Emperor Kuang Hsu: Abolition of the Examination System, 1898

The changes in the attitude of the court towards a new educational system began, as do many

great undertakings, in a very simple way. We have already shown how the eunuchs secured all

kinds of foreign mechanical toys to entertain the young Emperor Kuang Hsu; how these were

supplemented in his boyhood by ingenious clocks and watches; how he became interested in the

telegraph, the telephone, steam cars, steamboats, electric light and steam heat, and how he had

them first brought into the palace and then established throughout the empire; and how he had

the phonograph, cinematograph, bicycle, and indeed all the useful and unique inventions of

modern times brought in for his entertainment.

He then began the study of English. When in 1894 a New Testament was sent to the Empress

Dowager on the occasion of her sixtieth birthday, he at once secured from the American Bible

Society a copy of the complete Bible for himself. He began studying the Gospel of Luke. This

gave him a taste for foreign literature and he sent his eunuchs to the various book depositories

and bought every book that had been translated from the European languages into the Chinese.

This process continued from 1894 till 1898, during which time his example was followed by tens

of thousands of young Chinese scholars throughout the empire. Chang Chih-tung wrote his

epoch-making book “China’s Only Hope,” which, being sent to the young Emperor, led him to

enter upon a universal reform, the chief feature of which may be considered the adoption of a

new educational system.

Kuang Hsu’s was an effort to make China strong enough to resist the incursions of the European

powers. Germany had taken Kiaochou, Russia had taken Port Arthur, Japan had taken Formosa,

Great Britain had taken Weihaiwei, France had taken Kuangchouwan, and even Italy was

anxious to have a slice of his territory, while all the English newspapers in the port cities were

talking of China being divided up amongst the Powers, and it was these things which led the

Emperor to enter upon his work of reform.

In the summer of 1898, therefore, he sent out an edict to the effect that:

“Our scholars are now without solid and practical education; our artisans are without scientific

instructors; when compared with other countries, we soon see how weak we are. Does anyone

think that our troops are as well drilled or as well led as those of the foreign armies? Or that we

can successfully stand against them? Changes must be made to accord with the necessities of the

times. Keeping in mind the morals of the sages and wise men, we must make them the basis on

which to build newer and better structures. We must substitute modern arms and western

organization for our old regime; we must select our military officers according to western

methods of military education; we must establish elementary and high schools, colleges and

universities, in accordance with those of foreign countries; we must abolish the examinations and

obtain a knowledge of ancient and modern world-history, a right conception of the present-day

state of affairs, with special reference to the governments and institutions of the countries of the

five great continents; and we must understand their arts and sciences.”

I.T. Headland, Court life in China: the capital, its officials and people (New York 1909), 523

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