In 1934, the Shanghai magazine Xin zhonghua (New China) solicited manuscripts under the topic of ‘Shanghai's future’. It received more than 100 submissions, among them a prediction made by the philosopher Li Shicen (1892–1934), who wrote that in the near future China would regain possession of the Shanghai Concession. At that time, Nanjing Road would still be the most the most prosperous section, yet the functions of some of the facilities there would have changed, as would have the names:
the most prominent of these changes being the transformation of the racecourse into one of the ‘People's Parks’, an important place where the people will assemble . . . The tall buildings, such as those belonging to Hua'an Insurance Company, the YMCA and the Four Bank Deposit Association in the area surrounding the racecourse will be converted into various museums, memorial halls, research institutes and other important cultural organizations.Footnote 1
In a similar vein, Pan Yang'an foresaw a central park in the downtown area, with other small parks and playgrounds in every neighbourhood. The streets would be broadly planted with trees so that everywhere one would look upon verdant scenes. Some areas would undergo obvious changes, the most notable example being the Shanghai Racecourse, where ‘a large library will be built that can accommodate 20,000 people and that will stand 22 floors high, right across from the Four Bank Deposit Association’.Footnote 2
One prophesied that the racecourse would be transformed into a people's park, and the other prophesied that a library would be built on the grounds of the racecourse. After 1949, the racecourse was transformed into People's Park and People's Square and many facilities such as museums were erected in the surrounding area. Moreover, the racecourse building itself served as the Shanghai Library for a long period of time. The future Shanghai really did turn out as Li and Pan had predicted.
Li and Pan were by no means fortune-tellers, nor were they Shanghai government leaders who held the reins of power, but their predictions were accurate. This article explores the transformation of the racecourse into People's Park in the period before 1949. In doing so it illustrates how an important urban site could be imbued with many different meanings over time. The racecourse was a place of commerce and gambling, for both foreigners and Chinese. More importantly, in the eyes of locals, it became associated with the injustices of foreign imperialism in China. After the end of World War II, it became a site of nationalistic expression as a debate ensued over how the space should be used that reflected China's desire to overturn its recent shame at the hands of western colonialists. It went further than this to include ideas on a modern and civilized urban environment, which had been circulating throughout the previous decades. In exploring these changing meanings of space in the period before 1949, this article argues that many of the sentiments that were to define People's Square during the Maoist period and after were formed in the first half of the twentieth century.Footnote 3
The changing image of the racecourse
Initially, it was a place of leisure
Shanghai had three racecourses in succession. The first was built in 1850, and two replacements followed, in 1854 and 1862. Each of the new facilities was both larger and farther west than the facility it replaced.
Footnote 4Footnote 5Footnote 6
The first racecourse lasted four years, the second lasted eight years and the third nearly ninety years. Unless otherwise specified, ‘racecourse’ in this article will refer to the third racecourse
The racecourse consisted of three main parts: the first part, being an oval horse racing track, an office building and an observation tower, belonged to the Horse Racing Association Limited; the second part, being stables and dormitories, belonged to Horse Racing Association Stables Limited; and the third part, being the central grass field, which, encompassing playing fields for cricket, football, tennis, golf, polo, baseball or other games, was used for sports or reviewing troops and also belonged to Horse Racing Association Stables Limited.
The symbolic significance of the racecourse varied over time. When the first and second racecourses were in operation, i.e., during the 1850s and 1860s, the racecourse was viewed by contemporaries as a place of leisure and was sometimes called a ‘park’ or ‘garden’. Thus, the thoroughfare that ran alongside the first racecourse was named ‘Garden Lane’, i.e., the eastern section of present-day Nanjing East Road. When the second racecourse was about to be built, the lease indicated its purpose as a ‘place of public recreation’. After it was completed, it was ‘New Park’, while the first racecourse was referred to as ‘Old Park’.
