ABSTRACT
“The takeover of Peiping is almost complete,” according to an article printed in the People’s Daily. The Communist takeover of Peiping has been systematic, undramatic, and bloodless, without any of the violence and terror that often mark the accession to power of a revolutionary army. The Communists went about the takeover in a businesslike way, and the process was not unlike the reorganization of a bankrupt corporation. Student groups have been invaluable allies of the Communists in the takeover period and have worked energetically to help transform Peiping into a Communist-controlled city. In general, the Communists’ approach so far to the economic situation in Peiping seems to have been based on a desire to avoid disrupting normal production and trade as much as possible, and to introduce only a few changes during the transitional period. The American Consulate, like the rest of the consular establishments in Peiping, has been ignored.
