National Geographic, March, 1920 Issue: Formosa the Beautiful
Aug.09, 2006 in Uncategorized
I mentioned a while back that I had an issue of National Geographic from March, 1920 with an article about Taiwan, and someone suggested that I put it on the web. So here it is (images on the large side to preserve detail) — featuring a long article entitled “Formosa, the Beautiful.” One part Margaret Mead’s Coming of Age in Samoa, one part Owen Rutter’s Through Formosa, with 60 B&W photos and much commentary, it’s a trip back to the days when Kiirun was the island’s best port, and Taihoku was its capital.
[Taiwan]
TAIWAN BLOG FEED
August 9th, 2006 at 12:02 pm
Thanks for putting this up. It used to be such a superlative magazine. One of my colleagues in Madras used to work at NatGeo before he joined the Foreign Service, and he had an amazing collection of back issues, including all the Joseph Rock Yunnan issues from the 1930s.
I think the state of the mag now is dismal. The writing is extremely dumbed down, with nothing more than the most superficial analysis. It probably says more about the reading habits of modern America than national Geographic itself, but still, what a shame…
August 9th, 2006 at 12:03 pm
my WWII vintage Air Force map shows Taihoku as the capital city of Taiwan.
August 9th, 2006 at 1:19 pm
Fantastic post, Michael.
A superlative issue, indeed, though dated in at least this respect:
Under the charming headline “How would you like to meet us in the dark,” p285 shows an “old savage chief and his wife” dressed up for headhunting, which of course is rubbish. The Lanyu people pictured were not headhunters, though obviously they sacred the shit out of the editor back at National Geographic HQ. Sloppy by any standard.
But great photos.
August 9th, 2006 at 9:20 pm
This is great! I’ve been looking for images of early camphor workers - this is a great find. Thanks for scanning it.
August 9th, 2006 at 10:00 pm
I knew you guys would eat this up.
Michael
August 10th, 2006 at 9:22 pm
Thanks for posting. Those photos are just amazing.
August 12th, 2006 at 9:40 am
Thanks, very interesting and appreciated, Michael. I think some of the pics were later turned into postcards because I have a few of the same photos that have been colorized. (I trawl through ebay every once and awhile for pics/stuff on Taiwan). I will post to my site within the next couple of days and send you a link.
BTW: Jan69 and Jan82 NatGeo also covered Taiwan. 69 had a water buffalo on the cover, 82 has a east german guard on the cover. My family had NatGeo going all the way back to the 1890s, but they all got tossed when we sold our (parents) house. I use to sit in the basement for hours reading through these magazines. It was my internet back then.
August 12th, 2006 at 3:35 pm
Very interesting article, thanks for putting it up. Imagine living in a time when simply titling someone “savage” was still fit to print! I agree with Prince Roy that NG is dumbed down now. Is it there intention to skew it towards secondary school students now, I wonder?
August 12th, 2006 at 7:06 pm
I can’t say whether Nat Geo is dumbed down. I think part of it might be that in the 1920s there was an accepted political view widely shared among readers, whereas now a Nat Geo article speaks to an international audience with a vast diversity of views, and NG must avoid offending them in order to stay profitable. Hence the dumbing down.
Taipeimarc, another issue of NG that dealt with Taiwan was the Nov 93 issue, with a Red Sea fish on the cover. Maybe I’ll put that one up one of these days.
August 16th, 2006 at 1:56 am
Yea, very great images, but I couldn’t help but read the words. It’s amazing the things we would print back then, and it becomes so clear how we looked down on all non-whites.
p. 258
“All a man’s chattels, his Lares and Penates, his wives and children (I saw wives advisedly, for if a Chinaman can afford it you can count on his having more then one), even to his cherished opium pipe, all are heaped unceremoniously in front of his dwelling, and the work of scouring begins.”
p. 271
“At Urai we stopped for luncheon at a Japanese inn, and the entire savage population turned out to watch us eat. It happened that we had some caviar sandwiches in our lunch baskets, and when we had finished eating, as I had one left I gave it to an old savage chief. He ate it with great relish, and when he was through he signified his desire for more. Then I gave him a plain bread-and-butter sandwich, and his disgust was amusing to behold.”
p. 280
“Most of the savage groups have these dwellings, which serve the double purpose of clubhouses and bachelor dormitories.”
May 29th, 2007 at 10:57 am
Great post, looking for some pictures of a navy ship at Keelung, Tiawan. Could anyone tell me what issue the navy ship USS Frank E Evans DD-754. It was anchored at Keelung.