Chapter 16 Section 4: Hu Shi as Dean

44 days after Hu Sidu committed suicide, on November 4, 1957, after being elected by the "Academia Sinica" of the Taiwan authorities, Chiang Kai-shek appointed Hu Shi as the president of the "Academia Sinica".The movement to criticize Hu in the mainland and the internal strife in Taiwan's political groups made Hu Shi, who was getting old, get another chance to stand out. On April 2, 1958, 68-year-old Hu Shi bid farewell to his wife, Jiang Dongxiu, and left New York for private affairs. On April 8, he took a plane and flew to Taipei alone. At that time, Hu Zuwang and his wife, grandson Hu Fu, who had already settled in Taipei, and more than 500 people including important officials from the Taiwan authorities We were greeted at Songshan Airport, and the scene was quite spectacular.

At 9 a.m. on April 10, Hu Shi, dressed up in a new dress, came to the Archaeological Museum of Nangang Institute of History and Philology to attend the inauguration ceremony of the president of the "Academia Sinica" and delivered a speech.Hu said that he has maintained a close relationship with the "Academia Sinica" for decades, not only because he is a communication researcher at the Institute of History and Philology of the "Academia Sinica", but also because the "Academia Sinica" is the brainchild of many old friends. There is an inescapable responsibility for it.Immediately after the inauguration ceremony, the third academician meeting of the Institute was held to build momentum.In order to show respect for the academic circles and give Hu Shi some face, Chiang Kai-shek and his "Vice President" Chen Cheng, Zhang Qun and other senior officials made a special trip to Nangang to attend the academician meeting and deliver a speech in person.Chiang Kai-shek believes that since the "Academia Sinica" is the highest academic institution, it should shoulder the responsibility of revitalizing the national culture. If the work cannot be completed, all our efforts will be in vain, so I hope that future academic research can also cooperate with this work to seek its development."After talking about Hu Shi's "most admirable person is his noble character", Jiang changed the subject and once again linked academic research with politics, saying:

Today's "communist bandits" on the mainland use hatred and violence as the starting point for all their perverse actions. Their purpose is to destroy our country's traditional history and culture, and their focus is to destroy our nation's inherent ethics and morality. Therefore, Mr. Hu Shi's thoughts and His personal virtues cannot be tolerated by "communist bandits", but must be "liquidated". , unanimously shoulder the responsibility of restoring and promoting our country's inherent culture and morality", which greatly displeased Hu Shi who was beside him.In particular, Jiang untimely pointed out that the "May 4th Movement" and "overthrowing the Confucian shop" had merits and demerits, and the "May 4th value" and "liberalism" advocated by Hu Shi implied sarcasm and sarcasm in his praise. The "Free China" magazine produced by Hu Shi, Lei Zhen and others on the island of Taiwan, and rumors that Hu would form an "opposition party" in Taiwan are extremely disapproving.This rhetoric made the attendees feel anxious and anxious, and Hu Shi's originally smiling face darkened.

Although Hu Shi was not comfortable living in the United States before, he returned to Taiwan nine years later due to various turmoil and obtained a famous iron job from the Kuomintang. Self-deprecating.After Chiang Kai-shek finished speaking, Mei Yiqi made a short speech to the guests, and was already sullen. In his final thank-you speech, Hu Shi, who was quite angry, unceremoniously refuted Chiang’s words. "Academia Sinica" young talent Li Yiyuan recalled: When President Hu took office, President Jiang came here in person, and after he came, he made a speech. In his speech, for some reason, he suddenly mentioned the fact that the Communist Party was elected in the mainland. It can be said that it has something to do with the liberalism advocated by the May Fourth Movement. It is of course very embarrassing for Mr. Hu to speak, because the May Fourth Movement has a close relationship with him, and he is an important promoter.As a result, after the old president finished speaking, Mr. Hu stood up and continued to answer. His answer froze everyone's faces. He said at the beginning: "President, you are wrong." The faces of all the people present turned pale, and the atmosphere was very tense, but the old president presided over the meeting very gracefully, but he never came to Nangang again during President Hu's tenure.In this matter, Dean Hu's performance can be said to have indeed set up a milestone for Academia Sinica in pursuing academic freedom and independence.