People called the racecourse a park, and in their minds it was simply a place of leisure. The periodicals and the scholarly writings of the latter half of the nineteenth century describe horse racing and the racecourse as ‘novel’, ‘bustling’ and ‘recreational’ and refrain from emphasizing politics. For example, in 1875, Wang Tao wrote:
The place where westerners relax and play is said to be the horse track. Every day, until the setting of the sun, both men and women ride forth together, racing about in carriages drawn by powerful and angry steeds, sounding like thunder and appearing like lightning. They wear white garments and rainbow-colored robes, as though about to be wafted up by the wind, and the onlookers wonder whether they are gods incarnate, descended from the jade realm to this world of red dust. On fine spring and autumn days, they race horses for pleasure. This is the method: each selects a horse, and a banner is planted several li distant. They gallop three times around, and the one who passes under the banner first is the winner. During the race, the spectators form a solid wall. Men and women gather together like clouds and cheer. Moreover, in the centre of the racecourse, competitors strengthen their legs. Vanishingly fleet and matchlessly swift, they, no less than Gao Aocao, are the tigers of the land. Along the road there is a playing field where the players strike a ball in a contest to decide who is superior. It seems that the intent is both to exercise their limbs and to avoid idleness.Footnote 7
Wang Tao left Shanghai in 1862, and Seaside Jottings was published in Guangzhou in 1875. The ‘horse track’ scenes depicted in the book are based primarily on the first and second racecourses.
Ge Yuanxu, in a piece titled ‘Race horses’ in A Miscellany of Shanghai Travels (compiled in 1876), records his observations on the third racecourse and in so doing again presents us with a picture of novelty, leisure and festivity:
To the west of the great road, the westerners have built a horse racing field surrounded by a short rail to prevent the horses from running away. During fine weather in the spring and autumn, they hold horse races, once in each season, each time for three days, from noon until around six in the evening. Sometimes three or four ride, and at other times there are six or seven. They dress in different colours: yellow, red, purple and green. The horses vary, too: pure black, yellow, red with black mane and tail, white with black mane. Neck and neck, they run, swift like the wind and quick as lightning. To the west of the field stand two buildings which are for the purpose of review. The horses enter, the victors first and the losers last. On the third day, wall jumping, ditch leaping, fence jumping and other such tricks are added. On this day, the spectators, everyone from high-ranking gentlemen to lowly peddlers, jostle together in the crowd, and late arrivals hardly have a place to stand. As for the incense wood carriages hung with glistening jade-green curtains, the concubines recline there charmingly, glowing with the gilded glory of the southern dynasties or with rouge applied in their northern quarters. Their carefree elegance and gorgeous attire are truly delightful.Footnote 8
Linked to gambling
Horse racing developed ties to gambling in the late 1870s. According to research done by Shao Jian, horse racing was merely an athletic and recreational activity in its early phase. It had no connection to gambling. Horse racing outlays, including award money, came primarily from horse racing association dues and donations from western companies. The Shanghai Horse Racing Association instituted a membership system. That is, only members were qualified to race horses. Riders were also required to pay a certain fee in order to participate in some events, and the winning riders would receive prize money. Thus, initially, horse racing was nothing more than an athletic and recreational activity.
Sales of lottery tickets began sometime between 1873 and 1875, and at that point horse racing developed a link with gambling. On 5 May 1875, Shen bao reported: ‘The Westerners race horses twice, once in spring and once in autumn, each time for three days, and on each day they are sure to hold a large-prize lottery. The day before yesterday, a Westerner from Hongkou won, and yesterday the owner of a company in Zhonghe. They won small prizes, yet the amount was nearly ten thousand.’Footnote 9
After 1876, gambling followed horse racing like a shadow, and from then on they were inextricably joined. The following are two horse racing lottery ticket advertisements carried in Shen bao on 1 April 1882:
Horse Racing Big Winnings Ticket for Sale
Our company has 5,000 horse racing shares from a western merchant. Each ticket is four yang yuan (foreign money), a half ticket is two yuan, and a quarter ticket one yuan. First prize is four thousand yuan, second prize two thousand yuan, and third prize eight hundred yuan. There are many other prizes. These tickets are trustworthy and fair and prizes are easy to win. All Westerners from many different countries buy these tickets. Today they are sold at our company, and gentlemen and merchants, both Western and Chinese, may come and buy them.
