Los Angeles herald., 1909-09-25
THE FATE OF KOREA
VII-The Government Upon Paper
By Frederic j. HaSkin

| which Koreans would be left homeless.
! 50 much OF stir resulted that the
| scheme was abandoned. Recently the
/ Nagamorl idea has been revived in the
form Of the Oriental Colonization COM
pany.
The Oriental Colonization company
is subsidized by the Korean govern
ment at the rate of $3.50, 900 a year for
a fixed term, which may be extended
at the pleasure of the residency gem
eral, because the Korean government
is purely fictitious. The Japanese gov
ernment merely operates this scheme
| through the Korean treasury. The i'm
portant offices are held by Japanese.
| The Koreans, with the exception of a
| few who are taken care of by the
Japanese in the matter of office, view
] the outcome with apprehension that
does not seem altogether unfounded.
The announced object of the project
| Is to Induce Japanese to settle upon
| lands and pursue agriculture. I'M
| proved as well as unoccupied lands
may be purchased.
The Oriental Colonization company
has number of functions, one Of
which is that of banker. At present
the money market in Korea is tight
The only opportunity of the native to
borrow Is to borrow from Japanese
Rates of interest upon gilt-edge Sc
curity range from 70 per cent upward
to so. The outlook is that a great
deal of mortgaged land will be ac-
| quired at easy prices. The Korean looks
Sloomily forward to hewing the wood
and drawing the water in modernized
and Japanized Korea, while the Ian
anese colonist runs the farm. Here
the policy of America in the Philip
pines is reversed. The Philippine gov
ernment is encouraging agriculture
and native ownership of lands, through
loans at legal rates Of interest. The
Japanese plan looks rather to the elm
nation of the native landholder than
to his announcement.
One cause of the Koreans unhappi-
ness is the apparently evident inten-
ton Of Japan to put the country so
deep in debt to Japan that it must be
annexed as a sort of receivership pro-
ceeding. AT Masampo recently Prince
Ito, addressing a party of Koreans,
said that the vessel on which they
were lunching cost a sum equal to the
annual revenue Of Korea Only a few
years ago, he said, Japan was hardly
better off. Today, however, he con-
tinedy the Japanese are wealthy
enough to bear an annual burden of
6OO,0OO,0O0 yen, as a result of the mod
ernization of their country. From this
1t Is inferred that Japan proposes to
put Korea rather generously In debt
within the next few decades.
1t was announced recently that IAN
anese residing in foreign concessions
or within 10 Korean miles of foreign
concessions would not be compelled to
pay the sake brewing, tobacco and
house taxes, which constitute an i'm
portant item in the plan to increase
Korean revenue, but would be ex-
or al
Europeans. To others than Japanese
residents in Korea this seemed like
granting a considerable privilege, but
protest was made against imposing
the, taxes upon Japanese even beyond
the 10-mile limit, as this would hamper
Japanese enterprise. Mass meetings
were held and resolutions against pay
ing the taxes were adopted, but it was
finally decided that Japanese should
be taxed as Koreans.
One Industry which Japan proposes
to develop is fishing. Some thousands
of Chinese fishing boats come annually
to Korean waters, and the old Korean
government allowed them to do so for
some thousands Of years. Under a new
Korean fishing law enacted by the
Japanese, China will be required to
prevent this poaching. But the jap
anese and not the Koreans will get the
advantage, for japan Of course grants
her national fishing rights upon the
coasts, and the antagonism of the two
races, together with the fact that the
japanese are backed by the military
and the Koreans policed by Japanese,
results in materially discouraging
Korean enterprise in this line.
AS an example of how some improve
ments are being made, it was recently
announced that several stone bridges
in Seoul would be nut in q tiDtOp con-
dition. Reconstruction rather than re-
pair was the program inaugurated, al
though some of the bridges did not
need rebuilding. A foreigner had his
representative estimate the cost OF re-
building a bridge, with a view to bid
ding. He found that he could do the
work at q profit for 1900 yen, but he
found that none but Japanese could
get contract. The contract on that
particular piece of work was let at
5000 yen. Seoul gets the improvement,
but the treasury is hard hit and the
Koreans are left out of consideration.
One of the last acts of Prince Ito
was to arrange the establishment of
central bank in Korea to unity the
currency The Central Bank Of Korea
is to have a capital Of 100000 yen,
imperial households of Japan and
Korea. The Korean treasury viii
guarantee the payment Of s per cent
interest for a fixed period. The guar
antee may be renewed when the Jap
anese government desires it. The pres
ident and directors are to be Japanese.
A Japanese institution backed by the
Korean taxpayers who have no voice IN
its management!
Tomorrow-The Fate of Korea. VIII; An
Oriental KlOndilSe.