Advocates o f this argument assert that the tune o f Susianggi was created after the establishment o f Hingcun County in 1875. At that time, the Qing government encouraged Han people to settle in the Hingcun area; therefore, a large num ber o f immigrants from China crossed the Taiwan Strait and moved into the area. A fter work, because o f missing their families in their hometowns, these Chinese settlers sang Susianggi. For instance, Guo Silang argues in Hingcun Fengwu [Customs and Artifacts in Hingcun] :
After the establishment of Langqiao County, more and more settlers moved from China. The father and son, Bhu Asok and Bhu Ingsing, and many others from Shantou, earned their living by making charcoal on the peak of Mt. Tiaoshi. They composed the tune of Susianggi to express their homesickness.
In another theory, Zhang Xinchuan asserts that people have mistaken Susianggi (® nS iE which literally means “thinking o f ’) for Susianggi ( © i l U which literally means “acacia branches”). He suggests that the tune o f Susianggi was first sung by Bhu Ghuansok and Bhu Ingsing,53 the father and the son, whose homesickness was provoked by acacia branches that looked similar to willow branches in their hometown when they made charcoal by burning wood in the mountains. As such, Zhang Xinchuan sang about this in songs five to seven in the collection o f narrative poems Cong Susianggi qiyuan shuo Taiwan gujin:54
(5th) Cingdiau kimce Sim Borzing, sunsi Longgiau hor dehing;
m m w m m m > n « w w ;
[Sim Borzing the imperial inspector general o f the Qing Dynasty, inspected good terrain in Lonkiauw;]
51 Zhong Mingkun, personal communication, 2 August 2002.
52 Guo Sil'ang (ed.), Hingcun Fengwu [Customs and artifacts in Hingcun], Hingcun Town Office, 1967, p. 4.
53 The tombstone o f Bhu Ghuansok verifies that Bhu’s first name is Ghuansok, not Asok, the name given by Guo Silang in Hingcun Fengwu [Customs and artifacts in Hingcun], Hingcun Town Office,
1967, p. 4.
54 Zhang Xingchuan, personal communication, 2 September 1995, Hingcun area.
Sugui lucun hor hongging, Longgiau gaimia Hingcun mia.
m m u m i m m * •
[Due to its being like spring all year round and beautiful scenery, the name o f Lonkiauw was changed to Hingcun (literally, “everlasting spring”)]
(6th) Dongsi giangiok Hingcun guan, Bindong lesiok Hingcun guan;
mmmmm > paw»®#«;
[Hingcun County was built then, Bingdong was within its jurisdiction;] Zosian bhosiann gau Daiuan, laigau Hingcun e Lamuan.
m z m & t é m > -
[To make a living, our forebears moved to Taiwan, to Nanwan in Hingcun County.]
(7th) Ghuansok Daibangpu dinggi, rian 'au gethun cua Ibhi;55
[Bhu Ghuansok settled in Dabanfu, got married to Ibhi;] Suliam dailiok e hianndi, gaibhun ciunncut Susianggi.
’ P M « * ® « ® •
[Missing his brothers in China, he sang Susianggi to relieve his boredom.] According to both Guo Silang and Zhang Xinchuan, the tune Susianggi was bom in the early period o f the establishment o f Hingcun (Langqiao) County. However, there is no similar statement found in existing academic literature. As a result, I consulted Guo and Zhang as to how they came to such claims. Guo responded, “The information was provided by Lin Xianxiang, a journalist; later I wrote it in an article in Hingcun F engw u”; Zhang answered, “I saw the information from a newspaper in the 1960s. I have forgotten the name and the date o f the newspaper, and lost the paper as well. I have paid my respects to Bhu Ghuansok, our forefather who created Susianggi, by visiting his tomb several times.” Accordingly, the claims o f both are simply based on information provided by journalists, and evidently lack any concrete, collateral or theoretical evidence.56 Furthermore, Zhang’s claim that acacia branches reminded Bhu Ghuansok o f willow branches and provoked him to sing Susianggi to express his homesickness also is not reasonable. Except for the shape o f their leaves,
55 Daibangpu [also Dabanfu] is the old name o f present Nanwan.
56 In the 1960s, Taiwan was undergoing the period o f white terror imposed by the GMD government, which at that time actively utilized mass media to control the thoughts o f the Taiwanese. (Further discussion concerning this can be found in Chapter Four o f this thesis.) The GMD aimed to teach them to believe that they were Chinese. As a result, information provided by journalists who were controlled by the GMD government at that time is normally doubted by academic circles in Taiwan.
willow and acacia trees differ in their overall appearance, so it is doubtful that the two could become associated visually. In addition, some songs in the collection, Cong Susianggi qiyuan shuo Taiwan gujin, contradict one another. From the fifth to seventh songs, Zhang Xinchuan argues that Susianggi was sung by Bhu Ghuansok after Hingcun County had been established. However, in the nineteenth song, Zhang claims that the tune o f Susianggi was first sung by Han settlers in 1661 when they migrated across the Taiwan Strait. This self-contradiction reveals the perfunctoriness o f Zhang’s argument. Consequently, the argument that Susianggi is a song o f homesickness sung by settlers from China in the early period o f the establishment o f Hingcun County probably cannot be an accepted academic theory. In addition, at present m ost Hingcun
i n
locals are doubtful about it. Zhong Mingkun, for example, writes as follows:
The business of “making charcoal by burning branches” in Taiwan began in the period of Japanese occupation (1895-1945). To supply demand in Japan, the Japanese promoted the business in Taiwan. Nevertheless, Hingcun folksongs had been born during the periods of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (about 1645-1895). In other words, long before the beginning of the business of charcoal making, Hingcun folksongs had circulated everywhere in Hingcun area.
My own experience in research and fieldwork also suggests that some folk artists, after being recognized by the public as representatives o f their field, like to make unique but unfounded statements so as to maintain their authoritative status. In addition, some artists respond to a researcher’s questions in the same way as they might fabricate entertaining or imaginative stories on stage. Therefore, however much we might admire an outstanding singer for his or her singing techniques and special qualities, carefully observing his or her status and role in society and perhaps even adopting his or her lyrics as research material, this does not mean that we should accept without question every word he or she has said. Ethnomusicologists frequently quote the adage, “the informant is always right,” as a motto for getting on with their subjects in the process o f fieldwork investigation.57 58 I personally agree that a researcher should deal with his or her interviewees with sincerity and should not argue with them on the spot, even when the information provided is incorrect. It is necessary to show respect to those who assist us, and argument might deter them from speaking their minds freely. However, I also believe that a researcher is responsible for
57 Zhang Yongtang and Mingkun Zhong (eds.), Hingcun Zhenzhì (II) [County annals o f Hingcun (II)], voi. 6, Hingcun Town Hall, 1999, p. 69.
58 Bruno Netti, Theory and M ethod in Ethnomusicology, New York: The Free Press, 1964, p. 82.
critically evaluating all statements he or she then puts forward to the reader when writing a research report afterwards.