Friday, January 20, 2023

In January 1943, Hollywood films were banned in Korea, but 2 French films and 6 German films were showing in Seoul movie theaters: only ‘working women’ could watch Wunschkonzert (1940), a Nazi propaganda drama, and only ‘industrial warriors’ could watch Kora Terry (1940), a German spy thriller

In January 1943, exactly eighty years ago, Imperial Japan was at war, but some Seoul residents still had time to enjoy some of the simple things in life, like going to the movies. To explore what kinds of foreign movies Seoul residents might have watched during this time, I browsed through the January 1943 Keijo Nippo newspapers for any movie ads for foreign films that were showing at movie theaters in Seoul. I identified the movies based on clues left in the ads, like the plot lines and the names of the directors and actors. Unsurprisingly, there were no American or British films, but I did find an eclectic selection of two French movies and six German movies:

French movies:

German movies:

Some of these movies are available to watch online in clips or, in some cases, in their entirety on Youtube or Internet Archive, so I will share links below along with the movie ads. I linked to resources on Wikipedia and the Internet Movie Database wherever I could.

L'homme à l'Hispano (1933) was a French comedy starring Marie Bell (pictured in the ad) and Jean Murat, whose names are printed on the ad. This film was made into a double feature, where you had to sit in for the domestic Imperial Japanese film (闘ふ男) if you wanted to watch the foreign film. The film only showed from January 11th to the 13th. The full movie is available on the Internet Archive here.

 L'homme à l'Hispano (1933) - Keijo Nippo January 11, 1943

Ma soeur de lait (1938) was a French comedy starring Meg Lemonnier (pictured in this ad) and Henri Garat, and directed by Jean Boyer, whose names are printed on the ad. This was also shown as a double feature with a domestic Imperial Japanese film (心は偽らず), and for only three days: January 11th, 12th, and 13th.

 Ma soeur de lait (1938) - Keijo Nippo January 11, 1943

Ein Lied geht um die Welt (1933) was a German musical starring Charlotte Ander (pictured in the ad) and Joseph Schmidt, whose names are printed on this ad. Interestingly, although this film premiered during the Third Reich, it was subsequently banned in Nazi Germany in 1937. But apparently, it was still allowed to be shown in Imperial Japan. This was also shown as a double feature with a domestic Imperial Japanese film (海の見える家), and for only three days: January 22th, 23th, and 24th.

Ein Lied geht um die Welt (1933) - Keijo Nippo January 22, 1943

Rakoczy-Marsch (1933) starred Gustav Fröhlich, Leopold Kramer, Camilla Horn, and Paul Wagner whose names are all printed on this ad. This was also shown as a double feature with a domestic Imperial Japanese film (愛国の花), and for only five days from January 27th.

Rakoczy-Marsch (1933) - Keijo Nippo January 27, 1943

Ihr größter Erfolg (1934) was a film starring Marta Eggerth, pictured and named in this ad. This was also shown as a double feature with a domestic Imperial Japanese film (愛国の花), and only on January 27th. A clip is available on YouTube here

 Ihr größter Erfolg (1934) - Keijo Nippo January 27, 1943

Königswalzer (1935) was a German musical starring Carola Höhn, who is pictured and named in this ad. Although the original 1935 film cannot be found online, clips of the 1955 remake can be found on YouTube. This was also shown as a double feature with a domestic Imperial Japanese film (君を呼ぶ歌), and only on January 24th, 25th, and the 26th. 

 Königswalzer (1935) - Keijo Nippo January 24, 1943

Kora Terry (1940) was a spy thriller starring Marika Rökk (pictured in these ads) and directed by Georg Jacoby, whose names are printed on this ad. This movie required a special invitation to watch, with movie seats preferentially going to "industrial warriors". There was a preview screening of the movie at 9 pm January 30th, and then the movie premiered in Seoul on February 1st. Unlike most of the other foreign films, this one was not paired with a domestic Imperial Japanese film. Two German brochures for this movie are available on the Internet Archive here and here.

Kora Terry (1940), Keijo Nippo January 24, 1943
 
 Kora Terry (1940) - Keijo Nippo January 27, 1943

Wunschkonzert (1940) was a German drama propaganda film starring Ilse Werner, who is prominently featured on the ads. This movie was apparently heavily promoted in Keijo Nippo, since its ads come up the most frequently among the foreign films advertised on Keijo Nippo. This movie required a special invitation to watch, with movie seats preferentially going to "working women" with "no men allowed". There was a preview screening of the movie at 9:10 pm January 15th, and then the movie premiered in Seoul on January 18th, playing until January 24th. Unlike most of the other foreign films, this one was not paired with a domestic Imperial Japanese film. The German brochure for this movie is available on the Internet Archive here. The full movie (no subtitles) is available on the Internet Archive here. A clip of one of the songs is available on YouTube here

Wunschkonzert (1940) - Keijo Nippo January 10, 1943
 
Wunschkonzert (1940) - Keijo Nippo January 17, 1943

Wunschkonzert (1940) - Keijo Nippo January 20, 1943

Source 1: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1943-01-10
Source 2: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1943-01-11
Source 3: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1943-01-17
Source 4: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1943-01-20
Source 5: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1943-01-22
Source 6: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1943-01-24
Source 7: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1943-01-27

Sunday, January 15, 2023

Governor Koiso likened Korea to a disabled body whose brain (regime) could not talk to the limbs (Korean people), so an 'exclusive use of Japanese' policy was forced on Koreans, starting with Seoul city employees who were labeled 'inferior' and 'weak-willed' if they still spoke Korean at work (1943)

In 1943, Governor-General Koiso kicked off the new year by intensifying his campaign to further restrict the public spaces in which the Korean language can be used. Apparently, there were still employees in the Seoul prefectural government who spoke Korean at work, but this article from Janauary 1943 indicates that the regime started to crack down on them, so that government employees were no longer allowed to speak Korean at all, either at work or at home. The purported reason for this draconian measure was the "reform of general administration and the simplification of administrative work". To paraphrase it in the words of Governor-General Koiso, the brain and the limbs had to speak the same language for the body to move in an orderly fashion. This was all part of the "Japanese-Korean unification" policy that was ruthlessly pursued to suppress Korean language, culture, and ethnic identity in Korea, leaving lasting trauma that is still being felt even to this day.

Group training of Seoul prefectural government employees

(Translation)

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) January 20, 1943

The year of decisive battles, the rush to put things into practice (2) Seoul Edition

Seoul government employees shave their heads and begin to use the Japanese language regularly

Total efforts to simplify administrative work

"The establishment of a Righteous Korea can only be fully realized by training all 24 million people in the various occupational areas to truly adhere to the true meaning of the National Body as Imperial subjects …" were the words of Governor-General Koiso's instructions. Every word of his instructions at the opening ceremony of his administration was a fireball that shot into our ears and strained our hearts. Let's take a look into the "spirit of training" of the Seoul prefectural government employees who are leading the charge on behalf of the 1,000,000 Seoul residents, who have begun the new year full of vigor and determination.

Heroic battles are being fought in the name of the three encouraging principles of the Governor-General that are the key to dealing with the mountain of prefectural administrative work that is piled up before our eyes: "Thorough practice of character-building and training, decisive increase in production capacity, and epoch-making reform of general administration". These are the enlightened ways for government officials to speedily move forward administrative affairs and reform general administration in the midst of decisive battles. Let's look into how these three calls have inspired the top executives and staff of the Seoul government at the very beginning of the new year, and how they have begun to pledge their resolve.

