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official of any importance however dared to return, or to come out of hiding.
The Communists were diabolically clever in this and why shouldn’t they be for they were living, walking devils. And if anything, or anyone, needs exorcizing it is the Communist party. They never had enough men. to take over all the governments of the many many cities and towns that they conquered, and they knew nothing of the local situation; and they would never have found out either if they had come in and kicked out all the local people, and taken complete charge themselves. By doing the way they did they got some of the minor officials to come back and start up the machinery of government.
After several weeks, when things began moving again to a degrees the Communists said that they would put a man here and there in the different departments “not to tell you what to do, but merely to see what is going on”. After another few weeks they added more in the various departments. Then after some more weeks, when these men who had been put in the various departments know something of what was going on, and after they learned a bit about the local situation, they took over completely themselves.
In this manner of acting they learned how the local government ran; got to know some of the personnel, and were then in a relatively short period of time able to take over themselves. Had they not done it in this manner, and had they taken over completely in the beginning,’ every local person would have clammed up, and progress would have been much slower than it was.
We also found later that many of the men who had been working in the various arms of the Nationalist government Were really spies of the Communists, and when the Reds took over, through these spies they knew a lot about the local situation.
Shortly after they had taken. over, they made it a point to be friendly to, and give jobs to, every bum, trouble-maker, and discontent

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in the town. They figured that this sort of person would know of all. the dirt and crookedness going on in the town. And that in what they were interested in, dirt, crookedness shady deals, etc., and not decency-, right or good. Since the Communists were rotten to the core*. they were interested only in evil and wrong, and not right and good.
It is true that some of these no-good persons who gained instant respectability for no other reason than because they were bums, knew. of shady dealings, because they might have been involved in them, but of course, they didn’t say anything about this. And by taking the word of those least reliable persons, who quite naturally might have had a grudge ‘against some people, and who imagined that they know the reasons why many things were done, many, many innocent persons suffered, On only the word of these bums, decent law-abiding citizens were jailed, fined, and many even put to death. Law-abiding individuals were ignored, and bums and trouble makers were listened to.
For the first several weeks after the takeover, we at the. Catholic Mission, were not bothered in any way. They must- have had orders to stay away, for being Chinese, they were naturally curious, and would have come around just to satisfy their curiosity had they not been ordered not to do so.
About this time they put out an order that all guns must be registered. I had already hidden my revolver, for many people knew that I had. a rifles but practically no one knew I had the revolver:
Since it was known that I had the rifle I did not dare get rid of it for if someone reported to them that I had a rifle, and. I could not produce it, I would be in serious trouble So when they put out the order to register guns I told my “boy” that I intended to register it. He was against it but I knew the danger was too great not to do no. We therefore took the .22 rifle over to the department to register
it. The Communists had never seen a .22, and when they saw it, and also saw the .22 short cartridges I brought along, and not knowing the power of good gunpowder, they considered It more or less as a toy. They asked me what I used it for, and I said that I shot sparrows with

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it, and let them believe that this was about all it was capable of doing. As a result, they did not confiscate the gun as I had expected. And I never had any trouble about it at any later date.
After they had. been in Ihwang for some time, one night some time after midnight, there was a pounding at our front door. When it was opened there stood a group of Communists who said that a prisoner of theirs had escaped. This group had come from a department who had their offices next door to our residence; in fact, a window from their department looked into our property. They said that this prisoner who had escaped had crawled through this window into our property, and that they knew he was hiding in our property.
I was almost positive that this was entirely false, for they tripped themselves up in concocting too elaborate a story. Instead of merely jumping clown to the ground, which would have been easy, for the window was not more than 6-8 feet from the ground, they said that their prisoner was seen walking along the top of the wall from their building to ours, and that they saw him enter the upstairs of our school.
In the first place, walking along the tap of the wall would have been extremely difficult in any circumstance, but since the top of the wall was covered with rather fragile tile, it would have been impossible, but even though he had been able to talk on this wall, he would have broken just about every tile on the wall, but none were broken.
I couldn’t have done anything about it anyway, no I was not too averse to letting then search the place, for I felt sure there was no prisoner.
The search went on and off till morning, and when they could not turn up one, they gave up and quit. However, for face, they had to, insist that their, prisoner really did escape as they said, and if he could not be found it was because he had gotten out, or we had aided him to escape.

