Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-02-02
ACROSS COREA,
Solitary Horseback Ride Through
the Hermit Kingdom.
From TEE srAa's Travelling Commissioner.

THE EAST CoAsr OF CoREA, October
9, 1888.
decided to cross Corea for three reasons:
First, to save time. If I had continued my
voyage from yladivostok in the Takschiho
Maru, and made my way round the peninsula
by sea TO Chemulpo, and ridden thence 80 miles
TO Seoul, the capital. / should have been either
restricted to two days there, or else compelled
TO wait three weeks for another vessel; whereas,
by crossing the country can gain three or
four days. Second In a journey round the
world, to get for once, at least, of the beaten
track, and describe what no Journalist has ever
described before. The Hermit Kingdom"
does rot tempt the globe-trotter, and it is one
of the few places on earth virgin to his tread
But it will be again the center of great events
before long, and even to-day the eyes Of people
in the east are turned expectantly toward it.
Third. to be frank, purely and simply for the
adventure. We live in too prosaic days.
CONDITION OF THE COUNTRY.
Only three or four Europeans have crossed
Corea, and nothing unless in q consular report
has been written about the trip. The Corean
authorities discourage travellers and the Corean
minister at Tokyo persistently declined to give
me passport or to apply TO Seoul for one Tor
me, although pressed by the British charge to
be judged from the fact that four months ago
marines we're landed from the American,
Russian, and Japanese men-of-war at Chemulpo,
and marched al night up to the capital to pro-
tect the foreigners there; while II. M. 5.
Leander got up steam in a hurry and left
Yokohama at a few hours notice for the same
purpose. Some Chinese, it is stated, had en-
trapped Corean children and sent them to
Tientsin for immoral purposes, and the Coreans
prOfessed to believe that the missionaries had
Il 1.,sx.A and
for taking photographs. Hence the murders
of Coreans and the threatened attack upon
foreigners. But the country seems perfectly
quiet now, and there is little or no risk IN
crossing it. So / have sent my things round
by sea, taken my notebook, feld-glass,
revolver. and camera, and here am. one days
journey out of the six, writing under the
oldest and most romantic surroundings have
ever known.
A PONY CAvALCADE.
To go back a little, chiefly owe the oppor-
tunity of making this trip to Mr.. Fitzgerald
Creagh, commissioner of customs Gin the
Chinese service) at Gensan. the open port on
the east coast. He gave me full directions,
hired ponies and grooms for me, procured me
an escort, arranged all the payments for me-
and. in short, at much personal trouble made
the journey possible and indeed comparatively
easy.
As soon as the Takachiho reached Gensan 1
said goodbye to my very pleasant quarters and
went on shore, where through the glass could
see the ponies already waiting. A Corean pony
Is a small shaggy, scraggy creature. but you
never like him less than when you first set eyes
on him. and before had gone far with these
learned that many virtues were concealed in
their little brown bodies. -Four ponies and six
men were at the landing, the latter being three
groOms. two soldiers, and an interpreter. One
pony was for me TO ride; upon the second
were strapped my bag, canvas hold-all con-
tanning rug and sleeping arrangement, camera,
and gun; the third was burdened with two
boxes of provisions and dozen bottles of min
eral water, for 1t Is necessary to carry with you
absolutely everything you need to eat or drink
here; while the fourth pony had all he could
do to transport the money for current expenses.
This sounds no doubt as if were travelling like
a second jay Gould: alas, far from it The
pony only carried about twenty Mexican dol
lars. 81. The only Corean currency, however.
consists of miserably made copper. iron and
bronze coins, called leash" in English. and
SGpek or SIX in Corean, about the size and
weight of an English penny, with a square hole
in the middle by which they are strung on
plated straw in lots of five hundred. subdivided
by knots into hundreds. Hence the expression
- string of cash" In Genssn the rate of ex-
change when left was eco cash to a Mexican
dollar. and the pony carries about fifteen thou
sand of them.
TIE PERSONNEL OF MI LITTLE CARAVAN
The grooms, called n,dpou, are good-natured
grinning creatures, low down in the social
scale, dressed in extremely dirty white cotton
robes and trousers, with straw sandals and
battered old wire hats, or none. The soldiers,
called k1siOu. are tall well-built fellows, dis
tinguished from civilians by a broad-rimmed
hat of heavy black felt with a scarlet tuft
trailing behind, and coat of rough blue cotton,
shaped exactly like the exaggerated dress-coat,
reaching to the heels, that one sees in bur-
IesqUe on the gaiety stage. They carry no
weapons but long staff, and they appeared
amused when 1 asked where, since they were
soldiers. were their guns? OF my interpreter
i stand somewhat i'll awe. He is a tall
really handsome man, dressed in spotless
white. topped by a monumental black pot
hat made of woven horsehair. and with
nothing ndignifed about him but his name.
which is Cha Sam. II was impossible to get
a COrean who knew any English, even a little
'-pidgin," so l had to be content with one who
speaks japanese. My only communication
with the outside world for the next week will
therefore be IN that staccato tongue. Our re-
Spectiye yocabularies have proved ADEQUATE so
far. but from his preternatural silence and
sOieIanity the sad suspicion is growing in nv
mind that his knowledge of Japanese is on a
par with nly OWE. / am the only one Of the
the party that rides; the rest walk. except that
l have already observed a tendency on the
part of Cha Sam to place himself on top of
the 1900 cash. and that pony is learning to
give him wide berth. This / discourage.
from mixed motives Of humanity and haste.
THE BILL OF EXPENSES
furnished me By Mr.. Creagh il as follows:
4 Horses, a. 5000 cash. 20 600
/ Interpreter, falsely so-called ~ 1000
2 Soldiers. at 100 cash a day, IL days
there and back. 1900
8 kun snaws' (tips) 10 soldiers and
Interpreter, at Sl................ 2OOo
Total. $500 cash, say forty-three Mexican
dollars. Plus travelling expenses and food The
price OF the horses includes grooms / suppose
everybody knows that Ne xican when IL is not
counterfeit. which it generally is, is worth
about two-thirds of gold dollar, seventy-five
cents. The cash, by the way, miserable, bat
tered. yerdigris-covered coins, Of which ten 90
20 a cent. have actually been debased BY the
Corean government for illicit profit, while they
bear on them such gracious inscriptions az
Used for Public Benefit" and Enrich the
People"
on THE WAY TO THE MONASTERY
The journey overland from the east coast to
the capital generally occupies five days, at the
rate Of something over thirty miles q day.
Thirty-fve miles from Gensan. however north
of the overland road, Is the great Corean mon
sstery Of An-pien spelled An-byan on Peter
MAINS map, which 1 was seriously assured
Vas the only interesting place in all Corea. So
l was determined to lose a day and visit this
all the more as Capt Walker, Of the Taxa
chino, experienced navigator, eager sports
man, delightful companion, and one Of the
most popular men in this part of the east
promised me his company so far. We said