The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-02-19
THECUSTOMS
A Missionary to That Country
Tells OF Its People and Manners.
Mr.. Lees Lecture at MayflOwer Church
in Aid of Mission Work-CuriOus
Laws and Language.

Graham Lee, a Corean missionary, lee
tured on the manners. customs and people
of that peninsula at the Mayfower Congre-
g~ational Church last night. Mr.. Lee spent
a year and a half in the county, and has
but recently returned to solicit aid for the
missions there. He sailed from San Fran
cisco in August OF 1892 and landed at Che
mulpo on Sept. 1. Here he disembarked and
boarded a small river steamer and pro-
ceeded up the river Ha1 to Seoul, the cap
ital of Corea. The description of the coun-
try along the river was graphic and realistic
TO such All extent that the auditor saw the
bare hills pictured in his imagination. The
picture unfolded was that of a placid river
flowing through a country totally devoid OF
trees. though there was an abundance of
shrubbery skirting the river banks on either
side. The absence of trees was explained
to be due to the efforts to rid the country
Of the tigers which once infested it. The
Coreans conceived the idea of telling all
trees and thus destroying the lairs haunted
by the ferocious beasts. The only trees that
are permitted to grow are pine trees, which
are planted for fuel. They are grown and
harvested each year. The small trees grow
to a height of about two and one-half or
three feet during a year, when they are cut
and dried for fuel. The climate Of the coun-
try is mild and healthful.
BY a law that has come down from the
past centuries the gates, which afford the
only means of irgress and egress to a CO.
rean city, are closed at a given hour early
in the evening, and to keep them open after
that hour means death to the keeper. The
law does not afllX a penalty, however, for
his assisting persons to scale the wall, and
the gate keeper receives many "per1s' by
assisting belated travellers to scale the wall
with the aid OF a rope. Mr.. Lee and his
party, in which there were two ladies and
a two weeks old babe, were compelled to
enter the city in this way, except the baby,
which was pushed under the gate. The Co
rean people are an amiable race, but eX-
ceeedingly curious, having a very strong
penchant for peering into every nook and
corner Of a strangers luggage and cycling
him curiously. The dress of the people is
Indicative of their station and civil condi-
ton. Every man is a boy until he marrieS,
even should he remain a bachelor all his
life, and every male person is a man from
the time he marries, should that be at the
age of ten years. All unmarried men wear
long hair, hanging loosely down their back,
and all married men shave the top of the
scalp and wear their hair rolled in a sort
of a Psyche knot, which protrudes straight
up from the crown of the head. instead
of after the fashion Of the American Psyche
knot. The style of hat worn indicates the
wearer's vocation in life, and sometimes
the state of his love affairs, as all persons
under engagement. to marry wear a small
round straw hat a very convenient custom
Of the country is that relating to mourn
ers. Every Corean mournS the death of a
P attiTes f himself ife in 9"s sscR.Sdh and ndu1 wears h a
mourner's hat. Before hfs face he continu-
ally carries a screen to hide himself from
the public. This is kept up for a period of
three years, during which time the mourner
must do no work.
The language of the country Mr.. Lee
describes as abominable. 1t is difficult TO
master on account of the many variations
of the verbs according TO the station oc-
cupied by the person spoken to, the person
form Of verb used in addressing a servant
varies from that employed in speaking to
trated by Mr.. Lee by giving the salutation,
How do you do?' in eight different forms,
ter Of a house would feel insulted If ad-
dressed in a form of the verb beneath the
dignity of his station
Mr.. Lee then gave a brief history Of the
missionary work which has been carried
on in that country ard the progress made.
| He described his first Sabbath in the ORR
entail peninsula, when he heard a sermon
preached in Corean language. He was not
able to understand a word that was said,
but was we'll aware that the speaker, Mr..
Saw. a convert, was deeply IN earnest
i about what he said. He described in detail
a journey from Seoul to Ping Yang, a city
in the northern part of the peninsula for
the purpose of establishing a mission there.
The journey was made on the backs of
small ponies, which perform the same
the Rockies perform in those mountains.
The principal food of the natives is rice
and kimchi. a sort of picked cabbage
somewhat resembling sauerkraut. but with
a smell very much akin to llmburger cheese,
the mixture being strongly seasoned with
pepper. The rooms of the Corean inns
are very small, about SKIS feet, with mud
walls and paper doors. Mr.. Lee had a
translation of a letter written by a native
convert named Kim to a Chicago Sunday
school,, and read it to the audience. The
letter displayed a humility and devotion
caldnno fnrn6 in mora pnliOhtpnR6 u-ritprG
In concluding Mr.. Lee made a strong appeal
for assistance to prosecute the work being
done in Corea, and a collection was taken
to be thus applied.