My Life in China and America · Chapters
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Chapter companions for My Life in China and America by Yung Wing.
Chapter 1
Dedication
The author dedicates his memoirs to his devoted sons, Morrison Brown and Bartlett Golden Yung.
Chapter 2
My Life in China and America
This chapter provides a comprehensive overview of Yung Wing's life, from his birth in Nam Ping to his education in China and America, his return to China, and his subsequent career in business, translation, and government service. It highlights his interactions with key figures such as Viceroy Tsang Kwoh Fan and his involvement in significant events like the Taiping Rebellion and missions to America for machinery.
Chapter 3
I: Boyhood
Yung Wing recounts his birth in Nam Ping, his early education at Mrs. Gutzlaff's school in Macao, his father's death, and his subsequent work as a candy hawker and rice gleaner to support his family. He also describes an attempted runaway escapade and his eventual employment as a folder in a printing office.
Chapter 4
II: School Days
Yung Wing recounts his early education at the Morrison School, describing its founding, his fellow students, and the pivotal moment when Mr. Brown announced his return to America and invited pupils to accompany him. Yung Wing, Wong Shing, and Wong Foon volunteer, and after gaining parental consent, they prepare to leave for the United States, supported by benefactors who fund their education and provide for their families.
Chapter 5
III: Journey to America and First Experiences There
Yung Wing and his companions embark from Whompoa on the ship Huntress, enduring a dramatic gale at the Cape of Good Hope and stopping at St. Helena, where they visit Napoleon's empty tomb. They arrive in New York in April 1847, then travel to New Haven to see Yale College, and eventually settle in East Windsor, Connecticut, where they attend the church of Rev. Shubael Bartlett and find a temporary home at the parsonage.
Chapter 6
At Monson Academy
Yung Wing and his fellow Chinese students, Wong Shing and Wong Foon, enter Monson Academy in Massachusetts. They study under the principal, Rev. Charles Hammond, and board with Mrs. Phoebe H. Brown. After Wong Shing returns to China due to health, Wong Foon and Yung Wing decide to continue their studies in the West. Wong Foon accepts an offer to study medicine at the University of Edinburgh, while Yung Wing resolves to attend Yale. They graduate from the academy in 1850, marking the end of their shared educational journey.
Chapter 7
V: My College Days
Yung Wing recounts his time at Yale College, detailing the financial struggles, academic challenges, and his growing resolve to use his education to reform China. He refuses to pledge himself to missionary work, instead seeking freedom to serve China in broader ways. Despite hardships, he perseveres, earning prizes and support, and graduates as the first Chinese student from a first-class American college, with a clear mission to bring Western education to China.
Chapter 8
VI: Return to China
Yung Wing returns to China after nearly ten years in America, having graduated from Yale. He reunites with his mother in Macao, then settles in Canton to relearn Chinese language and culture. He witnesses the brutal suppression of a provincial rebellion by Viceroy Yeh Ming Hsin, which deeply affects him. The chapter also covers his voyage back, his interactions with Andrew Shortrede, and his early efforts to re-establish himself in China.
Chapter 9
VII: Effort to Find a Position
Yung Wing, after mastering the spoken language, seeks a position that will allow him to support his mother and work toward reforming China. He briefly serves as private secretary to Dr. Peter Parker, then moves to Hong Kong to study law, but faces opposition from British attorneys and the attorney-general. He then goes to Shanghai, where he works in the Imperial Customs Translating Department, but resigns after discovering a system of graft among interpreters and shippers, valuing his integrity over a higher salary.
Chapter 10
VIII: Experiences in Business
After leaving the Imperial Customs Service, Yung Wing takes up a temporary position as a clerk in an English tea and silk firm, gaining valuable business experience. When the firm dissolves, he turns to translation work, which brings him into contact with influential Chinese merchants and scholars. Through his successful translation of an epitaph and a fundraising appeal for Yellow River flood victims, he gains recognition in Shanghai. He declines a comprador position in Nagasaki, preferring to maintain his dignity as a Yale graduate, and instead is sent to the tea districts to learn the tea trade. The chapter also recounts two incidents involving foreigners in Shanghai, one resolved peacefully and another ending in a physical confrontation.
Chapter 11
IX: My First Trip to the Tea Districts
Yung Wing recounts his first journey into the interior of China, traveling through tea and silk districts to purchase goods for foreign trade. He describes the process of preparing black tea, the impact of the Taiping Rebellion on the region, and his observations of the sparse population and economic changes. The chapter highlights his growing understanding of China's internal conditions and the challenges of modernization.