From 3:00 p.m. on January 19th in the Prefectural Governor's room, there was a "Roundtable Discussion on the Rush to Put Things into Practice". In attendance were Prefectural Governor Furuichi, Mr. Chida, Director of General Affairs, Mr. Hoshimura, Director of Finance, Mr. Tanaka, Director of Internal Affairs, Mr. Matsuo, Director of General Affairs, Mr. Inagaki, Director of the Total National Movement, Mr. Egashira, Director of Industry, Mr. Kaneko, Director of Conscription, Mr. Fujioka, Director of Accounting, and Mr. Takera, Director of Auditing. They have forged strong relationships with Seoul residents by interacting with them at service windows. The participants expressed a level of determination that was appropriate for wartime.

Reporter: "How thorough are the character-building and training programs at the Seoul prefectural government?"

Prefectural Governor Furuichi: "We are doing a great deal. However, that is true of all government offices as well, and we are only doing what we should have been doing all along. For example, all employees visit and worship at Shinto shrines on the 20th of every month, and regular character-building lectures are held at Seoul Citizens Hall on the 10th."

Mr. Matsuo, Director of General Affairs: "The Seoul prefectural government was the first among the government offices to implement the visiting and worshiping at Shinto shrines, and we have been doing it for 12 years since 1932, when Mr. Inoue was Prefectural Governor. The Shūyōkai (Character-Building Association) began in 1938 to host lectures delivered by renowned speakers, and it has been very effective thanks to the cooperation of the Buddhist community, banks, universities, and the military."

Prefectural Governor Furuichi: "Last year, a Misogi Training Session was held at the Shūyōdan (character-building) Dōjō for the executives of the government, which was very effective. Most of the participants were from the Department of the Total National Movement. This year, we are planning to extend the training to all employees as soon as the Dōjō is available."

Mr. Hoshimura, Director of Finance: "It was my first time participating in Misogi, and I attended it only out of curiosity. But as I took the lessons, I discovered how great the Japanese spirit was, and now I am looking at it totally differently. I am currently promoting it to Korean youth."

Mr. Chida, Director of General Affairs: "Regarding physical exercise, each department has been conducting warm-up exercises, but this time we have decided to newly adopt some 'Naval-style exercises'. We are currently conducting a four-day training session for the instructors. We hope to spread the exercises to all 4,000 employees in the near future, so that they can acquire the military spirit and improve their health."

Reporter: "I heard that the prefectural government is conducting military training."

Prefectural Governor Furuichi: "We have already conducted military training several times at Kyōnaka Grounds in order to raise awareness of the need for discipline in the workplace, and the results have been very good each time. This year, we would like to make a special effort to conduct group drills in each department, and we will conduct inspections to ensure the thoroughness of the drills."

Reporter: "I heard that the prefectural government is going to focus exclusively on the regular use of the Japanese language this year. Do you have any ingenious ideas about this in your departments?

Mr. Tanaka, Director of Internal Affairs: "There is one language for 100 million people. The unification of the languages is the first priority for both the reform of general administration and the simplification of administrative work. The exclusive regular use of the Japanese language was agreed upon at the meeting of the heads of the departments on the Day of the Imperial Rescript on the 8th."

Mr. Fujioka, Director of Accounting: "In my department, we are so serious about it that we have even written a sworn pledge, and we hang slogan cards on the telephones encouraging the exclusive regular use of the Japanese language."

Mr. Kaneko, Director of Conscription: "I have always been a strict man, and my employees know it, but I have decided that those who do not use the Japanese language regularly are weak-willed and will not receive any promotions or bonuses." (laughter)

Mr. Matsuo, Director of General Affairs: "I held a regular meeting in the department, and everyone made a pledge to speak correct Japanese at home as well, since the home is an extension of the government office."

Reporter: "His Excellency the Governor-General compares the current situation in Korea to defects of the brain and nervous system, and he is apparently changing the situation where the policies and guidelines that he had planned have often been inadequately put into practice."

Prefectural Governor Furuichi: "In order for the four limbs to work in an orderly fashion and with immediate responsiveness under the command of the brain and nervous system, there is no other way but to forcibly put into practice the training of Imperial subjects for everyone, regardless of whether they are government officials or ordinary people. Reform of the general administration is an urgent task at this time."

Mr. Tanaka, Director of Internal Affairs: "I believe that the bad habit of government offices is that they maintain the status quo and lack progress, stretching out one day into ten years. They refuse to acknowledge any room for improvement, and it seems that there is a lot of waste hidden in the current wartime state of affairs."

Mr. Kaneko, Director of Conscription: "Some of the employees may be considered inferior, but I try to set my own inherent disposition as an example. I always admonish my subordinates by reminding them that I have not missed a day of work or taken a vacation day in the 31 years since I arrived in Korea."

Mr. Fujioka, Director of Accounting: "I sometimes hear complaints at the service window, so I try to be as prompt as possible in my work and avoid wasting time with regulations."

Mr. Takera, Director of Auditing: "Above all, we need to reform our personnel. It is no good if they are absent or tardy, or if they take their 20-day vacation as a matter of course."

Mr. Tanaka, Director of Internal Affairs: "We hold a special Jingu Taima exorcism ceremony in front of the department, and hold a morning meeting every morning at 9:00 a.m. Those who are late are not allowed to enter because of the shame that they bring." (laughter) "Thanks to this, we have increased our attendance rate at work."

Mr. Inagaki, Director of the Total National Movement: "This year, I would like to thoroughly enforce the 'shaved head' movement. Unless there are special circumstances, all workers should have their heads shaved."

Mr. Egashira, Director of Industry: "On my part, I have taken the initiative in cutting off most of my hair, and this attitude has been immediately reflected in my work and has had a positive effect. I believe that the increase in production capacity is also a result of a selfless and dedicated attitude toward work in the workplace."

The top leadership of the Seoul Prefectural Office, the capital of the Korean peninsula, is in high spirits. The cry to rush forward to put things into practice will be heard in the hearts of the 1,000,000 residents of Seoul. This year, we will see "Our Governor-General" put great things into practice in a big way. Let's go, Seoul!

[Photo: Group training of Seoul prefectural government employees]

Source: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1943-01-20


(Transcription)

京城日報 1943年1月20日

決戦の年・実践驀進(2) 京城府の巻

丸坊主で国語常用

事務簡捷化へ総努力

『道義朝鮮の確立が各職域に在る二千四百万民衆悉くに皇民錬成を加えて真に国体の本義に徹せしむることに依り初めてその全きを期し得ます...』との小磯総督の御用始式の訓示は一言一語火の玉となって耳を撃ち心を引緊めた。元気一杯決戦の年頭を迎えた百十万府民に陣頭指揮をとる京城府庁職員の”錬成魂”はどうであろう。

眼前に山と積まれた府政百般の処理も要は総督三原則の前に雄々しい闘いが戦われ、敏速な事務の推進と庶政の刷新が決戦下の吏道として明るく”修養錬成の徹底的実践、生産戦力の決戦的増強、庶政執務の画期的刷新”力強い。この三つの呼掛けは新春劈頭府庁幹部職員にどれ程の奮起を促し如何なる決意を誓いはじめたか。

十九日午後三時から府尹室に古市府尹、千田総務部長を初め窓口を通じて府民に関係深い星村財務部長、田中内務、松尾庶務、稲垣総力、江頭産業、金古徴取、藤岡会計、武良監査、各課長出席。『実践驀進を語る座談会』を開催。決戦下に相応しい決意の程を示した。

記者:『府庁に於ける修養錬成の徹底はー』

古市府尹:『大いにやっている。併しどこの官庁もこれは同じだし、当然為すべきを為しているに過ぎない。例えば毎月二十日の全職員神宮参拝、十日の府民館での定期修養講演会などです』

