A Cross-Boundary People: the Commercial Activities, Social Networks, and Travel Writings of Japanese and Taiwanese Sekimin in the Shantou Treaty Port (1895-1937)
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City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 2-2014 A Cross-boundary People: The Commercial Activities, Social Networks, and Travel Writings of Japanese and Taiwanese Sekimin in the Shantou Treaty Port (1895-1937) Lin-Yi Tseng Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/119 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] A CROSS-BOUNDARY PEOPLE: THE COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES, SOCIAL NETWORKS, AND TRAVEL WRITINGS OF JAPANESE AND TAIWANESE SEKIMIN IN THE SHANTOU TREATY PORT (1895−1937) by LIN-YI TSENG A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in History in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York 2014 © 2014 LIN-YI TSENG All Rights Reserved ! ii! This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in History in satisfaction of the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Helena Rosenblatt __________________ ____________________________ Date Chair of Examining Committee __________________ Helena Rosenblatt Date __________________________ Executive Officer George Solt Richard Lufrano David Gordon Richard Belsky Joseph Tse-Hei Lee Supervisory Committee THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK ! iii! ABSTRACT A CROSS-BOUNDARY PEOPLE: THE COMMERCIAL ACTIVITIES, SOCIAL NETWORKS, AND TRAVEL WRITINGS OF JAPANESE AND TAIWANESE SEKIMIN IN THE SHANTOU TREATY PORT (1895−1937) by LIN-YI TSENG Adviser: Professor Helena Rosenblatt This dissertation explores Japanese imperial history in East Asia and focuses on a group of “cross-boundary people”—Taiwanese sekimin (Taiwanese who registered as Japanese subjects) and Japanese—who went to the treaty port of Shantou in southern China during the period between 1895 and 1937. The starting time point (i.e., 1895) corresponds to the signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki, by which Japan acquired Taiwan as a colony and informal privileges in Chinese treaty ports. The ending time point (i.e., 1937) corresponds to the decline that Shantou’s Japanese community experienced owing to the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War on July 7, 1937. By examining the official documents of the Taiwan General Government, commercial reports of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and major newspapers and travel writings published in colonial Taiwan, I explore the connections among the Japanese homeland ! iv! (the metropole), the Japanese formal empire in Taiwan, and the Japanese informal empire in Shantou in terms of commercial activities, human resources, and networks of words. Concerning commercial activities, I argue that Shantou was an important market for both Japanese and Taiwanese goods, and that the commercial network comprising the Japanese metropole, colonial Taiwan, and the Shantou treaty port was significant for Japanese imperial formation in East Asia. Moreover, by analyzing the Japan-China co-invested Dadong Ice-making Company in Shantou, I explore the complicated competitive and cooperative relationships among three notably different ethnic groups there: Taiwanese sekimin, local Chinese, and Japanese in Shantou. By examining the Japan-founded educational institution known as —the Tōē School in Shantou, I clarify two important points: (1) the Taiwan General Government established a network of human resources for the Japanese homeland, colonial Taiwan, and the Shantou treaty port; and (2) this particular school’s Japanese and Taiwanese teachers produced writings published in major Taiwanese periodicals, signifying a network of “words” between an element of Japan’s formal empire (Taiwan) and an element of Japan’s informal empire (Shantou). ! v! ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS In April 2013, while I was in Taiwan writing my dissertation at Academia Sinica, I received the tragic news that my advisor Barbara J. Brooks in New York had passed away after a protracted illness. It was a great shock to me. I have had trouble accepting that such a nice person who supported my academic work and who encouraged me personally for many years suddenly ceased to be here among us. Under these circumstances, I am grateful to Prof. Helena Rosenblatt, the executive officer of the Department of History at the CUNY Graduate Center, who helped me arrange my academic business with patience and understanding. I am no less grateful to Prof. George Solt, a specialist in modern Japanese history at NYU, who became my advisor after Prof. Brooks’ passing and who offered me invaluable advice on the dissertation. Without