Semantography (New World Writing): inspiration: the International Settlement of Shanghai
While initially it seems a bit far-fetched, the International Settlement of Shanghai was one of the major contibutors to the idea of Semantography. Charles explains (exerpts from Semantography (Blissymbolics) pp 219 - 222):
Two world wars in quick succession and the turmoil of this postwar world may have convinced anybody that all those nice words about “international understanding” may be termed mere “windy talk”. On this basis, all attempts for an international language or the like may seem a hopeless venture, condemned to failure right from the start.
My belief in “international understanding” was shattered too, when I set out in 1940 in a war-torn world to reach Shanghai. At that time I would have considered the work on an international language as a waste of time and effort. But strangely enough, it was this unique city of Shanghai which convinced me that “international understanding and co-operation” is possible, is a reality. In Shanghai I saw it miraculously at work.
After Wendel Wilkie's “One World” ("One World", written by Wendell L. Willkie, published 1943), the talk for a world government has not ceased , However, the apparent difficulties which the United Nations Organization encounters may have convinced countless people that the idea of a world government may be a fantasy only, a delusion, impossible to realize.
Those people may perhaps be glad to learn that a “world government” on a small scale, in which all nations had their say and moreover where they worked together for the common benefit, has been a reality for almost a hundred years, and it worked, it worked beautifully - in Shanghai. I refer to the unique organization of the International Settlement of Shanghai, an international governmental organization which ruled and influenced an area with about 5 million inhabitants, a greater population than in many independent countries.
People, who have never been to Shanghai or have been only there for a short visit, got their “knowledge” mostly from gangster novels and spy thrillers.
Consequently, most people in the world believe that Shanghai must be the worst place on earth. After six years of study at close quarters I maintain that Shanghai is the only place in the world which can give us hope and proof, that a world government and international co-operation and understanding is possible. The history of the now non-existent International Settlement of Shanghai proves conclusively that a world government can work, even under the worst conditions, and can achieve results nowhere obtained by a national government.
The government of the International Settlement of Shanghai
The government of the International Settlement was exercised by the consuls of all nations situated in Shanghai. They appointed a board of directors, the Municipal Council of Shanghai. This body was as international as the consular body. Moreover the number of Chinese councilors exceeded that of any other nation. There were also British, American, Japanese, German councilors and others taken from other nations.
The international Municipal Council directed the activities of a few thousands of officials, who were responsible for the work done by many thousands of employees in the administrative offices, the works department the health department, the city markets, the fire brigade, the telephone company, the power company, the water works, the street cleaning service, the garbage collection , the sewerage, the cemetery maintenance , the harbour service, the police force, etc., etc., not to forget the public libraries, schools and the Municipal Philharmonic Orchestra. All those officials, engineers, clerks, typists and workers were again recruited from all nations.
I couldn't believe my eyes, and it was a source of constant wonder, whenever I set foot into the offices of the Municipal Council to see all those nationals working together harmoniously. Even as late as 1941 with a world War raging for 2 years and the Sino-Japanese War raging for 4 years (or actually 10 years) I saw in one office working together Chinese, Japanese, British, German, American, Italian, Russian, Spanish people, Swedish, Portuguese and people from other nations. The head of one office was a Britisher and under him worked Germans, Italians, and others. The head of another office was a Japanese, or an American or a Chinese and they too :directed their employees of other nations. Although their respective countries were at war with each other, here they sat, desk to desk next to each other and worked together. It was international co-operation - a 100% - even under the stress of a world war.
The resultant successes were obvious for anybody who probed into the matter, and even spectacular for those observers who took into account the terrible conditions of the whole Chinese continent, neglected for centuries by the Imperial Chinese government and -after 1911 - groaning under the yoke of countless warlords, who devastated the provinces, even more thoroughly than floods and famines could do. Plague an cholera and other diseases killed off millions. Among this incredible misery of a whole continent, Shanghai was an oasis, a heaven of refuge, the only place where peace and order and health were maintained and from where the work of reconstruction could be carried out. Millions of refugees from all Parts of China streamed into the city, filled every house and every shack and found there peace and security, work and prosperity.
The Work of the Municipal Council
Only from this perspective must the work and the achievement of the International Municipal Council and its international co-workers be considered. Most spectacular was the work of the Health Department, which kept Shanghai a healthy city, although cholera and plague and typhus branded against the outskirts of the city and filtered in daily. The Public Works Department is responsible for achievements which became a model for the whole of East Asia. Similar praise could be given to all other departments, all of them directed and maintained by workers taken from all nations. .
The Police Force again was international. There were British and Chinese constables, American and Japanese, Russian and Indian as well; and so on throughout all the ranks to the top officers.
One of the most spectacular things was an International Army, recruited wholly from volunteer citizens and with an organization which had to be seen to be believed. Contrary to expectation the various battalions were organized on national lines; there was an American battalion, a British battalion, a Scottish battalion, a Chinese battalion, a Japanese, a Portuguese, a Philippine battalion, officered wholly by co-nationals. There was even a Jewish battalion, officered by Jewish officers.
One should believe, that this organization on national lines should be a dangerous thing, considering that these battalions were given up-to-date arms, rifles and machine guns, mortars and even light field artillery. Yet, so great was the spirit of international co-operation, that the Municipal Council trusted its international citizens and not once was there an-incidence that this trust was unjustified. In every emergency, the volunteer soldiers of all nations manned their battle stations and through their - determination - warded off destruction throughout the wars and upheavals which raged in China and. branded against the outskirts of Shanghai.