松尾庶務課長:『府庁の神宮参拝は官庁のトップを切ったもので、昭和七年井上府尹時代からで十二年続いています。修養会は昭和十三年から始め毎回名士に講演を依頼し、仏教関係、銀行、大学、軍部方面の御協力に依り多大の効果を収めています』

古市府尹:『総力課が主体で、昨年は修養団道場に於ける庁内幹部のみそぎ錬成会を行ったが、非常な効果があった。本年は道場の都合のつき次第、職員全部に及ぼす考えです』

星村財務部長:『私はみそぎは初めてで、言わば好奇心のみで出席したわけだったが、教習を受けるに及んで偉大な日本精神の姿をそこに発見し、今では全く見直した次第で、半島青年にはとくに宣伝これ努めているのです』

千田総務部長:『体操の話だが、従来各課で更生体操をやっていたが、今回新たに”海軍体操”を採り入れることとなり、目下指導者錬成を四日間に亘って実施中。行く行くは四千職員全部に及ぼして軍人精神の体得と保健増強の実を挙げたいと思います』

記者:『府では軍隊教練をやられるそうですが』

古市府尹:『規律ある執務意識を実践昂揚するため数回に亘り京中グラウンドにおいて実施済みであるが、回を重ねる毎に成績は非常によろしい。本年は特に力を入れたいので、各部課毎に集団訓練を行わしめ努めて査閲を行い、訓練の徹底を期する考えである』

記者:『府庁では本年は国語常用に専ら力を注ぐそうですね。各課でそれに就いて何か妙案はありませんか』

田中内務課長:『一億民言葉は一つ。では庶政執務の刷新も事務の簡捷化も言葉の統一が先決問題ですね。八日大詔奉戴日の部課長会議で国語絶対常用が申し合わされたのです』

藤岡会計課長:『私の課では誓約書までという慎重さで電話機には常用徹底標語カードをさげています』

金古徴集課長:『私は平素から厳格主義で通っており、課員も心得ていてくれるが、国語を常用せぬ様な者は意志の弱い者で昇格もボーナスもないぞ、ときめつけていますよ』(笑声)

松尾庶務課長:『私は課内常会を開き、誓約的申合せを行い、家庭は官庁の延長だから家庭においても正しい国語を使用するよう一同誓った次第です』

記者:『総督閣下は朝鮮の現状を脳神経の故障に例えて総督の企図方針が往々侵透実践不充分なる現状を変えておられるようですが』

古市府尹:『四肢が脳神経の指令により秩序をもって、しかも即時敏速に活動するに至るには、その官たると民たるとを問わず凡てに対し皇民錬成を強行実践する以外にはありませぬ。庶政刷新は現下喫緊の要務であります』

田中内務課長:『官庁執務の弊は十年一日の如き現状維持と進歩性を欠くところにあるのではないかと思う。そこには少しの改善も認め得ず決戦下の昨今の執務状況にも多くのムダがひそんでいるようです』

金古徴集課長:『職員の一部には低劣と思われる者もあるが、私は生来の気性から身をもって手本を示すことに努め、”おれは渡鮮以来三十一年間無欠勤、無休暇だぞ”と常に部下を戒めています』

藤岡会計課長:『窓口の不平も時に聞かされるので、事務はなるべく敏捷に、規定にとらわれてムダな時間を取らぬよう注意しています』

武良監査課長:『何より人の刷新が必要ですね。休んだり遅刻したり二十日間の休暇を当然の権利視するようじゃあ駄目ですね』

田中内務課長:『課の正面に大麻を奉斎して毎朝九時には朝礼を行っていますが、遅刻した者は恥かくして這入れないですよ。(笑声)お蔭で出勤の率を非常にあげています』

稲垣総力課長:『今年は丸坊主の運動も徹底したいものです。特別の事情なき限り全部丸坊主でいいですね』

江頭産業課長:『私の方では率先して殆ど断髪でして、この心構えは直ちに執務の上にも反映して良き効果を挙げています。生産戦力の増強も要は職場に於ける滅私奉公の執務態度から生れるものと思います』

半島の首都、京城府庁の陣頭指揮者は張り切っている。実践驀進の叫びは府民百万の胸底に徹して今年こそ”われらの総督”の膝もとから素晴らしい実践が鬱然ともたげるであろう。京城よ頑張れ!

【写真=府庁職員の集団訓練】



Wednesday, January 11, 2023

Western firms including Shell, Mobil, HSBC, Otis Elevator, Singer were active in colonial Korea, a US firm had a corn starch factory in Pyongyang, until the regime confiscated their assets with the outbreak of war, accused of having a 'Jewish spirit' which 'exploits the entire wealth of mankind'

This is an article from December 1942, and it particularly stands out for its especially antisemitic, anti-American, and anti-British messaging. It is part of a series of articles written to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Pacific War against the United States, which began with the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7th local time (December 8th Japan time) in 1941. Setting aside the hateful content, this article provides a unique insight into the British and American corporations that were actively operating in Korea before they were confiscated by Imperial Japanese authorities about two months after the outbreak of war.


The article lists 15 British and American corporations actively operating in colonial Korea, including what were apparently joint ventures operating under the names of local companies, like Sakuma Industries, Pyonggang Industries, Unchang Industries, and a U.S. joint venture, Corn Product Refining Company, that apparently ran a corn starch factory in Pyongyang. Shell and Mobil had gas stations throughout Korea. Singer Corporation sold sewing machines to the Korean public under layaway plans. Other surprising appearances include HSBC, Otis Elevators, North British Mercantile Insurance Company, and Commercial Union Insurance Company.

Unlike colonies run by Western countries, Imperial Japan allowed Western companies to come and operate inside Korea from the very beginning, when Korea was annexed in 1910. Western missionaries set up hospitals and schools, and mining operations were started by Western companies. However, leading up to 1941, restrictions against Westerners were gradually escalated. In April 1940, Westerners were no longer allowed to buy land in major cities and within 4 kilometers of railroads. In July 28, 1941, regulations for the control of foreign nations, aimed at U.S. and Philippines residents, were passed, and even stricter regulations were passed after the outbreak of war.

I was able to figure out many of the company names and the above background information thanks to an excellent 2011 Japanese-language academic paper (PDF) entitled "The Management and Disposal of the Westerner's Property in Colonial Korea during the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Pacific War and the Korean Liberation Period, 1937-1948", written by Ahn Jong-cheol (안종철, 安鍾哲).

However, further offline research will be needed to clarify some issues about this list. What company was "Compronpial"? My speculation is, maybe they misread the faded text saying "Compton" as "Complon", and the actual name of the company started with "Compton". There is no online historical information about many of the listed companies, including "Compton", Uo-oto pharmaceuticals, and the local companies, so the historical trail will have to be picked up offline in libraries.

(Translation)

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) December 5, 1942

Roots stretched throughout all of Korea

The epitomy of loan sharks,

Totally reborn into a new wing of the war effort

Shut out the United States and Britain!

One year since [the start of the Pacific War on December 8th]

Production Edition

Of our country's total production, the amount of production that the Korean peninsula assumes as a military base of operations is [redacted] billion yen, or about 10% of our country's total production. The clutches of the enemy's capital extended even into this great peninsula's output. Before the war, the amount of the enemy's capital reached a total of [redacted], turning the Korean peninsula into a bastion of American and British capitalism's aggression and exploitation of Greater East Asia by casting an insidious web of financial power.

