It is, nevertheless, to be found in my "Taiwanese Holiday Stories" book, and it falls on June 3 every year. Don't forget to say "Happy Non-Smoking Day!" to EVERY PERSON YOU COME ACROSS on June 3. It will confuse them, and their confusion will be amusing.
The Chinese here was written by 張青史, while the English was written by me. This version of "Taiwanese Holiday Stories" (台灣節日故事) was published by Windmill Illustrated 風車圖書 in 2012.
禁煙節
Non-Smoking Day**
Non-Smoking Day**
(國曆六月三日)
(National [Western] Calendar, June 3)
(National [Western] Calendar, June 3)
禁煙節的由來要追溯到明朝末年義大利傳教士利瑪竇來華傳教, 帶進了鼻煙, 讓國人開始對煙品上癮. 清朝中期以後, 英國人發現在中國賣鴉片可以獲取很大的利潤,於是開始向中國銷售這種對人體有害的毒品. To search out Non-Smoking Day's origin one must go back to the end of the Ming Dynasty, when the Italian missionary Matteo Ricci brought snuff into China. Chinese people became addicted to tobacco products from this time onward.* By the middle of the Ching Dynasty, the British discovered that they could make huge profits by selling opium in China, and from then on sales of this kind of unhealthy product began.
由於官民大量吸食, 造成吏治腐敗, 也使得百姓的財富愈來愈少,精神越來越委靡不振, 甚至喪失工作意願, 雖然清廷下令禁止鴉片進口, 但是輸入量卻有增無減. After officials began consuming [opium] in large amounts, corruption became a problem, and the people grew less and less prosperous. They grew more and more demoralized, and they lost their desire to work. Although the Ching Court forbid the importation of opium, the amount coming in was not decreased.
道光皇帝即位後, 決心禁絕鴉片, 派遣欽差大臣林則徐到廣州負責查禁鴉片. 林則徐與一般官員消極, 怕事的做法大不相同, 他非常強勢和堅決, 許多外國商人及傳教士對他大公無私的態度都很佩服. After the Emperor Dao Guang assumed power, he decided to stamp out opium, and he dispatched the imperial envoy Lin Dze-Shu to Canton Province to ban the opium trade. Lin Dze-Shu was the opposite of most public officials, who were scared of getting into trouble for doing things differently. He was very strong and determined, and many foreign businessmen and missionaries considered his selfless attitude to be very admirable.
林則徐將收繳的鴉片, 於公元1839年6月3日, 在廣東的虎門全部銷毀, 轟動全國. Lin Dze-Shu took the opium he had seized, and on June 3, 1839 in Hu Men, Guangdong he destroyed it. This caused a sensation.
但是, 清庭迫於英軍的強大軍事力量, 竟將林則徐革職, 流放到新疆, 改派琦善擔任兩廣總督, 在江寧與英軍談和, 簽訂 "南京條約", 割地又賠款, 在中國歷史上寫下可恥的一頁. However, the Ching Court had a strong British military presence to contend with, and this necessitated the dismissal and exile of Lin Dze-Shu. He was sent to Xinjiang, and Chi Shan replaced him as governor of Canton Province. [Later] in Jiang Ning the British army held peace talks [over this and other issues], and the "Treaty of Nanking" was signed, which not only annexed parts of China but also imposed fines [on the Ching Government]. This was a shameful day in Chinese history.
林則徐雖然被革職流放, 但是他勇於任事及查禁鴉片的舉動, 獲得全國人民的讚許. 為了紀念林則徐查禁鴉片的事蹟, 後來便將6月3日定為我國的"禁煙節". Although Lin Dze-Shu was dismissed and sent into exile, his sense of responsibility and his attempts to stop the opium trade won the approval of all the citizens. In order to commemorate his efforts to stop the opium trade, June 3 was later declared "Non-Smoking" day in our country.
*There is a somewhat racial tone to this article, and the first paragraph seems to imply that foreigners are to blame for an addiction that has a long history among Chinese people. Blaming Matteo Ricci (or the British) for Chinese tobacco consumption is like blaming the guy who invented plastic for all the garbage in the world. Several aspects of Chinese culture exacerbated this problem, not least of all their tendency toward isolationism and their failure to recognize the worth of many Western discoveries.
**I also hope the inclusion of this story doesn't sound too judgmental on my part. I only include it here because it's the most recent holiday before summer vacation. I don't smoke tobacco, but I do occasionally smoke, if you know what I mean.
由於官民大量吸食, 造成吏治腐敗, 也使得百姓的財富愈來愈少,精神越來越委靡不振, 甚至喪失工作意願, 雖然清廷下令禁止鴉片進口, 但是輸入量卻有增無減. After officials began consuming [opium] in large amounts, corruption became a problem, and the people grew less and less prosperous. They grew more and more demoralized, and they lost their desire to work. Although the Ching Court forbid the importation of opium, the amount coming in was not decreased.
道光皇帝即位後, 決心禁絕鴉片, 派遣欽差大臣林則徐到廣州負責查禁鴉片. 林則徐與一般官員消極, 怕事的做法大不相同, 他非常強勢和堅決, 許多外國商人及傳教士對他大公無私的態度都很佩服. After the Emperor Dao Guang assumed power, he decided to stamp out opium, and he dispatched the imperial envoy Lin Dze-Shu to Canton Province to ban the opium trade. Lin Dze-Shu was the opposite of most public officials, who were scared of getting into trouble for doing things differently. He was very strong and determined, and many foreign businessmen and missionaries considered his selfless attitude to be very admirable.
林則徐將收繳的鴉片, 於公元1839年6月3日, 在廣東的虎門全部銷毀, 轟動全國. Lin Dze-Shu took the opium he had seized, and on June 3, 1839 in Hu Men, Guangdong he destroyed it. This caused a sensation.
但是, 清庭迫於英軍的強大軍事力量, 竟將林則徐革職, 流放到新疆, 改派琦善擔任兩廣總督, 在江寧與英軍談和, 簽訂 "南京條約", 割地又賠款, 在中國歷史上寫下可恥的一頁. However, the Ching Court had a strong British military presence to contend with, and this necessitated the dismissal and exile of Lin Dze-Shu. He was sent to Xinjiang, and Chi Shan replaced him as governor of Canton Province. [Later] in Jiang Ning the British army held peace talks [over this and other issues], and the "Treaty of Nanking" was signed, which not only annexed parts of China but also imposed fines [on the Ching Government]. This was a shameful day in Chinese history.
林則徐雖然被革職流放, 但是他勇於任事及查禁鴉片的舉動, 獲得全國人民的讚許. 為了紀念林則徐查禁鴉片的事蹟, 後來便將6月3日定為我國的"禁煙節". Although Lin Dze-Shu was dismissed and sent into exile, his sense of responsibility and his attempts to stop the opium trade won the approval of all the citizens. In order to commemorate his efforts to stop the opium trade, June 3 was later declared "Non-Smoking" day in our country.
*There is a somewhat racial tone to this article, and the first paragraph seems to imply that foreigners are to blame for an addiction that has a long history among Chinese people. Blaming Matteo Ricci (or the British) for Chinese tobacco consumption is like blaming the guy who invented plastic for all the garbage in the world. Several aspects of Chinese culture exacerbated this problem, not least of all their tendency toward isolationism and their failure to recognize the worth of many Western discoveries.
**I also hope the inclusion of this story doesn't sound too judgmental on my part. I only include it here because it's the most recent holiday before summer vacation. I don't smoke tobacco, but I do occasionally smoke, if you know what I mean.
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