Taxes
But the most spectacular proof of the efficiency of the international government of Shanghai was the almost incredible fact, that there was no income tax in Shanghai, nevertheless all the :departments of the government worked, the health department, the fire brigade, the street cleaning service, the police, etc., etc. All governmental workers received their decent pay and all was achieved without the exertion of an income tax.
The explanation is furnished by the fact that Shanghai was governed by an international body. Not only was there constant control exerted by the various nationals on each other, the consuls in those young days of Shanghai were business men too. They knew how to run an, efficient business and they figured out that all can be done with a minimum of expenditure. All the work was done without income tax, a ridiculously small land tax, calculated only from the floor space of an office, a shop, an apartment, a cottage was sufficient to cover all expenses. The power company, the telephone company, the water works furnished some additional means and in the same time worked in an amazing way for the maintenance of all the city services. If you did not want to pay even the small land tax no force could be exerted on you, but then you could not get electricity, water or a telephone. This was the only gentle persuasion which the government could exert. But it usually was not necessary. The citizens realized the necessity of all the services for the common good and moreover the International Settlement breathed a “free” air. Every grievance could be voiced in the many papers and the internationality of its councilors and officials ensured remedy and betterment.
Even the Imperial government of China and the successive governments found it wise to put the management of their revenues in the hands of an international body of foreigners and the Chinese Maritime Customs for instance, became one of the greatest sources of revenue for the Chinese government. This money came largely from the trade with the outside world carried on by the foreigners who have built Shanghai. Those people outside of China, who know nothing of Shanghai, except that it came into being by violating Chinese territory, have not the slightest idea what the International Settlement of Shanghai meant to China and the Chinese. For the impartial observer it is clear, that the International Settlement was the greatest blessing the Chinese people received during the last hundred years. Apart from a worldwide wide trade which benefitted the whole Chinese people, there were the many schools, technical and. other colleges, universities, hospitals and industrial enterprises which were manned by foreign teachers, doctors and engineers, and maintained by foreign money which opened up a window of knowledge for the young generation of Chinese and which provided the teachers, doctors and engineers, all Chinese, to teach in turn the whole continent. If China makes now great strides in industrialization, agriculture and health maintenance it is thanks to the many Chinese who were trained in the foreign schools and industries of the International Settlement of Shanghai.
Internationality
The internationality of the “world government” of Shanghai was reflected in the attitude of the international inhabitants of this city. If you are a business man, or a doctor, or a consulting engineer or a teacher in Shanghai and you have to deal with people of ten or twenty different nations in a single working day, then narrow-minded “nationalism” must become nonsense. There was only one distinction, which totally disregarded nationality: the character and integrity of a person. People referred to other people by using an expression in Pidgin English. “He proper”, they said, or “he no proper”.
Of course the people of Shanghai loved the country of their birth, its language, its literature and its music and there were many national literary and musical performances, attended by an international audience.
The Shanghai Municipal Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the finest in the world, catered to an international audience and consequently its repertoire became most international. People appreciated and acknowledged the cultural achievements of other nations.
Now, don’t think that the people of Shanghai were “better”. No! They were the same people as you find them all over the world, with their full measure of virtues and vices, of shortsightedness and narrowmindedness. Yet, it was exactly that atmosphere of world citizenship that made people think in broader terms. In Shanghai it became obvious for anybody (including the worst narrow-minded nationalists) that international co-operation is the most sensible and also the most practical, thing to do, and. so they co-operated, they became broadminded, because it was the Shanghai way of life.
Inspiration
This broadmindedness manifested itself in all walks of life. Not only were there international friendships among the various nationals, the members of the various institutions and clubs maintained friendly relations, even as late as 1941, when their respective countries were at war with each other. It was for me a constant source of wonder when I saw the members of the Shanghai Camera Club, for instance, belonging to the warring nations, meeting once a month to discuss art and. to part in respectful friendliness.
Besides the International Settlement, there was the French Concession and the parts of Shanghai under the jurisdiction of the Chinese government. Yet, the beneficial influence which the International Settlement exerted made itself felt everywhere. It was simply impossible to deny liberties to people outside the International settlement, or to burden them with heavy taxes, when those people could easily escape all this, by moving within the boundaries of the International Settlement.
This marvelous “atmosphere of a world government” intoxicated me. I felt very happy living in Shanghai. Funny as it seems, even the summer air of Shanghai, although very trying and laden with humidity, became to me exhilarating and invigorating like the mountain air of Switzerland. I love Switzerland, which I visited on many hiking and business trips not only on account of its natural beauty, but especially for the fact that there live people of four different nations, which exhibit a truly international co-operation. In Shanghai I saw the same international co-operation on an even wider scale.
Some readers may think that I have dwelled too much on the praise of the International Settlement of Shanghai. However, all I said I consider very important in regard of this book. It is easy to dismiss the whole efforts of all people, interested in an international language, by denying international co-operation. And in fact, the difficulties which UNO encounters are enough to convince all pessimists. Therefore, I had to tell at length about the spot on the Chinese coast, where international co-operation worked marvels.
It was exactly the spirit of the International Settlement of Shanghai which brought this book about. In Shanghai I saw language at work. In Shanghai I saw the mother tongue at work, and its irresistible strength. In Shanghai I saw an ideographic writing at work, and in Shanghai too, I saw international co-operation at work - and therefore Shanghai convinced me that work on international communication and co-operation is worthwhile and will bear fruit.
I have no illusions about this book. I know that the world at large think differently and that I am bound for great disappointment and. even ridicule. It may well be that I shall not live to see my idea come true.
Shanghai however, has convinced me that a world government is possible and that - sooner or later - it will come about. And I believe that a kind of ideographic writing, as proposed in this book, will be used by the world government and the national governments to bridge the 3000 languages of the inhabitants of this planet.