Zhangjingyao Smuggles Opium Seeds (continued)
(People’s News Agency dispatch, January 4,1920)
A report from the People’s News Agency states: Our previous dispatch has already
reported that Zhang Jingyao was discovered smuggling a large quantity of opium poppy
seeds at the Zhanyutao railroad station in Wuchang. Since their discovery, these seeds
are said to have attracted widespread attention among all circles of people in Wuhan
and among the Hunanese residing in Beijing. The following is a more detailed report.
Opium poppy seeds had already been shipped to Hunan on the Beijing-Wuhan line
more than once before, but had never been discovered. Zhang Jingyao, in forcing
the planting of the poppy seedlings, had called together [X] head [X] of the xian [X]
and ordered as many as 40,000 packets [of seeds] to be planted in the single xian of
Changsha. The people of Hunan have been puzzled as to the means by which such
large quantities of seeds have been smuggled in, but had long sought in vain to obtain
any evidence of this traffic. The present large quantity of poppy seeds shipped from
Fengtian, originally 70 or more sacks in all, arrived in Hubei before December 20.
People at the station have asserted that 25 sacks were sent on prior to December 24.
On the twenty-fourth, the rest were discovered by the railway attendant Mr. You Yong
at the Zhanyutao station, when they were transferred from the Beijing-Wuhan line to
the Wuhan-Changsha line. (Yesterday’s dispatch mistook You for a student.1 Mr. You,
whose hao is Runtao, is from Minhou, Fujian Province.) There were 45 gunny sacks
weighing over 200 jin each. Marked on the bags were the words, “For the attention
of the general command headquarters of the Second Route Army.” The commander
of the Second Route Army is Zhang Zongchang. But the men who were escorting the
seeds said before the discovery: “These items are being sent to Changsha to be turned
over to Governor Zhang.” As soon as the discovery was made, the escort immediately
fled and disappeared. Most likely, when these items sent from Fengtian reached Hunan,
they were to be received by Zhang Zongchang and then turned over to Zhang Jingyao.
On the twenty-sixth, leaflets were printed by representatives of the Wuhan
1 Liu Mingyan (1899–1977), also known as Wangcheng or Ruoyun, a Hunanese, was a classmate
of Mao at First Normal School and an early member of the New People’s Study Society. In 1920 he
went to France on the work-study program. He was one of the organizers of the Socialist Youth Corps
in France (with Zhou Enlai, Wang Ruofei, and others).

Student Association. One of the leaflets was signed at the bottom: With tears of
blood, respectfully reported, You Yong, graduate of the Railway Management School
of the Communications Ministry. The full text reads:
“On the twenty-third of this month, the subordinates of Zhang Zongchang, the
commander of the Sixth Mixed Brigade stationed in Hunan Province, escorting forty-five sacks of opium poppy seeds, arrived at the Zhanyutao station and asked the Hunan-Hubei Railroad Bureau for cars in preparation for sending them to Hunan. It is a
story modeled on Chen Shufan’s2 example. Zhang Jingyao grows poppy extensively
throughout Hunan in order to make a huge profit; in order to provide for his army
for five years, he is sowing the seeds of an evil fruit that will hurt China for tens of
thousands of years, bringing calamity to the country and misery to its people, a crime
that must not escape punishment. If the seeds are not burned today, the whole country
will suffer disaster when the poppy flowers next year. Having notified the Wuhan
Student Association, together with the students, I am watching over the seeds, and at
the same time I have sent a cable requesting the government to remove Governor Zhang
of Hunan from office and punish Zhang Zongchang. Alas! The military have brought
disaster upon the nation for far too long. And Chen Shufan and Zhang Jingyao are
especially vicious. However, to the urgent petition of the people the government has
paid no heed, but rather glosses over their crimes. This evidence today is irrefutable
proof of their crime. At the risk of death, I have tried to entreat the government. Elders,
brothers and sisters, of the whole country, rise up together against it. With tears of
blood, respectfully reported, You Yong, graduate of the Railway Management School
of the Communications Ministry.”
As soon as the Wuhan students heard this news, a large group of them went right
away to the station to investigate. When the Hunan students residing in Hubei learned
of this shipping of poppy seeds, they redoubled their efforts. On the morning of the
twenty-fourth, Yi Lirong, a student of Mingde University in Hankou, Luo Jian, a
student of the Higher Normal School, and some others went to the station and removed
a small quantity of the opium seeds. In addition, they sent a photographer to the
station that afternoon to take pictures of the poisonous stuff. At first, the stationmaster
forbade them to do this, and they only got permission after considerable [X] effort. No
sooner had they taken the photos than soldiers suddenly arrived, snatched away the
film, and sought to apprehend Yi Lirong. Fortunately, a station attendant who had
heard of the plan a bit earlier opened a back door, through which Mr. Yi escaped in
disguise. When the incident became known, the Hunan students residing in Hubei were
extremely indignant. They promptly sent a petition to Wang Zhanyuan, the military
governor of Hubei, reading:
2 The reference is to the text dated December 24, 1919, which was published in the Shenbao on
January 3, 1920, and refers to You as a student from Fujian. He was in fact, as stated below, a graduate
of the Railway Management School of the Ministry of Communications.