The Washington herald., 1917-10-08
VAR Front HAS ]
its CHINATOWN.
Observer Tells Of Camp
Where British House
Coolies.
BY JOHN L. BALDERsToN.
lCopyriaht. 1911. hr the Mcclure NeNlpatcI

Z By JOHN L. BALDERSTON.
tCopyrisht. 1917. BY the Mcclure Newspaper
syndicate.)
With the British Armies in the
Field, Oct. s.-This Is the story Of q
trip to the British army's China
town.
( In motoring behind the lines the
observer Ia struck by the astounding
medley of races brought together In
France to labor while white men night.
During one day I passed on the roads.
at raflheads and In the towns, groups
of Chinese, Fijlans, Egyptians. Anna
mites. and several kinds Of Northern
and Central Africans.
asked how these thousands OF
beings transplanted from other climes
and continents are fed. kept in order.
identified; what provisions are made
for their families. and how their work
compares. with white labor. For an
swer was taken to the headquarters
of Chinese labor In Northern France,
and told to look about and ask Ques-
tions and see for myself. Similar or
ganizations. I was informed, exist for
the other foreigners, but the largest
Of all Is Chinatown, which takes care
OI lIouEdnus VI oliththt iobc' N'e 'sS'-f
and is prepared to handle five times
as~many IL the war continues another
two years.
village, in whose streets not China
man is seen; but once inside the Com
pound, the visitor finds himself trans
ported TO the Orient. A great city
of tents stretches for acres; few
white men are about. but many Chi
nese guards and policemen; notices
in Chinese are placarded everywhere,
and coolies in clothes brought from
China pass to and fro. two by two.
each pair carrying on their shoulders
bamboo pole brought from China,
from which is suspended a wicker
basket brought from China.
AS they arrive on the ships, the
coolies are brought to this camp. They
are identified. card-indexed. and sent
out from Chinatown to work under
overseers of their own race. in charge
of British officers. The home camp
may contain many thousands of-<nen.
or be almost empty. but here all the
records are kept and the machinery
of organization centers. A marvellous
system it is; no great industrial con-
cern could handle such a problem
with more sympathy. tact, fairness,
and quiet efficiency.
German agents seek to persuade the
world that Orientals and negroes
brought to Frence by the allies are
treated as slaves. Let me tell the
story OF how Chow Mein. a Chinese
coolie working in the rice fields. sup
porting a family on wages of five
cents a day. finds himself in France
mending a road behind Bapaume.
Chow is astounded and incredulous
to be told one morning that some
foreign devils are willing to pay him
many cents per working day of eight
hours for three Years, and that at the
same time pay his family while he Is
away II he will sail of to the other
side of the. world. He Is distrustful.
he hangs back at first, but a friend
who went to South Africa fifteen
years ago tells HIM that the English
will be as good as their word. He
signs his contract. and after a long
voyage he finds himself in France.
/, He is taken to Chinatown. There
This finger tips are taken and COM
pared with those obtained when he
enlisted in Canton. A very necessary
precaution; the finger prints are in
dexed by Mysterious numbers, which
an expert marks. after one glance,
on the print of each finger.
He Is Identified.
Chow. 1. therefore Identified beyond
the possibility of a mistake. even IL he
loses his papers. He then receives a
work card. His boss marks on this
card when he has done a days work
il, however, he shirks he is docked. OF
gets nothing. At the end of ecah
month he is paid; at the end of his
contract he will be transported at the
governments expense back to the rice
plantation he came from.
The Chinese get the same ration as
British troops. with the exception
that rice is substituted for meat to ar
! extent pleasing to the Chinese palae
1 visited a Chinese hospital in China
town. in charge of army doctors who
know the language and have worked In
China 1t was the same in every es'
sertial respect as the regular army
hospitals. In charge of one of the
wards was an American from Seattle
who left an important post in the
| Mania army hospital to see active
service, Joined the British Medica!
Corps and came from China with q
shipload of coolies.
The officer in charge of all Chinese
, labor in the British army zone-the
army calls him 20. c. Chinks'-is a
man who handled Orientals in South
Africa and talks Chinese.
Coolies Behave Well.
''The Chinaman is well-behaved
and has given not the slightest
trouble" he said. He comes &c
stand the climate well. and we shall
take special care of him during his
first European winter.
when China declared war the
other day. 1 had a proclamation pre-.
pared and posted in all the camps
1t told the Chinese that now they
are no longer neutrals, but belliger.
ents, that while We will keep our
contracts with them, and not send
them to work under fire. they must
remember that they are working
for the same cause the men up from
are fighting for. I am glad to say
the news had a good effect. The
boards were surrounded for days by
buzzing groups, and the standard OF
work has increased since the coolies
came to regard their work as a con-
tribution to a war In which their
own country Is enga 1ed