Regarding this scene, Shi Zhangru, who was also at the scene at the time, recalled it slightly differently. Shi said: Chiang Kai-shek spoke for a long time that day, and the scene was lively. President Hu said "President, you are wrong" as soon as he spoke, and the audience immediately applauded.The scholars present here believe that Hu Shi is a man of integrity and responsibility, because if it were not for Hu Shi, "few people would dare to say this" in front of Chiang Kai-shek. What Hu Shi said "President, you are wrong" mainly means that academic research and politics should not be tied together, and the so-called "mission" of "anti-communist and anti-Russian" should not be carried out by research institutions such as the "Academia Sinica". bear.Hu Shi said: "I personally think that our academic circles and the 'Academia Sinica' provoke the task of 'anti-communist and rejuvenating the country'. The work we do is still academic, and we must promote academics."

Faced with Chiang Kai-shek's accusation that the May 4th Movement promoted liberalism and brought down the Confucian family shop, Hu Shi was naturally brooding and refuted it.Hu said: "I am afraid that the president has misunderstood me about the downfall of the Confucian family shop. What I call downfall is to overthrow the authority and mystery of the Confucian family shop. Any ideology in the world that does not allow others to doubt or criticize Yes, I’m going to overthrow you.” When Chiang Kai-shek heard his words, he immediately changed color, stood up and was about to leave. An accompanying bureaucrat sitting next to him (one said Zhang Qun, the other said Chen Cheng) quietly stretched out his hand to hold the old man. The corner of Jiang's clothes signaled him to sit down, but Jiang Qiang sat down reluctantly according to his anger, and left quickly after the ceremony was over.

Back then, in an article titled "Introducing My Own Thoughts", Hu Shi once declared to young Chinese readers: "Once upon a time, a Zen monk once said, 'Bodhidharma came from the east, just looking for a person who is not deceived by others. "I have a thousand words here, but I just want to teach people a way not to be confused. It is certainly not wise to be led by the nose by Confucius, Qiu and Zhu Xi, but it is also considered wise to be led by the nose by Marx, Lenin, and Stalin. I don’t want to be a hero. I never want to lead anyone by the nose. I just want to use my meager ability to teach my young friends a little self-defense skills, and try to be a person who will not be deceived by others.” This point, Hu Shi himself did it.For this statement, the world has different comments. For example, Tang Degang, a student of Hu in the United States and a historian, said that Hu Shi was unknowingly led by his teacher Dewey, a bad old man, for a lifetime.Tang's theory may be discussed again, but at least Hu has basically achieved it among the Chiang Kai-shek clique.

In 1959, Hu Shi, the new president of the "Academia Sinica" and a leader in the academic circle, publicly opposed Chiang Kai-shek's re-election as "President". The practice is even more condemned.According to the "Constitution of the Republic of China" enacted in 1948, the term of each president is six years and no more than two consecutive terms.Zhang Junmai and others who drafted the "Constitution" considered that a president with no time limit was equivalent to a hereditary dynasty, so they specially restricted it.The Kuomintang regime that ran to Taiwan still regarded itself as the Zhengshuo of the Republic of China, so the "Constitution" was still in force. In 1954, Chiang Kai-shek was re-elected for the second time. By the end of 1959, it had been five years. Seeing that the deadline had come, he should automatically withdraw from the next election. Support Chiang Kai-shek's candidacy and want to amend the "Constitution".For this reason, Hu Shi publicly issued a statement on February 20, 1960, opposing Chiang Kai-shek's re-election as "president" three times in violation of the "Constitution" and rejecting the post of chairman of the presidium of the upcoming "National Congress".Chiang Kai-shek was very unhappy about Hu Shi's "offending" behavior, and his son Jiang Jingguo was even more annoyed. Dare to do it.Old Hu Shi, who was sitting on the chair of the president of Taiwan's "Academia Sinica", while strongly calling for and preventing Chiang Kai-shek from being re-elected as "president", he did not forget his true nature as a scholar. The monk Shenhui, who has studied for most of his life, continued to study it carefully. On February 9, 1960, Hu Shi gave a lecture on his new work "False History and True History of Zen History" at the Institute of History and Linguistics of the "Academia Sinica". On the 20th, attended the third meeting of the "National Assembly". On the night of March 10, the third Dunhuang manuscript of Quotations from Monk Shenhui: Questions and Answers from Monks in Nanyang - Collection of Liu Cheng was finally finished.It was this work that consumed a lot of Hu Shi's painstaking efforts, which caused him to have a heart attack on the night of finishing the manuscript. On the 19th, his condition worsened, and he had to be admitted to the National Taiwan University School of Medicine for diagnosis and treatment. He was discharged from the hospital on April 5th.

