by David Hare
Little Li Yes, of course.
Hou Chang Ch’uer, perhaps you could help, Ch’i-Yun and I will go and … find the meeting. Is that best?
Chang Ch’uer I think so.
Little Li Yes.
Hou Good, then tomorrow we start meeting the people of the village. There’s a lot to be done. Good luck.
They scatter. Chang Ch’uer remains.
Chang Ch’uer The first day we watched each other, the four of us, unknown to each other, scrutinizing every reaction. The second day …
3
A man with a white scarf tied round his face runs on and strangles Chang Ch’uer. They struggle for a long time. The man stuffs a towel down his mouth, then catches sight of Lai-tzu who is watching, a passer-by who happens to have caught the incident. The man runs off.
Hu Hsueh-chen runs out into the street. Hou appears.
Hou What’s happened?
Hsueh-chen This man …
Hou It’s Chang Chu’er.
Hsueh-chen Has been attacked.
Hou Get a doctor.
Lai-tzu It …
Hsueh-chen There’s no doctor in the village.
Hou Where’s the nearest?
Lai-tzu Lucheng.
Hou What’s your name? Can you carry him to Lucheng?
Lai-tzu I can find a stretcher. (He goes out.)
Hou His pulse is very weak.
Hsueh-chen Who is he?
Hou He’s a member of the work team. What’s this?
Hsueh-chen It’s a towel.
Hou It says ger oo de morenin. ‘Good morning’ in English.
Lai-tzu returns with the stretcher.
Lai-tzu I heard the attack being plotted. A few hours ago. I know who did it.
Little Li and Ch’i-yun arrive.
Hou Chang Ch’uer has been attacked.
Ch’i-yun Is it the Kuomintang?
Lai-tzu I overheard the planning.
Hou Lift him carefully.
Lai-tzu It was Wang Yu-lai.
Hou Be careful. You’re hurting him.
Little Li Yu-lai?
Lai-tzu I overheard Yu-lai talking to his friends. I was listening …
Little Li Then why didn’t you tell us?
Hou Concentrate.
They lift the body on to the stretcher.
There.
Lai-tzu Don’t you want to know who did it?
Hou I’ve heard what you say. Take him to Lucheng.
Lai-tzu Do I get millet tickets?
Hou Take him.
Lai-tzu It’s eight miles.
Hou Little Li. Find someone who will take him.
Little Li and Lai-tzu go off, Lai-tzu whining into the distance.
Lai-tzu I’ll take him, it just is a very long way, and if he were a wounded soldier, I’d be entitled to millet tickets, and I just want to know if the same thing applies to …
Hou Is he trustworthy?
Hsueh-chen No. He’s a Catholic.
A pause. Hou screws the towel up. Cheng-k’uan arrives.
Hu Hsueh-chen, I’m secretary of the Women’s Association.
Cheng-k’uan Cheng-k’uan, chairman of the Peasants’ Association.
Hou You’re both members of the Party, I know. Comrade Hou Pao-pei, leader of the work team.
Hsueh-chen Welcome.
Hou The man he accused …
Hsueh-chen Yes …
Hou Is a cadre in the Peasants’ Association.
Hsueh-chen He’s Vice-Chairman.
Hou Yes.
Cheng-k’uan And his son Wen-te is the Head of Police.
Pause.
Hsueh-chen The towels are made by a co-operative in Hantan.
Hou These?
Hsueh-chen I’ve seen them in Yu-lai’s home.
Little Li returns.
Little Li The first day we arrive!
Ch’i-yun Comrade.
Hou Give me time to think. Just give me a moment.
Little Li If the leaders of the village take to attacking the work team …
Hou Please. (He turns to Hsueh-chen.) Comrades. I am a peasant like you, I come from a village, not that many miles from here. I’ve lived the same life, so I think you’ll understand what I do.
Hsueh-chen Comrade.
Little Li I think we should …
Hou Just … let me speak. I’ve only been here a few hours but already the work team has heard a good deal of complaint. Some people who feel that fanshen is not complete. Some who feel they got too little, others who feel that the cadres took most. Whether this is true … an attack is made on the life of a member of the work team by a leader of the village on the first day we arrive to investigate.
