ABSTRACT
Pachiatsun, or Eight Families Village, lies on the outskirts of Peiping. The highest point in the village is a small building that is a part of the local Buddhist temple. Standing on the balcony of this building, one can view much of the surrounding countryside. The present civil war in China is bitter and violent. In Manchuria, it is a war of mass battles, artillery attacks, and heavy casualties. Most of the buildings are substantial, and some compare favorably with city houses in Peiping. Although a large percentage of the land tilled by the local villagers belongs to absentee owners in Peiping, those who farm it seem to have fared reasonably well in the past. Pachiatsun has a population of about 350 persons. Perhaps as many as one-third of these are refugees, virtually all of them relatives or friends of local villagers, who have fled from active war areas.
