Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-06-05
IS K0REANS
ARE KILLED
IN CHURCH
49,
Incident Happened in Con-
nection With Independ-
ence Movement.

Koreans9were shot Or killed with
swords or bayoaets by Japanese sol
diers in q Christian church building,
at Cheam-ni, forty miles from Seoul
in connection with the Korean inde-
pendence movement.
This has been confirmed by an In
vestigation by British and American
consular agents and by missionary
leaders IN Korea The Facts are admit
ted by the japanese authorities at
Seoul, including the Governor Genera
Hasegawa- The authorities say that
guilty Of It have been punished and
that orders have been given to pre-
vent a recurrence.
Investigators also have found that
c cfnS, was burned By tie Japan
ese and that several Koreans there
were wounded in an attack by Jap
anese soldiers who shot them or used
their swords and hayonets on them as
after the troops had set fire to the
buildings.
Reports have been received of the
burning Of Christian churches in three
other villages and Koreans told The
Associated Press correspondent at
Seoul that they could show him nine
villages which had been burned by
the japanese.
Details Of the massacre at Cheam-
nj were obtained by The Associated
Press correspondent who visited that
Curtice, the American vice consul at
Seoul and Mr.. Underwood, an Ameri-
can missionary. Subsequently the or
respondent again visited the place
with Mr.. Royds, the British consul
and several missionaries including
the Rev. Heron Smith, who is in
charge Of the work of the Methodist
to Cheam-ni, the Seoul correspondent
writes that when they asked residents
of nearby villages why that hamlet
had cen burned they were told that
it was because there was q Christian
church and many native Christian in
the village.
when we got to the place which
had been a village Of about 40 houses
we found only four or five standing.
CONTINUED. I'VE found a body fright
fully burned and twisted Lying in a
compound and another either of q
young man or woman just outside the
church compound. Several groups of
people were huddled under little
straw shelters on the hillside with a
few Of their pitiful belongings about
I14S14A. 414Oy "OAS AA1SokLy "oAAlO4s 0OA14S
old, others young mothers with babies
but all sunk in the dull apathy of alb.
ject misery and despair. Nj. Under
wood, an American missionary. who
talked to them in their own language
brought the story of what happened
"The day before we arrived soldiers
came to the village and ordered al
the male Christians to gather at the
church. When about 80 were in the
church the soldiers opened fire OF
them with rifles and then entered the
church and finished them off with
swords and bayonets. After this they
set fire to the church and to houses
which otherwise would not have beer
burned"
One Korean told the correspondent
he was alive because he was not s
Christian and was not in the church
Later when the correspondent made {
second trip to Cheam-ni, with Mr.
Royds, the British consul, and a part.
of seven including several mission
aries, he said, 1--WE photographed free
ly without interference but when WI
man would saunter up and the Kore
an would freeze up They were il
fear Of what might happen later j
they were seen talking to u.s."
The party however, divided up ant
obtained many interviews concerning
the story as the correspondent learn
ed it on his visit. They were told tina
two of those killed lin or near tn
church were women who went to tina
building to learn what was happenin,
to their husbands. !.
The party headed by the British
consul then visited Soochun and foun,
the village had been burned. The Ko
reans told the visitors that they wer
awakened in the night by finding thei
houses on fire. When they ran GU
they were struck with swords, an
bayoneted or shot. None were kille,
but several were wounded, and w
saw one man whose arm had bee
laid open with a sword. A church an,
thirty houses had been burned her
but no attempt had been made t
clean up the others.
The Rev. Stacy. l.. Roberts, a.
american Presbyterian missionar
stationed at Pyeng Yang has issued
statement asserting that more tina
100 Koreans were shot or beaten t
death in Tyung-ju and a church ther
burned by Japanese.
In another village eight miles ava
another Christian church and a
academy for boys were burned b
Japanese soldiers after the content
such as benches, stoves and mats wer
carried away and put to use in tn