Los Angeles herald., 1909-09-23

] IF-SEQFfSyi OOL.-Ou6 Oh lile AAO9'
| lhYtNSNl dramatic of the series of trag-
|lA %Sl edies that have marked the
/ lkTA Nl passing of the empire OF
IlR val Korea was enacted at the
lksa4sAsJ West Gate barracks in Seoul
when the deposition of the emperor
was followed by an order from the
residenoy general instructing the Ko-
rean troops to parade without arms
and hear an order of dismissal The
order was written in insulting terms.
1t denounced the army as a band OF
| mercenaries unfit for purposes OF ma
! tional defense. There was no alterna-
/ tive, and the officers submitted. Ma
| jor PAX, a patriotic Korean, paraded
| his troops, read them the order, re-
| tired to his quarters and committed
suicide. In a sense the Korean tnsur-
rection-it is considered a revolution
| by the Koreans, although the GER
tainty of its failure brought 1t under
the other definition when 1t began
dates from the day upon, which Major
PAX ended his life with his own sword
| unwilling to remain alive and witness
the triumph of the japanese over Ko'
rean independence. But in reality the
| insurrection is the continuation of a
world-old feud between the Koreans
and the japanese.
Rebellion is the inevitable concomi-
tant of conquests or occupation" but
the spirit of the Korean insurrection
and the circumstance of its beginning,
| together with the antecedent causes of
hatred between the two nations, make
it unique. To get at the Korean point
of view it is necessary to bear in mind
the great age of the civilization of this
country as compared with that OF
japan. The Korean, a venerator of MS
ancestors and an idealizer of the past,
ha To q q q nation of
parVenues and upstarts. The Japanese
in turn regards the Korean as a neg
ligible weakling. In the Vocabularies
of the two peoples there are words
which throw some light upon the atti-
tude of each to the other The Korean
synonym for Japanese is something
to throw away" The circumstances
of Japan's acquisition of Korea--for
Korea may not now be spoken OF as
country enjoying a national exist
ence-have not tended to lessen the ap-
plicability of the term for Japanese, In
the mind of the Koreans. The situa-
tion that has resulted has not In
lcreased the respect of the Japanese
for the Koreans. The i'll feeling be-
tween the two peoples dates back to
the period when the Japanese were q
group of wild tribes. and often In
vaders Of the peninsula.
Kija, n ruler of Korea who fiourished
sometime before the reign of David In
Jerusalem, may be. regarded as one
OF the ancients in newer countries. He
Is a modern in the estimation of
Korea. Upon the summit of the lott--
est mountain peak upon the island of
Kangwha there stands a wind-swept
altar which legend declares to have
been erected by Tangun some twenty
centuries before the birth of Christ In
Bethlehem. This is assuredly one of
the oldest monuments in the world.
It may be regarded as the first exist
ing milestone in the progress of Korea
as a nation. Near the present site or
Pyeng-Yang stood the capital of Kija
The Chinese razed its buildings and
walls in 1894 to make breastworks, but
enough Of It's outlines are left to show
that in Kija's time Koreans built cities
distinguished by broad streets cross
ing at right angles, like those of the
newer American cities. At this time
the Japanese were savages.
AS far back as history goes there
runs the story of Japanese incurslons
in Korea, sometimes as freebooters in
small parties, and again as organized
armies, seeking conquest. 1t is said
that there are Koreans today who be-
lieve the legend that there lie hidden
in the foundations Of building in
Seoul the dried skins of 300 Japanese
maidens, exacted as an annual tribute
after the Japanese invasion of 1892.
The story is that the Koreans RENTED
the indemnity after the first year.
During that invasion the Japanese, ac-
cording to another legend, sent thou
sands of Korean noses and ears to
Nippon as trophies. Near Seoul there
is "The Death Cave" in which the
Japanese are said to have suffocated
1000 Koreans who took refuge there
when pursued by Japanese legions.
Koreans still avoid the mouth of the
cave where the fire is said to have
been lighted to fill the chambers with
smoke. These legends show the tra-
ditional attitude of the two peoples
toward one another.
The revolution that began with the
rioting at the barracks when the army
was disbanded cannot be said to have
accomplished any good results. AT
present it exists only in the form of
sporadic outbreaks here and there in
the interior. The effect of insurgent
activities has been a great deal of
bloodshed and destruction of property
without the shadow of hope of vic
tory, BY everyone who is sufficiently
informed to see the utter hopelessness
of the struggle of unorganized and
poorly armed Koreans against the
Japanese army, the "revolutionists"
are regarded as mere disturbers of the
peace, yet in their own estimation they
are pure patriots, giving up their lives
as a protest against their nation hav-
ing been defrauded of it's independence,
and as a protest against their fellow
citizens being trampled under the heel
of the invader.
Little is heard of the insurrection by