The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-08-29
by Chas. T. Conyer. 1913.
BIRTH GREETINGS.

b1R1H GREEl1NNS. The expression used by everybody in Korea to the father of a newborn son is, FT am grateful while if in quires elicit the fact that the recent arrival is 8 girl, nothing more is said!
 And should it be mentioned, that so- and-so is the father of four sons, ev- erybody exclairns, ''Ah, he must be a man of great virtue!'
 Tn younger childhood the boys and girls mix freely together they play in the street. From the age of ten or twelve the girls are taken indoors and put to work; after which period they are seldom allowed to go out, except it be/ to the we'll to carry water to the house, or else to the stream-side for laundry work.
 SEGREGATION OF WOMEN. In order to understand the way wo- man is shut off from communication with man, it is necessary to- describe the plan of a house which a gentleman Of average means inhabits.
 Passing through the gateway which leads to the house, one first sees on one side of the yard a room used for the accommodation of men servant ts, chair coolies and others who are of lower social rank than the family Beyond this is the sarang, or the mems reception room. Generally speak ing this sarang is a set of three rooms, each eight feet by eight, opening from one to the other by means of sliding doors. Admission to the rooms is through the lowest of the three, where, during formal calls or on other occa- sions when servants are present, they stand; then according to rank of the visitor and the number of those pres ent, they will be seated in the upper and middle rooms. The host takes his seat on long cushion spread across 19A end ciI1 iIa1- sl7- ions are spread, at one side only, of both his room and the middle one.
 If there are several guests present and one needs to be specially honored he will be invited to-sit@beside the host in the upper-end room, while the oth- CTS arrange themselves in a row upon the cushions of the two rooms. As soon as everyone is seated the ser wants fill up the four-feet long tobac- co pipes, light them, and hand one to each guest.
 According to the plan of the house there will be a. second gateway either at right-angles, to or at the side of the sarang and situated somewhere in the courtyard is the well, the water of which is used for all household pur- poses and at the mouth of which the rice and other food is washed.
 Passing through the middle gate,s' as it is called, one comes to the an pang,l the wonnen's quarters. Accord- ing to circumstances they may be one or two suites of rooms similar to the sarang In the kitchen, which is just outside the end room, the rice-pots are embedded in the masonry which is the continuation of the floor of the room. Thus while cooking, the flames and smoke pass through the aflues under the floor Of the room and do double service by both cooking the rice and heating the house. These rooms are
 1l,S1 <,f the master of the house. If there is a married son living there he will oc-, cupy the room, or suite Of rooms, built at right angles to those just re- ferred to.
 Facing, and across the yard from the first mentioned rooms, are two or three storeroorns, at the side of which tion of slaves. ALI these rooms open into the courtyard around which they are built The ladies of the house are absolutely confined within this small enclosure, and are not permitted to go outside the gate except upon occasions when visiting their relatives or friends and then they are carried out in ka- mas (c1osed sedan chafrs)
 The middle gate,'' though it may never be locked, is an effective barrier between men and women. The laws of propriety which are very stringent, To infringe, forbid any man the right of entrance.
 The law of propriety which forbids general intercourse between men and women makes an exception in favor of the father, the father-in-1aw, the un- cIes and cousins, even to the fifth de- gree but it makes it imperative that the wife shall not entertain, or even see them, except in the presence of her 
 Such is the actual position of the women of the better class, but force do people has, to a greater or lesser extent, brought about the slackening of the cords which hold her in sec1u- sion. This is increasingly true as we descend the social scale until we come to the homes of the poorest; there we shall find but one room for the entire family, and this is used alike by men and women.
 At those seasons of the year which are the farmers busiest times, the wo- men are frequently to be seen in the field working side by side with their husbands and other men.
 WEARING A VEIL.
 , There is relic of China dating back to about 450 years ago which takes the form of a veil. It was first worn in imitation of the women in the great Ming country. From the time of her formal betrotha1 whenever she leaves the house modesty demands that she don the veil which covers her person from the crown of her head to her an k1es. It is gathered round the face and held by the hand in such posi- tion to leave only the eyes and nose exposed to view. While the principle holds good throughout the country the form of the veil varies according to the locality.
 In Seoul it is made of green silk in the shape of a long cloak, the sleeves of which flap about in the wind. This is known as the chang-ot and is so named because it was first used by women in going to market. The coun- try fairs and markets are called chang and so these veils are spoken of as