自古以來薪炭即為廉價能源，為一日不可或缺之生活資材，雖經濟價 值高，卻市場價格低廉，此如同水與鑽石的矛盾一般，常為人所忽視。尤 其是煤、石油、瓦斯等新能源出現後，薪炭自然逐漸被取代。而日治時期 家庭及製造業使用薪炭能源之數量依舊龐大，且自1937年中日戰爭爆發 後，戰時體制下物資缺乏，愈到後期愈出現以薪炭（尤其是木炭）取代石 油等能源之趨勢，致使木炭具有「小兵立大功」的關鍵作用。但如此重要 的物資卻一直為學界所漠視。 本文研究範圍限於日治時期新竹州地區。臺灣木炭產業是日治以後隨 著產業發展而興起的，而新竹州由於地理環境多山林、鄰近臺北市及鐵路 運輸便利等因素，致使其木炭產業發展迅速，產量超過所需甚多而常供應 其他地區，堪稱臺灣的木炭王國。且愈趨二戰末期，新竹州木炭產業被賦 課之使命也愈加沉重，使得當局對木炭數量及品質的要求不斷提升，而形 成促使社會環境發生變化的強大壓力。其發展與改良過程值得探究。 且由日治時期木炭改良過程可知，臺灣原本的木炭生產技術極為粗 略，產出失敗品炭頭甚多卻又不以為意，後經日本監督及改良後始有改 善，此可謂證據確鑿。目前臺灣標榜「古法」的炭窯應多少受到日本改良 的影響。

Charcoal and firewood are cheap sources of energy from ancient times to the present, even though they are indispensable living materials all the time, easily to be forgotten just like the paradox of water and diamond, with high economical value but low market price. Especially when new sources of energy like coal, petroleum, gas etc. appear, charcoal and fi rewood are replaced gradually. Nonetheless, the quantity of charcoal and fuel energy used by families and manufacturing under the Japanese colonial rule of Taiwan was still huge, and after the outbreak of Sino-Japanese war in 1937, due to lack of material under the wartime system, the more the later the more occurred the trend to replace petroleum with charcoal and fi rewood (especially charcoal), which let charcoal play the key role as “a small potato gets the job done”. The more closing to the end of World War II, the heavier the burden of the charcoal industry of Hsinchu state, and this new need for war made authorities continue to improve claim for the quantity and quality of charcoal, forming a strong pressure to make the social environment change a lot, whose process of development and improvement worth exploring. From the evolutionary process of Charcoal-making during Japanese ruled period, it was clear that the original technique of Taiwan was extremely rude, which made a plenty of Tantou produced with no care until supervised and refi ned by Japanese. Nowadays the excessively praised “ancient method” should have been effected by Japanese more or less.

木炭；新竹州；替代能源；炭頭；石川式製炭窯；剝皮木炭

charcoal；Hsinchu state；alternative energy；Tantou；Ishikawa-type charcoal-making kiln；peeled charcoal