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I am sure that there never was a prisoner, and I think that the only reason of the search was to see if we perhaps did not have some unregistered person in the residence. At this time, everyone had to be registered, whether they lived at homes or anywhere else. All persons luring in our residence likewise had to be registered and. we were not permitted to let anyone who was not registered in the residence stay all night. So they concocted the story of the escaped prisoner merely as an excuse to search and cheek all who were there that night. Of course, this in what they did before they every began any search for a prisoner, and had they found an unregistered person there it would have gone very hard both for us and for the person there.
Why they did not come out and say that they wanted to chock the list of persons in the residence, instead of some bull story of an escaped prisoner, is just one of those unexplainable things that the Communists did.
Less than a week later, there was a pounding again at our front gate, sometime after midnight. This time there was a fairly large group of soldiers there, and they said that they had received inforimation that we had guns hidden in the residence. (From these instances, and others I said that like all vermin, they come out only at night.) We insisted that we had no guns except the one which I registered, but they insisted that they knew that we were concealing army rifles, etc.
They insisted that they make a search, and there was nothing that we could. do about it. But before beginning the search they made’ everyone go their rooms and everyone was checked as to who they were, etc., and then a guard at the doors, and no one was permitted to leave unless the guard accompanied them.
They then began to search, but since everyone was confined to their rooms.  I don’t know just how much searching was done. We were kept in our rooms all that day, and the next, while soldiers came and went. The guard at the door of my room made me leave the light on at night while I slept, and he remained there both night and day.

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I knew that there were no concealed guns in the residence, but what I was afraid of was that they might plant some which they could easily have done. Everyone was confined to their rooms, and it would have been a very simple matter for them to plant guns somewhere, and then bring us, and their representatives, to the spot and confront us with them. However, they did not do so, and why I’ll never know. Maybe we were praying just too darn hard during this time to let them do so
This went on for three days, with us confined to our rooms and they coming and going at all hours of the day and night----mostly night. On the third day I was called up, and they admitted that they found no guns, but they were positive that we actually had them, but probably had, gotten word and disposed of them. This closed the case.
A few days after the search for the guns I was called to the head quarters in town, and told that we had not paid taxes on our fields. Some 3-4 years previously I bad purchased 6-7 acres of land across the river from the residence, and I hired men to farm it, planting it in rice, which we used for eating in the residence.
When. told that we had not paid taxes, I told them that I could produce the receipts. When I did later produce them, they said that these receipts were forged, and that we had not paid. No amount of argument would convince them otherwise for it was nothing more than a scheme to “get” us.
The fact that the Communists were not in power when the alleged taxes were not paid made no difference with them. They said that because we had not paid. these taxes we would have to pay them now to them and pay a fine also. It came to approximately $150.00 U.S. money, which at that time was a terribly large sum.
I knew that the whole thing was a put-up job from start to finish but I didn’t know what to do. I did not have’ the equivalent of $150.00 U.S., money, and if I did, I did not know if I should pay it or not. So I called Bishop Quinn and told him the story, and asked him what I should do. By this time he had also had a few experiences With the Communists

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and he said that he doubted that if paying the fine would end the matter or not. But, at least, there was the possibility, and he said that he would send me the money, and I should pay it, and see if things would quiten down.
But to think that the Communists would be appeased by the paying of a fine on a trumped up charge is like thinking that the wolf at the door will be appeased when you throw him a hunk of meat, and. that he will then go away and not return. All it does is to let him know that food can be obtained here, and he will surely return when he gets hungry.
After I paid the money things were quite for a few days, and then they were back again. And this time they said that they received proof that we had previously oppressed the people. We had forced the precious owner of the fields to sell them to us at half their worth; and that they had also found that we had not paid taxes on our church. We told them that the government did not tax churches, but they refused to listen to that.
As a result, they said that we had to pay the sum of about U.S. $5OO.OO to make up for the fraud in purchasing the fields, and for the taxes on the church. In the inflated currency of the time, this was as astronomical sum, and I had nothing resembling this amount.
Something which we suspected, but did not know for sure till later, was that all this trouble was nothing more than a plot to discredit the Catholic Church, but especially to inconvenience and discredit me, an American. I, being an American, they figured that by humiliating and causing me to “lose face”, they were doing this to America, whom the Communists bitterly hated.
So the writing on the wall became somewhat clearer, and all this trouble was--at the moment at least-----directed more towards me, and American, rather than directed towards the church. I had no illusions that they were well disposed towards Christianity, but they hated America even worse than Christianity. So there was at least the possibility that if I were not there the church might be let alone, for the time being at least.