As soon as the Greater East Asia War broke out, at 10:00 a.m. on December 9 of last year, the Ministry of Finance issued regulations (asset freezes) for the control of foreign nationals. The Ministry of Finance issued a notice to the American and British nationals that all general permission orders would be forfeited. Even in Korea, the Enemy Assets Control Law was immediately enforced on December 12 of that year to actively control assets belonging to the enemy and quasi-enemy nationals. On February 7, the Enemy Assets Control Law was implemented for trading companies, especially commercial corporations belonging to the production sector. Here, the Japanese government confiscated enemy assets, which now play a role in the war aims of the new Japan that prospers as it fights. Active efforts have begun to use the confiscated enemy assets to supply the war effort. The following are some of the major confiscated enemy assets:

Firstly, the U.S. and British oil companies including Standard Vacuum Oil Company (U.S.), Rising Sun Petroleum (U.K.), The Texas Company (China) Limited (U.S.), followed by Singer Corporation (U.S.), Compronpial (U.S.), and Nippon National (U.S.). Japanese grain companies and others include Uo-oto Pharmaceutical Company (U.S.), North British Mercantile Insurance Company (U.K.), Tōyō Otis Elevator (U.S.), Shinkō Cotton (U.K.), Hongkong and Shanghai Bank (U.K.), Commercial Union Insurance Company (U.K.), Sakuma Industries (U.S.), Pyonggang Industries (U.K.), and Unchang Industries (U.K.). The capitalization of these 15 companies amounted to over [redacted] million yen.

The three oil companies alone had invested 450,000,000 yen. They built an oil depot in Busan and expanded their sales channels to all corners of the Korean peninsula, making a strong inroad into Korea's economic world and focusing on invasion and exploitation. They attracted attention by using the symbol of a heavenly horse or a shell-shaped mark on street corners. Gasoline stations and signage were also outlandishly set up in the streets.

Those dens of U.S. and British aggression are still fresh in our memories, but in the first year of the Holy War, the people's determination to destroy the U.S. and Britain, their sworn enemies, successfully swept away the Americans and the British, and the stronghold of aggression that they had built over the past hundred years was replaced by the blade of justice that was aimed at their throats. The taxis, trucks, and buses that sped through the streets have now been replaced by fuel-efficient vehicles, and the triumphant songs of scientific Japan are now played in high spirits. Out of mischief, gas stations previously painted with bright red and yellow paint were reduced to signboards calling for the defeat of the U.S. and Britain.

Yoshikuni Nakatani was newly appointed to become president of the U.S.-affiliated Japan Grain Company, which boasts a vast site and modern facilities on the banks of the Taedong River in Pyongyang with a capital investment of 780 million yen. He has been making strenuous efforts to increase food production for Japan, which is now fighting a new battle every day. In April 1930, the U.S.-affiliated company began manufacturing starch from Korean corn, with an annual production of [redacted] hundred-thousand tons. In the meantime, he paid 200,000 a year to the U.S. government for the use of a U.S. patent, and also manufactured high-grade oil and chemicals as by-products. The company expanded its sales channels not only within Korea and mainland Japan, but also in the Chinese mainland. They were literally enjoying the beautiful juice of exploitation, and they had cast and unleashed their plutocratic financial web. They have always exploited under the guise of "equal opportunity" and the welfare of mankind. It is the Jewish spirit to spread surplus money all over the world and exploit the entire wealth of mankind in all corners of the world. The Greater East Asia War is also a war to drive this Jewish spirit out of the land and skies over Greater East Asia.

Their ingenious and extremely vicious dollar policies ate up nations and insatiably sucked the blood and fat of the world's humanity. The death struggles between Germany and the Soviet Union, the defeat of France, and the downfall of the Netherlands and other small countries were all the results of their schemes. We can all be taken in by their ingenious schemes before we even know it. A good example is the monthly installment sales of Singer sewing machines.

When we think about the fact that most of the people to whom they sold these machines were meager monthly wage earners, and that most of them were using their meager paychecks to support their greed, we still become infuriated at the insatiable inhumanity of it all. The monthly installment system is a vicious business scheme designed by the U.S. to squeeze every last penny out of the world's poor.

One year after the war began, the world's loan sharks, the U.S. and Britain, have been completely defeated, and even here on the Korean peninsula, the triumphal song of victory over the U.S. and Britain has been loudly proclaimed. All enemy facilities have now become activated as important parts of Japan's war efforts, rehabilitated as the driving force for the grand creation of Greater East Asia. The peoples of the Philippines, East Indies, Malaysia were previously deprived of their lands and had their nations destroyed, but they are now growing rapidly under the warm military rule of the Imperial Japanese forces.

The world's loan sharks have been using all kinds of tactics to continue inflicting suffering. They want beds, clothes, hats, and even shoes to be paid for by monthly installments. It is more difficult to provide healthy lives to the people under such a system than it is for a great person to be born from perfectly ordinary parents. Moreover, their usual modus operandi is to hone in on people who are in difficult situations, beat up each and every member of the human race, and then seize their land after first wreaking havoc on the national characters of their nations. [Photo: An abandoned gas station]

Source: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1942-12-05

(Transcription)

京城日報 1942年12月5日

全鮮に張る根城

高利貸根性の標本

戦力一翼へ、全く新生

米英締め出し

あれから一年

生産篇

我国総生産高のうち兵站基地の名において半島に負荷さるるもの〇〇億、即ち約一割に当っている。この偉大なる半島生産高の中にも敵性資本の魔手は伸び、戦前におけるその額実に〇〇に達し、米英資本主義は半島にも不逞な金権の網を張って大東亜の侵略と搾取の根城をなしていたのである。

大東亜戦争勃発するや昨年十二月九日午前十時を期して、わが大蔵省は外国人関係取締規則(資産凍結)を発動。米英人に対し一般許可令はことごとく失却する旨通告を発した。朝鮮でも直ちに敵産管理法を同十二日施行して敵国及び準敵国人に属する財産の積極的取締に当ると同時に二月七日取り敢えず、商事会社、特に生産部面に属する営利法人に対する敵産管理を断行。ここにおいて敵国財産は日本政府に接収され今や、戦いながら肥える新日本の戦争目的に一役買って戦力補給に活発な活動を開始している。その主なものを拾って見ると。

第一に米英系石油会社、スタンダード(米)、ライジングサン(英)、テキサス(米)、シンガーミシン(米)、コンプロンピアル(米)、日本ナショナル(米)。日本穀産会社等を初め魚乙品製薬会社(米)、ノースブリテッシュ・マーキャンタルインシュランスカンパニー(英)、東洋オーチス・エレベータ(米)、振興綿花(英)、香港上海銀行(英)、コンマーシャル・ユニオン・アッシュランスカンパニー(英)、作久間工業(米)、平康工業(英)、雲昌工業(英)の十五社。その資本金は実に〇〇〇〇万円に及んでいる。

石油会社である三社だけでも四百五十万円の資本を投じて分坪、釜山に油槽所を置き、全鮮の隅々までも販路をひろめ、半島経済界に根強く喰い入って侵略と搾取に専念していたのである。街角などで天馬や貝標のマークを付けて我が物顔に人目を引いていた。ガソリン・スタンドや横文字もぎょうぎょうしく店舗を構えていた。

これ等米英侵略の巣窟は今なお我々の記憶に新しいが、聖戦一年宿敵米英撃滅に蹶起した国民の感情は米英色を見事に一掃し、彼等が百年に亘って営々築きあげた侵略の牙城は逆に彼等の咽喉を狙う正義の刃と変ったのである。巷を疾走するタクシーもトラック、バスも此の頃は代燃車に置き替えられ、科学日本の凱歌を高らかに奏でている。そして赤黄のペンキも鮮やかに塗られたガソリンスタンドはいたずらに敗戦米英の表看板にまで落ちぶれ果てたのである。

