刘坤一与清季铁路建设

Liu Kun-yi and the Construction of Railway in the Late Qing Dynasty

刘坤一对铁路建设的认识经历了拒斥、接纳、推动的心路历程,从坚决反对修造铁路,到立足国防军事立场而接纳铁路,再进而积极主动地推进中国铁路建设,其立场由保守逐步走向开放。在讨论铁路建设事务时,他更多地从政治、军事、外交等方面着眼,相对忽略了铁路广泛而深远的社会经济效应,对利用外债、招集洋股、引进技术等间或表露出某种疑虑。刘坤一对铁路建设的心路历程,从一个侧面反映出:清代官员们早期现代化意识的萌发和生长,受制于内忧外患的社会历史环境;统治危机和严重外患,既是观念变革的推力,也是一种阻力。

Liu Kun-yi＇s understanding to railway construction experienced a mental process of refusing,scolding, accepting, and promoting. First he determinedly opposed to building a railroad, then accepted itbased upon the national defense and military purpose, and further promoted on his own initiative and activelyChinese railway construction. His conservative standpoint gradually turned open. While discussing about rail-way construction, he laid particular emphasis on politics, military, diplomacy and so on, and neglected compar-atively the extensive and profound social economy effects of railways, now and then expressed some worries formaking use of foreign debts, releasing shares abroad, importing foreign technology. Liu Kun-yi＇s mental pro-cess reflected indirectly that the sprouting and growing of the early modernization consciousness of the officerswas tied up by the social history environment under the internal disasters and the foreign threats. The govern-mental crisis and the serious foreign invasions not only were the thrusting forces of idea reformation, but alsothe resisting forces.