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I said at the time that it would be a terrible disappointment and disillusion if I were to oppose the Communists, and they shot me, thinking that I would be a martyr the faith, and when I go to heaven thinking I was carrying the palm of martyrdom in my hand, only to find that I was carrying an American flag.
From the time of our first trouble with them, they, the Communist, forbade me to leave the city. Oh, they wore very solicitous for my welfare! They said “The countryside is overrun with bandits, the Nationalist soldiers, and they, the Communists, have not yet gotten time to exterminate. As a result it would be unsafe for me to leave their protection. They could not protect me, and I would surely be killed if I went.” Since I could not leave the city, and most of our Catholics lived outside the city, I was able to do very little work, since I was confined to the city.
I called the Bishop and told him the whole story, and also told him that seemingly much of this trouble was caused simply because I was an American, and If I were not there, it could possibly die down. The Bishop agreed with me, and said that he would send another Chinese priest to Ihwang to take charge. The Bishop told me to go to Fuchow, by hook or crook, and then see what would happen.
So I went to the Communist officials in Ihwang and told them that I did not have anything like the amount of money that they insisted I pay, and that it would be necessary for me to go to Fuchow to borrow the money from my “big brother”, Father Steve. Dunker.
They fell for the story, and gave me permission, and a travel permit to go to Fuchow, for a period of five days.
I packed what things I could, but not so much as to arouse their suspicions that I might not be intending to return. I had a man carry them down to Fuchow for me while I rode my bicycle. My. other things, I also packed up and made arrangements to transport them down to Fuchow in a day or so. (They never did arrive for when the wheelbarrow pusher was leaving Ihwang, the guard at the gate examined his cargo, and when he found that it was mine they refused to let it pass, and

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I would talk the matter over with the priests there before letting the Communists know that I bad returned, if I decided to let them know, I would do this by taking a detour before getting to Ihwang, and enter the city by aside gate, and one not from Fuchow. I would casually stroll into Ihwang over the bridge and entering the residence by the back gate. If, after talking the matter over, it seemed best that I return, then I would inform the Communists of the fact. But if it seemed best not to return, then I would leave, and not let them know that I had been. there-----hopefully.
When I was still 3-4 miles from Ihwang, and before I came to the turn-off for the detour to cross the river, I met Father Fong, the Chinese priest, and some other people from the residence, waiting to intercept me. They were afraid that if I went farther I might run into some of the Communist, soldiers, and they would thereby get knowledge of my arrival The people from the residence told me that it would be foolhardy for me to return; that they just wanted to get me back to punish me for fooling them by not returning; that it would not help the situation of the church there at all, and would undoubtedly do much more harm than good, etc.
As a result, after talking the matter over with them for an hour or more, and. having my suspicions confirmed that the trouble was more personal than anything else, I decided that would return to Fuchow, as they advised.
I had ridden my bicycle there, and by the time I turned back o Fuchow, 40 miles away, it was mid afternoon. I rode as far as I could before night, and since the road was nothing more than a path, With many breaks in it where I had to get off the bike and push it over the break, and there was practically no moon light, when I came to a roadside tea shop, empty for the night, I want in and lay down on the table there to get a bit of rest, and maybe some sleep.
This shop, like most roadside tea shops, was nothing more than a make-shift roof over an area of perhaps 10X10 feet, with three side but the front open.

