HARRY LIVINGSTONE was a small town doctor from Listowel, Ontario when he
felt the pull of patriotism that led him to volunteer in the First World
War. In 1917, Livingstone found himself embarking on a strange journey
that took him to China, where he would inspect, and ultimately travel
back to Canada with, men who became known as the Chinese Labour Corps.
Once in Canada, the Chinese under Livingstone's care travelled across
Canada in secret trains bound for Halifax. All news about the trains and
the men was censored. On board crowded ships, the men crossed the
U-boat-infested Atlantic. They were then put to work to keep the war
machine in motion -- digging trenches, hauling supplies, repairing
military vehicles, and the grisly job of cleaning up the battlefields.
About 300,000 Chinese labourers were recruited by the British, French,
and Russian allies during the First World War. Nearly 84,000 of them
passed through Canada on their way to France.
Livingstone and other officers kept diaries and journals, and wrote
letters home telling of their experiences with the Chinese. From these
first-person accounts as well as historical records and from rare
letters written by Chinese labourers themselves, author Dan Black offers
for the first time a full account of Canadians and the Chinese Labour
Corps -- a story that had mostly been unknown until now.
