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I have just returned from travelling and collecting in the Hongo and Paransha districts of the Atayal group of savages. In Paransha we met with a great disaster. We were attacked at night by the Atayals.I had five policemen and a number of friendly savages with me. Three of my natives were killed and had their heads taken and we ourselves had sword and knives taken from us. However, we managed to escape int the dark. The boundary of this savages group is now surrounded by a cordon of plice who keep watch nigh and day. These Atayals with the Ami are the two most cruel groups of savages in Formosa. I send you ethnological specimens from the Mushca, Hongo and Paran villages of the Atayals and form the Kaban village of the Tsou group. I also obtained some spcimens at Bemosha and Aransha of the Atayals but I have stored these for safety at the neighbouring plice stations and will send them later. I am now starting to visit the savages at Koshun near Mount Morrison.

Letter 29th May 1907
The inclosed sketch map shows the districts in Formosa where the collections were made. The Japanese are at war now with all the savages in the northern half of the Savage territory. It is a war of extermination as there appear no other alternative to be. The Aiyu line (Aiyu is the Chinese police) extends now around the northern end of the savage districts and halfway down the island of the western border. This line consists of blockhouses at every 60 yards with a live electric wire and explosive mines at front. In some placesthis line goes over mountains 8000 feet above the sea. The jungle is so impenetrable that the Japanese cannot use ordrance and the savages lose very few men in comparison with the number of heads they secure from their enemies. The Japanese mus win in the end but this war may last for years yet. You can hardly imagine the difficulty how I "persuaded" the savages to part with some of the objects I obtained from them and between ourselves, the persuasion was not always effected with money.
The difficulties of the intercourse with the savages also appear from an extract from the newspaper. Japan Daily Mail (24th May 1907). Formosa. Recent accounts from Formosa indicate that the Aiyu advanced from two apparently independant directions onde in the Shinko and Toyen districts and the other in the Shinshiku (Kagi). It now appears that the second of these operations is of the nature of a flanking movement. The whole compaign has not yet attracted much outside attention yet it has great importance as being the first detemined attempt on the part of the Japanese to bring the aborigines into subjection. These aborigines, although they nuber only a hudred thousand, hold three fifts of the entire island, and throughout the territory occupied by them complete isolation exists against outside ingress or egress.
The majority of them (5 out of every 8) consist of the Savage headhunters who are known as the Atayal. The Aiyu forces which comprise 4550 men of all ranks were put in motion last year against the aborigines the programme being that each step of advance should be rendered permanent by the construction of roads. It is stated that in accordance with the plicy 382 miles of roads have been built and 1378 square miles of territory occupied. The undertaking mus be exceedingly arduons and its consummation is probably tardistant.