Chapter 12
My Visit to the Taipings
In the fall of 1859, Yung Wing joins a small party of missionaries and Tsang Laisun on a journey to Nanking to observe the Taiping rebels and assess their potential to replace the Manchu Dynasty. Traveling by boat and on foot, they pass through Suchau, Woo Sik, Cheong Chow, and Tan Yang, meeting various rebel commanders and witnessing the devastation of war. Upon reaching Nanking, Yung Wing meets with Kan Wong, a nephew of the rebel leader Hung Siu Chune, and offers a series of reform proposals for the Taiping government, though he declines to join their cause.
Chapter 13
XI: Reflections on the Taiping Rebellion
Yung Wing reflects on the Taiping Rebellion, analyzing its origins, religious character, and ultimate failure. He discusses the roles of missionaries like Dr. Robert Morrison and Rev. Icabod J. Roberts in introducing Christianity to Hung Siu Chune, the rebellion's transformation from a religious movement to a political one, and the underlying causes rooted in governmental corruption. He concludes that the rebellion left no lasting religious or political legacy but served as a dynamic force to awaken China's national consciousness.
Chapter 14
XII: Expedition to the Taiping Tea District
Yung Wing, disillusioned with the Taiping rebellion, turns his attention to commercial ventures. He learns of a large stock of green tea in the Taiping district, controlled by rebels, and organizes an expedition to purchase it. After a preliminary survey, he leads a treasure-laden fleet upriver, facing a tense night when a large rebel band approaches, but they manage to avoid conflict through negotiation and caution.
Chapter 15
XIII: My Interviews with Tsang Kwoh Fan
Yung Wing receives a series of letters from Viceroy Tsang Kwoh Fan's secretary, Chang Shi Kwei, and mathematician Li Sien Lan, inviting him to Ngan Khing. Initially hesitant, Yung Wing eventually agrees to meet the Viceroy, who wants him to join the government service. Upon arrival, Yung Wing learns of the Viceroy's plan to establish a machine shop in China and offers his views on creating a fundamental machine shop that can reproduce others. The chapter also provides a detailed character sketch of Tsang Kwoh Fan, highlighting his integrity, patriotism, and role in suppressing the Taiping Rebellion.
Chapter 16
My Mission to America to Buy Machinery
Yung Wing is commissioned by Viceroy Tsang Kwoh Fan to purchase machinery in America, receiving the fifth official rank and Tls. 68,000. He travels via Europe, meets Mr. John Haskins in Shanghai, and together they journey to the U.S. During his time in America, he attends his Yale class decennial reunion and offers his services to the Union in the Civil War, but is advised to focus on his mission.
Chapter 17
XV: My Second Return to China
Yung Wing returns to China via a circuitous route, enduring a difficult voyage on the Ida de Rogers. Upon arrival, he reports to Viceroy Tsang Kwoh Fan, who praises his machinery purchase and recommends him for official rank. Yung Wing becomes a mandarin of the fifth rank and works as a government interpreter and translator, also persuading the Viceroy to establish a mechanical school at the Kiang Nan Arsenal.
Chapter 18
XVI: Proposal of My Educational Scheme
Yung Wing, encouraged by the establishment of a mechanical training school, revives his long-dormant educational scheme. With the support of Governor Ting Yih Chang, he drafts four proposals for the Chinese government, including a steamship company, sending students abroad, developing mineral resources, and restricting missionary jurisdiction. The proposals are forwarded to Prime Minister Wen Seang, but his mother's death and subsequent demise delay progress. The opportunity finally arises with the Tientsin Massacre, during which Yung Wing is summoned as interpreter, and the commissioners, including Viceroy Tsang Kwoh Fan, remain in Tientsin, setting the stage for the scheme's eventual adoption.
Chapter 19
XVII: The Chinese Educational Mission
Yung Wing details the establishment of the Chinese Educational Mission, including the selection of students, the preparatory school in Shanghai, the appointment of Chin Lan Pin as co-commissioner, the death of Viceroy Tsang Kwoh Fan, and the arrival of the first installment of students in the United States.
Chapter 20
XVIII: Investigation of the Coolie Traffic in Peru
Yung Wing returns to China in 1873 to introduce the Gatling gun, and while in Tientsin, he confronts the Peruvian Commissioner about the brutal coolie trade. At Viceroy Li Hung Chang's request, Yung Wing travels to Peru to investigate the treatment of Chinese coolies, gathering photographic evidence of their abuse. His report, along with Chin Lan Pin's similar investigation in Cuba, leads to the end of the coolie traffic to those countries.