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About midnight I heard voices approaching. I could have slipped out the back of the shop and hid, for I was certain that the voices were those of Communist soldiers; however, it was dark when I got to the shops and I did not know what wan behind it; whether it afforded a place to hide or not. I gambled that the soldiers knowing that the shop would be deserted, would pass it by and not stop. However, I gambled wrong and they did come in. However, it was dark, and they could not see me plainly, and they were Northern Chinese, who spoke a different dialect that we did. Therefore they were not too adept at recognizing that the language I spoke was not coming from a true Chinese. I am pretty sure that they did not recognize me as a foreigner, and so after a bit they left, and I could start breathing again.
At the first hint of dawn I was off, and I arrived back in Fuchow by midmorning. And let me tell you I was glad to be back.
from then on affair with the Ihwang Communists died, down, and they never tried to get me to return; nor did they bother the priests at Ihwang, nor ask them to pay the fine that I did not pay.
This just went to show that the fine was directed to me personally and not the church. For though they said the church there had not paid the tax, and compelled the man to sell. the fields at not their true worth, when I was not there anymore they dropped the charges.
Fuchow was a fairly large city of several hundred thousand people. At this time the church there had experienced very little harassment or trouble. About all they had done was to tell Steve not to stay overnight away from the residence, If we went to the country, but returned by night, nothing was said.
Since Fuchow was a large city it took them longer to learn all of its ramifications, and their many restrictions and rules came slower and later than in smaller places.

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Shortly after taking over, no matter where it was, the Communists put in stringent travelling restrictions on all, not just foreigners. Everyone had to be registered, and no one was allowed to be away from home over night. If a person, wanted to go to some town for any length of time, even for one night, the person had to go to the travel office and get a travel permit. he had to give a good reason for going, and if they were not satisfied with the reason, then they might refuse -to give the permit, and it was dangerous to travel without one. Without this permit no hotel would permit you to stay in their lodgings over night, for at nightfall the hotel manager had to go to the travel office and report each and every guest he had for the night, and bad to show them the travel permits. If a person went to visit a friend, he could not put up the guest for the night if he had no permit. Every family had to report before night any overnight guests. If a hotel, or a relative, were to put up a person without a travel permit, and suddenly during the night they came to chock the lists, which they frequently did, and found there a person: without a travel permit, and not registered at that address, then it would go extremely hard for both the non-registered person, or without a travel permit, as well as for the owner of the house. At the very least the owner would be accused of harboring an unregistered person, and that the reason for harboring them was because this person was an evident criminal, or a Nationalist soldier. And since this person was an evident criminal, then you likewise must be of the same ilk, and both would undoubtedly end up in jail.
At this time the Communists has not placed too many restrictions except for travelling, on the mission in Fuchow. Steve had a Catechical School, but also a Primary and Middle School. Father Joe Kwei was the principal of the Middle School. And while some restriction had been put on them, they were running, if not as usual, at least going on from day to day.
Towards early winter of 1949 things began to get tighter all along the line, and more restrictions were placed not only on the Catholic Church, but for the townspeople as well.
One day, it must have been in the early 1950, Steve was summoned

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to the Communist headquarters in the city, and told to hand over his two—way radio and transmitting set; the set he was using to transmit messages to America every night, and on which he was receiving messages in return.
Steve, or course, had no such set, and he told them so. They, or course did not believe him--or at least his protestations had no effect on them. All that he did have was a small battery radio, and he told them that if that was what they wanted they could have it. However, they said that was not what they wanted, but his transmitting set.
Now just where they came up with the idea of Steve having a transmitting set no one knows Maybe someone actually said that he did have such a set. But more than likely 1t was something dreamed up by the Communists out of clear air; a story they concocted to harass him. And maybe it was just a fishing expedition on their part, to see what they might come up with.
Steve kept protesting that he had no such set, and they kept insisting that he did. Then they terminated the interview, with the admonition for him to go home and examine his conscience, and for once in his life, to come up with the truth. He was told to forget his bourgeois way of thinking, which is essentially a way of lying and deception, and oppression of the people for his own selfish ends. And he was to remember that the glorious People’s Republic of China, led’ by the illustrious and eternally to be remembered Mao Tsi tung, has been very patient with him, a running dog of the imperialist America. They have been very patient and lenient with him, even though the know his only purpose for being here in the wonderful land of China was to oppress the people, enrich himself, and promote the dastardly ends imperialistic America. And if he insists on continuing to be an enemy f the glorious People’s Republic, then he would have to take the consequences. Ho was then told to go home for the present, but to mend his ways, and when he decided to tell the truth for once, to return to them with the correct answer.

