January 18, 1896

Rabble rouser or savior? Sun Zhong Shan (or Sun Yat Sen as the devil-men call him), seems to be both. His words for westernizing China appeal to many who no longer want the white devils to think themselves superior to us and his violent rebellions appeal to the hot blooded commoners who are fed up with the current government. Yet will this cause bring reform? Sun's message asks for China to adopt Western customs. What is there for us to gain from those barbarians?

Born in 1866, Sun moved to Honolulu, Hawaii, USA at 13 years of age. There, he attended Anglican Iolani School. He graduated in three years and went on to study at Oahu College, a Christian college. Sun's brother and guardian in America ordered him back to China, as he was being much influenced by western culture and Christianity. However, it was too late. After being charged with smashing village idols, Sun moved away from him native countryside and left for Hong Kong where he attended medical school (1). First he attended the Canton Hospital Medical School then the College of Medicine for Chinese, graduating in 1892 (2). When he was refused permission to practice Western medicine in either Hong Kong or Macao as the College for Medicine for Chinese was not recognized by Great Britain, he thrust himself into the political cause for modernizing China (3).

At first, Sun never thought to revolt against the Manchu dynasty. He wanted to reform China within the monarchy so westerners could no longer look down on or take advantage of China. Through working with his political contacts, he reached the most influential person in politics for modernizing China, Li Hong Zhang, a high official who served in Empress Ci Xi's court. Sun first appealed to Li both to take him as an apprentice in the political world and to help promote economic improvement via Westernization(4). In Sun's words, "foreign capital, foreign experts and organizers, and gigantic methods [especially in education, industry, and agriculture] have to be adopted" (5). Highly influenced by American government, Sun wants to bring the government into the hands of the people and make it a republic with five branches: executive, judicial, legislative, censorial, and examination. As Sun said, "The U.S.'s wealth and power [comes]from the progress in unified government which followed the federation of the states" (6).He also advocates nationalism, democracy, and land reform in his Three Principles as well as a laissez-faire economic policy after the government builds up the economy again. However, Li never replied to his letter. In fact, the Empress Ci Xi herself was set against hearing from Sun, an American educated Chinese. She might have listened were it not for the 100 Days reforms that happened during Emperor Guang Xu's reign which she took as his attempt to whisk her away from government affairs, taking advantage of her holiday. When she heard of it via a traitor in the court, Yuan Shi Kai, he, instead of telling her about the reforms like he was ordered, twisted the message to make it seem like Guang Xu was being subversive under the influence of two European supported advisors. Enraged, she had Guang Xu imprisoned and attempted to have the advisors who turned her obedient nephew against her (Kang You Wei, Liang Chi Chou) killed. However, Great Britain and Japan stepped in and saved Kang and Liang from certain death. From then on, the Empress has never again trusted any foreigner (7). Sun journeyed to Beijing after his letter was ignored for a long while and found the government would never parley with him because of Ci Xi's intense hatred of foreigners (8). In 1895, when China lost in the Sino-Japanese war, Sun decided that he could no longer wait on the Manchus. Highly discouraged, he then went to Hawaii, having decided that the only way to help our country regain its prestige via Westernization would be to overthrow the Manchus. This caused the Empress to hate him even more.

Today Sun is most widely known as the notorious leader of the Revive China Society who has made many attempts to take over the government. Via his friend, He Gai, Sun has received help from British journalists to advertise his cause in the China Mail and the Hong Kong Telegraph (9). He gained international recognition for his message and his self when he was captured and held prisoner in the London Chinese legation. Sun convinced some British servants to help him reach Dr. James Cantlie, a former professor of him with whom he was visiting in London. Cantlie then got the help of the British Foreign Office and the British press to help negotiate Sun's release. Through the public attention given to this event, he gained European sympathy and support for his radical movement (10). He raises his money overseas from Chinese American immigrants in San Francisco and New York mostly. The only successful thing Sun has been able to do is to popularize the idea of overthrowing the Manchus and making a new government for the common people. He plays on Chinese students studying overseas particularly in Japan as well as young immigrants in other western countries to help him found a new Asia. Other than that, his poorly organized assaults on the Manchus have always failed. After many such uprisings in Canton, Sun began a self-imposed exile starting in 1895 (11). Sun is reportedly traveling between Japan, Europe, and the United States, waiting for a chance to come back to China and make another attempt on the Manchu dynasty with a strengthened Revive China Society (12). Whether he might make more of an impact this time would be critical. If he has more success, the Manchus as well as the Western powers might pay attention to him and his cause. If he doesn't, Sun's failed enough that we've received reports that he's losing funds and support. He'll be another failed revolutionary for the Chinese people. He has to prove that his naïve hope in a commoner run government with help from Westernization will work.

Sources

1. Robert A. Scalapino, George T. Yu. Modern China & Its Revolutionary Process, (University of California Press, 1985), 148-160
2. Ibid. 151
3. Ibid. 151
4. Ray Huang, China: A Macro History 36th Edition (Linking Group Publishing Company ,1993) 298-308
5. Michael O. Billington, "Hamilton Influenced Sun Yat-Sen's Founding of the Chinese Republic," [http://members.tripod.com/~american_almanac/sunyat92.htm], January, 1992
6.Ibid.
7. Huang, 300
8. Ibid. 300
9. Scalapino, Yu. 159-160
10. Ibid. 159-160
11. Yuki Satou, "Sun Yat-Sen (1866-1925)," [http://library.thinkquest.org/26469/movers-and-shakers/sun.html]
12. Tang Weikang, "Sun Yat-sen in Shanghai,"[http://www.chinatone.com/scs_english_2.html]

Image Sources

1) Jonathan Cheung, "Influential People in CHinese History: Dr. Sun Yat-Sen and his involvement in the Revolution of 1911," [http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Academy/7146/]

2) Tang Weikang, "Sun Yat-sen in Shanghai,"[http://www.chinatone.com/scs_english_2.html]

3) Ibid.

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