Pause.
The Vice-Chairman of the Peasants’ Association must be taken to jail. His son, Wen-te, the Head of Police, will be taken to jail. His closest friends must be arrested and taken to jail. The work team will be issued with guns. All village leaders are temporarily suspended. The Women’s Association. The militia suspended. The village accounts will be examined by the work team. The Party branch will go into secret session to examine its own performance up till now. The work team will take over the affairs of the village. It will root out commandism, hedonism, opportunism. It will re-examine the whole village’s fanshen.
Hsueh-chen is staring at Hou.
Comrades, I am not saying you … you are thinking of the hours you have all worked, of the days, of the months, of the years, you have given. Don’t. Don’t think of yourself. Think of the people and how they are led.
Hsueh-chen and Cheng-k’uan go out, saying nothing.
Wipe the slate clean and start again. Is that not right, Little Li?
Little Li Yes.
Hou Ch’i-yun?
Ch’i-yun Yes.
Hou The place is rotten. We must start again.
SECTION SEVEN
1
Little Li addresses the poorest in the village. Lai-tzu, Ting-fu, Yuan-lung, Huan-ch’ao, Old Lady Wang, Hsin-ai, T’ao-yuan. Hou sits beside Little Li as he speaks.
Slogan: THE DRAFT AGRARIAN LAW
Little Li Brothers and sisters, peasants of Long Bow. In the course of the past two years this region has carried out a powerful and enthusiastic land reform programme. Over ten million people have already fanshened. But there are some areas where the peasants have only partially fanshened or not fanshened at all. Now finally everyone must fanshen.
In the past there were mistakes. There was favouritism. People got more because they were soldiers, or because they were cadres. Or because they were highly placed in the movement.
Now the Draft Agrarian Law will correct all such mistakes because it is firmly based on the slogan: ‘Depend on the poor peasant, unite with the middle peasant, destroy the feudal system.’
Now what does this mean? It means the feudal system will be finally eliminated and replaced with a new system called ‘Land to the Tiller’.
Lands and goods are to be redistributed on one basis and one basis only: how much you have now and how many there are in your family.
So no longer is it a question of what sort of person you are, or whether you are thought to have helped or hindered the movement. This time, those with merit will get some, those without merit will get some. All landlords’ property will be divided and everyone will get a fair share. Now how is this to be done?
It is to be done by a rigorous process of classification.
Each head of family in Long Bow will be classified according to what he now has. If he is classified a poor peasant, or hired labourer, he will be given something. If he is classified a middle peasant, he will probably not be touched. If he is classified a rich peasant or landlord, he will have something taken away.
And this time it is you – the poor – the very poorest in the village, who will be in charge of the classification process.
You will run the meetings. Each family head must come before you and reveal his exact wealth and his exact needs.
You will di
scuss his report and decide his family’s class status.
But beware. You – the basic elements – are holding a knife in your hands. We are at war. Class someone now as a rich peasant and he becomes your enemy. Class someone as a middle peasant and he becomes your ally. Class someone as a poor peasant and he becomes one of you. You must take care. For on these classifications will depend what everyone is to get, how they are to live for the rest of their lives.
The peasants applaud.
2
Slogan: SELF-REPORT, PUBLIC APPRAISAL
Lai-tzu My name is Kuo Lai-tzu. I have two acres, there are four in my family. I have no children. I reap about ten bushels to the acre. And I don’t have any kind of draft animals.
Hou Discuss in groups.
Lai-tzu before the classification meeting. These are the poorest peasants again: Lai-tzu, Old Lady Wang, Huan-ch’ao, T’ao-yuan, Ting-fu, Yuan-lung and an old woman, Li Hsin-ai. Li and Hou are at the side, writing. The peasants are in distinct groups. The groups go into a huddle.
Hou Report from your groups.
Ting-fu Poor peasant.
Old Lady Wang Poor peasant.
Yuan-lung Poor peasant.
