Los Angeles herald., 1909-09-24
THE FATE OF KOREA
VIA Government Press Agency
By Frederic j. HaSkin

the east and west alike.
Referring to the beginning of jap
anese activities in Korea, the publicity
department says that from the very
beginning it has been the unbroken
policy of Japan to open the Hermit
Kingdom to the world, to establish
terms of neighborly friendship with the
peninsula nation, to strengthen the
Korean imperial house, and to main
tain the independence of the country"
Treaties successfully made between
Japan and China, Japan and Russia
and Japan and Korea to guarantee the
independence of Korea, are cited
Japan's endeaYors ito maintain Kor-
can independence" it is explained,
were so greatly obstructed by China
that war resulted.
The interesting period of the develop
ments of the Japanese policy of reform
punctuated by the butchery of the
queen under the covenant between the
Japanese minister and Taiwonkun, is
passed over with the statement that
latter the war between China and
Japan the Japanese government re-
verted to her program of friendly ad-
vice, seeking to correct governmental
Irregularities and abuses which threat
ened the integrity of the kingdom"
The almost equally strenuous period
OIL MORGAN lllSlOiyg mai hGu ny lllS dU-
sorption of all authority, internal and
external, by Japan, and by riots, the
suicides of Korean patriots, and gem
eral upheaval throughout the country,
is passed with the statement that,
subsequently to the outbreak of the
war with Russia, Japan "by success
sive agreements" obtained control of
Korean affairs. There is added the eX-
planation that these successive agree
ments followed the demonstrated in
ability of the Koreans, upon account
of corruption and incapacity in Of
ficialdom, to govern themselves. After
reading the book, so sunny is the de-
scription of the altruistic efforts of
Japan to uplift Korea, the reader who
has not been upon the ground, and
noted the differences between tie Jap
anese administration upon paper and
in practice, is forced to the conclusion
that the Koreans are a nation of in
CRATES as well as a herd of crooks and
incapables.
The publicity bureau proper is, of
course, not the whole of publicity ac-
tivity in Korea. Japanese newspapers
of the military party, prior to the
resignation of Prince Ito, when he was
being declared incompetent to attend
to the duties Of his office, and urged
to make way for a younger and strong
er man, made the charge that a num-
ber of newspapers in Korea and else
where were regularly subsidized by
the residency general. The names of
the publications and the amounts al
legged to be paid in monthly INSTALL
ments to the various Japanese editors
were given. In the heat of argument
these opposers of Prince Ito's efforts
to arrive at a pacific solution of Japan's
administrative problem in Korea may
have exaggerated the facts. The i'm
patience of the military party with
Prince Itos policy was such that
scruples were abandoned in the on
slaught. There are, however, several
newspapers, including one in Seoul,
which are residency general organs.
For time the emperor of Korea was
by no means unrepresented in the pub
licity field. The Korean Daily News,
edited by a young Englishman, Ernest
T. Bethel, and published in Korean
under another name, as we'll as in
English, was the advocate of the old
regime as opposed to the Japanese. To
the Korean Daily News the emperor
turned for channel of publicity when
ever he was in trouble, and during the
last years Of his reign he was usually
in hot water up to his ears. When in
July 1907, Japan was trying to force
the frightened emperor to abdicate, or
proceed to Toxic and apologize to the
mikado for having sent emissaries to
The Hague to pray the foreign powers
to intervene and prevent Japan from
annexing Korea, the emperor sent for
Mr.. Bethel, asking that the news of
his plight be published. This was done
and a ferment throughout the country
resulted.
It is not within the scope Of this ar
ticle to discuss the strenuous career of
the Korean Daily News. Every effort
was made by the Japanese government
to discredit Mr.. Bethel. Success was
not met with, although the paper was
temporarily gagged by the British su-
preme court of North China upon
technical charge of sedition, laid as
result of Japanese diplomacy request
ing Great Britain to suppress Mr..
Bethel. Last spring Mr.. Bethelps
death ended the Korean Daily News.
The residency general had kept the
Seoul Press alive as an opponent to the
Daily News It's occupation was now
ended, and in June it was decided that
M. Zumato, a Japanese graduate OF
Yale who edited the Press, would serve
a better purpose as publicity agent OF
japan in New York. The Press con-
tinues an emasculated existence.
The important news channel in SeouI
at present is the press agency OF the
residency general, which shoots over
the head of residents of Korea, aiming
at bigger game in larger world.
Tomorrow: The Fate of KOrea-VH: The
Government on Paper.