Evening star., 1895-01-12
Whnt Ruined COrcn.

What Ruined COrcn.
1t is these mobiles who have ruined Corea.
The country is said to be poor, but the
officials roll in wealth. and it is a wonder
to me where they get all the money they
spend. They dress in the finest of silk, and
the ordinary man of rank who has access
to the palace wears a green gown contain
ing enough silk to make lady's ball
dress. The best of Corean hats cost from
ten dollars upwards, and everything is
high. Their expenses in keeping up their
eSta bliShmentS must he heavy. Many Of
them carry from ten to hundred servants
with them when they go along the streets,
and these are all lodged in their own quar-
ters. A Corean mobiles home consists of a
nurS'er of one-story buildings surrounded
by a wall, which. in the city, opens upon
the street by gate which is so made that
you cannot see inside of the yard when it
IS open. Half of this wall is made up of
buildings of one-story rooms, eight feet
square, and these are the quarters of the
servants. The noble has several houses for
himself inside the yard, and a number of
buildings for his wife and concubines. He
lives very well. His home Is by no means
an uncomfortable one, and with it's wide
verandaS, its queerly-shaped ridged roofs
and its warm rooms, heated by fires
under the floor. he can. If he has enough
money, live very well. This money he gets
out of squeezing the people. 1t all comes
from the men who grub the soil. and from
the offices which the kings officials give to
him for consideration. Such an official
is fairly we'll educated from Chinese
standpoint He has learned to read the
chinese, and he can read and write the
Corean. lie has passed the examinations
by which the king selects his officials and
II he can keep up his share of the kings
revenue his office is usually left with him
Many such men write poetry and are good
takers, and men of much more than ort,i-
nary intelligence, and the whole nation has
the making OF very good people, if any
method can be evolved by which corrup-
ton may be done away with, and prop
erty rights be preserved
Inside the Palace Walls.
1 had an opportunity to get inside of the
palace walls once or twice, in addition to the
trip which 1 made through the grounds
when / called upon the king. The build
ings are surrounded by WALL and they are
built within pens, each of which contains
from two to four acres of space. In going
TO the king you have to pass through from
SIX TO dozen buildings, and everywhere
you go you meet soldiers and eunuchs
The kings bodyguard confronts you at
every turn, and there are servants by the
tens of hundreds. There are 800 of these
bodyguards and each of these is so strong
that he has to lift a bar of iron, six feet
long long and weighing one hundred pounds.
from the ground and hold it at arms length
above his head. This is the test which the
soldiers undergo before they are admit ed
TO the guard. If you will straighten out
your arm, bend over and take a rod of iron
weighing hundred pounds and attempt to
lift 1t above your head without bending
your arm. you will see something of the
wonderful strength these men possess.
number Of them are always close to the
king, and they surround his chair as he
goes from one palace to the other, and as
they go they wall out a chant, which means
something like this: Soldiers, protect your
king
The eunuchs are also ubiquitous, both in
China and Corea. These men have great
power. They are said to be wise COUNSEL
lors, and they certainly have q great deal
to do with the administration of govern
mental affairs here. None but eunuchs are
allowed to wait upon the queen, and her
majesty has palaces, soldiers and a retinue
of her own. They dress like the high of
ficials, with long gowns reaching to their
feet. and horsehair caps. They have long,
yellow, sober faces. Their voices have