Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-01-19
COREAN CUSTOMS.
THE PRICE FAT, WELL.DISPOSED
BABIES BRING.
Corean Society Divided Into Three
Glasses, the King, Mobiles and
Common People.

America opened Japan, and had Amer
leans pushed their trade as the British
have done, they might be the foremost
power there. They stand to-day in the
same relation to Corea that they did to
Japan along back in the SOS, and, in the
words of Admiral Shufeldt, who made the
first treaty with Corea, it is to be hoped
that they will hold their position and take
advantage of their opportunities.
Corea has one of the best climates in the
world, and its mineral resources are al
most altogether undeveloped. Minister
Dinsmore tells me that the King especially
favors America, and that he is anxious
that capitalists should come in and de-
velop the gold mines. The total output of
these mines last year was about $3,000,-
5000 in nuggets and dust. But this was
chiefly the result of placer mining, though
some of it was extracted from quartz Co.
rean quartz mining is of the most primitive
character. Large round stones are rolled
back and forth over the quartz which rests
on hard surface. 1t is admitted that fully
so per cent. of the gold is lost, and the use
of practical machinery might make parts
of this country a second California. Gold
is found in all of the eight provinces of
Corea, but the mines have so far existed
only in several. | asked Minister Dins-
more whether he thought good terms could
be made as to these mines. He replied:
Yes and Americans have the preference
over others in making such contracts. |
understand that a German firm has lately
had mineralogist looking at the mines,
but no sale has been made as yet. think
the investment would be a profitable one
and reasonably safe"
| visited to-day the Kings royal school
for the teaching of young Corean mobiles
on the American plan. / saw about forty
bright young men sitting in room before
desks that might have been used in an
American college and using English books
/ heard their Superintendent, Professor
Bunker address them in lecture in En-
glish and could see that they understood
what he said, though he talked very fast
Professor Bunker tells me there are many
bright minds among the them. and I learn
that many of the pupils are of the royal
family and that all are the sons of mobiles
The best of them when educated will prob
ably be sent by the King to serve in his
diplomatic service abroad.
Speaking of Corean baby eating by the
missionaries, the King in this case sent out
proclamation asking anyone who had
known of babies being stolen by foreigners
to come forth and make his charge good.
He called attention to the fact that
foreigners were civilized, and asked the
question as to how civilized people could
eat children. "But," the proclamation
went on, "if children are being stolen, let
the information be filed before the proper
authorities and the offenders will be ar
rested, and if found guilty by evidence,
will be punished. A reward of forty
thousand cash will be paid for each person
so found guilty, to the informant, but in
case the information is not supported by
the evidence, the informant shall be fined
in like amount for bringing the charge
This proclamation was signed with the
royal seal, and was pasted on the gates and
on the great bell in the center of the city.
The selling of children is, however, not
uncommon in Corea, and | am told that
many are exported to China. Good, fat,
well-disposed babies bring from S. to $40
sell his children.
classes, the King, the Mobiles and the COM
mon people. The latter live in matched
huts and they are the poorest of the poor.
The Mobiles or yang ban are the curse of
the country. They own all the lands and
live by squeezing the people who till them
for them. The better of them dress in
gorgeous silks. They never go on the
street without they have lot Of retainers
about them. When they climb up a hill
they have one coolie behind them and two
to hold up their arms. The more money
they have the more servants they keep.
and the Generals of the army are among
the most pompous of them. One of these
silk-gowned, black horse hair hated Co
rean Generals was going up one of the
hills about the Capital the other day. He
had two men behind him to push him
and two others held his arms, when Cen
eral Dye, who, by the way, is twice the
mans age, walked by him with springing
step and asked him as he passed if he ex-
pected to have that retinue with him in
battle. 1t took some time for the Corean
to appreciate the sarcasm of this remark,
but it finally crept through his topknot
that among the western people lazineSs and
inability were not marks of honor and the
next time the two came together the yang
ban General walked alone.
The American Generals who came here
to organize the Corean army received set
back from the trouble about the baby eat
ing of last June. The people were stirred
up against the foreigners, and foreign IN
novations were for the time unpopular.
The country is now again quiet, and Gen
eral Dye tells me that he hopes that their
real work of reorganization will soon be-
gin. They have a royal military school,
where they drill some of the officers daily.
in the palace grounds. They find it hard.
however, to get the higher officials, who
belong to this do-nothing noble class, to
engage in work of any kind, and as vet
the Corean army on the American plan is
in embroyo Colonel Cummins is dis
gusted with the whole situation. He says
he came to Corea not TO leach school, but
to reorganize an army, and | believe in
his heart he longs for the flesh pots of
Washington. There are about 4, 900 troops
here at the capital. At the invitation OF
the General-in-Chief, | attended an exhi-
bition drill in the court of the barracks
near the palace. About 400 troops went
through many surprising evolutions. They
are tall, muscular men, wearing the Corean
hat on the the top of their knot-crowned
heads and armed with rifles Their dress
is sort of Zouaye pantaloons, ending in
great shoes and stockings of padded cot
ton.
What wonderful city is Seoul It's
100000 people are made up of strange
characters. Everything is new and every
new thing is strange The big wall which
surrounds the city is wonder, and its
three great gates are more wonderful still
They are closed every night at sunset with
iron-plated wooden doors, and after this
time none outside the city can net Il nor