In 1966, during the Cultural Revolution, "I was kicked out," he says, and sent to the countryside for physical labor. Hsiao was cultivating grain and rice with other intellectuals from about 5:30 a.m. till 6 or 8 p.m. for almost seven years. Since there was no reading or writing allowed, manual labor was his only activity.

"Of course we suffered a lot--sometimes they'd gather us in "a small meeting where they would criticize us and punish us," he explains. However, no matter how angry they became they could not express it because "then you'd be punished more."

Hsiao adds that at the time he had confidence that these "conditions were only temporary, if only because they were so out of reason, so out of norm." Now, it is very clear that the Cultural Revolution was a great disaster for China, he says. Although Mao's early actions greatly helped China, "from 1957-76 he was not so good, he make some big mistakes."

Yang was unable to do manual work because of poor health, so she remained in Shanghai and was "borrowed by the Chinese translation publishing house." In 1973, Ching-Chang Hsiao returned from the countryside and was borrowed by the People's Publishing House as a specialist in Chinese classical language and literature.

After the fall of the Gang of Four both Hsiao and Yang were despatched back to their former newspaper jobs--Yang writes special assignments, interviewing prominent people, and Hsiao travels throughout China as a special correspondent.

Hsiao, 58, the eldest of the Nieman fellows this year, says that he was continually asked in China "why do you want to go abroad, you're so old?" He laughs and says, "I think knowledge is boundless...I always look forward and have no regrets about the past." Just as history has bright and dark periods, his personal experiences are good and bad, he says, "but we always believe in our future."

Yang agrees and adds that all her friends also questioned her interest in travelling. "They said, you are so old, but after I came here I feel young... now we want to study more, work more and contribute ourselves more to our country."