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That the Communists would not take Steve’s word, and that of any other person they did not like, Chinese or American, was the Way they acted. As I said above the charge of having a transmitting set was undoubtedly something that they dreamed up, and therefore they did not believe it either. They were using this merely as a means of harassment.
Steve was at a loss as to what answer be could give them, for if he told them the truth and they would not believe him, Then, as he pondered the matter, it suddenly came to him that had entirely skipped his mind, and it just might be the answer of the transmitting set.
Some 6-7 years previously, during the Sino-Japanese War, and during the time America was involved in the Second World War, an American fighter plane crashed in the vicinity of’ Fuchow. The pilot was killed, and Steve, along with Slug Murphy, had his remains brought to Fuchow, put in a coffin, and transported to Chungking, and eventually back to America for burial. In this crashed plane there was a two-way radio, and after the crash some Chinese received it, but. it would not work. So he brought it to Steve wanting to know if he could fix it, and when he could not, he sold. it to Steve for a few dollars. However, Steve could not even get the set fixed, for in the crash it as damaged beyond repair, and Steve put it aside as more or less junk, which it was. During the Jap invasion the residence was burned and everything inside, including this radio, was burned and destroyed.
When Steve remembered this he decided to be open and candid about this, telling them the whole story, hoping that this was what the Communists were after, and the matter would then be ended. But to be candid with the Communists, or to admit anything that cannot be absolutely and unequivalently proven, no matter that it is, big or small, is one of the worst things that can be done. I tried to be candid with them, and it brought more trouble. Steve did the same, and it only brought more trouble.
The Communists are such congenital liars that they have no regard or appreciation of the truth. For the Communist, the end always justifies the means, and, if, by lies, you achieve your ends then the lie is not only justified, but also makes the lie something good.

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So at the next meeting Steve told them the whole story about how he DID have a two-way radio, but that NOW it was destroyed. This admission probably to the Communists might be described as similar to a rabbit hunter who comes to a brush pile, and while he has no indication that there might be a rabbit in the pile, nevertheless he jumps on the brush pile, and then has a big, fat rabbit hop out.
As soon as the Communists heard Steve admit that he once had a two-way radio, this much they believed; but the fact that it had been destroyed, they simply refused to believe. They believed only what they wanted to believe, and refused to believe what they did not want to believe. Truth to them does not exist outside of the mind; truth is only what they believe in their minds.
So, since Steve said that he could not produce the transmitting set, to them it was he “refused” to produce it, he showed his bad faith. And since he voluntarily refused to produce it, then there was nothing left for them to do but to go and find it themselves.
So they immediately clamped everyone in the residence under house arrest, and no one as permitted to leave the residence, nor was anyone allowed to enter. To ensure this guards were placed at the gate going outside.
Then for 2-3 days the Communists conducted a thorough and systematic search. How thorough they were I really don’t know. I think a drawn out search would be a better way of expressing it, for they Could. not search the residence too thoroughly. But they did continue to grill Steve, and many people working in the residence.
Then after about three days, like so many of their actions, inexplicably, everything was dropped; the house arrest was lifted; no transmitting set was produced; they left, and we more or less resumed our normal way of living.
By this time the Communists had taken over the. entire Mission complex in Ihwang, including 2 schools, the church, rectory, etc.

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Similar  happenings took Place in all other smaller towns and villages
and practically all church property was taken over by the Communists and whoever was there at the time were driven out. Most mission properties became the headquarters of the Communist parties. However, if there was any sign of religion about such as crosses, or names, these wore systematically destroyed, and the Communist insignia put up. In Fuchow regulations began to tighten up: more restrictions, more regulations, more picayunish things that had to be done.
I was not doing much in Fuchow, and since it was only a matter of time before we would all be forced out, I began to entertain ideas of returning to the States. However, we would not be forced out of China, or expelled that was not the way they Wanted to achieve their ends. They would simply make conditions so difficult and impossible, that we would leave on our own accord.
This harassment to make a person leave on his own accord, rather than by expulsion, is something that is rather hard for us Westerners to understand. Something like “brain washing”. Why spend maybe hundreds of hours brain-washing an individual so that the person would make statements that they wanted, or sign some document that they wanted signed?? After the statement was made, or the document signed, it usually was, not of too great importance; surely, in our eyes, not justifying all the time and effort spent to achieve it.  So, rather than expel the foreign missionaries, they went to all sorts of efforts to make life so miserable that the missionaries would leave voluntarily. You are being booted out, and what difference does it make whether it comes from expulsion, or from being forced out by constant harassment? but evidently it made a great difference to the Communists.
So around March, 1950, I ‘put in my application for a permit to leave China and return to America. I didn’t expect to get this permission overnight, and I didn’t. Whey if even a Chinese wanted to travel to some town 10 miles away, and remain a day or so, he had to get a travel permit. And sometimes it took him 2-3 days to get it.