Issued by Hefalai Company in Shangyang
Western Merchant Horse Racing Tickets for Sale
To Whom It May Concern: Our firm is selling horse racing share tickets. We previously received a licence from the Chinese consulate authorizing 5,000 tickets. Each ticket costs one yang yuan, and half tickets are for sale, too. The prize amounts are inscribed on the tickets. First prize is 1,000 yuan, and there are 207 other prizes below this. Winnings will be announced on the thirteenth day of the third month (Chinese calendar) at two o'clock sharp. All buyers may see there will be absolutely no change in the time. Winners redeem at 85 per cent of ticket value. If you represent another firm interested in purchasing tickets, we ask that you come in person to discuss arrangements. If you should choose to favour us with your presence, then you will be able to identify us easily by our Sanma sign. Come early to make your purchase. Those who are out of town may post to us using same-shift delivery; there will be no delay. Moreover, several firms sold horse tickets last year, but never announced winners. Only our firm has been selling tickets for many years. We do business fairly and commit no errors. The above is hereby formally announced.
Sincerely from Ying Jianeng of Fuji Company at the Intersection of Henan Road and Sanma Road, Shangyang
Lottery tickets constitute a form of gambling in which the chance of winning is extremely low, and the chance of losing is extremely high. Yet if one does win, the prize amount may be of a magnitude that is difficult to imagine. The maximum amount for first prize for a racecourse 10 yuan ‘champagne’ ticket could be 224,000 yuan. This was a powerful stimulant to a speculative frame of mind. Thus, for every horse racing event, there would be at least four or five sellers of lottery tickets and could be more than a dozen. The tickets varied as to face value and prize amount. Lucky winners were known to become wealthy men overnight. Thus, ticket buyers were everywhere. Even cool-headed people like Lu Xun, arguably China's most famous twentieth-century writer, bought lottery tickets. It is said that a poor peasant by the name of Zhou included in his will and last testament the following instructions to his son: ‘You can get by with less rice, but you absolutely must buy champagne tickets.’Footnote 10
The probability of actually winning a first prize was only one in a hundred thousand or one in a million. In other words, the vast majority received no return on their investment. In every era, one finds gamblers who lose again and again, but who will not quit until their dying breath. Therefore, horse racing and lottery tickets gave rise to countless tragedies of people who wasted fortunes and then leapt to their deaths in the Huangpu River or drank poison. The story of how Yan Ruisheng murdered Wang Lianying, which was familiar to virtually everyone in Shanghai of the 1920s and 1930s, was directly related to horse gambling and lottery tickets. In 1920, Yan, who was an employee at a foreign company, became obsessed with horse race gambling. He consequently lost all his money. He then sold a diamond ring which he had fraudulently obtained from a prostitute, used the proceeds to buy a horse racing ticket and again lost everything. Wang Lianying was a wealthy, very well-known pimp in Shanghai. Yan Ruisheng then lured Wang Lianying into the outskirts of the city, where he killed him and then escaped with his jewellery. He was later caught and executed. Republican-era writers used this case as material for Peking operas, ‘civilized drama’ (a hybrid of the Chinese operatic tradition with new western forms of drama), various kinds of local operas and also adapted it to film. Thus, the story of the lottery ticket murder became known in highly embellished form to every man, woman and child.
Gambling is often intertwined with shady dealings, and this was especially true of the racecourse. After selling their tickets, some companies simply packed up and left without announcing any winners. Others engaged in collusion, with the result that the rightful winners did not win, and the undeserving unexpectedly scored victories.