Chapter 21
XIX: End of the Educational Mission
The final installment of students arrives in 1875 under new commissioner Ou Ngoh Liang, appointed by Viceroy Li Hung Chang. Yung Wing is appointed joint minister to Washington but declines, preferring to stay as Commissioner of Education. Chin Lan Pin returns as minister, and Woo Tsze Tung becomes commissioner, leading to false accusations and the eventual recall of all students in 1881 despite protests from American educators.
Chapter 22
Journey to Peking and Death of My Wife
Yung Wing recounts his return to China after the recall of the Chinese Educational Mission, his visit to Li Hung Chang in Tientsin, and his subsequent journey to Peking to report to the government. He describes the harsh conditions of Peking travel and his failed attempt to propose a plan for suppressing the opium trade. After returning to the United States due to his wife's declining health, he details her illness and eventual death in 1886, leaving him to raise their two sons alone.
Chapter 23
XXI: My Recall to China
Yung Wing is recalled to China by Viceroy Chang Chi Tung during the Sino-Japanese War. He proposes plans for a loan and military diversion, but they are thwarted by political rivalries. He returns to China, serves briefly under Chang Chi Tung, and then resigns. He later works on a national banking scheme and a railroad project, both of which fail. The chapter ends with his last efforts to help China.
Chapter 24
XXII: The Coup d'État of 1898
This chapter recounts the political upheaval of September 1898, when Emperor Kwang Su was deposed by Dowager Empress Chi Hsi, and the subsequent persecution of reformers. Yung Wing, who had harbored reformers, fled to Shanghai and then Hong Kong, organizing the 'Deliberative Association of China.' In 1901, he visited Formosa, where he met Viscount Gentaro Kodama, who revealed a warrant for his arrest but chose to protect him. During their conversation, Yung Wing admitted authorship of a controversial proposal to mortgage Formosa to fund a war against Japan, a bold stance that earned Kodama's respect and protection.
Chapter 25
Appendix
This appendix contains an address by the Rev. Joseph H. Twichell, delivered before the Kent Club of the Yale Law School on April 10, 1878. The address describes the Chinese Educational Mission in Hartford, Connecticut, detailing its purpose, structure, and the education of Chinese boys for service to the Chinese government. It emphasizes the mission's significance as a remarkable institution and the potential impact of these educated young men on China's future.
Chapter 26
Commissioner Yung Wing
This chapter introduces Yung Wing, the driving force behind the Chinese Educational Mission to the United States. It details his humble beginnings in Macao, his early education at Mrs. Gutzlaff's school and the Morrison School, his journey to America with Mr. Brown, and his studies at Monson Academy. The chapter also highlights the fates of his companions, Wong Shing and Wong Fun, and emphasizes Yung Wing's modesty and dedication.
Chapter 27
In Yale College
Yung Wing's time at Yale College is detailed, highlighting his academic struggles and successes, his decision to forgo the ministry, his poverty, and his internal conflict between staying in America and returning to China. The chapter culminates in his graduation in 1854, his meeting with Dr. Bushnell, and his eventual decision to return to China, driven by a sense of duty to his nation.
Chapter 28
Taking First Steps in Life
Yung Wing, after returning to China, seeks to advance his grand scheme of modernization by gaining access to influential officials. He tries various positions—private secretary to Commissioner Parker, law student in Hong Kong, and a post in the Customs Service—but none provide the platform he needs. In 1860, he accepts a traveling agent role for a silk and tea house, which proves profitable. In 1862, an astronomer introduces him to Viceroy Tsang Kwoh Fan, leading to a pivotal meeting where the Viceroy's progressive views impress Wing.
Chapter 29
Made a Mandarin
Yung Wing's perseverance through years of discouragement culminates in his appointment as a Mandarin of the fifth rank under Viceroy Tsang Koh Fan. Despite initial setbacks, including the Tientsin Massacre and the death of a key ally, Wing's advocacy for educational reform gains traction among influential officials, leading to his mission to purchase machinery for the Kiang Nan Arsenal and his eventual advancement to the fourth rank.
Chapter 30
An Opportunity Seized
Yung Wing, under the official control of Viceroy Tsang Kwoh Fan, arrives late to a commission in Tientsin but seizes the opportunity to advocate for his educational mission. With the support of three influential friends, he persuades them to memorialize the Imperial Government, leading to the adoption of the plan and the appropriation of $1,500,000. The first group of students is sent to the United States in 1872, and Yung Wing is appointed Chief Commissioner, later becoming Associate Minister to the U.S., Peru, and Spain.
Chapter 31
Endnotes
This chapter contains endnotes, beginning with a definition of the Chinese doctrine of feng shui, which holds that spirits rule over winds and waters. The note explains that this belief is universal among the Chinese and contributes to their opposition to railroads and telegraphs, as such structures are thought to anger these spirits and cause natural disasters like floods and typhoons.
