外争权益与内省公德——上海外滩公园歧视华人社会反应的历史解读

清末上海外滩公园限制华人入内,在华人社会引起了持续反应。从1881年到1889年,唐茂枝等华商从纳税人权利义务对等的思想出发,对租界工部局禁止华人入园提出交涉,要求维护华人的合法权益;同时,他们也不反对对文明程度低的华人予以限制。因此,他们所争取的只是上层华人的入园权利。至于1900年后才出现的所谓"华人与狗不得入内"的牌示问题,尽管现在学术界仍有争论,但该问题受到的重视与20世纪初民族主义高涨有直接的关系。人们更多地是从民族尊严角度立言阐释,凸显的是华人外争权益的一面。实际上还有另一面,即对华人在公园摘花践草等不良行为的批评与反思,认为应加强文明教育、提升公德意识。时至今日,外滩公园留在人们历史记忆中的,似乎只有外争权益,而内省公德则被遗忘、被忽略了。这一点,值得今人关注和反思。

On the Memory about the Bund Park

There were continual responses to the restriction that the Chinese were not allowed to go into the Bund Park in Shanghai at late Qing.Chinese merchants headed by Tang Maozhi negotiated with the Municipal Council invoking that the Chinese merchants were also the taxpayer,so they could take the advantage of going into the park.There was another restriction that "the Chinese and the Dog No entering the Park" at the beginning of the 20th century,which caused heated disputes at that time.At the same time,the people criticized on the uncivilized behavior of some Chinese people,such as picking up the flower and so on and the appeals that the Chinese people should regulate themselves in the public place.