MWMUllMjiiiiMii I ii i - i r"n 1 - r i ' ' ' ' -j ' ' " hlsi i aV mxmwii us m
(Cnpyrllit 1902, by Frank Q. Carpenter.)
1 AOA8AKI, Japan, Feb. 9. (Special
J I Correspondence of The Bee.) The
111110 cuumiy vuic uht.ub
an Industrial and mining boom,
ii rnl.l rpirlnns are oDenlns ud.
Its ccal deposits are being prospected and
rallrcads are planned to cover every part
of the peninsula. At Shanghai I met Leigh
Hunt of Seattle, who, in connection with J.
Slcat Fassett of New York, baa one of the
most valuable mining concessions of this
part of the world. He has the absolute
rieht to a country about as bin as Rhode
Island some distance from the Corean
capital, which Is rich In gold.
ThlB territory has been worked for ages,
but in the crudest manner. The Corcans
had no machinery. They washed off the
top of the placer mines, but were not able
to reach the bed rock. They did a little
quarts mining by chipping out the ore with
their soft iron tools. They wpuld make
holes in the rock and 011 them with fuel. go far tne Americans are doing the only $1,000,000 in gold, including the bridge
This being Ignited, made the rock red. hot. mining or much importance. Other con- over the Han river, which was to cost 1190,
when they would pour in water, and thus cesslons have been granted to the Pritchard- 000. Messrs. Collbran and Bostwlck corn
crack the surface, so that they could chip Morgan syndicate, an English company, and Pleted a large part cf the road. They or
lt off. Tho ore thus obtained they crushed to E Meyer & Co., representing German dered H their materials from the United
by rolling huge stones over it capitalists. The German concession Is States, including timber from Washington
They had no pumps and could not go deep ,moi, ,. ,, B1nnin th.t hoM t Hunt and and Oregon. They had the materials on
on account of the water. The shafts were
emptied by balling them out with gourds,
which were passed from man to man to
the surface. Wherever a stream or perma
nent water was struck the shaft was aban
doned. How Amerlraaa Mine Gold la Core.
Fassett and Hunt have Introduced the
best of modern mining machinery. They
are now operating three mills, or In all
about eighty stamps, and they will soon
have another mill, which will give them
altogether 120 stamps. They expect to put
in an eiecirio plant oi sumcieni capacity 10
operate all their mining machinery. nd for
this water will furnish the power.
I understand that the property Is being
worked yery cheaply and at a great profit,
There are about sixty American and
European experts among the employe and
about 4,000 Coreans. The Coreans receive
25 cents a day and do not kick on long
hours. The concession gives the company
the standing trees on the land at JO cenU
gold per cord; this is said to be sufficient
to timber the mines. Until lately all the
hauling has been done with the bullock
carts of the country, but American wagons
are now used and other kinds of our ma-
chlnery will be Imported.
Corea promises to be a second California,
When I first visited It fourteen years ago
I was shown quills filled with gold dust
:
:
UUILDINQ AMERICAN BRIDGE OVER
THE CENTER OF THE PICTURE.
Hermit Land to
AMERICAN RAILROAD CAR3 IN COREA.
and pin-niad nuggets. The coolies brought
them In and traded them to the merchants,
At that time the country was producing
kuu'ji a,vuu,uvu itui m ui ulu Jta' uuuj
its placer mines. The yield was even
irrfntr whn I vlli(l Care In 1894 lust
before the war between China and Japan,
although no modern machinery had yet been
used.
General Greathouse of California was then
adviser to the king. He told me the moun-
tain were full of gold and Thomas W.
power, the young American electrician whj
the llehts Into the klna's oalace. de-
Bcrlbed to me how the king's ministers once
brought him a box filled with gold dust and
nuggets in payment of a bill against the
king for electrical machinery. Mr. Power
said that one of the nuggets was as big as
the palm of his hand and about an Inch
thick. His bill was for (47,000 and the gold
reallied more than that amount when he
B0i,j ,t at the mlQt jn Osaka, Japan.
Fassett. The English concession is about
half the size of the American and it is
situated to the south of the latter. Both
English and Germans are doing some work.
