Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1904-05-06

Tong Haks and Southern Rice
Growers Are Opposed-Korean EN-
peror Said to Be Entirely Sub
servient to Japanese Demands.
Indifference of Koreans to Out
come of the War.
A staff correspondent Of the New
York Post at Seoul, Korea, recently
sent to his paper the following article
on Japanese influence in Korea:
How it feels to be the bone of con-
tention has been the subject of diligent
inquiry. Altogether it appears that
the Korean people do not care which
side wins or whether the established
government Of their country is over
thrown. This is because of popular
dissatisfaction with the dynasty which
has held sway for 81 years. Corrup-
ton that makes American boss meth
DDS seem like code Of political NOR
ais has thrived in Korea and grown
during authentic history, which means
since 81 b. G. There can scarcely be
any preference for Japanese suprema-
cy over Russian, for this is the fifth
time that Japan has entered the coun-
try to its damage. Traditions 400 years
old tell what ravages she has commit
ted in Korea, and she Is still referred
to as that accursed nation" Yet
such men Of consequence as | have
gained touch with declare that the
sympathy of powerful classes is with
Japan. 1t is not credible, even if the
emperor has expressed cordial senti-
ments to the Marquis Ito. He is capa-
BILE of expressing the same sentiments
to Russia's prime minister, for he is
an arrant coward, a man who weepS
from mere apprehension, who looks
like the residue of decadent line (as
he nearly is, for his son, the crown
prince, can never have an heir), and it
is not long ago that he escaped from
his palace in woman's palanquin to
the Russian legation to save himself
from Japanese plottings.
The class which favors Japan is that
of the officeholders. They have made
a guess as to the outcome of the war.
Tiger hunters of the north are anti
Russian. They have attacked Outposts.
Tong Haks of the middle procedures
are anti-Japanese and within a few
days destroyed Japanese scouting
force. Rice growers in the south are
frankly opposed to the island people,
for, besides legends, there is daily evil
dence Of their innate brutality. Every
English person on the ship we vOyaged
by remarked upon the "beastly way"
the Japanese treated the Koreans at
the ports we stopped at. Indiana or
Delaware would not offer negro such
general indignity and rough usage.
You may infer what the emperor's
own secret human feeling is toward
the japanese by recalling the incidents
of Oct. 7, 1895. That was the night
that forty-Gve Japanese In Seoul, with
the tacit approval of the Japanese min
lister, Miura-as afterward proved at
the trial-planned and carried out the
assassination of the empress. Accord
ing to General Dye, an American who
was the emperor's military adviser and
was present in the palace, the Japa-
nese rushed the guard, some of them
assuming Korean uniforms, pulled the
palace women" by the hair to compel
them to indicate the whereabouts of
her majesty, threw some off the We
randa roof, cut and kicked others, muir
dered two, slashed the crown princess
with sword and threw her downstairs.
The empress was dressing when they
found her. The minister of the house
hold stood at the door with hands out
spread to keep the japanese back, and
his two appraised hands were chopped
off. The empress ran. Out on the We
randa she was overtaken and stabbed.
She asked If the crown prince was
safe, land Jap jumped on her breast"
and ran a sword through her. Then
her body, alive or dead, no one knows,
was taken to the deer park, sprinkled
with kerosene and burned so that moth
ing remained for interment but one
bone of one finger.
This woman was the emperor's wife.
She ruled him, no doubt, but he cared
for her. He refused to sign the edict
which the Japanese caused to be pre-
pared reducing her to the lowest or
der" which is about the only admira-
BILE action Of his that one casually
hears about He feared to eat any
thing except what was sent in lock
ed box from the United States lega.
ton, and he had to fee at last to the
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