Express Mail Telegram from Over 6,400 Masonry and Carpentry Workers of Changsha*
(October 5, 1922)

To all Changsha newspapers, all national newspapers, all trade unions, all workers’ organizations, all workers’ clubs, all fellow workers, and people of all circles:

We workers previously issued an express mail telegram, which we trust has already received your discerning attention. All of our grievances were set forth in detail in that earlier telegram, in the hope of reaching a satisfactory resolution. Unexpectedly, yesterday, on the 14th day of the 8th lunar month, Zhou Yinggan, the county magistrate of Changsha, issued a proclamation siding with the one-sided words of a few street associations, showing no understanding of our workers’ grievances, and even asserting that we have absolutely no grounds for demanding a wage increase. Let us ask: have not the prices of all kinds of goods and house rents today multiplied several times over compared to before? And can these not all be raised freely? We, the poorest of workers, driven by the extreme hardship of making a living, cannot help but seek a slight increase in wages in order to improve our livelihood. This is our workers’ inherent right to survival. How is it that we are not allowed even this free increase, but instead are met with the most brutally oppressive measures? Must we be driven to starve to death before they are satisfied? We workers can endure this no longer. Having no alternative, we are compelled to call a general strike on the 16th and will petition the Provincial Assembly, seeking a final resolution. Until our full demands are met, we vow not to return to work. We earnestly hope that people of all circles will show compassion for our grievances, extend your understanding, and lend us concrete and substantial support. As we send this telegram, our spirits are stirred, and we await your response with the utmost urgency and deference.

Respectfully submitted by over 6,400 masonry and carpentry workers of Changsha