On January 28, 1961, Taipei's "National Long-term Development Science Committee" held the fifth plenary committee meeting. At that time, the crisis in the Taiwan Strait had calmed down. With the great assistance and support of the United States, Taiwan's science and technology economy had already got rid of the post-war crisis. The shadows began to recover, and the Kuomintang's dominance over Taiwan became more stable.It is for these reasons that Hu Shi said in his opening speech with great enthusiasm, optimism and confidence: "This is a starting point, a promising starting point. Under such difficult circumstances, we can have 110,000,000 NT$10,000 is spent on the pioneering work of "research on long-term development of science and technology". We can at least say that science has begun to receive "emphasis" and "funding". Of course we should not be satisfied, we should at least feel our responsibility We should feel the meaning of the five words "heavy responsibilities and a long way to go" said by the ancients." He also said: "After two years of work, we only did a little work of exploring and opening the way. From today, we You can calmly think about the blueprint for this 'long road'." This was the period when Hu Shi's spirit was at its best in his later years, when he was full of hopes and dreams, and his physical strength was the most abundant.Since then, it has been "the setting sun is infinitely good, but it is almost dusk".

On the night of February 25 of this year, Hu Shi had a heart attack and was rushed to National Taiwan University Hospital for treatment. On April 22, his condition improved and he was discharged from the hospital. He moved to the National Taiwan University Guest House at No. 26, Fuzhou Street, Taipei for recuperation. On June 25, he returned to Nangang "Academia Sinica" to work.It's a pity that the good times didn't last long, and I suffered from acute enteritis again in July, causing watery diarrhea. On September 3, Hu Shi said with sadness in a letter to his friend Li Shuhua: "I was carried into the car on the night of February 25 and carried into the emergency department of National Taiwan University Hospital. I stayed in the hospital for 56 days and was discharged. Then I lived in a borrowed house in Taipei for two months (because there is no hospital near Nangang). At the beginning of July, I suffered from enteritis and had watery diarrhea. The water in the diarrhea dried up and affected my heart. ...In short, we are all old, and the mechanical parts are not perfect." At this time, Hu Shi felt that he had reached the age of senility, and he might accidentally enter the ghost record one day, so he wrote to call his wife Jiang Dongxiu in New York. tower. In October, Jiang Dongxiu arrived in Taipei from the United States, and the family was reunited. Old Hu Shi, who had been alone for three and a half years, had some spiritual comfort.