The emblematic place for discrimination against Chinese
The racecourse was connected to anti-Chinese discrimination from the beginning. At its founding, the racecourse prohibited Chinese from entering to watch the races. No Chinese, other than the grooms and errand boys employed by the Horse Racing Association, were allowed on to the premises. They also denied Chinese residents in the environs of the racecourse the freedom to install windows in their own homes. Regulations specified that windows could be installed on the side facing the road, but not on any of the other three sides. The regulations of the Municipal Council that denied access to Chinese were as follows:
1. This area is under western administration.
2. All westerners may enter for the purpose of recreation except on horse racing days or when entry is prohibited by a sign placed by the Western administration.
3. Vehicles are permitted only from Longfei Bridge to the Ball Field Association entrance or to the point where they arrive.
4. No horse of any size is allowed to train here.
5. With the exception of servants of westerners or the associations, no Chinese is permitted to enter.
6. If you wish to use this area, you should first petition the western administrator of the ball field for permission.Footnote 11
The Horse Racing Association accepted foreigners of any nationality, with the exception of Chinese, who were not allowed to join. In 1908, the association had 320 official members and roughly 500 other members, not one of whom was Chinese. Chinese were not allowed to purchase admission tickets and watch horse races until 1909 when the Horse Racing Association added an observation platform on the western side of the race track. Yet Chinese still were not qualified to become official members. It was not until after 1911, in response to competition from the new Jiangwan Racecourse that the Horse Racing Association absorbed a small number of Chinese as honorary members and invited members. However, the papers issued to the Chinese differed from those of the official members. Chinese still were not permitted to take part in regular competitions. For these reasons, the racecourse has long been regarded as the emblematic site of the colonialists’ discrimination against Chinese. ‘It was viewed as the outstanding case of inequality.’Footnote 12 Indeed, it is often compared with the ‘No Dogs or Chinese Allowed’ sign at the Bund Park.Footnote 13
The racecourse prohibitions against Chinese were changed during the period of the Wang Puppet Government, when the Japanese falsely expressed goodwill towards the Chinese and cancelled the prohibitions of the British and American era. Chinese thereupon were able to enter the racecourse.
A place for imperialism to flaunt its military might
The central field of the racecourse was the largest quasi-public square in the International Settlement. It was a venue for the public political activities of the colonialists, and it was the place where imperialist military might was put on display. On every American Independence Day, and whenever a British queen was crowned or celebrated her birthday, or when an important foreign military or political personage paid a visit, the Municipal Council held a military parade, and it always held it at the racecourse.
For example, on 17 November 1893, the council held a ceremony to commemorate the 50-year anniversary of Shanghai's development as a commercial port, and troops paraded at the racecourse. Some years later in September 1900, the German Marshall von Waldersee, who was then supreme commander of the Eight-Nation Alliance, visited China after completing the invasion of northern China, and a parade in his honour was held at the racecourse. He reviewed the troops from all foreign forces stationed in Shanghai and the Shanghai Volunteer Corps from the Foreign Settlement. When World War I ended, the armies of the Allies held a grand celebration here over three days from 21 to 23 November 1918. Finally, in March 1922, Commander-in-Chief Joffre of the French Forces visited Shanghai during World War I, and it was here that he reviewed a drill of the Shanghai Volunteer Corps.
