Quotations from Mao

Just before China's Defense Minister, Lin Piao, staged an abortive coup d'etat last fall, Chairman Mao Tse-tung made a month-long tour of the provinces, informally telling party leaders about his continuing political troubles with his subordinates and his clashes with Heir Apparent Lin. A transcript of Mao's rambling remarks, circulated by Peking's Central Committee last spring, was smuggled to Taiwan, where it was released last week. Excerpts:

ON LIN AND THE ARMY. Lin Piao says that the People's Liberation Army was created and led by Mao, but is commanded by Lin. I say that what has been created [by the people] cannot be commanded by one person--even by me.

ON HIGH POLITICAL OFFICE. I am against setting up a powerful presidency. I do not want to be president. I have said that on six occasions; they don't want to listen.

ON TROUBLES WITHIN THE LEADERSHIP.

Ten times over the years, men in our party have stirred up things, creating splits. I think it is possible that there will be similar stir-ups another ten, 20, 30 times. Do you believe this or not? You do not believe this. I do.

ON ERRORS. Some comrades have been deceived by the splitters. The question of being hoodwinked has nothing to do with you provincial leaders. This is Peking's problem. It does not matter that mistakes have been made. Our party has a rule: we hold examinations of wrongdoers, then we allow them to correct their errors.

ON SECRETARIES AND SUBORDINATES. I do not approve of having one's own wife working as office manager of her husband's work unit. In Lin Piao's place, Yeh Chun [Lin's wife] is the office manager. His subordinates have to go through her to consult with him on any question. [Yeh and the subordinates have since been purged.] To do any real work you have to rely on yourself: move your own hands, see with your own eyes, mark documents in your own handwriting. Do not rely on secretaries! Do not let secretaries have too much power. My secretary controls only the comings and goings of documents; I myself select the documents for my own reading. What I want done, I do myself, to avoid misunderstandings.

ON CADRES AS STUDENTS. I hope that from now on you will all read more books. Senior cadres do not even know what is materialism and what is not. How would you know? It is not easy to read books on Marxism-Leninism. What is to be done?* You could ask a teacher for help. You are all secretaries; you should all be students. At present I myself am a student every day, reading daily two reference books, to gain a little international knowledge.

*One of Lenin's most famous pamphlets is entitled What Is to Be Done?

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