As far as Hu Shi's situation and state of mind were concerned, the consolation brought by the famous card player Jiang Dongxiu is like a bit of charcoal in the snow, which is still very weak compared with the vast snow field. In addition to the political pressure exerted by the Jiang regime, there are also a group of figures known as cultural "fighters" and "New Confucianists" who, overtly or covertly, keep throwing daggers, throwing guns and cold arrows at Hu in an attempt to destroy Hu. hit.Regarding Hu's situation and the conspiracy of "New Confucianism", Liang Shiqiu, who was teaching in the English Department of Taiwan Normal University at the time, once mentioned that "wherever the reputation comes, slander also follows. "The anonymous pamphlet (later the anonymous person revealed his real name), Mr. Hu took it lightly and ignored it. Mr. Hu excitedly said that 3 million words were printed on the mainland to liquidate Hu Shi's thoughts, implying "Hu Shi and the Fortune of Nations" It's too disproportionate...Mr. Hu decided to come to Taiwan to settle down, and the doctor's opinion can't influence him. Those who don't welcome him can only write "Hu Shi and the Fortune of China." Optimistic, since the opponent's sword has been unsheathed, how can there be any reason to let it go after playing a little "Hu Shi and the Fortune of Nations"?Large-scale counterattacks and strikes soon followed. On November 6th of this year, Hu, who was in his waning years, was invited by the International Development Agency to brace himself to attend the "Asia-East Science Education Conference" and gave a speech in English on "Social Reform Needed for Scientific Development" at the opening ceremony , this is Hu Shi's last important speech on the comparison of Chinese and Western culture and science during his lifetime.The main purpose is to praise the scientific and technological civilization of the West and criticize the ancient Chinese culture. It said: There is not much spiritual content in our old civilizations in the East.A civilization that has tolerated a practice as inhumane as women's footbinding for more than a thousand years without a single protest, what spiritual civilization can there be?A civilization has tolerated "the caste system" (the caste system) for thousands of years, how much spirit can it say?A civilization that regards life as suffering and not worth living, regards poverty and begging as virtues, and regards disease as a natural disaster, what spiritual value can it say? ... It is high time that we in the East should begin to recognize little or no spiritual value in those older civilizations.He also said: "I believe that in order to pave the way for the development of science, in order to prepare to accept and welcome the civilization of modern science and technology, we Orientals may have to go through some kind of intellectual change or revolution. This kind of intellectual revolution is necessary. Two aspects. On the negative side, we should get rid of a deep-rooted prejudice, that is, although the material civilization of the West has undoubtedly taken the lead, we Orientals can still be proud of our superior spiritual civilization. We may This kind of unreasonable pride must be discarded, and we must learn to admit that there is too little spiritual content in Eastern civilization. On the positive side, we should learn to understand that appreciating science and technology is by no means materialistic, but highly idealistic. It is highly spiritual. Science and technology certainly represent a real idealism, a real spirit that is unfortunately underdeveloped in our Eastern civilization." Unexpectedly, this 25-minute speech was translated into Chinese by Xu Yuangao. After the media disclosed it, it immediately aroused fierce debates among intellectuals in Hong Kong and Taiwan. The "encirclement and suppression" of previous generations.At the same time, there was also a "legislator" named Liao Weifan who, after some plotting, challenged Hu Shi's views in Taiwan's "Legislative Yuan" speech, mixed Hu's speech with real politics, and led the media to stir up trouble , and those who were ready to go took the opportunity to concoct a series of proclamations and shoot them out, like a ringing front, going straight to Hu Shi's life gate.Surrounded on all sides and screaming for killing, the exhausted Hu Shi suffered a heart attack and fell to the ground. In the early morning of November 26, he was rushed to National Taiwan University Hospital for the last round of rescue in his life. Hu Shi, who had just left Lord Yan's palace where the oil pan and tiger stool were placed and returned to Yangjie, lying on a hospital bed in National Taiwan University Hospital, took another sap blow.Originally from Xishui, Hubei, Xu Fuguan, who served as the secretary of the major general of Chiang Kai-shek's attendant in his early years and became a professor at the private Taiwan Tunghai University after escaping from Taiwan, jumped out again amidst the ugliness dancing, brandishing a cold mace, and sternly accused Hu Shi of being "a The disgrace of the Chinese, the disgrace of the Orientals", "is the most despicable Chinese who commits self-blasphemy". Previously, Xu Fuguan, a generation of literati known as "New Confucianism", "a fighter dedicated to democracy", and "a humanistic liberal who dared to challenge power", saw that a series of anonymous pamphlets could not knock Hu