Red China: The Third Man

Into the echoing marble depths of Peking's Great Hall of the People snaked line after line of restless Red Guards, still in the capital despite earlier orders to repair to their homes. The Great Hall is usually reserved for formal occasions: anti-imperialist operas, speeches by visiting Albanian dignitaries and the annual rubber-stamp session of the Chinese Parliament. As 10,000 Red Guards stared up at a triple-tiered ceiling studded with stars, Premier Chou En-lai appeared onstage. What ensued last week was the stiffest rebuke that the Guards have received to date—and an...