The Building of the Burma Road

The purpose of this book is to give an idea of how the Burma Road was built, telling within the framework of the engineering project the story of an achievement by my countrymen. For the sake of the narrative many of the technical details have been omitted. It is to be hoped, however, that both my brother engineering and the general public will find the book of interest. This work represents only one of the many achievements of the Chinese for the war. Without adequate nourishment and equipment they nevertheless got the job done through their spirit of devotion and self-sacrifice which is the precious heritage from out ancestors, and through the persevering determination and foresight of the government. To many people the country through which the Road passes is now only a place on the map, but they will become familiar in the months to come. For that reason, whatever has seemed colorful and unique in the way of customs and background has been set down. In order to make the job and the people who did it as real and alive as possible, little anecdotes of no other consequence have been included. This plain account has been written in all humility while the experience is still fresh in my memory, in the hope that Western readers will derive from it a better understanding of the true spirit of the Chinese people PREFACE......Page 7 CONTENTS......Page 8 Map and Profile of the Burma Road......Page 10 Chapter One - BEGINNINGS IN KUNMING......Page 12 Chapter Two - BACKGROUND AND SURVEY......Page 34 Chapter Three - THE PEOPLE WHO BUILT THE ROAD......Page 52 Chapter Four - NEW HEADQUARTERS......Page 78 Chapter Five - MUD AND MALARIA......Page 86 Chapter Six - LANDSLIDE!......Page 106 Chapter Seven - TROUBLESOME ROCK......Page 118 Chapter Eight - BUILDING OF THE BRIDGES......Page 126 Chapter Nine - A TRIP OVER THE BURMA ROAD......Page 152 Chapter Ten - ASPHALT SURFACE AND MODERNIZATION......Page 182 Chapter Eleven - INVASION AND RETREAT......Page 212 Chapter Twelve - TRAFFIC CONGESTION......Page 226 EPILOGUE......Page 232