Shi to the ground, and let his mouth Foaming, rolling his eyes, he shook hands with Lord Yan of the underworld, took off his mask, and took advantage of Hu Shi's speech to go into battle, and shot a sharp spear at Hu Shi.In the article "The Shame of the Chinese and the Shame of the Orientals", Xu Fuguan denounced: "I saw Dr. Hu's speech in the Yadongke Church in the newspaper today. He used all obscene words to slander Chinese culture and the Oriental Culture, I should announce it to the Chinese and the Orientals. Dr. Hu's appointment as the president of the Academia Sinica is a disgrace to the Chinese and to the Orientals. The reason why I say this is not because he does not understand He does not understand history, philosophy, China, the West, the past, or the present. It is because he has passed seventy years and feels that he is not familiar with any knowledge of human beings. Not to the limit, so out of excessive inferiority complex, he made crazy and rebellious remarks, trying to cover up his ignorance by slandering Chinese culture and Eastern culture, and trying to show off to Westerners, so he got some leftovers to maintain A signboard that has already been dropped into the toilet; this is too shameless." He also said: About four years ago, he gave a lecture to students at Taichung Provincial Agricultural College, to the effect that he would eat opium and wrap his feet , that is, Chinese culture.This time in front of many outsiders, he said even more vigorously: Science and technology are not materialistic, they have high ideal and spiritual value.They do represent true ideals and spirituality. In Eastern civilizations, there is not much spirituality.What spirituality is there in a civilization that endures cruel, inhumane regulations, such as women's footbinding for more than a thousand years? (Note: The above is probably scolding China) In a civilization that has tolerated the class system for thousands of years, what kind of spirituality is there?What spirituality is there in a civilization that sees human life as miserable and worthless, worships poverty and begging, and attributes disease to the works of God? (Note: The above probably refers to Hinduism and Buddhism) Now it is us in the East who are beginning to admit that in that ancient civilization, there was little or no spirituality.That ancient civilization belonged to an age when man was feeble in body, dull in mind, and felt himself powerless to fight. This civilization (science, technology) has high ideals, and a true spirit... This is a sincere tribute to the modern civilization of science and technology. ... (The above is based on the "Chenxin News" on November 7th) After listing Hu Shi's speech, Xu criticized every sentence in a stripping style, and borrowed "attacking the son with the spear of the son" "Shield" countered the ancient method: "Dr. Hu criticized Luo Ergang for summarizing a certain issue in a certain period of history, but pretended to accuse him of using unscientific methods (see "Academia Sinica" printed "Five Years of Shimen"). However, Dr. Hu was able to use a few curse words to conclude that the cultures of China and India have existed for thousands of years. Where did this scientific method of flying centipede come from? In your writing In the "History of Ancient Chinese Philosophy" and "Hu Shi Wencun", when it comes to Chinese culture, is there an article that can be compared with the original text and can be said? He knows nothing about Indian things. How did Dr. Hu come from? Which science dares to make such a bold judgment after receiving such revelation?" He also said: "Anthropologists who have done in-depth investigation and research will admit that even extremely primitive nations have A very valuable spiritual activity. This is a major advance in anthropology at present, and it can also be said to be a major trend. Based on what research and research, Dr. Hu can conclude that in the two major cultures of China and India, there are very few spiritual activities. , or even none at all? Dr. Hu’s mother never read foreign books, so in Dr. Hu’s understanding, do the two elders have a soul?” Regarding the issue of Indian culture and Buddhism involved in "spirituality", Xu Fuguan sarcastically said: "There is no need to tell Dr. Hu the truth here, because if he has a little common sense of Western cultural history, he will not tell it. This kind of talk. But there is one thing I really admire is that he is a gentleman who knows the current situation. He only scolds the religions from India, and never scolds Catholicism and Christianity. What if India becomes strong one day? Dr. Hu can nod and smile They said, 'I already had cemetery in my tomb at that time'." In the end, Mrs. Xu yelled in the tone of a grandfather teaching his grandson: "Chinese and Indian culture, among ten thousand points, is there one point good? Dr. Hu has represented our government several times in international academic conferences. If there is one point good, Hu Dr. Hu might as well talk about that point, to take care of the country's dignity, and to enhance the knowledge of Western friends. What is wrong with this? If there is no good point, why should Dr. Hu use the Chinese brand? How about going to attend? Because although you scold your own culture happily in front of foreigners, foreigners still think you are a Chinese. When a Chinese scolds the history and culture of his nation in front of