The racecourse was also where foreigners most often held activities that involved large-scale gatherings. In his piece ‘The spectacle’, Ke Ling has a section on the coronation ceremony held at the racecourse for King George VI of England:
In May 1937, the Shanghai Racecourse held a coronation ceremony for King George VI of England. Tickets were sold for seats in advance for fear that too many would attend. Tickets varied in price: five yuan, two yuan, one yuan, and so on. According to the newspapers, the 50,000 or more seats were reserved well before the event. All rooms at the New World, the International and other hotels along the racetrack were fully booked two weeks before the ceremony.Footnote 14
Every city in Europe has a central square to represent that city, and every city has a city hall that represents the organ of state power that controls the city. The city hall generally has a highly visible location on the central square. The Shanghai International Settlement had its own organ of state power, the Municipal Council, but it did not have its own central square. It was first located on the periphery of the settlement, and then it moved west as the settlement boundaries expanded in that direction. Later, the racecourse, which was at the centre of the Settlement, became the substitute for the Shanghai Settlement's central square and thus realized part of the function performed by the central squares of European cities.Footnote 15
Within the general trend of ending extraterritoriality, recovering the racecourse becomes a priority
The first five decades of the twentieth century were, for the imperialists, 50 years of global expansion, struggle and armed combat. Those same 50 years, however, saw a rapid surge and vigorous development of nationalism across the globe. Opposition to imperialism and colonialism became the most powerful causes for rallying people in the pursuit of liberation, democracy and a bright future. With these trends as the larger background, and as the racecourse's functions changed over time, its image gradually evolved from a place of simple sport and leisure to a devil's den of gambling and money squandering, a place emblematic of anti-Chinese discrimination, a venue to flaunt imperialist military might and an arena symbolic of colonialist power. It had become Shanghai's greatest symbol of evil.
This trend of thought developed rapidly. After 1910, the viewing of horse races by Shanghai residents involved a dichotomy: The gambling there was censured, but its advocacy of the martial spirit was praised. An illustrated article in the Tuhua ribao (Pictorial Daily) stated the following:
All the western merchants residing in Shanghai hold horse races at the racecourse every spring and autumn when the weather is fine. They are always held on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, etc., and they hold water jumping events on a different week to show that they have strength to spare. During the games, the residents display a martial spirit. These are not comparable to ordinary games. During these few days, all westerners work half days only, and every last one of them displays exceptional enthusiasm. In view of their praiseworthy exuberance, we draw these pictures and compose horse racing songs to mark the grand event.
A dozen or so years later, after the May Fourth Period had begun, this species of writing became extinct. In its place, we find curses and repudiation.
From the 1920s through the 1930s, people predicted that this nuisance would not come to a good end and that it was certain to be overthrown or changed, but the question remained of what it would change into. The answer was the opposite of its earlier image – into a patriotic, democratic, healthy and civilized place. In 1927, while sighing with regret over the paucity of Shanghai's parks and advocating the launch of a ‘Parks Movement’, Zheng Zhenduo expressed the following opinion:
We call for the construction of ten or more parks in appropriate locations! Places such as where the racecourse is located are truly the best sites for establishing parks. These words will be very difficult to implement. Perhaps implementation will have to await our recovery of Shanghai! However, we must have such a movement, and we must make such demands!Footnote 17
It was in this manner that Li Shicen and Pan Yang'an would also make their ‘prophesies’ in 1934. Though they did not describe the future as clearly as the above two men, many other intellectuals expressed similar opinions. In other words, long before victory in World War II, the call to change the function and the significant symbolism of the racecourse had become a current in progressive Chinese thought. It had become a ‘force’ which would be difficult for anyone to alter.
Public opinion on recovery of territory following the War of Resistance
After the victorious conclusion to the War of Resistance, China became one of the victor nations of World War II. Its position in the international arena improved significantly, and it regained possession of the settlement. The time had come to change the racecourse.
In 1945, on the eve of victory in the War of Resistance, a special political incident, wherein the national flag was put on display and then torn down, occurred in connection with the racecourse. This further intensified the political symbolic significance of the racecourse. On 10 August of that year, news of the unconditional Japanese surrender created a hubbub in every street and alley way. Some shops put out the national flag – white sun against a blue sky over a red land. A Chinese employee at the racecourse also raised a national flag in jubilation. Olsen, the secretary of the Horse Racing Association, saw this happening and expressed vehement opposition. His reasons were that the Japanese surrender had not yet been verified and that, even if Japan had been defeated, the racecourse was the property of the British and should be returned to its original owners with the British flag displayed. The Chinese employee wished to raise the flag, but he was opposed by the foreign head of the association, and so a standoff transpired. The Chinese employee, his blood boiling with righteous indignation, dragged out Olson and punched him. Olson, alarmed by this turn of events, hurriedly telephoned the Japanese military police. Japan in fact had not yet officially surrendered and a squad of armed military police rushed over, forced the lowering of the flag, and tore it to shreds. Three days later, Japanese Emperor Hirohito announced unconditional surrender, and the Chinese employee finally, with head held high, raised the Chinese national flag.Footnote 18 This incident had an enormous impact at the time, because the national flag displayed at the racecourse became a symbol of restored national sovereignty.
