According to the Red Chinese themselves, 1958 was a bumper year down on the communal farm: 375 million tons of grain produced, more than double the 1957 output. The farmers of Yunnan province were reported floundering in grain. With storehouses bulging, tubs of wheat had to be crammed inside peasants' homes.
The rejoicing over this "great leap forward" could hardly be heard last week in Red China's cities. Reason: city dwellers had just been told that, despite the talk of a record yield, their grain rations had been cut. A "very heavy worker" in Peking, who used to get the maximum...
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