Los Angeles herald., 1909-09-30
THE FATE OF KOREA
XII-The Popularity of Prince Ito
By Frederic j. HaSkin

missionary, demanding, admission. The
Korean porter, feeling "coclxy" upon
American SOIL declined to admit him.
The japanese stormed the gate, bat
tered 1t down, chased the porter into
the residence and slashed him across
the face with sword in the presence
| of the wife and children of the mis-
sionary. The porter fled upstairs to
a bedroom. The Japanese pursued,
and when the cornered Korean turned
and fled downstairs he overlook him
| in the sitting room and wounded him
a second time. Blood was flowing and
the Korean was crying for mercy
when the children ran into the street
calling for the gendarmes. Now came
the soldiers turn to seek safety in
flight.
American consul general with Prince
Ito and a demand was made upon
General Hasegawa to properly punish
the offender. The final result of the
resident generals insistence was that
not only the offending officer, but all
officers of the regiment were punished
for lack of discipline that had ad-
mitted of this and other outrages.
It was because he swept aside regu-
lations limiting his authority, made
himself autocrat of Korea and exer-
cised his autocratic power as an eX-
ponent of policy of Cancellation and
pacification, as against the cut and
thrust policy advocated by the mill
tary party in Japan and the military
in Korea that Prince Ito came in for
severe censure from that part of the
Japanese press which reflects the senti-
ment of the military oligarchy, and was
hotly denounced as a "backboneless
incapable" who ratified in his boots as
resident general. He made it easier
g., 4, rroA 1etf xrr11n fhorr
had grievances than the army con-
sidered advisable where harsh dis
cipining of the Koreans was urged as
the one solution of the problem. He
made it harder for the lower element
of Japanese to swagger about upon the
soil of a despised people and lord it
over them. The day by day friction
between the two peoples would have
been greatly lessened had no op-
ponents of Ito's methods constantly
criticised him and afforded moral sup
port to the japanese contigent at whose
reform he aimed while essaying to re-
form Korea.
Gossip as to the probable resignation
of Prince Ito had filled the columns of
the japanese newspapers for some
months when he finally Wsigned.
After the resignation took effect there
followed a flood of comment as to the
real reason of the resident general
for stepping out anG becoming a priyy
councillor. The Hochi of Toxic, which
has been the leading opponent of Prince
Ito, declared that Ito made way be-
cause he and Prince Yamagata and
Marquis Kateura disagreed as to the
best policy to- pursue, the resident gem
erals course appearing to the other
gentleman as too mild. This news
paper declares that his excellency ex-
Pected that when he resigned the
Yarlagata faction would urge him to
remain in office a while longer, and
that the ready acceptance of his resig-
nation was a surprise and disappoint-
ment to the veteran statesman.
Toxic "Puck," as soon as the for
NAL announcement of the change was
made, published a cartoon in which
Ito's hat and sword occupied one end
of a seesaw, while Viscount Some was
astride the other end of the plank. The
Some end pointed up into the air. This
echoes the sentiment of every one save
those who prefer a figurehead in the
residency general rather than any one.
however capable, who would assert
himself. One newspaper goes so far as
to express the opinion that with no
stronger man than Viscount Some in
Prince Itos place a real rebellion
throughout the peninsula may be ex-
pected. This view is, however, re-
garded as extreme in view of the fact
that the Koreans are without arms and
without money, and a revolution would
merely mean q settlement of affairs by
the gattllng gun with the gun in the
hands of the Japanese.
Viscount Some is not given free
hand. Affairs are so arranged that
Prince Ito will in a measure direct af-
fairs from Toxic, but the fault found
by his warmest admirers during his
term was that he was absent from
Seoul too much of the time, and that
during his long absences he could not
keep sufficiently in touch with the sit
uation. While Viscount Some was vice
resident general he made an unfavor-
able impression, and when Prince Ito
was not in Korea the residency general
was considered virtually vacant. Be-
cause of this, and because Viscount
Some sided with the Yagamata faction
as to his superior's methods, it Is said
that there is not a kindly feeling be-
tween the incumbent and his prede-
cessor. The situation created is con-
sidered by all foreigners in Korea and
Japan as quite unfortunate.
Tomorrow-The Fate OF KOrea--XIH: A
Glimpse of TopsyturvydOm.