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I find it all the more wonderful because it proves without a doubt that every individual Canadian is learning more and more to assume responsibility in the defense of democracy. I know that once this spirit of cooperation and sacrifice for national good is aroused within Canadians, it can be used to accomplish great things. This spirit, I feel, will guarantee the future of democracy all over the world.

As you know, my country-men in China have been wounded by many weapons - by guns, shells, disease, famine, fire, and starvation. I have often watched those deadly pineapples, as we call them, coming out of the sky, raining disaster on innocent people. I used to wish so very much that we could in some way be able to counteract this menace. In fact I used to think to myself - it isn't fair that one country should have no planes to defend themselves, while others have abundance, especially since we Chinese have been so eager to meet this air challenge, but have been so lacking in equipment to do it.

But today things have changed and soon we will be enabled to put up a real fight, and to end the crude assaults of aggressors in the Far East. First of all - we are beginning to receive bombers. They come in crates on trucks over the winding Burma Road. They come ferried by American pilots from Singapore.

Since we were guaranteed the delivery of planes for our air defense, we have been building China's largest airfield and bomber runway to house them. Our workers had a few tools to work with - to smooth off eneven plateaus, to mix concrete, to pave ramps. But we had the man power. You have probably sen pictures of our crews of workmen mixing concrete with their legs, breaking stones with small hammers, and the crudest tools.