Hou Poor peasant?
All Yes, yes.
Hsin-ai He hasn’t even fanshened.
Hou Poor peasant. I shall write it down. Next.
Lai-tzu Told you.
Ting-fu stands up.
Ting-fu Half an acre.
Hou Name?
Ting-fu My name is Ting-fu. I have half an acre. No livestock, no implements. I have three sections of house.
Yuan-lung Falling down.
Ting-fu And I share a privy, that’s it.
Old Lady Wang Everyone knows him, he’s a poor peasant.
Lai-tzu He’s the hardest worker in the village.
Hou Poor peasant?
All Yes, yes. Poor peasant.
Hou Poor peasant. I shall write it down. Next.
Huan-ch’ao steps up.
Huan-ch’ao My name is Chang Huan-ch’ao.
Old Lady Wang Yes well …
Little Li Let him speak.
Huan-ch’ao I’m a blacksmith. I have very little land because I don’t farm. I have four sections of house. I have a family of four. That’s all.
Hou Discuss in groups.
Old Lady Wang There’s no need. He’s a middle peasant.
Little Li You must first discuss it in your group.
Old Lady Wang He’s a middle peasant because he does so well out of everyone …
Yuan-lung How …
Old Lady Wang His prices are high and his work’s rotten.
Laughter.
Ting-fu He’s certainly a terrible blacksmith.
Hou Please.
Huan-ch’ao No, go on. Say what you like, I’m very interested.
Old Lady Wang You …
Huan-ch’ao Very happy to hear what you think.
Old Lady Wang We think …
Huan-ch’ao Yes?
Old Lady Wang We think you’re a disgraceful blacksmith …
Huan-ch’ao I see, yes, that’s very interesting.
Old Lady Wang And we wouldn’t trust you to bang a nail up an elephant’s arsehole.
Huan-ch’ao I see. Yes. That’s very clear.
Laughter.
Hou Listen, it doesn’t matter what sort of a blacksmith he is …
Lai-tzu It matters to us.
Old Lady Wang You said a middle peasant is someone who can make their own living …
Hou That’s not what I said. A middle peasant is someone who himself rarely labours for others. He does. He hires his labour to you. That makes him … (He looks round for an answer.)
Ting-fu A worker.
Lai-tzu What’s a worker?
Hou I don’t think …
Yuan-lung He’s a poor peasant.
Old Lady Wang If we say he’s a poor peasant, he’ll get something in the distribution and … I don’t want him to get anything.
Little Li That really isn’t …
Old Lady Wang If he were a good blacksmith I’d be happy for him to be a poor peasant.
Hou Good and bad don’t come into it.
Yuan-lung Call him a poor peasant.
Old Lady Wang Who must improve his work.
Hou You’re a poor peasant who must improve your work.
Little Li Do we all agree?
Ting-fu No.
Little Li Why not?
Ting-fu He’s a village worker.
Little Li We don’t have that category.
Ting-fu Well, you should. We can’t call him a peasant, peasants work on the land.
Little Li Well …
Hou He’s right.
Ting-fu You can’t call him something he’s not.
Hou Thank you, Ting-fu. We’ll think about it. Huan-ch’ao, we will defer your classification.
Huan-ch’ao Defer?
Hou Yes. The next.
Huan-ch’ao goes back to his seat.
Huan-ch’ao Just wait till it’s your turn.
T’ao-yuan steps up.
T’ao-yuan My name is Wang T’ao-yuan. Only two acres. No wife, no animals. My land was given me in the first distribution, two years ago. Before that I had no land at all. I have one nephew to support. That’s all.
Hou Discuss in groups.
They do so. T’ao-yuan smiles broadly while he waits.
Each group to report.
A representative stands up from each group.
Lai-tzu Our group wants to ask about the past.
Hou Yes.
Lai-tzu You used to have a lot of money.
T’ao-yuan I have had money, yes.
Lai-tzu I mean, I can remember when you didn’t work.
T’ao-yuan Well …
Lai-tzu How did you live?
T’ao-yuan This and that.
