Evening star., 1944-12-31
Chang Symbol Of China Unity,
Adventist Missionaries Assert
Mr.. and Mrs. Miller
Return Here After
II Years in Asia
BY JESSIE FAINT EVANS.

1cllCI dllSSlIIlO NIlldllS Gdl-SIlck S
the only leader who represents even
the semblance of unity in China,
according to Mr.. and Mrs. Claude
B. Miller, Seventh-Day Adventist
The Millers recently
returned to Washington after IT
years service in China.
Both feel that Chang is a sincere
and honest patriot, whose place it
would be difficult to fill in this stage
Of China's evolution, for, as they
put it, "far more important even
than China's' urgent present are
her tomorTows."
AS the result of their long years
OF residence in China, both Mr.. and
Mrs. Miller speak Chinese, and by
the very nature of their contacts
with both the foreign groups and
the native Chinese have had an op-
portunity to know the general situ-
alton at close range. He was super
intendent Of all the Seventh Day
Adventists mission work in the
four provinces of West China. She
was secretary to the general head
quarters Office.
Problems of Living.
All foreigners and the bulk of
China's civilian population have an
extraordinarily difficult time coping
with living problems in China today,
entangled as they are with the
stranglehold of imitation. Prices
before they left China mounted as
rapidly as 10 to 20 per cent month,
they said. adding:
Rice, the staple article of diet
among the Chinese people, all toe
often is under the control of a few
war lords, who either hold it for
their own armies, or refuse to sell
it until they can get whatever ex-
horbitant price for it they demand
The general situation with regard
to the war lords seems to be what
it must have been in feudal Europe
when the power of the kings was
dependent on the cooperation
which they could secure from the
all too powerful barons. yet event.
ualy centralization emerged.
National unity as result of the
war in China has developed to ar
incredible extent among the masses
of the Chinese people," the Miners
stress.
Chna's magnificent stand under
war, pestilence, famine and inaa-
ton during the past six or seven
years is beyond the conception of
the average outsider, they claim.
Millions Garry On.
Millions have lost practically
everything they had. Many other
millions are still wanderers, retreat
ing from one stronghold to another
with grim courage that beggars
description. Still, they doggedly
carry on from a hand d-to-mouth
basis, with whole districts and thou
sands upon thousands of families
moving on from one war-ravaged
area to another to till fields anew
and try to start life all over.
With devilish ingenuity, the JAP
anese Systematically bomb their
villages and take away their wheat
at harvest time. In spite of this
the Chinese somehow continue tt
have the will to live and to tenc
patiently their land again.
Mr.. and Mrs. Miller themselve.
have come through so many bomb.
ing raids that they will not ever
try to estimate the number. Once
10 bombs wrecked their compound
in Chungking, fortunately withou,
the loss of single life. One
Seventh-Day Adventist hospita,
there had its roof and walls ruined
several times by japanese bombs.
Took Chances With Japs.
Our only safety lay in refraining
from using the Red Cross designa-
tion," Mr.. Miller said. Had We
done so, we would have exposed
ourselves as a certain target. 1t
was better to take our chances with
poor japanese craftsmanship, since
the japanese are particularly anxi-
Gus to demolish the hospitals and
mission centers which function as
relief stations"
How difficult it is to visualize the
density of population in Chinese
cities in contrast with that in our
own principal centers is illustrated
by remark of the Millers' 8-year-
old daughter, Victoria. Born in
China, she saw one of San Fran
cisco's busiest thoroughfares for the
first time during particularly
heavy rush period, and had this re-