《四川派赴东瀛游历阅操日记》之作者及价值

The author and value of the Military Diary of A Sichuan Military Officer's Visit to Japan

丁鸿臣,湖南长沙人,清末曾任四川提督,1899年考察日本军事,归而撰成《四川派赴东瀛游历阅操日记》一书,于考察清末史事颇有助益,史料价值颇高。其书虽于学制多所涉及,而于军事方面载录尤详,此为其书价值之所在。

Ding Hongchen, born in Changsha, Hunan province, the military officer of Sichuan province at the end of the Qing Dynasty, visited Japan and attended the the country’s massive military parade in 1899. When he returned to Sichuan, he wrote the book The Military Diary of A Sichuan Military Officer’s Visit to Japan to tell what he had seen and heard. The book is of great value in understanding the history of the end of the Qing Dynasty, offering much information about the educational system in modern Japan, and providing more valuable details of the military system of the country. And the latter is the key value of the book.