Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-02-02

the magistrates. He would first send my
Chinese visiting card and the letter from
the king. and then would go on with his
toilet. There were usually about twenty
clerks looking on. and forty almond eyes
were watching his every motion with in
terest- Still, he got out of one suit into
another without loss of dignity. First he
would take off his gown and then his jack
ct. leaving himself bare to the waist.
He had a fine silk vest which took the
place of the jacket. and his gown OF the
most delicate sky-blue went on above this.
The next was the change of his pantaloons.
These were large that they would
have made a suit of underclotheS for Bar
NUNS fat woman, and PAX tied them so
they hung down in zouave style at the
ankles. Next he had wadded stockings
and kid shoes of light color. Now put
ting on his hat he would take pipe as
long as himself and squat on the floor and
smoke as he talked to the clerks. He NOV
ed backward and forward as he talked,
never taking the pipe out of his mouth.
but letting the bowl rest on the floor and
propping the stem against his lower front
teeth He was a regular Corean dude FOR
the time. ard 1 could see that the scrfbes
We're greatly impressed. The chief trouble
was with the cooking. He thought 1t be-
any mobiles about, and my servant was OF
no earthly good. The result was had to
do the cooking myself.
COrean GastrOnOmy.
I found it hard to get enough to eat dur
ing this trip over the country. The chick
ems which were furnished us were of an
uncertain age, and the same was true OF
the eggs. L boiled one chicken for two
hours without making sny impression on
it's uoughness. and l afterward found that
the people do not like to sell to the maSis-
trates. for the reason that they seldom,
pay for anything they get. They Will seize
hot tiY,E. al .ly. ion
L was a distinguished traveller. and they
thought, OF course, 1 would not pay. We
found very poor rice at most of the inns,
and i was more than half starved during
much of the trip. My birthday occurre
on the journey, and my birthday dinner
consisted of toast, rice hye-year-Old
chicken and bit of currant jelly which 1
had brought with me from Seoul. My des-
sert was a little tablet of chocolate, and
this formed one of the best meals l got on
the trip. The sleeping accommodations
were poor in the extreme. At the country
inns had to sic ep on the stone floor, and
were half baked by the straw fires beneath
us. AS soon as the stones We're warmed.
all sorts of creeping things came out. and
l finally compromised matters by taking
out the sliding walls OF the room and
prOpping them up on logs In the center
of the apartment, so that 1 was to GER
tain extent away from the walls and the
floor. There was no privacy whatever, and
children by scores watched me make my
my wardrobe.
Drinking With the Magistrates.
L found the magistrates Well disposed,
and, aside from their pompous airs and
queer customs, they are gentlemanly and
refined. 1 remember one old fellow who
gave me a dinner, and who furnished me
with his trumpeters, who had musical in
struments as long as themselves to toot
me out OF the town. He fell in love with
my bottle of whisky, and mixed 1t with
pony or so of ChartreuSSe. He treated me
to some hot COrean wine. and between the
drinks offered me pickles and candy. He
lived about a quarter of a mile from the
upon me in his own royal chair. which had
q leopard skin covering its back, and he
swayed to and fro and licked his chops as
he talked with me about America. l told
him about our great railroads. our Dig
houses and the wonders of steam. l could
see that he thought l was lying, though
he was much too polite to say so. AT the
close of his talk with me General PAX
gave him a present of an empty apollina-
ris bottle, and this he considered really
great gift, as there is no glass in Corea. 1
had some hairpins with me and a little
looking glass, and I gave these to him for
the ladies of his family. This had to be
managed very adroitly. for it is not polite
in Corea to ask after the wives of your
friends, and the French legation In Seoul
had almost an international complication
the other day over one of it's servants, who
peeped over the walls of q noble to look at
the girls. This magistrate served his din
ner in brass bowls. These are used almost
entirely for cooking and eating in Corea.
and the spoons are of brass, and also the
spittoonS and other uncomfortable arti-
cIes. Every high official carries his spit