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[AN EARLY RUSSIAN ANALYSIS OF CHINESE JOURNALISM] Periodicheskaya pechat’ v Kitaye [i.e. The Periodic Press in China]

Polevoy, S.

Item #2760

Vladivostok: Vost. in-t, 1913. X, [2], 194 pp., 26 pp. of black-and-white ill. 23x15,7 cm. In original publisher’s printed wrappers. Professional restoration of the binding and the last page. Former bookshop stamps on the last page. Wrappers slightly worn, but otherwise very good.

Scarce. First edition. Text in Russian.
One of the first comprehensive Russian studies of the Chinese press and a practical guide to Chinese newspapers of the early Xinhai Revolution prepared by the Russian Orientalist S. Polevoy during his studies at the Institute of Oriental Languages in Vladivostok. After the Russian Revolution, Polevoy taught at Nanjing University (China), where he worked on a Russian–Chinese dictionary and various translations. In 1919 he came under surveillance for his political speeches, and in 1937 was arrested and tortured for alleged ties with Chinese communists. He spent 17 months in prison on suspicion of being a USSR spy and was released in 1939 on condition of leaving China. Polevoy later emigrated to the United States, where he taught East Asian languages at Harvard University.
According to the foreword, the book draws on two summer research expeditions to China in 1911 and 1912, originally commissioned by the Institute for practical language study. Polevoy arrived during a period of massive upheaval, as the Xinhai Revolution was dismantling the Qing Empire and violently ushering in a new republic. Against this turbulent backdrop, Sino-Russian relations were notoriously fraught. Imperial rivalries over Manchuria and Mongolia, coupled with a heavy Russian military and economic presence along the border, fueled deep-seated Chinese suspicions of Russia’s expansionist ambitions.
The book, published by the Oriental Institute in Vladivostok in 1913, consists of five main chapters. The first chapter provides a historical overview of the periodic press in China, tracing its roots from the Tang Dynasty’s official bulletin, the “Jing-bao” (Beijing Gazette), to the 1911 Revolution. Polevoy describes how centuries of state-sanctioned palace news transformed into modern journalism, driven initially by European publishers and later by Chinese students returning from Japan after the 1895 Sino-Japanese War. The chapter concludes with the 1911 Revolution—a period that sparked a wave of Chinese “yellow journalism”, as publishers fabricated dramatic battle reports to exploit an anxious public and drive massive sales.
Chapter two examines the physical and linguistic evolution of Chinese newspapers, detailing their transformation from blurry booklets into large, European-style broadsheets. Polevoy highlights the advertisement sections as an entertaining cultural barometer, showcasing China’s material progress through ads for “miracle” medicines and imported novelties like gramophones and “trouser-straighteners».
Chapter three provides a city-by-city analysis of the Chinese press, categorizing most popular publications across Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Hankou, Fuzhou, Canton, and Hong Kong. Polevoy illustrates how local political climates directly dictated journalistic evolution in each of these cities and exposes foreign financial interference in Chinese Press. Polevoy explicitly details how many seemingly independent Chinese newspapers were actually covert “organs” subsidized by foreign empires eager to steer Chinese public opinion. Among them, the author cites Beijing’s “Shun-tian shi-bao” (funded by Japan to promote a Sino-Japanese alliance), Tianjin’s “Da-gong-bao” (backed by both Japanese and French interests), and the semi-official “Beijing ri-bao” (tailored to align with American interests for US subsidies).
Chapter IV, titled “The Chinese Press in Samples,” presents a practical anthology of translated newspaper materials (ca. 35) from 1911–1912, including editorials, telegrams, correspondence, and satirical feuilletons. The chapter is divided into six thematic sections. The most extensive, “The Mongolian Question,” (ca. 20) explores Sino-Russian tensions through reports on border revisions, the growing presence of Russian traders and troops in Outer Mongolia, and the renegotiation of the 1881 trade treaty. It conveys the alarm of the Chinese press, which often portrayed Russia as aiming to secure control over Mongolia and Xinjiang, and interpreted the 1911 declaration of Mongolian independence as a result of Russian support. The section on Manchuria (1) features strongly patriotic editorial calling on the Chinese population to resist foreign encroachment, particularly from Russia and Japan. The sections on government criticism and attitudes toward foreigners reveal a press sharply critical of the authorities’ handling of border issues and increasingly concerned about the threat of foreign imperialism and possible partition. The other sections highlight critiques of prominent figures, including Prince Qing, Yuan Shikai, and Li Yuan-hung, alongside material from literary and entertainment columns. These include satirical and narrative pieces on current events, such as “The Injustice of the Russians,” humorous adaptations of traditional themes, and commentary on Sun Yat-sen’s “grandiose plans.”
Chapter V examines the practical organization of the Chinese newspaper business, focusing on its financial, structural, and technological foundations. Polevoy explains that most publications operated as joint-stock companies, raising capital through affordable public shares, though many also depended on unofficial government subsidies. He outlines a clearly defined internal hierarchy, with roles ranging from publishers and chief editors to proofreaders, local reporters, and correspondents.
The appendix includes official documents and printing regulations, the charter of the Union of Chinese Newspapers, and a list of 487 newspapers and journals published in China, Manchuria, and abroad. It also contains a separately printed album of ca. 20 caricatures drawn from Chinese newspapers. The illustrations sharply criticize foreign imperialism and China’s fragile international position, portraying the country as threatened by expansionist powers, particularly Russia. At the domestic level, the cartoons satirize the turbulent transition from empire to republic, targeting opportunistic political factions, timid officials, and the perceived impracticality of Sun Yat-sen’s “grandiose plans.” They also attack the Mongolian independence movement and mock the abrupt social changes brought by the revolution, including the enforced abandonment of traditional queues and the rapid adoption of new cultural norms.
Overall, one of the earliest comprehensive Russian studies of the Chinese press undertaken by the future victim of Chinese repressions.

Worldcat shows copies of the edition at Royal Danish Library, Berlin State Library, Leipzig University Library, and German National Library of Economics.

Price: $950.00

Status: On Hold