また七百八十万円の資本金で平壌大同江畔に広大な敷地と近代的設備を誇った米系日本穀産会社も新しく中谷芳邦が社長に就任。日も新たに戦う日本の食糧増産に懸命の努力を注いでいる。昭和五年四月、米系資本によって鮮産玉蜀黍を原料に澱粉製造に乗り出し、年産〇〇万をあげていた。その中、米国の特許使用料として年二十万を米国政府に支払い、高級油、薬品等を副産物として製造。鮮内はもとより内地、支那大陸に販路を拡張。文字通り搾取の美汁に酔いしれていたのであるが、彼等はこの金権網の目張りを門戸開放。機会均等と称し、常に人類の福祉ということをお題目として搾取して来た。あり余った金を世界中にばら撒いて西に東に南に北に人類のあらゆる幸を搾略しようというユダヤ根性であり、大東亜戦争はこのユダヤ根性を大東亜の天地から叩き出すための戦争でもある。

彼等の巧妙悪辣を極めるドル政策は大きくは国を食い潰し、小さくは世界人類の膏血を吸って飽くことを知らなかった。独、ソの死闘、フランスの敗退、和蘭その他小国の亡国その悉くがこの彼等の策謀の所産である。そして又我々が知らず知らずの中に彼等の巧妙なる策謀に乗ぜられていたことを思って見ると、いい例がシンガーミシンの月賦販売である。

売りつける相手はしがない月給取り、その大部分が乏しい俸給袋をはたいて彼等の貪欲に奉仕していたことを考える時、今更の如く飽くなき非道に憤激するのである。月賦制度なるものは米国が世界の細民から金のありったけを搾り上げようと企んだ悪辣極まる商法である。

開戦一年、世界の高利貸米、英は完全に敗北して、ここ半島にも米英色一掃の勝利の凱歌は高らかに揚げられている。すべての敵性施設は今は重要なる日本の戦力として活動し、偉大なる大東亜創造の推進力として更生しているのである。皇軍の温かい軍政下にすくすくと伸びつつある比律賓、東印度、馬来等の民衆は土地を奪われ、国を亡ぼされた。

その上にあの手、この術で悉く苦悩を続けて来たのである。寝台が月賦、洋服が月賦、帽子も月賦なら靴までが月賦である。そんな生活の中から健全なる国民生活を生み出そうということは鳶が鷹を生ませるよりもなお難しい。しかもこの難しい所に彼等が目をつけ、人類の一人一人を叩いておいて、先ずその国の国民性を滅茶苦茶に混乱させた挙句、国土を奪取するのが常套手段なのである。【写真=廃業されたガソリンスタンド】


Saturday, January 7, 2023

Master Imaizumi Teisuke, the spiritual leader of the ruling class of colonial Korea, taught that Japanese-Korean unification should be thought of as a relationship between husband and wife, between a horse and its rider, and between a parent and a child, during his 12-day tour of Korea in 1942

Master Imaizumi Teisuke was a prominent Shinto theologian and spiritual leader of Imperial Japan. By 1942, when he went on a 12-day tour of Korea lecturing on the Imperial Way to the colonial ruling class, he was an 80-year-old man who had personally witnessed the dizzying pace of change that Japan went through from a feudal backwater in the 1860's to a sprawling empire in the course of a human lifetime. He had devoted his whole life to studying Kokugaku, which was a nativist Japanese academic movement which despised foreign thought, including Christianity, Buddhism, and Chinese philosophy, and advocated a return to Japan's ancient Shinto roots. His flowing white beard gave him the look of an ancient sage.

Imaizumi with Commander Itagaki

He was so revered that his words were considered gospel truth by the ruling class of colonial Korea. This is why I am presenting an excerpt of the first article, in which he explains how one should conceptualize Japanese-Korean unification: as a relationship between husband and wife, and as a relationship between a horse and its rider. In the second article, he gives a radio address to the Korean people in a paternalistic manner, as though they were his children, and describes Japanese-Korean unification as a relationship between parent and child. His comments may sound ridiculous, but his teachings were seriously followed by the colonial rulers of Korea, who prominently published his abstruse speeches about Shinto philosophy over many days in the Keijo Nippo newspaper. They serve to provide us with a glimpse into the religious fundamentalist motivations that drove the colonial regime into brutally imposing State Shintoism on the Korean population. The third article is an announcement about Imaizumi which was published ahead of his tour of Korea, in which the colonial regime explains just how important Imaizumi is to their ruling philosophy.

But the strange thing is that this once heralded Imperialist philosopher is no longer celebrated among the Japanese neo-Imperialists today. His books are now out-of-print and largely forgotten, hidden in obscure corners of libraries. Why is that? Perhaps because he politically spoke out against the regime during the war? A Japanese Wikipedia article about him says that he criticized the Imperial Japanese military's political policies during the war, which led to his works being censored. However, I could not find any online primary sources backing up this statement. My long-term project will be to do some off-line research where I can to figure out what he said against the Imperial military.

Imaizumi died on September 11, 1944. However, his obituary in the Keijo Nippo newspaper from September 12, 1944 is too blurred to read. The quality of the scans of the newspapers on Internet archive are often too poor to be legible. Just one of the many illegible newspaper pages that I'm curious about, I'm hoping to one day visit the National Library of Korea in Seoul to examine a hard copy of the newspaper to see how the obituary describes Imaizumi, or wait until the National Library of Korea gets around to releasing high quality scans of all the pages of Keijo Nippo in its archives.

(Translation)

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) November 20, 1942

The True Meaning of the Imperial Way, by Imaizumi Teisuke

Generation and Development in accordance with Hakkō Ichiu

A nation of unity between the Emperor and His subjects

[…]

The Imperial Way Leading the World

[…]

In particular, the unification of the people of the Korean peninsula and the people of mainland Japan into "one body" has been preached daily for more than 30 years since the annexation of Korea. Although people often talk about "one body" today, the truth of this "one body" seems to be unclear to them. The easiest way to understand the concept of "one body" is to consider the example of a husband and wife. When the couple is seen as a man and a woman, they are counted as two people, but when they are seen as husband and wife, they are counted as "one body".

Therefore, if the husband has done something wrong, the wife is not blameless. If the woman has done something wrong, the man is not said to be without responsibility, because the husband and wife are "one body". The belief that they are two people [and not "one body"] leads to situations happening even to this day, where the husband harbors a secret and thinks that he can solve the problem by simply hiding his mistress from his wife. This is because they do not know the ethical truth of "one body". If the couple believes that they are "one body" and not two people, then there is no way that the man and the woman can keep secrets from each other. This is because it is impossible to keep secrets within "one body".

Making the leap towards becoming "one body"

Where else can one find such a thoroughgoing code of ethics as that of the Japanese people? In any other code of ethics, husband and wife are counted as two people. In the Chinese code of ethics, there is a concept of qin and se, two string instruments that play in perfect marital harmony. Whereas in China, they merely say that the couple are two string instruments that are well matched, in Japan, husband and wife are "one body". In this way, two completely different beings, both in form and spirit, become "one body". It is not a matter of combining one and one to become two. When a husband and wife become "one body", one and one multiply to become five or eight. That is the meaning that I would like you all to consider in the case of Japanese-Korean unification.

