our brilliant world, is ahead of
us!

O"Reference Material of the History of the Chinese Communist Party," Vol 1.

AHSIANG-CHIANG P'ING-LUN, Nos 2-4; Hunan United Students' Association,
21 and 28 July, and 4 August 1919