Omaha daily bee., 1909-04-25

street cars In shape, with long benches
running under the windows the full length
of the cars and an aisle in the middle.
These benches are cushioned Just as sour
cars at home, and are comfortable in that
one can stretch himself oht at fun length
when there are but few other passengers.
The first-class cars are patronized chiefly
by foreigners and high officials, and the
second class by well-to-do japanese. 1
often go second class, and find II quite
comfortable. Ones fellow passengers US
ually take off their shoes or shed their
sandals and sit on their heels on the seats.
The third class cars are exceedingly
rough. They have wooden benches and
are used only ~ the poorer classes, most
of whom are dressed in native costumes.
In the Korean cars the men wear tail
black horse hair hats and long gowns of
white or pink, which reach to their feet.
They have fun white trousers tied In at
the ankles. and stockings of wadded cot
ton a half an inch thick. Their shoes are
low and heavy and often hob-nailed. There
are also women dressed in white with
green capes over their heads, and porters
who look dirty enough as they take the
luxury of a ride from one station to an
other. There are gaily dressed boys who
wear gowns of bright colors and part
their hair in the middle and plat II in one
long braid down their backs, There are
Japanese OF the lower classes In kimonos.
and many Japanese private soldiers on
their way from post 70 post. There are
Buddhist priests and pilgrims who travel
third class both here and in Japan ana
altogether a fair sample of every type of
the common people of both rincipallties
At the Korean stations
The new stations on the Corean rail-
roads are well built. The roadway Is
graded SO that 1t is level with the cars,
and it is separated from the tracks by
stone facings. There are military guards
at every depot, and the Japanese and
Corean flags are often crossed over the
entrances. This is especially so when
the army officers go over the road. The
train which brought mi to Seoul had Sow
eral companies of privates In it's third
class cars and there was a colonel or
general who Travelled first class. Delega-
lions of japanese and Coreans came
down TO meet us and refreshments were
served to the common soldiers at many
of the stops. At Taiku, a city of @,O0o,
and al one or two other large stations
the Japanese school children came en-
masse. to pay their respects to the troops.
ana tneN mdItlltl UP dHu uoWh' oihi'N
by their teachers. crying: ''Banzai!" or
May you live 10000 years!' At the
same time, the masses OF the Coreans
were separated from the station platforms
by fences and could only look through
the stats.
The road from Seoul to Fusan is well
built. 1t crosses several ranges of noun
talns and has one tunnel 1000 feet long.
There arc about fifty stations along the
line, the average distance between them
beiEg less than six miles. / understand
that the Coreans are using the road moro
and more, and that the freight is steadily
increasing. This is so on the road north
of Seoul and also on the line to Chemulpo.
which is now yielding a profit.
Man Against Steam.
Both here and in Japan the railroads
have a big competition with human
muscle. All along the way from Toxic to
Shimoneseki | saw men, women and boys
hauling great loads in carts from town to
town. They were harnessed up like horses
and they bent half double as they pulled
their vehicles onward, There were carts
drawn by bulls or bullocks, and not a
few OF stocky ponies. ] saw an old man
and a young woman, the latter with "A
baby on her back, dragging a load of
wood, and passed hundreds Of women car
rying great burdens. am told that 600 or
700 pounds is an average CARLOAD for two
persons and that twelve miles is a fair
days march. Bullock carts are usually
drawn by only one animal, and horse carts
likewise. In such cases the driver walks
by the animals head, instead OF sitting on
the load, as our people do. The freight
bullocks and horses are shod with straw.
and in the interior these straw shoes cost
about l cent apiece.