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So getting a. permit for an American to leave the country it took weeks and months of waiting. Like all Chinese, but especially the Communists, things had to go through channels, and. lots and lots of red tape was required. Such a permit could not be granted locally, but had to come from higher up.
Around July or so I got word that permission to leave might be granted me, but only after proof was obtained that I was not walking away from any debts or obligations. Therefore, I would have to advertize in the local paper for five days in a row, announcing that I intended to leave the country, and if anyone had. any objections, or if I owed any money, or anything else, they were to come forward.
I held my breath for five days, for all that they would have had to do to cause me trouble was to have someone come forward saying that I owed them money, or something else. If such a person stated that I owed them something this person’s word would be taken as gospel truth, even though the person making the allegation might be a bum or a liar from birth; and my word would carry no more importance than a breath of wind. Or, if no one came forward of their own accord, the Communists could have had someone come forward and make the charge, even though it would be false, and they would know it, and then I would not be able to got the exit permit, or I would have to pay some exorbitant supposed- to-be debt.
Perhaps a person might think that I am over critical, and will attribute to the Communists nothing but evil. I’ll admit that I will not grant them anything but evil, and. that for the simple reason that they are evil to the very core. 1any Chinese said that they were incarnate devils, and I agree with them. And the only time the devil will go anything good is when he can achieve some evil by it. I believe that the Communists in Ihwang did not plant guns in the residence when they said they were hunting for guns, and. they probably knew that there were no guns there; and the only reason they. did not have someone come forward and say that I owed them some money when I applied for the exit visa, was simply that these eventualities were not covered in the book from which all Communists learn the ways of Communism. Communism is

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something entirely alien to the Chinese; an entirely new way of thinking. And so many of their actions and words were taken from their books, or instructors, and many obvious things, since they were not covered or taught in their books, were not done not from any goodness on their part, but because they usually did not think for themselves but only the way they had learned, or had been taught. Communists cannot think for themselves, but must think and act as they are taught, and many things that they ordinarily would do, are not done because they go by the book and not by their intelligence, Thanks be to God, no one came forward saying that I owed them anything, so around September I received permission to leave; just about six months from the time I had applied. -However, they attached a condition to my leaving: since I was a foreigner, and an American at that therefore I was unreliable, and I would have to pay a guard to go along with me to see that I actually left. Consequently I first went to Nanchang, the capital of Kiangsi, from where I could get a train to Canton, and thence to Hong Kong. However, a distance between Canton and Hong Kong, there was a no-man’s- land. The train ran to the stopping place, and we had then to proceed across this no-man’s--land to where border patrols were set up, and where one had to go through customs. -
On arriving in Canton I stayed all night there, for the train, leaving for Hong Kong did not leave till morning. On boarding this  train the next morning it happened that a young Chinese lad sat beside me on the train, who, on the surface, was very friendly, and likewise spoke Mandarin Chinese. At first I was suspicious, for I was not accustomed to meeting any friendly Chinese lately. The Communists definitely were not friendly----and that is the understatement of the century and the non-Communist Chinese, who are naturally very friendly, bad been so intimidated and cowed by the Communists, that’ they would not dare be friendly with a foreigner. Anyway this lad was, very friendly and spoke a language I could understand. The Cantonese language is entirely different type of dialect from what I knew, and I could not understand a word of their language.

