Description
Object description
British missionary with China Inland Mission in China, 10/1922-10/1934; prisoner with Sixth Army, Red Army in China, 10/1934-4/1936, including participation in 'The Long March', 16/10/1934-22/10/1935; missionary with China Inland Mission in China and People's Republic of China, 1940-1951
Content description
REEL 1 Background in GB, 1897-1922: family background in Manchester; story of receiving 'The call of God' to go to China; engineering apprenticeship; application to join the China Inland Mission; missionary training received. Recollections of period as missionary with China Inland Mission in China, 1/10/1922-1/10/1934: arrival in China, 1/10/1922; language training in Chinkiang; move to Guizhou Province; initial impressions of China; problem of unstable political situation; marriage to Swiss missionary Rose Piaget, 6/1931; missionary work in Guizhou Province; knowledge of Mandarin language; attitude of Han Chinese and local tribes to conversion to Christianity; capture with wife by Red Army troops, 10/1934; opinion of treatment; description of trial and interrogation; question of China Inland Mission's refusal to pay ransom of 100,000 silver Mexican dollars; treatment on first day of captivity, 1/10/1934; story of capture of missionary Anolis Hayman and family in Guizhou Province; reason for wives and children being released; story relating Canadian missionary Grace Emblen.
REEL 2 Continues: Recollections of period in captivity with Sixth Army, Red Army in China, 10/1934-4/1936 including participation in The Long March, 16/10/1934-22/10/1935: role of the Second and Sixth Armies as decoys during march; joining together of Second and Sixth Armies, 10/1934; opinion of Sixth Army commander Xiao Ke; story of helping Xiao Ke interpret map; opinion of Second Army commander He Long; description of a 'Public Judgement' session organised by He Long; opinion of discipline and conduct of Red Army; description of uniforms, weapons and equipment; Red Army's method of dealing with opium addiction; attitude to treatment of Chinese and Kuomintang prisoners; friendship with captive National Revolutionary Army general; escape of Grace Emblen; route taken across western Hunan, Guizou and Yunnan Provinces; being given a horse.
REEL 3 Continues: organisation of the The Long March; roping together of prisoners; erratic procedure of marching and rest periods; crossing rivers and mountains; problem of lack of reliable maps; further comments on assisting Xiao Ke in Giuzhou Province; story of being confined with Arnolis Hayman in a dark room for six weeks; living conditions for Chinese prisoners; escape attempt made with Arnolis Hayman, 12/1934; recapture and punishment; memories of Christmas Day, 25/12/1934; attitude to being bound at night.
REEL 4 Continues: importance of prayer; description of attacks by National Revolutionary Army forces during The Long March; use of camouflage and alarm systems; relations with local warlords and tribes during The Long March; story of communist soldier's definition of rich and poor; attitude to treatment of landlords and families by Communists; crocheting garments for troops; description of clothing; problem with feet; personal hygiene; problem of lice; treatment of women on The Long March; ways of keeping mind alert during march; opinion of rations; contracting beri-beri; drinks; reception from Communists in populated areas; propaganda squads and activities; Communist indoctrination of new recruits; comparison of discipline in Red Army and National Revolutionary Army; awareness of strategic situation; opinion of Comintern representative Otto Braun; attitude to luck and the heroic nature of The Long March.
REEL 5 Continues: problem of deteriorating health during captivity; physical condition of Father Kellner; negotiations leading to release of Arnolis Hayman, 18/11/1935; reaction to not being released with Arnolis Hayman as promised and attitude of guards to officers' broken promise; description of preparations for The Long March; question of receiving signs of support from God; incident of being held in cage at city prison; conditions during The Long March; story of release with Chinese Christian boy near Kunming, Easter Sunday, 12/4/1936; arrest as a potential Soviet spy by National Revolutionary Army troops in Fumin and his parading through streets; how he was identified by an National Revolutionary Army officer; description of journey on horseback to Kunming under National Revolutionary Army escort; reception by missionaries on arrival; question of ransom not being paid.
REEL 6 Continues: further details of reception outside Kunming; meeting with chief magistrate in Kunming; problem of poor state of health including beri-beri and pleurisy; wife Rose's journey to Kunming; story of being reported executed; execution of Mr Ferguson by the Communists; story of Father's Kellner's death in captivity; nature of restrictions following escape attempt, 12/1934; conveying religious messages to guards; opinion of significance of The Long March in Chinese history; attitude towards captors and Chinese Communist Party regime; opinion of Chiang Kai-shek.
REEL 7 Continues: recovery from period of captivity. Recollections of period as missionary with China Inland Mission in China and People's Republic of China, 1940-1951: nature of work in Shanghai and Guizhou Province; description of Japanese bombing in Kunming area; arrival of refugees from east; move to Panhsien; story of Imperial Japanese Army being forced to retreat from Guizhou Province due to lack of food and adequate clothing; story of wife Rose receiving medical treatment for trachoma from Friends Ambulance Unit; role of the mission during the war; story about Kuomintang convert to Christianity; description of work with Chinese prisoners; relations between Communists and Kuomintang; reaction to arrival of Communists in Guizhou Province following establishment of People's Republic of China, 10/1949; opinion of Communist propaganda and tactics; persecution of benevolent landlord and family by Communists.
REEL 8 Continues: description of 'struggle' sessions and verdicts; effect of Communist regime on work as missionary; story about public baptism; confiscation of passport and movement restrictions; problem of missionaries being isolated from congregations; reason for withdrawal of China Inland Mission from People's Republic of China, 1951; opinion of developments in People's Republic of China since Communist Party of China's takeover; Communist Party of China regime's attitude to Christianity; story of article in Chinese newspaper; effect of experiences during The Long March on life and faith