One group of farmers were from the Ukraine.
I'll never forget the response from these farmers when I showed them the horse-drawn cultivator and plow on display in our Quonset, that my dad used.
Without missing a beat, they told me that this was the type of equipment they used up until the break-up of the Soviet Union - eastern bloc in 1991.

Jenny Lind cultivator

plow

One of the most eye-opening groups was from China.
They were very polite and only the interpreter spoke English, so I did not have any one-on-one conversations with any of them.

I noticed one of the Chinese farmers moving the handle of the water hydrant up and down. I realized right away, having had experience with the old hand pumps, that he thought he had to "pump" the handle to get water.

I went over and raised my hand in a motion to stop. Then I put the handle in the up position and then motioned again to wait. Then the water started coming out of the spigot.
He gave me a big smile and realized we had water pressure.

I wasn't able to explain the water pressure was because of gravity from a cistern higher up on the yard.
After they left, we found out later that there was one armed Chinese man (not a farmer), who was there to make sure no one defected.

While writing about these Chinese farmers, I remembered how Jim Mork of Manning was stationed in China during WWII.
The US used bases in China to resupply and refuel allied offenses against Japan.

It is hard to believe that the TINY island nation of Japan had captured Nanking, China, in 1937 (capital at that time) which was called the "Rape of Nanking."
If you aren't familiar with this aspect of history you can search the Internet.

Now what is infuriating to me today is that the people of China have completely forgotten how the US basically saved their butts from Japan during WWII and are now stealing our technology, and becoming aggressive to the world.

To make matters worse, the current administration appears to be going back to the appeasement strategies of the past.

So anyone in this country who thinks socialism/communism is a good thing and better than democratic capitalism, needs to go to Berlin to see the wall, and then they need to speak to other peoples from around the world who live/d under the boot of those types of governments.

Once people are in the "socialist cart" they expect to be pulled by the rest of us as long as they live...eventually there won't be enough people pulling the cart to keep our society going.

James R. Mork

James Mork, 17070130, enlisted in the Army in October of 1942. He reported to Camp Dodge, in Des Moines, Iowa. Minimal basic training took place in Victoria, Texas, followed by three months of schooling on B-25s and B-26s in Wichita Falls, Texas, and then a month of schooling on B-24s and B-32s in San Diego, California. After schooling, James was assigned to the 16th Airway Detachment. They boarded a ship and sailed, unescorted (one of the first since the beginning of WWII), across the Atlantic Ocean, to join World War II. He served in the Pacific Theater, primarily in China. James returned to the States on New Year's Day of 1946 and received his honorable discharge on January 6 of the same year.

Before entering the military I worked as a mechanic and along the training I received I was able to work with parts from different vehicles to keep everything. Our group realized that the rain-gear we received was made of a material that we used to repair the diaphragms in the fuel pumps for the planes and other vehicles we worked on. Our group of mechanics realized that the when the fuel arrived at our base in 55 gallon drums water would condense in the drums. When the planes would be refueled and took off - they would spit and sputter - we knew that you had to let the fuel separate for 30 minutes you could drain off the water. We also had to be careful when we had to buy parts from the Chinese - sometimes we ended up buying our parts back. There were some guys who would strip parts from our vehicles and sell them to the Chinese for what ever they needed.

James Rosenkilde Mork died at the age of 90 in Berlin, Wisconsin, on March 21, 2013. James passed away peacefully with his family at his bedside at the Patriot Place of Berlin, where he had lived since 2009. James, son of Nels and Dagmar (Rosenkilde) Mork was born on July 6, 1922, in Audubon County, Iowa. He graduated from Valley High School, Valley Junction (West Des Moines), in 1940.

James served in the Army Air Corp from October 1942 until January 1946, where he received special training in airplane engine mechanics. On New Year's Day in 1944, James set sail on the first unescorted ship (since the beginning of World War II) to cross the Atlantic Ocean. They landed in Casablanca and then went on to Bombay, India. James served in the China-Burma-India Theater, primarily in China. He returned home and completed his service as staff sergeant, with an honorable discharge.

James married Ruth Evelyn Davis on September 5, 1948, at the Methodist Church in Menlo, Iowa. They farmed in Menlo and Elk Horn until 1956. James worked for Squealer Feed as a salesman for three years. Shortly after moving to Manning in 1958, he worked for L & M Bowl, and then for L.R. Nelson Corporation for 18 years until his retirement in 1982. In his retirement, James enjoyed working part-time for the Manning Community School District as a bus driver.

James and Ruth had two children: Denise and Lynn. James was a long time member of the Manning First United Methodist Church. He sang in Manning's Liederkranz for five years. James' hobbies included woodworking as well as creating and caring for his flower gardens.

James was preceded in death by his wife, Ruth; his parents; and his sister Bertha Mork Breuklander. Survivors include his daughter Denise and her husband Gordon Smith of Indianola, Iowa; his son Lynn and his wife Pam, of Berlin, Wisconsin; four grandchildren: Kristine Smith of Cedar Falls, Iowa; Brad Smith of Indianola/Northfield, Minnesota; Erik Mork and his wife Dana of St. Paul, Minnesota; and Laura Mork Sheline and her husband Zach of Albuquerque, New Mexico; and one great-grandchild: Landon Mork. James is also survived by his Brazilian son Abram Kirszenwurcel and his wife Eva; and their sons Andre and Alan and their families; along with cousins, nieces, nephews, and friends.

A Memorial/Celebration of Life service for James Mork will be held in Manning in the late spring.

Memorials will be given to Agnesian Hospice (Green Lake County, Wisconsin) and for a scholarship at Manning High School.