Feeding the armies was Chiang’s greatest problem. The government at first gave a lump sum to the army commanders, but many of these were unscrupulous rascals who kept most of it for themselves, allocating a small remainder to subordinates, who passed a still smaller proportion on down through the lower levels to the unprotected soldier. This was a century-old practice in China, and the hungry soldier was reduced to stealing or appropriating his food from the peasant merchants. Naturally there was always trouble between the soldiers and the merchants, with no love lost between the two. The latter lost their profits, and the soldiers reasoned that they were at least entitled to food from the people they were fighting to protect. It became increasingly easy for the Chinese Communists to win converts. They went with those who offered them food. In spite of this tragic situation, the Generalissimo, with the same patience and strength that had made his war leadership outstanding, continued to hold the loyalty of a great number of his people. Long after his flight to Formosa, rich and poor, officer and soldier continued to fight for his principles. For example, as the Communists entered Peking, there was desperate street fighting. The commander of a battalion told his men, “We are greatly outnumbered. I cannot keep you from going over to the other side, but I have fought the Communists for eight years and I will not give up now!” Inspired by his brave stand, most of his men remained with him and formed an obstacle to the Communist advance. Finally, after an hour of hopeless fighting, and when all his men had been killed, the battalion commander manned the last machine gun himself and turned it full force on the solid front of Communist troops advancing toward him. The Generalissimo had many such brave soldiers who fought to the death in his armies. Not all those loyal to Chiang were soldiers. In Canton, after the Communists took over, they held a great celebration featuring a long victory parade. This stopped every few miles and put on a little skit which showed the Generalissimo on his knees, with his hands tied behind his back, confessing his sins to the Communist leaders who laughed uproariously! The actor who impersonated Chiang received numerous threatening letters. When he reported this to his Soviet boss, he was told to disregard the threats and was ordered to continue his role. A few days later the actor was shot. Even behind the Red Curtain there are still snipers about. In fact there is every reason to believe that active guerrilla bands are on the prowl.