Japanese-Korean unification does not mean that one and one come together to form two. True unification into "one body" means that one and one come together to make five or eight. When you are doing some work together with a common purpose, one man and one man combine to become "one body". When two men combine to become "one body", their combined power is not that of two people, but that of five or eight people.

Here, we must carefully consider things. When we describe a master horse rider, we say, "Without someone on the saddle, there is no horse under the saddle," which means that man and horse are in harmony, but this is not a combination of one and one to form two. Neither can a horse jump alone, nor can a person run alone. However, when man and horse are in harmony, the heavenly horse can fly to the sky and travel a thousand miles.

With respect to the process of becoming "one body", similar beings can become "one body", or two completely different beings as a man and a woman can become "one body". Either way is fine, but at any rate, two beings become one. There is no doubt that the power of this union is very great. (Speech stenograph)

Source: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1942-11-20

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) November 25, 1942

The "Essence of the National Body" as explained by Master Imaizumi

Master Imaizumi broadcast his message to all of Korea yesterday

After finishing his lecture tour in Pyongyang and Hamhung, Master Imaizumi arrived in Seoul by train at 2:12 p.m. on November 24th. But before he could rest his old body, he broadcast a lecture entitled "The Essence of the National Body" to all of Korea from the Seoul Broadcasting Station at 7:00 p.m. Twenty minutes earlier, he had entered the broadcasting station and sat quietly in the waiting room meditating, not even moving his body so he could practice the draft of his speech. Soon thereafter, his voice came through the microphone as if he were a compassionate father who was patiently teaching his children.

In a voice so bright and clear that it was hard to believe that he was 80 years old, he was now exhorting the 24 million people of the Korean peninsula about the incomparable essence of our national body and the Great Way of Japanese-Korean Unification. Moreover, his voice was gentle as he explained the pure and fervent national body, and each word seemed to penetrate from the ear into the heart. As he proceeded to explain the Way of the gods, that is, the Way of the Emperor, his voice finally grew passionate, and he said the following:

"In our nation, the gods have given us the Three Sacred Treasures as a spiritual gift, and the Ears of Rice as a material gift. We cannot save humanity unless we cultivate both the material and the spiritual. We cannot be saved by merely teaching spiritual salvation, as is done in other countries, because eating is an essential part of human life." He went on to describe how the Japanese way of thinking, which has continued to flow for 2600 years, and the foreign way of thinking, represented by Christianity, differ in many ways.

"The love between parents and children in Japan is unparalleled in other countries. A family cannot exist without sincere contact by both the parents and the children." He explained the superiority of the ancient Japanese family system in terms of the affection between the parents and the children, saying,

"In the Meiji Era, the people of mainland Japan and the people of the Korean peninsula were united into 'one body'. In order for both sides to be truly happy, they must be able to relate to each other with the same love and affection that real parents and their children would have. This is where the Great Way of Japanese-Korean Unification can exist."

After returning to the waiting room, the Master chatted with his attendants and wrote in flowing brush strokes the four Chinese characters "神人感應" (God and man are in harmony) in the calligraphy book provided by the staff. At 8:20 p.m., he returned to his lodgings, braving the cold wind. [Photo: Master Imaizumi during his broadcast]

Imaizumi during his radio broadcast in Korea

Source: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1942-11-25

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) November 10, 1942

Igniting the Torch of the Japanese Soul

Master Imaizumi, an authority on Kokugaku

Lecture events evangelizing the Imperial Way are fast approaching

Governor-General Koiso came to office proclaiming the "Penetration into the True Meaning of the National Body" and the "Establishment of Righteous Korea". This was the voice of heaven that cried out loudly to the 24 million people of the Korean peninsula from that day on. Only when we are committed to the true meaning of the national body and live by the Imperial Way can we become true Imperial subjects. From there, total power will be born. We can then expand our productive capacity. Righteous Korea will be brilliantly established. Be penetrated into the true meaning of the national body! Live the Imperial Way!

This must also be the direction of the movement of the newly launched Korean Federation of National Power. To further spur on this surging momentum on the peninsula, Keijo Nippo invited Master Imaizumi Teisuke, the greatest authority on Kokugaku, to give a "Great Lecture Event Evangelizing the Imperial Way" in all the major cities of Korea. The aim is to ignite the fire of the Japanese spirit in the hearts of 24 million people of Korea.

Master Imaizumi will leave Tokyo on the 15th, land in Busan on the 17th, and arrive in Seoul on the same day. He will participate at 3:00 p.m. on the 18th in the main auditorium of the Seoul Citizens Hall in order to establish a Righteous Korea. He will preach the dignity of the Imperial Way to the masses and teach them the way to grasp the Japanese spirit. On the following day on the 19th, he will speak about the Imperial Way to the ruling class as well at the Hasegawa Bank meeting hall. Departing from Seoul on the 20th, he will speak about the Great Way of the Japanese spirit with fiery speeches at Pyongyang Public Hall on the 21st, Hamhung on the 23rd, Daegu on the 25th, and Busan on the 27th.

Imaizumi arrives in Seoul

For 12 days from his landing in Busan to his departure from Korea, this Master who is thoroughly committed to the true meaning of the national body, will travel around the Korea peninsula where the cold weather is intense, despite having an old 80-year-old body, to devote himself to the National Structure Clarification Movement for evangelizing the Imperial Way. This must be an exaltation of his spirit of martyrdom.

He was born in Shiroishi, Miyagi Prefecture, in 1863 as an Imperial subject. He studied Kokugaku at an early age and lived through the Meiji era and the Taishō era. During this time when the vast Western civilization was being praised, he never stopped advocating for the penetration into the true meaning of the national body, and for evangelizing the Imperial Way.

Ceaselessly working to make sure that the study of the national body remained true to its principles, he became absorbed in studying the literature until his eyes became bloodshot. He is not averse to discussing the national body from a scientific standpoint, but he is more concerned with discovering the "soul" that resides in our national body, which is unrivaled by any other nation, from a higher spiritual standpoint. From there, he has been developing a nationwide National Structure Clarification Movement.

The Imperial Way Society, which he presides over, counts among his great followers the Generals Araki Sadao, Hayashi Senjūrō, Yamamoto Eisuke, and Yonai Mitsumasa of the Imperial Army and Navy, Hiranuma Kiichirō and other top military leaders and both Houses of the Diet, as well as Ogura Masatsune, Kurimoto Ryūnosuke, and Tadayoshi Obata, who are leaders in the Japanese business world.

He has recently written "A Collection of Recent Essays on the Imperial Way", and he has devoted himself to evangelizing the Imperial Way and clarifying the National Structure by spending four or five days a month in the Kansai region to lecture on the true meaning of the national body to those in the business world who are said to be from the old regime.