On 11 February 1946, Chiang Kai-shek returned to Shanghai. Three days later, 200,000 people attended a welcome ceremony, and the location of the ceremony was the racecourse. In his speech, Chiang Kai-shek emphasized the political symbolic significance of the racecourse. He said:
Everyone knows that, eight years ago, it would have been impossible to assemble at the racecourse as we are doing today. Why can we gather here freely now? Why am I able to meet all of you in this place today? This is because the spirit manifested by our countrymen, our soldiers, in those eight arduous years of the War of Resistance has earned the respect of the Americans, the British, the Soviets, the French and other allies. It has won the sympathy of the alliance. As a result, the unequal treaties have been abolished, and we have recovered possession of the concessions everywhere. Our Republic of China has also won independence and freedom.Footnote 19
In August 1946, Shanghai Mayor Wu Guozhen considered reviving horse racing as a way of boosting fiscal revenues. Thus, he requested that the departments concerned discuss this matter with the Horse Racing Association. Indeed, the war had not totally disrupted horse racing, illustrating its popularity among Shanghai residents. Earlier, in August 1943, the Wang Puppet Government had taken over administration of the International Settlement, and horse racing had continued for two more years. Moreover, the ban on Chinese was lifted, and they were allowed to enter the racecourse. In the spring of 1945, horse racing was suspended due to wartime shortages. Subsequently, a small part of the central field of the racecourse was rented to the US Army stationed in Shanghai, but nearly all of the racecourse fell into disuse and became overgrown with weeds. Therefore, Wu Guozhen had the idea of reviving horse races.
Unexpectedly, a single stone gave rise to a thousand waves. Discussions on whether to restore or ban horse racing became the principal focus of Shanghai society. In September 1946, the first session of the Shanghai City Council was convened. The cries in favour of recovering the racecourse and changing its function were nearly unanimous. Only a small number of councilmen supported a restoration of horse racing. Seven separate motions were made to ban horse racing, recover possession of the racecourse and rebuild it as a park, gymnasium or similar facility. There were a total of 12 sponsors and 26 co-signers for Motions 246, 247, 257, 267 and 366 alone.
Among the above sponsors were the interim councilmen Luo Qinghua, Wan Molin, Zhao Banfu and Pan Xulun, who proposed that the municipal government change the racecourse to Roosevelt Park. Their intention was to promote Sino-American friendship and to make Shanghai a more cosmopolitan place.Footnote 20 Li Ximou, the deputy director of the municipal Office of Education, and others recommended replacing the racecourse with a public sports stadium on the grounds that the Nanshi Ximen stadium was too small and too remote.Footnote 21 Some recommended turning the racecourse into ‘Kai-shek Park’ to commemorate ‘the great achievements’ of Chiang Kai-shek.Footnote 22 Motion 247, which was sponsored by Shi Jiadong and three other councilmen and co-signed by Zhou Fei and eight other councilmen, proposed transforming the racecourse into a citizens’ club which would comprise a music hall, a gymnasium, a library, a museum, a swimming pool, an exhibition arena, machinery for art and calligraphy products and an auditorium.
In arguing for the necessity of replacing the racecourse, the motion sponsors generally pointed to the harmfulness of gambling and the fact that the racecourse was a symbol of imperialism. For example, Wang Weiyin, Wang Xianqing and others expressed the following opinion in their motion:
In countries throughout the world, horse racing was originally a good sport and a means of improving horse breeds. Horse racing as it exists in China is in fact a disguised form of gambling. In the spring and autumn of every year, the attractive name of horse racing was employed to practise the reality of profiting from gambling. The people of Shanghai were desperate for ‘champagne tickets’, and as a consequence families were often reduced to poverty and ruin. This was truly a stain on the era of foreign occupation of the Shanghai Settlement. Now that the War of Resistance has been won and the settlement has been recovered, a gamblers’ den that is so harmful to society should be quickly banned, and, if we value the dignity of our country, it must not be revived.Footnote 23
He Huanming, Jiang Huaisu, Lu Huimin, Zhuang Ping and others went further.
