Qinshan River Hehe Doctor Memorial Tablet Introduction
In May 1902, Dr. Sotaro Kawai, a professor of forestry at the Imperial University of Tokyo, was invited by the Taiwan Governor-General's Office to survey Alishan in Chiayi. He discovered that the forest ecosystem of Alishan was excellent, with good quality materials and abundant reserves. He strongly advocated for development during his report on the actual investigation, gaining the attention of the Governor-General's Office. Subsequently, in several important inspections and the planning of forestry management schemes, Dr. Kawai's opinions had a crucial impact, making him the greatest contributor to the development of Alishan forestry; thus, a monument was erected in his memory after his death, and it was designated as a county-level historic site. In February 1903, Dr. Sotaro Kawai, a forestry PhD from the Imperial University of Tokyo, was appointed by the Taiwan Governor-General’s Office to oversee the development of Alishan's forests and the surveying of forest railway routes. On October 3, 1904, over thirty officials, including Governor-General Goto Shinpei, Director of the Bureau of Industry Shuku, Chiayi Prefectural Chief Okada, Chief Engineer of the Railway Department Hase Kiyoshi, and Dr. Sotaro Kawai, formed a large exploration team with sixty food porters, reaching Wansui Mountain in Alishan after three days. This marked the beginning of the promotion of the Alishan forest development project. However, due to the financial difficulties faced by the Japanese government during the Russo-Japanese War, progress was delayed until 1906 when development officially commenced. The development process encountered setbacks; initially, it was undertaken by the private Fujita Group, but it was later halted and continued under the management of the Governor-General's Office. Dr. Kawai, as a forestry advisor to the Taiwan Governor-General's Office, was long-term invested in the exploration and planning, contributing significantly to the development of Alishan forestry. Dr. Sotaro Kawai passed away in Tokyo, Japan, on March 14, 1931. To honor his achievements, a monument was erected in Alishan in November 1932, and it was officially unveiled on February 3, 1933.
