This paper attempts to assess the performance of Taiwan industry development during Japan ruling period by means of examining the achievement of industrialization. Two measurements proposed by Chenery (1960) are employed, including Hoffmann index and the share of manufacturing sector in gross domestic product. It is uncovered that the performance of industrial development in Taiwan is not significant throughout the Japanese colonial era since Hoffmann index demonstrates that total production of capital industry is much smaller than that produced by its consumer counterpart, and the share of manufacturing sector in gross domestic product illustrates further that the manufacturing is absolutely not a vital sector of Taiwan economy. Besides, this paper verifies via a comparative analysis that Taiwan economy during the Japanese colonial era never reached the stage of take-off toward self-sustained growth, defined by Rostow (1959).