Horse racing is gambling in disguise. It is deeply harmful and can reduce families to poverty and ruin. In view of these facts, a racecourse is not unlike a public gambling den. During the settlement years, it sucked more blood from the citizens than could possibly be measured. Now that the War of Resistance has been won and the settlement has been regained, the need to regain possession of the entire racecourse which is supported by foreign merchants has become urgent. Divide and develop it into a park and an athletic field; make it into a place for relaxation and exercise of Shanghai residents. Moreover, the number of residents is vast, yet the number of parks and athletics fields is tiny. The residents, who labour all day long to make a living, sorely need a place to recuperate and to engage in physical exercise. Truly, the need now to redevelop the racecourse as a park and athletic field is urgent. Transform a swamp of wickedness into a place of joy. Without a doubt, nothing greater than this could be done.Footnote 24
Their motion was not only imbued with sentiments of nationalism, but incorporated ideas about the proper or civilized use of urban space. Similarly to the discourse of hygiene in Tianjin described by Liu Haiyan in his article, ideas on health also lent weight to the argument that the racecourse should serve a more useful purpose for the urban population. In fact, ideas on the relationship between sport, health, civilization and the nation had proliferated in China throughout the Republican period and were now being brought to bear on this important debate.Footnote 25
While the city council discussed these matters, newspapers were nearly unanimous in calling for a ban. A letter from a reader writing under the name of ‘Yue Yun’, in presenting reasons for replacing the racecourse and ideas on what to do with the site, gave prominence to the political. The motifs of the letter are once more patriotism, national liberation, democracy and civilization:
To build one park in these days of omnipresent disaster may seem rather like adding a flower to a brocade. However, to wash away the ignominious stains left by imperialism and to enhance the spiritual lives of city residents, I feel that this proposal should be submitted again and thereby ensure its implementation. I feel that future designs should pay attention to the significance of education and give residents a place to go where they can live as though in an ideal world. In addition to gardens with ponds, flowers and other plants, it should also encompass a library, a museum, an athletic field, an opera house, a kindergarten, small markets, and administrative zones. In other words, we should rebuild it as a model for an ideal country. Everything and everyone will have an educational purpose. Nothing will be dealt with carelessly – not even a gardener or a road sign. Things in the small market should be superior and less expensive than on the main streets. The administrative zone should hold activities where residents would be allowed to come and study. In this way, we could raise residents to a higher level, inspire them with grand ideals, and mould within them fine sentiments.Footnote 26
We can no longer know whether this person really was called ‘Yue Yun’. Most likely, it is a pen name. As everyone knows, the historical Yue Yun was the son of the celebrated patriotic general Yue Fei. Thus, the pen name itself imparts patriotic meaning.
Shen bao, which was the most influential newspaper, twice invited city residents to cast votes. In just four days, 4,463 letters arrived. Based on the 1,284 forms that were filled out by readers, there were 59 votes in favour of lifting the prohibition on horse racing and 1,225 votes opposed.Footnote 27 It is worth noting that the vast majority of opponents were businessmen and students: 688 votes from businessmen and 361 votes from students. Students are generally regarded as being more idealistic and businessmen as practically minded. Businessmen, as Xu Tao illustrates in his exploration of Chinese bicycle trade associations, could be nationalistic in the pursuit of profit. Here, by contrast, Chinese capitalists sacrificed profit for patriotism, and this also shows the strength of popular opinion about the racecourse at the time. This was expressed succinctly in a particularly sharply worded article in Wenhui bao. It asserted that ‘the racecourse is a symbol of imperialist power and the crystallization of a century of tears shed by Shanghai residents’.Footnote 28 A revival of horse racing might do too much harm to the feelings of city residents.
