The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-07-14
KOREA is PEACEFUL
NOT MUCH DANGER OF A WAR OVER
THIS HERMIT NATION.
Interview With Former Head of the Lesa-
tien-What the Country Amounts To-An
Ignorant and Contentcd People-stories
Told by Missionaries.
[Special Correspordence.l

Especial Correspoudence.l
WASHINGTON, July 9-"There is a
great deal of ignorance about Korea, and
no wonder" said Hon. Hugh DinsmOre,
"for it is but yesterday, as it were, thatany
intelligent foreigner penetrated the coun-
try. l reached there in 1887 and took
charge of the legation on the 1st of April
and at that date there Were only vague
ideas about it prevalent in the western
world. md yet their civilization. such as
it is, dates back to the twelfth century
before Christ. = Chinese prince and his
followers, who were dissatisfied with
things in their own countsy, crossed over
and subdued part of Kaoli, as the aborig-
neeS called the country, and founded a
civilization which has endured with very
few changes TO the present The original
people were Mongolians and the Chinese
who went there were of the old stock, so
the present race is pretty nearly or quite
pure Mongolian, of the old kind. At COM
paratively recent date the Chinese were
called in by the Koreans to help them ex-
pei the japanese. and so China acquired
nominal sovereignty. In no long time
this became what is called a mere suze-
rainty, and the tribute was only nominal
Finally il amounted to nothing more than
yearly exchange of presents, accompanied
with embassies, between the king of Korea
and the emperor of China. For many cen
turtles Korea was called the Hermit Nation
and was the most isolated of all the eastern
nations which had made any advance at
all, and the point to be noted as bearing
on the present difficulty there is that China
made treaty with Korea in exactly the
same terms as with any other independent
nation, and so acquired the right to MAIN
tain legation there. This consider a
surrender of all the old claims of China
A Bit of History.
'Well, about 260 years ago, the Roman
Catholic missionaries got foothold there
and began to make converts, but in the
course of time the native government be-
came very severe on them. The Jesuits of
France came in, and in the early part of
this century, by Disgusting themselves as
mourners were enabled to go about with
comparative safety. The Korean mourner
wears wonderful hat, which looks more
like an inverted cotton basket than any
thing l can compare it to, and carries a lit
tie mask made of sort of cloth stretched
on two sticks. This conceals his face, and
as he wears sackcloth the whole thing
amounts to perfect disguise. Neverthe-
less q cruel war was made on the Chris
tians, and some missionaries and many
native converts were killed. 1t is esti-
mated that there were still 5000 native
Christians when our relations with the
country began, but that, take it, is rather
uncertain.
I'm 1866 an American vessel, the Gen
eral Sherman, was wrecked on the coast of
Korea and looted by the natives, and so
little was known about it that our govern
ment called on China for redress. The
Chinese disolaimed oil responsibility,
which for the second time as l think, pre-
oluded them from claiming any soverei gnty
there. In 1871 Admiral Rodgers sailed up
the Han river to demand redress, but the
people took to the woods, and while there
was little fighting there was no indem-
nifty. To understand the rest of it you
must know that the reigning king, the
one to whom l was accredited, is not the
son of the preceding king, who was child
less, and named his nephew as his success
sor. The latter being a minor, his father
reigned some years in his stead and was
known as the Taiwon-kun. The present
king assumed sovereignty at the age of
90. The Tai-won-kun while in power per
secuted the missionaries terribly, but in
the interregnum, TO call it such, there was
an opportunity for independent men to as
sert themselves and way was opened for
them by a sort of accident. Owing to the
complications with China and the United
States, possibly to increasing intercourse
with Japan and other reasons, a visiting
embassy was sent to the United States, at
the head of which was Prince Min Yong
X.
The Prince Was Fireman.
His suit consisted chiefly of young
men, who became imbued with western
ideas and wanted to have Korea follow
the example of Japan in adopting west
ern ways. Prince Min Yong TX at first
agreed with them, but after returning
home opposed their movements, and so a
revolution was attempted. The prince was
at a state dinner with his cabinet and
some foreign ministers when the alarm of
fire was raised. BY virtue of his office he
was the head Of the fire department. such
as it was, and went out to give directions
when he was set upon by the eonspirators
and desperately wounded. He got safely
TO his house, was skillfully treated by an
American missionary and recovered, but
in the meantime the outbreak was sup
pressed, and the surviving conspirators fed
TO other countries. Their leader. Kim Ok
Yum, escaped To Japan and did some mis-
chief there, for he was born conspirator,
and then fled to China. He Is the man
who was recently killed in Shanghai, of
which so much has been said, but am
positive that the king of Korea had moth
ing to do with his death.
In 1889 the treaty with the United
States was made, and the two countries
have maintained diplomatic relations
since. Mr.. Lucias II. Foote of California
was our first minister there, and after a
brief interval, in which the post was held