Source: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1942-11-10

(Transcription)

京城日報 1942年11月20日

皇道の本義 今泉定助

生成発展、八紘為宇

美し君臣一体の国家

[…]

世界を導く皇道

[…]

殊に半島の人々と内地の人々が一体になるということは、合邦以来三十余年、毎日のように説かれて来ている。一体ということは今日よく人が申しますけれども、一体の真理がはっきりしておらぬように思われるのであります。一番わかり易いのは夫婦の一体である。男女という時には二人に数えるけれども、夫婦にして数えるときは一体である。

それだから夫に若し悪いことがあれば妻も罪なしとは言われぬ。女の方に悪いことがあっても男も責任なしとは言われない。夫婦一体である。二人だと思うから男の秘密があっても隠し女の方も隠していて、それで済むことのように考えて今日まで来ている。一体倫理の真実が判らぬからであります。二人でない一人であるという考えを持ちましたならば、男女ともにどちらに秘密があってもどうして隠せましょう。一体の中に秘密があるというようなことはあり得ないことであります。

飛躍する一体化

日本人ほど徹底した倫理はどこにありましょう。どこの倫理だって夫婦は二人と数えている。支那の倫理などでも琴瑟相和す。琴と瑟とよく揃っているという程度以外にはいっていない。日本のは夫婦一体である。そうして形の上からいっても、精神上からいっても全然違ったものが一体になる。一と一と合せて二になるのではない。夫婦が一体になるということは五にも八にも飛ぶのである。この意味を内鮮一体の場合において私はよくお考えを願いたいと思うのであります。

内鮮一体ということは、ただ一つ一つが集まって二つになったのではない。本当の一体は五にも八にも飛躍するのであります。あなた方が平常志を同じくして何か仕事をおやりになっている際に、男と男と一体となる。男と男と二人が一体になりましたならば、その力というものは二つの力ではありません。五人力、八人力を出すのであります。

ここでよく考えなければならぬ。馬乗りの名人を形容して『鞍上人なし鞍下馬なし』というようなことを申しますのは、人と馬との意気が合った姿であるが、これは一と一とを合せて二となったのではなく、五にも八にもなって飛ぶのである。馬だけでも飛べるものでなく、人間だけで走れるものでもありません。ところが人と馬との意気が合いますと天馬空を行く。いわゆる千里を行くのであります。

この一体化、同じものでも一体になる。男女のような全然変ったものでも一体になる。それはどちらでもよろしいが、兎に角、二つのものが一体になる。その力というものは、非常なものであるということだけは疑う余地がありません。 (講演速記)

京城日報 1942年11月25日

説き示す”国体の精華”

今泉先生、さくや全鮮へ放送

平壌、咸興の講演行脚を終えた今泉先生は二十四日午後二時十二分着。列車で一先ず帰城したが、老躯を休めるいとまもなく午後七時京城放送局から全鮮へ向け、『国体の精華』と題する講演を放送した。定刻二十分前に放送局に入った先生は控室で静かに瞑想に耽り、講演の草稿を練っているが如く身じろぎもしない。やがて諄々と子供にさとす慈父の如く語る先生の声がマイクから流れて来た。

今ぞ半島二千四百万民衆へ我が国体の精華の無比なることを、内鮮一体の大道を、八十歳の老躯とも思えぬ明るく澄んだ声で喝破するのだ。しかも純烈な国体を説く先生の声はあくまでやさしく、一語一語が耳から胸へしみ透るようだ。神ながらの道、即ち天皇の道なる帰一性へ説き進んだ先生の声はようやく熱を帯び、さらに

『我が国には昔から精神的なものを救う三種の神器があると同時に物質的な”斎庭の稲穂”を神はわれわれに下し賜わった。物質と精神の両方面をつくってするのでなければ、人間を救う事は出来ない。外国のようにただ単に精神的な救いのみを教えるのでは救われるものではない。人間は喰うことも生きる上に欠くことの出来ない要素である』と滔々として二千六百年を流れつづける日本思想と、キリスト教によって代表せられる外国思想との相違点を説き衝き、

『日本の親子の愛情は他国に比を見ない。親からも子からも真心をもって接触しなければ家庭というものは存続し得ない』と日本古来の家族制度の優位性を親子の愛情の問題から説明し、

『内地人と半島人は明治の御代に合邦せられて一体となった。両者が真に幸福になるには、お互いが本当の親子のような親愛をもって睦み合わなければならない。そこにこそ内鮮一体の大道が存在し得るのである』と内鮮一体の根本となる大道を説き示し、八時放送を終った。

控室に戻った先生は側近者を相手に雑談を交わし、係員の差し出した揮毫帳に墨痕淋漓、”神人感応”の四文字を揮毫。八時二十分寒風を衝いて宿舎へ引き揚げた。【写真=放送する今泉翁】

京城日報 1942年11月10日

点ぜん、日本魂の炬火

国学の権威、今泉先生

皇道宣揚講演会迫る

『国体本義の透徹』といい『道義朝鮮の確立』といい、共に小磯総督が着任。その日から声を大にして半島二千四百万大衆に呼びかけて来た天の声である。国体本義に徹し、皇道に生きんとするときこそ我等は真の皇国臣民たり得るのだ。そこから総力は生れる。生産力の拡充が出来る。道義朝鮮は燦然と確立されるのだ。国体の本義に透徹せよ。皇道に生きよ。

新発足せる総力聯盟の運動方向もまた茲に存するに違いない。この澎湃たる半島の機運に更に拍車して本社では、わが国学の最高権威今泉定助先生を招じ、全鮮主要各地に『皇道宣揚大講演会』を開催。二千四百万民衆一人一人の胸中に惲く日本魂の火を点ぜんとするものである。

今泉先生は十五日東京出発、十七日釜山上陸、同日京城着、十八日午後三時から府民館大講堂で道義朝鮮確立を期して参ずる。大衆に対し皇道の尊厳を説き日本精神把握の道を教える。翌十九日は長谷川町銀行集会所で同様指導者層に対して皇道を語る。二十日京城発、二十一日平壌公会堂で、二十三日咸興、二十五日大邱、二十七日釜山の各公会堂で烈々火の如き講述をもって日本精神の大道を語るのである。

釜山上陸より離鮮まで十二日間、国体本義に透徹した先生が八十の老躯を厭わず寒気凛烈たらんとする半島を遍歴。皇道宣揚国体明徴運動に挺身することは、そのまま殉国精神の発揚であらねばならない。

文久三年、宮城県白石町に皇国臣民として生を享けた先生はいま年齢八十。幼にして国学を修め爾来明治、大正の両御代を生き蕩々たる西欧文明謳歌の間に敢然棹して国体本義の透徹を叫び、皇道の宣揚に寧日なかった。

先生は従来の国体論が主として史実に符節を合すことに汲々とし、文献渉猟に血眼となり、所謂科学的に国体を論ずるのに嫌がらず、更に高き精神的方面から入って万邦無比のわが国体に宿る『魂』の発見に努め、これより出でて国体明徴の運動を全国的に展開しているものである。

先生の主宰する皇道社は荒木貞夫、林銑十郎、山本英輔、米内光政各陸海軍大将、平沼騏一郎男をはじめ軍部、貴衆両院の各幹部を擁し、また日本財界の雄、小倉正恒、栗本隆之助、小畑忠良の各氏等もまた絶大なる先生の信奉者である。

『最近皇道叢書』を世に著した先生は多忙な身を割いて毎月四、五日を関西に旅し、最も旧体制といわれた財界人に国体の本義を説くなど皇道宣揚、国体明徴のため全く一死以て君国に捧げきっているのである。







Monday, January 2, 2023

'Jeon' became 'Takamatsu' and 'Park' became 'Masaki': 1940 profiles of Korean families in Seoul adopting Japanese names to purportedly honor their Korean roots, be accepted by Japanese neighbors, to better interact with the public, to instill a 'spirit befitting Imperial subjects' in their children

This 1940 article profiles two Korean families in Seoul who adopted Japanese names: the Jeon family, which became the Takamatsu family, and the Park family, which became the Masaki family. The father of the Jeon family worked at the Oriental Development Company, which was a national enterprise of Imperial Japan spearheading the colonial exploitation of Korea, and was at one point the largest landlord of Korea. A different Korean employee of the same company was featured in another Model Korean family profile article in 1942. The father of the Park family was a Seoul police officer at the Seodaemun precinct. We can surmise that they adopted Japanese names to curry favor with their employers, who were part of the colonial ruling class which controlled Korea. The fathers are conspicuously absent from the featured family photos for some reason, perhaps as a security precaution since they were hated figures by much of the Korean population.