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When we came to the end of the run we disembarked from the train and had to make our way across this no-man’s--land to the check point
When I returned to China in 1948 from a visit to the States, because of the inflation, I did not change all of my American money into Chinese money, and I brought about $200.00 of American money along with me. I still had this sum with me at this time. Since I figured that I would be thoroughly searched before being allowed to leave, and knowing that if they discovered this amount of American money on me, they would not only confiscate it, but likewise might accuse me of some sorts of crime, such as stealing it; killing someone to get it etc. So the night before I had taken this money, put it inside a gauze bandage, and taped. it to the inside of my leg, near the crotch. I fully intended to be searched, for I just could not conceive them trusting an American enough not to search him, thinking that in some manner or form be would be carrying our irreplaceable treasures. So even if they searched me, I figured they would not discover it.
As usual, where the customer is always wrong, we had to stand in line for a long time going through customs. No shelter was provided, and a downpour of rain came. Since there was no place where we could go to escape, we just stayed in our line and got wet. It wasn’t too awfully cold, and the though o getting across that line and into free country was enough to keep us warm, and willing to put up with any inconvenience. Likewise, we weren’t going to get out of line and delay that moment by a possible second.
The rain was a torrential downpour and wet us so thoroughly that there was not a dry inch on any of us. After a while the adhesive tape I had used to tape the bandage containing the money, also got soaked and the tape began to lose its adhesiveness, and I could feel the wet bandage begin to sag, for the bandage and the bills were soaked and this added to their weight, and aggravated the situation. I did not know how much danger there was of it coming entirely unglued, but in times of tension like this, I had visions of the tape coming unstuck as I was going through customs, and leaving a trail of green-backs behind.

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Frantically I kept applying pressure where it felt as though the tape were coming loose. And of course, being out in the open, I could not let down my pants and redo the job. I tell you that this caused plenty of worry. but thanks to the Lord, everything held, and my fears did not materialize.
while we were waiting in line there were innumerable carriers trying to get the job of carrying our luggage front this point to the bridge going over into Hong Kong. As they frequently did in shah cases some of them would take hold of your arm or sleeve trying to get your attention to hire them.
The young Chinese lad, who had been friendly with me on the train, was standing just behind me in line, arid at one point he shouted.“Pick- pocket!”, and he took off after one of the so-called coolies. What happened was, that without me feeling the slightest tough, one of those guys had reached into my rear pocket and filched my wallet. For safety sake such as this, I did not have all of may. money or valuables in their wallet, but I did have some. The rest I had in an inside pocket of my coat,
The young lad got the wallet back for me, and had. it not been for him I would never have missed it till too late and. therefore would not have gotten it back.
And the way I was feeling at the moment, I was not about to jeopardize myself in any way so as to get out of this “paradise”. So the pickpocket got away, and I did not bother about trying to get him punished. Had I complained to the Red soldiers, I am sure that at the very least they would have cursed this “foreign dog for calling a “noble and upright citizen of the wonderful Republic of Red China” and.:
they would probably found something wrong with my exit visa and not let me out. s0 I just shut up, and did not let it interfere or jeopardize my exit in any way.
Only when I got back to the States I wrote Bishop Quinn, Tom Smith, Steve, etc, telling them that eventually they too would be going through the same line, and that they should put all their valuables inside their

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coat pocket, secured, or tied to a string which they pinned to their coat. In this way if their wallets wore filched, the string would jerk the wallet out of the pickpocket’s hands before he could get away. And in their hip pockets I advised them to buy a rat trap, set it, and put in there, so that if some pickpocket put his hands inside he would get his hands in a rat trap.
After letting this pickpocket get away, and doing nothing about it I could better understand a story they frequently told about Father Altenburg years previously. Alty was always jumpy and timid and nervous. Around the year 1933 Alty was in Fuchow and a rumor that the Reds were approaching the town came, so everyone fled. Father Fred Lewis was there at the same time, and they ran together; Fred on a bicycle, and Alty on a horse. After they had gotten some distance from Fuchow they stopped at a tea shop to rest and get corns tea. As they were sitting there someone suddenly shouted that the Reds were just over the hill and approaching. Everyone in the teashop scattered like chickens at the appearance of a. hawk.
Before leaving Fred had taken along what money be had, which at that time was in silver dollars. This was before the advent of paper money. As Fred pushed his bike out preparatory to going the opposite direction from which they said. the Reds were approaching, the bag in which he had wrapped the slicer dollars behind his bicycle came loose and 20-30 silver dollars rolled down into the dust.
As Fred. was frantically trying to pick up, and to locate the dollars in the dust, Alty looked back and saw Fred slowing up their flight, and he shouted: “leave the damn things go, and come on.
This is something like I felt when the pickpocket stole my wallet. And for the first time I appreciated Alty’s remark. It used to be a joke, but my sentiments were: “Let the damn wallet go, and let me get out.”
And, as is true in so many events and happenings in one’s life the anticipation sometimes is greater than the realization, I remember that during the second World War, when we were cut off from the outside; not in too much danger necessarily, but you know that you were surrounded,