foreigners, in the eyes of foreigners, It can only be regarded as the most despicable Chinese who acts of self-blasphemy. At the same time, the guests who attended the Yadongke Church this time were only guests who have a close relationship with Indian culture; The status of the landlord, but ignorantly scolding the ancestors of the guests?...According to my observation, it is a secret of last resort. To put it bluntly, it is just to maintain your own status." After Xu Fuguan's offensive statement was published, Hong Kong and Taiwan were shaken by it. When the anti-Hu faction applauded and cheered, it also attracted a quick counterattack from the Hu-supporting faction. The "Wen Xing" magazine published on January 1, 1962 published Li Ao's "Hu Shi the Sower", which was a big crusade against the Xu faction.Seeing this, Xu Fuguan gathered Zheng Xuejia, Hu Qiuyuan, etc. to carry out another round of violent attacks on Hu Shi. At the same time, with "the few two or three people who lived on Hu Shi as their parents ... and raised one or two little mad dogs" such as Li Ao and others, A so-called "Chinese and Western cultural debate" was launched. Hong Kong and Taiwan "Liberty Press", "Zili Evening News", "China Magazine", "World Review" and other newspapers joined in this "pen battle" with the main theme of abuse. middle.All of a sudden, the academic circles and newspapers were full of gunpowder, and the neighbors were all focused on it.Hu Shi, who was lying on the hospital bed, was mentally stimulated in the face of flying sticks, but he kept silent on Xu's crusade, and he did not cater to Li Ao who took the initiative to curry favor. On January 5, 1962, Hu Shi's assistant Hu Songping made an excerpt of Xu Fuguan's article and made a short commentary.Hu Songping said: "The editor didn't let my husband know about this kind of abusive tone; because I remembered Xu Fuguan's letter to my husband on April 22, 1958, it is also appended here, so you can compare it." The content of Xu's letter to Hu as follows: Mr. Shizhi's seat: This time I can look forward to the elegant demeanor, which is the same as in the past. It is really a blessing for the country!I would like to present a volume of my essays, "Between Politics and Academics", or to fill in the gap in this aspect of the theory of people's livelihood.As far as the article "The Difference and Significance of Confucianism in Cultivating Self and Governing People" is to guide the dispute between Han and Song Dynasties, and to make specific supplements to the above, and to beg for advice.In addition, it is not worth watching.The great historical contribution of the May 4th Movement will be immortalized forever.However, in the past forty years, not only has Mr.'s personal education deepened day by day, but also the influence of Chinese people on world culture has made some progress. In the short commentary, Hu Songping made the following defense for Hu Shi: "Mr. is an academic leader who is not only a personal academic achievement, but also a spiritual symbol of intellectuals. Every now and then there is a cultural dispute, Mr. It is not necessary to be on one side of the two creators, but to be the judge of the common expectations of the two. The cultural fighters of the May Fourth era must be transformed into the cultural nanny of today’s era of exile. It’s a mere enthusiasm. I hope you can be forgiven by Mr. The reason why Hu Songping excerpted the letter from Xu to Hu was not only the shock caused by Xu's different appearance before and after, but also the feeling of "what is a person". On January 10, 1962, Hu Shi recovered and was discharged from the hospital, temporarily living in Fuzhou Street for recuperation.The old Hu Shi's life has entered the threshold of decay, and the lamps and incense are about to be extinguished, and everything will stop. At the end of life where the sun is setting and the afterglow is shining, what gives Hu Shi spiritual comfort is not the Kuomintang government's superficial kindness and respect for him, nor is it that he pursued the god of "a visitor from outer space" that he has been worrying about for most of his life. He is not a monk, but a patient during his stay at National Taiwan University Hospital——Mei Yiqi.The world did not expect that the two famous university presidents and educators in modern Chinese history, after decades of busy work, traveling all over the world, and going through all kinds of hardships, in their later years, There is such an opportunity to get together in a hospital on an isolated island in Taiwan, and have rare leisure time to abandon all chores, hold hands and talk, talk about the past and the present, recall the past, think about the future, and comprehend the real life with an indifferent and peaceful state of mind. Soothe each other's sorrow and pain.Such an encounter in life is really a blessing among the unforeseen misfortunes of Hu and Mei.Just because of Mei Yiqi's unassuming and dull nature, in the eyes of contemporaries and later generations of researchers, Mei's departure from Peiping for Nanjing and then overseas on the way to "Tianheng Island" seems to be younger than Hu Zhiqi. The escape of Mei's escape is a bit more mysterious, and the inside story and mystery have been unknown to the outside world until it gradually surfaced and became clear decades later. Mei's broad mind and dedicated demeanor, It also makes more Chinese admire and cherish forever.