Smyrna times., 1941-12-04
BURMA ROAD is CHINA'S
LIFELINE

route Travelled only by boat. Mod
ern Crina has, however, given this
phase new meaning. For the liter
ary importance of Kipling's sea
road is today matched by the mil
itary significance of the overland
road to China's fight for freedom.
The Burma Road, 22,100 miles
across the Chinese and Burmese
wastelands, is the lifeline of the
free Chinese government in its war
with Japan. Starting at Rangoon,
India, free China's only available
seaport of any size, it blazes north
to Mandalay. Paralleling the rail-
way to Lashio, it snakes through
wild and remote country along the
route of the Old Tribute Road to
Chungkinfi Marco Polo took the
same trail 900 years ago.
The road as it exists today was
built in sections over long span
of years. The Chinese government
began to rush its construction af-
ter the Japanese invasion in 1887.
In fact, China embarked upon a
giant road-building program at
that time as vital part Of her de-
fense program. Engineers have
constructed 10000 miles of modern
roads through previously untouch-
ed and isolated wastelands in the
past four years. All of these roads
have been built in the vast, remote
provinces of western China which,
before the war, were totally unde-
veloped economically and industri-
ally.
Within year after Japan enter
ed China, the nation lost 80 per
cent of her industries which were
centered in the rich coastal pro-
vinces. Faced with economic de-
feat, her coolies moved 385, 900 tons
of indus rial equipment into the in
terror, 1,50O miles away in one of
the epic migrations of history. De-
velopment of China's West faced
an initial setback because of the
total lack of modern roads and
transportation facilities. However,
thanks to training in the United
States. and Great Britain, China
had a well-equipped corps of en-
gineers and technicians upon which
to draw in this emergency All
engineers were Immediately mobil-
lied by the government and road
building, to speed movement of
troops, material and supplies, was
undertaken as first major defense
project.
The first job undertaken and the
first completed, because of its
strategic Importance, was the
Burma Road. They replaced chain
and-plank bridges with concrete
spans, laid a quick-draining gravel
surface, rolled it with huge bould-
ers drawn by water buffaloes. Two
hundred thousand Chinese engin-
eers and coolies worked to complete
this road within year and half,
though foreign engineers had esti-
mated that seven years would be
needed for its construction.
Construction of highways through
the Northwest to connect Chinas
war capital with Eastern Asia was
started next. More than one mil
lion farmers, soldiers, peasant wo-
men and young boys, equipped with
little modern machinery, cut 5000
miles of roads out of almost solid
rock. They used spades and picks,
for the most part, and carried the
road over 5,000-foot mountain pass
es. One difficult section of this
highway was built almost entirely
by an army of women, with their
babies slung on their backs and
armed with axes, picks, kitchen
knives and scoops. Another vital
supply route which crosses the
Northwest border into Russia was
built by 10000 soldiers and civil
ians. Weekly bus passenger service
is maintained over this road. The
important Chinese highway which
connects Chengtu with Paochi was
built by 100000 farmers under the
supervision of engineers.
International significance of the
Burma Road was spotlighted re-
Gently with President Roosevelt's s
appointment of a three-man COM
mission to study methods for ex-
pediting traffic over this route.
Objective was to increase tonnage
over the highway. With seaports
and railroads in Japanese hands,
China must depend almost solely
on the Burma Road for materials
for her troops. 1t was found that,
while lend-lease funds allocated to
china will buy about 100000 tons
of merchandise, only about 10000
tons month can now get into the
interior. American trucks carry
most of the traffic.
So important is the Burma Road
to the continuing welfare of free
China that it has become symbolic
as the lifeline of nation. With
out this road it would be impossible
for China to get the food and war
supplies that enable her to continue
her struggle for existence.