For this translation, I added Chinese characters throughout the text so that it is possible to appreciate how these families took Chinese characters from their old Korean names and incorporated them into their new Japanese names.

Kimiko Takamatsu (高松喜美子), formerly Shin Sook-hui (신숙희, 申淑嬉), with her children.

(Translation)

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) February 11, 1940

'A last name that is associated with the Goryeo Dynasty'

She is thrilled to be an Imperial Woman

Interview with Kimiko Takamatsu, the wife of Mr. Keiichi Takamatsu, an employee at the Oriental Development Company of Korea)

Listening to joyous stories about adopting Japanese names

My family is very happy to be able to adopt the family name of Takamatsu on this auspicious occasion. My husband's old Korean last name, Jeon, is said to have been derived from the family name of the former King of Goryeo. For our new family name, we decided to take the Chinese character "高" from Goryeo (高麗) and the Chinese character "松" from Songdo (松都), the old name for present-day Kaesong and the former capital of the Goryeo Dynasty, to create our new family name, Takamatsu (高松).

I believe that it is essential for the education of our children to adopt a family name in the Japanese style in order to nurture a spirit befitting Imperial subjects. We are also hurrying to complete the family registration procedures, lest we miss this opportunity and become hated by our descendants for a long time to come.

We are more than happy when we think that our children will be overjoyed at adopting Japanese names, and that from today onward, our neighbors will be able to accept us as fellow Japanese people without feeling ashamed of us.

On this joyous day, we firmly vow to become true Imperial subjects while filled with joy at adopting Japanese names. My husband's old name was Jeon Gyu-hye (전규혜, 全圭恵), and his new name is Keiichi Takamatsu (高松恵一).

Our family was renamed as follows: Shin Sook-hui (신숙희, 申淑嬉) became Kimiko Takamatsu (高松喜美子), Jeon Hye-seok (전혜석, 全恵錫) became Keiko Takamatsu (高松恵子), Jeon Soon-seok (전순석, 全純錫) became Junko Takamatsu (高松純子), Jeon Yeong-ok (전영옥, 全英玉) became Tamako Takamatsu (高松玉子), Jeon Dae-seok (전대석, 全大錫) became Daiichi Takamatsu (高松大一), and Jeon Yeong-ja (전영자, 全英子) became Eiko Takamatsu (高松英子).

[Photo (bottom) = Kimiko Takamatsu and her children]

Yoshiko Masaki (正木吉子), formerly Lee Myeong-gil (이명길, 李明吉), and her daughter Junko

Last name 'Park' was changed to 'Masaki'

Memorable Shinto Wedding Ceremony

Interview with Yoshiko Masaki, the wife of Mr. Hideo Masaki, a police officer at Seodaemun Police Station, Seoul

On this auspicious occasion of the 2,600th anniversary of the founding of the Imperial Japanese nation, we are honored to adopt the family name of Masaki. What can I compare our family's joy with, now that we have been able to fully become Imperial subjects, both physically and mentally?

Three years ago, we were married in front of the Chōsen Shrine, and we were completely moved by the solemnity and grandeur of the wedding ceremony. My husband has called me Yoshiko since that day. I am not sure if the people of Korea would be able to understand our gratitude for the Shinto wedding. When the civil ordinance for the adoption of new Japanese family names was issued, my husband and I had to think for a long time about what kind of name we should choose for our new family name.

My husband said that, since he has to deal with the general public due to his profession, it was very important for him to create a family name in the Japanese style. At last, at this opportune moment, we decided to break off from the Park family and adopt the family name of 'Masaki'. The family name 'Masaki' (正木) is an interpretation of the Chinese character '朴' for Park, and it has no deep meaning. Apparently there is an old Korean custom for couples to remain faithful to their own respective family names even after marriage, but it seems like a rather strange custom to me.

From today onward, as a wife with the family name of Masaki, I would like to live a stronger and purer life as a woman on the home front in these extraordinary times. My husband's name is Hideo Masaki (正木英雄), formerly Park Yeong-do (박영도, 朴英道). My name is Yoshiko Masaki (正木吉子), formerly Lee Myeong-gil (이명길, 李明吉), and our daughter is named Junko.

[Photo (above): Yoshiko Masaki and Junko]

Source: https://www.archive.org/details/kjnp-1940-02-11

(Transcription)

京城日報 1940年2月11日

『高麗に因む姓』

皇国女性としての感激

東拓朝鮮支社、高松恵一氏夫人、高松喜美子さん談

創氏の喜びを聴く

お目出度い今日の佳節から高松という姓を名乗らせていただきまして、一家はただ感激あるのみでございます。主人の旧姓全というのは元高麗王の姓であった王というのから分れたと申しています。この度の創姓も私たちは、このゆかりの高麗から高をとり、そして高麗の都であった松都(今の開城)の松を選び、新姓を高松にすることに決めました。

姓を内地風にするということは子供達の教育上、皇国臣民としての精神を養う上にどうしても必要であると思います。また今のこの好機を逸して末々までも子孫にうらまれるようなことがあってはと、早速戸籍上の手続きも急いでいます。

創氏によって何よりも子供達が喜んでくれ、おとなり近所にも今日からは肩身の狭い思いをせず、同じ日本人としてつきあっていただけることを思えば、私達はこの上もなく幸福でございます。

今日の佳き日に創氏の喜びと共にまことの皇国臣民にならなくてはと、私たちは固くお誓い致すのでございます。主人の旧姓名は全圭恵、新名は高松恵一。一家は次の如く改めました。

申淑嬉(高松喜美子)、全恵錫(高松恵子)、全純錫(高松純子)、全英玉(高松玉子)、全大錫(高松大一)、全英子(高松英子)。

【写真(下)=高松喜美子さんと子供さん達】

朴を『正木』に

思い出の神前結婚

京城西大門署、正木英雄夫人、正木吉子さん談

皇紀二千六百年紀元の佳節にあう光栄とともにきょうの佳き日から一家挙って正木という姓を名乗り、心身共に皇国臣民となりきることの出来ました私達一家にとっての喜びは何に譬えましょうか。

三年前に私たちは朝鮮神宮の大前で神前結婚を致しましたが、そのときの厳粛さ、荘厳さに私達はすっかり打たれたのでございました。主人はその日から私を吉子と呼んでいます。神前結婚の有難さは或るは朝鮮の方達にこの気持ちに察してもらえないかもわかりません。今度の創氏民事令が発布されました時、主人も私もどんな姓名を選んで創氏したらよいか長い間考えさせられました。

主人は職業柄一般民衆に接して行かなければならぬので、内地風の創氏は是非必要だと申していました。いよいよこの好機に私達は分家して『正木』という姓に名乗りました。正木というのは朴という字の解釈であって、別に深い意味はございません。結婚をしましても、お互いの姓を守り通すという朝鮮の古い習慣にもいわれがあるのでございましょうが、私には何か水臭いような気持ちが致します。

今日からは正木姓の妻として非常時下の銃後の婦人として、より強く清く生きてゆきたいと存じます。主人の姓名は正木英雄(旧姓朴英道)、私は正木吉子(旧姓李明吉)、娘は純子です。

【写真(上)=正木吉子さんと純子さん】



Koreans needed Imperial police-issued ‘travel purpose certificates’ to travel on buses and trains by April 1944, police cracked down on female passengers for illegal food vending and ‘unnecessary and non-urgent travel’

In the midst of World War II, life in Korea under Imperial Japanese rule was marked by increasing restrictions and control, particularly on ...