Ignorance

There already appears to be a large number of foreign visitors to China, of all varieties. We crossed the border at the same time as a delegation from New York State University and a couple of correspondents of the "Far Eastern Economic Review".

One of these correspondents confided to a member of our delegation that he'd been sent to the People's Republic in a big hurry and that he knew nothing about the country. So the fellow spent a good part of the train journey from Shum Chun (on the border) to Canton listening to members of our delegation converse with our interpreters. The fact that a correspondent for a weekly journal that boasts about its authoritative comment on Asian affairs, openly admitted his ignorance of the country shook us a bit. Only a few weeks ago the "Far Easten Economic Review" was saying that China was on the verge of famine. If all their correspondents in the People's Republic are as ignorant as the bloke we met then its no wonder the Review comes out with such predictions. During the train journey to Canton we passed miles and miles of closely cultivated land, and saw no signs of impending famine.