The success of the American company Is
known throughout the far east. It has
brought numerous miners and capitalists to
Corea, who have so annoyed the govern-
ment that for the time no further mining
concessions are being granted.
Japan's New Corean Trunk Line.
The work of the railroads, however, la
still going on. The Japanese have sur-
yeyea a rauroaa irom me capuai, oeoui.
to Fusan. the southernmost port of Corea.
Fusan has an excellent harbor, only a
short distance from Nagaaakal, and this
road will probably form the end of a Co-
rean connection with the Trans-Siberian
road, so that one can take the cars In any
part of the European continent and go to
Japan with only a night's ride or so by
water. The distance from Seoul to Fusan
Is about 300 miles. It is estimated that
the road will cost 25,000,000 yen, or $12,500,-
000 in gold. This Is more than $40,000 a
mile and it is doubted whether the traffic
of the road will pay interest on the
cost of construction. The road would be
of great value to the Japanese In case of
war and it will form the chief highway of
Japanese trade to Corea.
Fuscn has a large Japanese settlement
11
TTi ' - - -
V u
THE HAN RIVER H. COLLBRAN OF
Be Covered with Railroads
and Its foreign residents, most of whom
are Japanese, now number about 6,000.
The Corean town of Fusan Is apart from
. . . D
by walls within which live about 33,000
people. The port has a trade approxlmat-
ing $3,000,000 a year. Seoul, the cap tal,
at the other end of the line, has a popula-
tlon of about 300,000, and it Is the center
of all things Corean.
The Japanese are very anxious to control
tho railways of Corea. They already own
the road which the Americans have built
from the port of Chemulpo over the moun-
tains to Seoul. That concession was first
granted to James R. Morse of New York,
ono of the best known Americans in the
far east, and its building was begun by the
A merit au firm of Messrs. Collbran and
Bostwlck. The road Is twenty-five miles
long. It Is of the standard American guage
ni construction offered no great engl
neerlng difficulties. The price agreed upon
the ground when Morse sold out the whole
to a Japanese syndicate, which has finished
the construction and is now operating the
property. The rolling stock is American
and up-to-date, but the engines are little
yard engines Instead of the camel-backs
sed on our roads. The Japanese insisted
n mU engines and they are laboring un-
der great disadvantages on this account,
I m told that the Coreans patronize the
ca- The re tne ,azlest mortals on the
face of the globe and the richer 'among
the tntnk ,t beneath their dignity to walk.
A nob,e usuaiy has two servants with him
durng every pedestrian trip. One servant
Wttlkl along on eacn ild8 and hoid8 nlm up
by passing one hand under his armpit.
Another Corean road which promises well
lg Deing surveyed by Frenchmen. This will
unlte geoul with the northwestern boundary
ot tne COuntry, ending at the town of Wei-
cnu French capitalists are interested In
u . , huiit hv Vrenrh nirinpr
wltn French material. It will form tho
northern extension of the road from Seoul
to Fusan, and from its terminus a branch
wln probably be built through Manchur
t0 connect with the great Russian line,
ij-he Corean government wants the road
j,unt and jt jg expected that it will give
aDOut $50,000 per annum to it.
Dl.ne.t Electric riant In Asia.
It seems odd that the largest electric
V .i
D ENVER. THE CONTRACTOR. STANDS IN
Mr'
'. f ..... -
TROLLEY LINE IN SEOUL, EQUIPPED AND
r-lant In Asia should be found in the hermit
land or Corea, but this is tne case. Messrs.
Collbran and Bostwlck have the manage-
. o
cessfully. It includes electric lights f r
Seoul, which, as I have said, has 300.00J
people, and' it also includes an electric
railroad, embracing the principal street
of that city and running a long distance
outside. The street railroad 13 an overhead
trolley and iU rails and rolling stock are
of the most Improved American pattern,
Each car has two divisions, one open and
the other closed. The open part is for the
secona-ciase passengers, no pay lower
fares than those who ride In the closed
part. The cars are run by Corean motor
men, who are rather careless, but who, so
far, have killed only one of the pecp'.e
they have knocked down or run over.
