New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1902-06-01
COREA AND ITS CUSTOMS
JAMES HENRY-S GRANDFATHER TELLS
HIM ABOUT THIS LAND OF
THE FAR EAST.

ers- saw said James Henry, showing his
grandfather g picture Of the Crown Prince Of
Cerea The boy in the picture is seated on a
,ov chair and wears a long robe with flowing
sleeves highly decorated and ornamented The
-oha is kent away from the body by pads of
light bamboo. These look like tiny basket
ons are fastened on the shoulders, chest anC
hack so that the air may circulate between
.,e bodv and the dress. This makes the person
bo wears the robe look much larger than he
really is.
THAT is the style in Corea,'' said James
r1anrv's grandfather. and the warm climate
suggests the style. The tall hat which the boy
:, the picture wears is very light, and is made
Of gauZe-
What sort of place is Corea, anyway"
asked the boy
.T1 Is in Eastern Asia. a peninsula which
extends out toward Japan. About two-thirds
If the aaG30 square miles which form the en-
rire are on The peninsula and the remaining
one-thiri is on the mainland The inhabitants
are taller ard more robust than the japanese;
.bev are hospitabe and have remarkably ugly
faces They are in many respects like the Chi
nese but the women do not bind their feet
f. make them small. The present Emperor is
-he twentv-eighth sovereign of his dynasty. His
name is il Hsi."
How did he get his title Of Emperor?
About three hundred years ago his ancestors
-surred the throne. and they have held il ever
since The Emperor in Europe is simply ruler,
but in Corea the Emperor is looked upon as
worthy Of worship; he IS a god, and his slightest
Hhln is law. And Yet Corea, in order TO main
Tain its standing. must buy the goodwill Of
China. and every year delegation is sent 10 the
Emperor Of China with the Corean tribute This
has been the custom since 1861. when the pen
atty o. forced contribution imposed by the
Manchus The tribute consists OF loo ounces of
gold, LOCO ounces Of silver. silks, furs, roots,
spices and various products of the land This
does not fall burden on the people, for there
is population of about fourteen million"
Were you ever in Corea?'
Yes: and I was very glad TO come away, too.
Seoul the capital and chief town, is a dirty, i'll
kept place with a lot Of one-story drab colored
mud houses with tile or thatcfed roofs. The
streets are narrow, crooked and unclean- The
palace where the Emperor lives makes a pre-
tence al modern beauty, but it is far from beau
tfuL There is a green patch all around il. which
is called the palace garden, and outside Of this is
q barrier which may not be passed by the or
binary mortal without special permit
The Emperor holds reception every day, at
which the high officials must appear. They
come 10 the palace gate in their ordinary clothes
and tneE, where every one Nfo passes HAY SEE
them they put their green, flowing robes Of
state on. over their ordinary garments. When
the reception is over, the officials again use the
street as a dressing room. The audience cham
Der in the palace has an American carpet on
the floor. dirty lace curtains on the window
frames which have no glass. and in the middle
Of the room there is an American stove The
Coreans could make a house Very attractive and
beautiful. with their native woodwork and lac
quered furniture, but they think imported things
are more beautiful while really they look ridlcu-
lous In his flowing robes and queer headdress
the Emperor locks imposing if not beautiful;
but sometimes he wears d uniform which was
made for him in Europe, and then he looks like
a country drum major after hard Fourth of
July street parade"
How DO they run the country? Where do
they get money 10 pay for things needed by the
public
The Emperor of Corea knows how 10 levy
taxes as well as any modern ruler. His meth
DDS as peculiar the dress of his subjects
For instance. he is supposed to make a tour
through the city of Seoul once every year.
When he makes this trip il is a regular Oriental
show, much like a circus parade, with the inn
perial chariot the main feature. Well, the
people must pay for all this fun. The Emperors
bill for procession expenses has been as high
as 1p."to yen or about $50, 600. The bill
contains no items and must be paid Once upon
time official was bold enough to ask for
details when the procession bill presented