his assistance and generosity, I simply could not have completed my dissertation on schedule. I would like to express my gratitude, as well, to my dissertation-defense team: Prof. Richard Lufrano, who taught me much about Chinese history, especially Chinese urban history; Prof. Richard Belsky, who participated in the oral segment of my qualifying exam, my proposal defense, and then my dissertation defense; Pace University’s Prof. Joseph Tse-hei Lee , a specialist in the local history of Chaozhou and the Shantou area has provided me much useful ! vi! advices during my studies; and Prof. David Gordon, at CUNY Graduate Center, who read my dissertation carefully from a comparative perspective encompassing his European research background. During my research and writing activities in Taipei, scholars at the Institute of Taiwan History offered me much appreciated assistance: Prof. Shu-ming Chung , who has served as my sponsor in Taiwan and supported my academic research with sincerity and generosity; Prof. Yu-ju Lin , who has shared with me her enthusiasm for research and has provided me many opportunities to participate in academic activities at Academia Sinica; Prof. Hsueh-chi Hsu , whose knowledge of colonial Taiwanese history opened my eyes to the topic and whose diligence in conducting research has served as my own model; and Prof. Kuo-hsing Hsieh , the director of Academia Sinica’s Institute of Taiwan History, who has granted me access to one of the greatest sites for conducting research on colonial Taiwan’s history. In addition to these special people, I want to note Prof. Chin-shing Huang , the director of the Institute of History and Philology at Academia Sinica, who has long supported me academically and personally both in Taiwan and in New York; Prof. Shu-fen Liu , at Academia Sinica’s Institute of History and Philology, has unwaveringly encouraged me and ! vii! shared with me her impressive insights into balancing academic studies with child rearing; Prof. Shin Kawashima , at the University of Tokyo, is a specialist in modern Sino-Japanese relations and sponsored my academic visit to Japan while providing me a stream of useful advice about my research. Without the assistance of the abovementioned scholars, my dissertation would have lacked much of its current rigor. During the years I spent taking courses in New York, I benefited from a fellowship courtesy of Taiwan’s Ministry of Education, which provided financial support for my living expenses in New York. During the years I spent writing my dissertation in Taipei, I received financial assistance from many foundations and want to take this opportunity to thank each one individually: the Sumitomo Foundation in Japan, the Interchange Association of Japan, the Taipak Kianseng Rotary Club, the Institute of Taiwan History at Academia Sinica, the Christian Center at Shantou University, the China Times Cultural Foundation based in North America, and the Chiang Ching-Kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange. Without all this financial assistance, I could not have completed my dissertation. I would like to dedicate this dissertation to my parents, my father Jeff and my mother Sachi, who led me to know the spirit of God, by which I could have confidence and hope regardless of ! viii! the difficulties before me. My parents’ endless love and devotion have been my main source of motivation in completing the dissertation. I want to thank my husband, Pio, who accompanied me during my studies in New York and helped me right up to the final step in my pursuit of a PhD. Our daughter, Josephine, has taught me patience and courage as a mother, and her smile is the most precious gift from God.! ! ix! TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1: Introduction: Empire, Migration and Local Society 1.1 Prelude 1 1.2 Migration: The Cross-boundary People of the Japanese Empire 3 1.3 The Significance of Local Chinese Society 16 1.4 The Approaches and Arguments in My Dissertation 28 Chapter 2: The Commercial Activities and Networks of Japanese Merchants and Taiwanese Sekimin Merchants in Shantou 2.1 The Japanese Empire’s Interests in Shantou: Trade 37 2.2 Japanese Merchants in Shantou 53 2.3 Taiwanese Sekimin Merchants in Shantou 68 2.4 Brief Conclusion 92 ! x! Chapter 3: The Case of the Dadong Ice-making Company and Relations among Japan, China, and Taiwan 3.1 Prelude 94 3.2 Nanshin Policy and Nisshi Shinzen 96 3.3 The Order of Deportation Incident 107 3.4 The Conflict between Taiwanese and Chinese Shareholders 122 3.5 Brief Conclusion 132 Chapter 4: The Educational Network Encompassing the Japanese Homeland, Colonial Taiwan, and the Shantou Treaty Port—The Tōē School in Shantou 4.1 Prelude 137 4.2 The Establishment of the Tōē School in Shantou and Its