The company which furnished the capital
Is entirely Corean, with Yee Cha Yun, who
was formerly Corean minister at Washing-
ten, as president. It has issued about
$300,000 worth of stock and Mr. Col. bran
received a payment of $100,000 at the be
ginning of his contract.
The road was originally planned to have
but bIx miles of track. It already has ten
miles and eighteen miles more are to be
put down. It now runs out through the
city, passing the palace, the chief business
houses and the foreign quarters and goes
on to the tomb of the empress.
Collbran and Bostwlck have alao secured
a bank concession and they are now put
ting up a handsome building in the center
of the city at a cost of 75,000 yen. They
have a contract for waterworks in Seoul
and another for a short interior railroad.
They are enterprising men and promise to
make fortunes in this part of the far east.
Mr. Collbran comes from Denver, where he
is well known In railroad circles, and Mr
Bostwlck Is from San Francisco.
YBllM A ,,,., .
" romment in toren.
Indeed, the Americans are among the
111081 Prominent of the foreigners In Corea.
Tn'8 haa been 80 8lnce tne countT waa
PeneJ- 11 was an American, Admiral Shu-
feldt wno made the first treaty with the
Klns a"a American missionaries nave been
the chief educators of the people. An
American, Dr. Horace N. Allen of Ohio,
Lion Coffee
is 16 ounces of pure
coffee to the pound.
Coated Coffees are
only about 14 ounces
of coffee and two
ounces of eggs,
giue, etc., or no
value to you, but
money in the pocket
of the roaster.
I
mm
tan ii
B A LDUFF
Caterer
and
OMAHA,
GROOMS' CAKES
very rich, mellow and free from arlt Rnd seeds. Beautifully decorated and
securely packed for shipping. WARRANTED TO KEEP IN ANY CLIMATE.
18 inches In diameter cuts, 12 S pieces $15.00
IK inches in diameter cuts, IOO pieces $12.00
12 inches in diameter cuts, (JO pLees $1.00
Wedding Cake boxes filled and tied with ribbon, per hundred, $13 to $:0.
BRIDES' CAKES
very white and tender artistically decorated la white and sliver.
18 inches in diameter cuts, 125 pieces $10.00
15 inches in diameter cuts. 101) pieces $5.00
12 inches in diameter cuts, 60 pieces $;t.OO
8ENT BY EXPRESS TO ANY PART OF THE UNITED STATES.
MANAGED BY AMERICANS.
saved the life of one of the royal family
when he was almost cut to pieces in a revo
lution In Seoul about sixteen years ago,
and since then he has of all the foreigners
been the closest to the high officials of the
court. He was a friend of the late queen
and now that his majesty is an emperor
he holds equally close relations to him. It
has been largely through Dr. Allen that
the Americans have been awarded the best
cf the concessions and that they have a
fair chance at everything. He was for
some years secretary of our legation at
Seoul, but when McKlnley became president
he appointed him minister, which position
he now holds. He is, indeed, a valuable
man.
Another American acts as adviser to the
Corean government, an American is em
ployed as its civil engineer and Americans
will probably supply the materials for the
emperor's new palace, which is already
planned. David W. Deshler, the stepson of
Governor Nash of Ohio, is treasurer of the
(Continued on Seventh rage.)
A Rood Inoklns '
honw and poor look
ins horn BBS Is th
btnutlon. jfe
Eureka
Harness OllS
not only makrathoharnem and the I I
borne lot k better, but mukea tb I
leather soft and pliable, nuts It In con- II
to
, union to last twice ns long
I, us it ordinarily would. J
a' i' 1 . .-!
mo 1 a Ttrrwncra id nh-ii
una. u dj 11
STANDARD
Uive
Your
1 Mm
Horse a
Chance t
A BUSINESS DISPUTE
is easily settled
when accounts are properly kept. Don't
practice false economy by trying to aav on
BLANK BOOKS. We will make you a set
ruled and printed to order at such a small
cost that you can buy the best.
A. I. ROOT, Printer,
414-418 S. lath 8t.. . . OMAHA. NEB.
Confectioner
NI-HKASKA.