Lai-tzu You sold heroin.
T’ao-yuan I smoked it myself.
Lai-tzu You sold it …
T’ao-yuan In a way.
Lai-tzu What way?
T’ao-yuan Just to make money. I only sold it to make money.
Lai-tzu Well why else …
Hou All right.
Hou nods at the second group whose representative is Old Lady Wang.
Old Lady Wang Tell us what happened to your wife.
T’ao-yuan (to Hou) Is this …
Hou Yes.
T’ao-yuan Well … I began smoking heroin in the famine year and everything I had I spent on heroin. So when I had nothing left I took my wife to Taiyuan. I was very lucky, I managed to find a buyer quite quickly. He gave me six bags of millet, so that sealed the deal.
Old Lady Wang And other people’s wives, you sold them?
T’ao-yuan I helped sell them, occasionally.
Old Lady Wang And you got paid for this …
T’ao-yuan I was usually given heroin.
Old Lady Wang So your income came either from selling heroin or selling other people’s wives …
T’ao-yuan It’s … one way of looking at it.
Old Lady Wang He should be classed as a landlord’s running dog. (She sits.)
Hou Next group.
Huan-ch’ao We want to ask about the donkey. You had a donkey?
T’ao-yuan Yes, I paid two hundred dollars for it.
Huan-ch’ao What happened to it?
T’ao-yuan It caught a cold, it died.
Huan-ch’ao I see. Thank you. (He sits.)
Hou So.
Old Lady Wang May we ask what he now feels about selling his wife?
T’ao-yuan I feel … (He begins to cry bitterly.)
Old Lady Wang Really it was your own fault. You sold her and now you weep about it.
T’ao-yuan I’m not weeping for her. I’m weeping for my donkey.
Silence.
Hou Classification. From your groups.
Lai-tzu Middle peasant.
Old Lady Wang Rich peasant.
Huan-ch’ao Poor peasant.
Silence.
Hou Discuss again.
3
Little Li working at a desk with a candle on papers. Hou is staring out into the fields.
Little Li I have the results of the classification. Trying to make sense.
Hou What is it?
Little Li One hundred and seventy-four families have been classed poor peasants.
Hou Isn’t that what we expected?
Little Li But only seventy-two have so far fanshened. It means there are one hundred families in the village who barely scrape a living. And I’ve nothing to give them. We found one rich peasant. One. It’s not going to go very far. (Pause.) It’s not land, there’s enough land, one acre for every man, woman and child in Long Bow. It’s resources. Animals, carts, implements, houses. That’s what we need.
Hou I’ve been over the village accounts to try and see if anything was missed or stolen in the last distribution. Everyone says the cadres took too much, but I can’t find anything.
Pause.
Little Li So what do we do next?
Hou Expand the Poor Peasants’ League.
Little Li It won’t create things, comrade. (Pause.) I was at college, many years ago. People used to say China is poor, it’s poor because it lacks fertilizer, it lacks machinery, it lacks insecticides, it lacks medical care. I used to say no, China is poor because it is unjust. (Pause. Then he smiles.)
Hou We must prove it, comrade.
Little Li Yes.
The house lights come up.
Interval
*The actor should give publisher and current price.
Act Two
During the interval Cheng-k’uan and Hu Hsueh-chen rehearse their speeches for the gate. You watch them prepare the words they will later deliver to the village.
SECTION EIGHT
1
Hou joins the cadres while Little Li sets out the benches and tables.
Hou Are you ready?
Cheng-k’uan I’ll never be ready. This is the most frightening day of my life.
Hou Tell the truth and you have nothing to fear.
Cheng-k’uan I know that. But the people …
Hou Trust them.
Cheng-k’uan I’d be happy to die tomorrow as long as I pass the gate.
From outside the hall we hear the delegates shout ‘Purify the Party’. They are Yuan-lung, Lai-tzu, Hsin-ai, Huan-ch’ao and Tui-chin. They come in and are about to sit opposite the cadres when Hou begins to lead the singing of the Internationale. The cadres all join in. Hou knows it best. Then they sit down.