Public opinion was tilted strongly to one side of the issue. Discussion about recovery of the racecourse metamorphosed into action. The pragmatic, enlightened mayor Wu Guozhen believed that, though lottery tickets were very similar to gambling, each person's bet was in fact limited and thus should be classified as a game. He believed that if horse racing was continued, revenues would be obtained to supplement public finances and subsidize charitable undertakings; the benefits for both government and society would be substantial.Footnote 29 In the end, however, he could only go along with public opinion. Political considerations won out over economic calculations, and he devoted his efforts to recovering possession of the racecourse.
Zhang Ning has already provided in her dissertation a detailed study of the Shanghai municipal government negotiations leading to the recovery of the racecourse. A minor supplementary point needs to be added here, namely that, while the Shanghai Municipal Government was negotiating recovery of the racecourse, the political significance of recovery was constantly emphasized by the media. A letter written by a city resident, said to be an elementary school student, stated:
To the Municipal Authorities:
Recently the newspaper carried the news that the Shanghai Horse Racing Association had petitioned you to lift the ban on horse racing. Horse racing is harmful to the people and to the country. It causes Chinese youth to use their precious time for gambling. It is a waste of time and a waste of money, and it causes promising young people to fall into the abyss. It bankrupts families and leads to death, even suicide. Truly, it is a pity! Moreover, it puts money in the pockets of foreigners and thus is completely at odds with the current effort to keep out foreign goods. Although it would boost the revenues of the municipal government, it is without exception an unreasonable thing that runs counter to the will of the people. If this racecourse were changed into an athletic field, it could be used to improve the physiques of city residents and raise the level of physical education in China. In addition, through ticket sales, it could boost municipal government revenues and prevent the outflow of Chinese goods. By a single act, several goals could be achieved. Would not that be desirable? I sincerely request that you reflect upon this matter. If you do so, the people of my generation will be very grateful.
Sincerely striving,
An elementary school student.Footnote 30Thus wrote the ‘elementary school student’, which is only a synonym for the will of the public and public opinion – even if the letter really was written by an elementary school student.
On 27 May 1949, Nationalist Party rule was overthrown in Shanghai, and the Communist Party took the reins of government. With the change of regime, Shanghai underwent major changes in respect to ideology, urban functions, street names and other aspects. For example, the road that was named ‘Kai-shek Road’ was renamed ‘Yan'an Road’ and ‘Ruijin Road’. ‘Linsen Road’ became ‘Weihai Road’, and ‘Qimei Road’ was changed to ‘Siping Road’. The rule for name changing was often to choose a name whose meaning countered or was the opposite of the original name. However, the ideas of banning horse racing and recovering possession of the racecourse continued to run in the same groove after 1949. There was an obvious continuity. On 27 August 1951, the Shanghai Military Control Committee officially ordered the return of racecourse land to Chinese possession and the construction of People's Park and People's Square.
Conclusion
When horse racing began in Shanghai, the racecourse was a rather simple place of leisure, and Shanghai society reacted with relative calm. Subsequently, the ever changing symbolic significance of the racecourse played out against a backdrop of changing racecourse functions and varying intellectual currents. It later became a gambling arena where people were cheated of their money and sometimes murdered, a place emblematic of anti-Chinese discrimination, and a stage on which imperialism flaunted its military might. It had, in short, become a diabolic symbol of a multitude of evils. The call to change the racecourse merged powerfully with the struggle to oppose imperialism, regain the settlement, and struggle towards civilization and democracy. As revealed by the predictions made Li Shicen and others in the 1930s, the arguments of the ‘elementary school student’, ‘Yue Yun’, Wenhui bao and Shen bao in the 1940s, and the final change of names in the 1950s, an obvious ideological continuity remained throughout, and this continuity did not vary with changes in the ruling party and the regime.
