San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-08-31
March to Air Coward
Christian Soldiers" and
Keep in Condition by
Gymnastics Trying to
s Athletes.
By JUNIUS b. WOOD.

Picking, China, Aug. 25.-One mike
brigade was marching off the parad
grounds. Justify singing in Chinese I
the air of Onward Christian Soldier,
when the headquarters of Feng VI
hsiang. better known as China
"Christian General" were reached q
an unSeemly hour on a recent morn
ing. General Feng has 10000 of hi
10000 men at Nan Yuen, about te
miles south of Peking's walls. t
see them drill in the cool of the morn
ing means a a. m. start. 4 lieu
tenant general on the staff called witt
his car. He lives in the city, smoke
cigarettes and has two wives, bu
says that he is the only one in tn,
army who enjoys such luxuries. Ger
tainly no other cigarettes were visible
the only army in the world where the!
are lacking.
General Feng, a big. slow-movine
man with a heavy, kindly face, was
on the field with his soldiers. He
and his officers wore the same faded
gray cotton uniforms as the men. He
had on low CATERS but usually he
wears the heelless Chinese slippers.
also of cotton and made in the army
own shops. Another mixed brigade
infantry. machine guns, artillery. cav
alry-was housekeeping across the
field. "eyes right" TO. where the gem
eral sat solidly on a nervous black
horse. The band fell in behind and
the entire column started another
Chinese song. also to music from the
hymnal.
General Feng's Christian" army is
the picturesque feature OF Chinese mil
itarism. Military experts, sob sisters,
missionaries and Chinese taxpayers
each get a different thrill out of it.
In nearly every respect it differs from
other Chinese armies and in some re-
spects il is unique among armies the
world over.
Hear Talk by General.
Az the regiments left the field, the
officers fell out and returned on
trot. The general and his staff dis
mounted from their horses, which were
led away. The officers formed solid
square and the general gave them
fifteen-minute talk on discipline. lie
smoke from memory but each officer
had a book and pencil, taking notes.
A small Bible and hymn book also are
a part of each mans kit.
The general had stomach-ache and,
the lecture finished. disappeared to-
ward his office with a missionary
guest. The officers trotted to the
edge Of the field, piled up their coats,
capes and side arms and started
new series of stunts. One side of
each field is an open air gymnasium.
parallel bars, swinging logs. wooden
horses. jumping platform and dozen
horizontal bars. Each officer must do
n turn on all of them, ending up with
a class stunt, which is real lung
tester.
They form in a column by Fights:
The first line of eight starts off and
the others follow at a few seconds
intervals. 1t is a run from start to
finish. First it is a 5O-yard straight,
away with a pit. three feet deep. ana
fifteen feet across. Next a three
foot wall is jumped, then another
straight-away with fifteen feet of
rounded log on which each man
crosses another pit; an eight-foot
brick wall to scale,' another stretch
with a Dit. an eight-foot picket stock
ade. another run and fifteen-foot
mound of earth to climb. They do
not Jump from the top Of the wall,
but turn either a handspring or
back somersault and land on their
feet.
The general says this program is
compulsory for every Officer from col
Thraa Oanaralc nf G.
sorted ranks who we're accompanying
me showed that they could do it. The
enlisted men go through the same ex-
ercises in the afternoon. 1t can't be
done on the cigarette diet of Amer
lean or European armies or the opium
pipes of other Chinese armies.
Training for Soldiers.
Around the parade grounds are miles
of square mounds, seemingly huts from
a distance, with six steps on each
side and flat tops ten feet across. Part
of the daily drill is for each outfit
to negotiate about half a mile of these
on double quick. The earth is soft
and they then have couple of hours
more work with entrenching tools, re-
pairing them for the next day.
In addition to drills and camp
duty, each soldiers is taught to read
and write Chinese, arithmetic and geog-
raphy during his first three years in
the army. After that he may be
taught trade. The army makes shoes,
rugs, uniforms, rattan furniture, tow
els. coarse cloth and occasionally
lightweight brass "cash." Though the
shops are small it is only by sur
mounting many difficulties that they
exist at all with such a mobile force.
Officers classes are more advanced.
They can study English, japanese and
similar subjects. Wives of the Off
GERS, including General Feng's-and
he has only one-teach in the village
schools. His army helps itself and
the neighborhood as well. The bar
renness of parade grounds and avia-
tion fields are relieved by rows of
newly planted trees and shrubs. The
general not only keeps his men and !
camp clean physically and morally,
but he policies up his area. 20 gam
hing houses. opium dives or "sly |
yirls'-the Chinese designation for fair |
charmers-are in the purlieus of his
camp.
For recreation. his officers and men |
have church services on Sundays with |
songs and study classes on other days. |
Their pocket manual is thick volume
which the general himself compiled,
containing chapters Cl religion, neral
conduct, industry, civic duty, military
department and many other topics. 1t
is a novel sight to see a regiment