fttew Aspects of the
, . , ,
1l
HOW PUFJ
(Copyrltht, 1909, by Frank Q. Carpenter.)
.EOUU Korea, 1. (Special Cor-
s
reapondence to The Bee.) How
would you like to be a bone
everlastingly fought over by
angry dogs? This has boen the
position of Korea In the past,
LJ
ahd It will probably be ao In the future.
The, country lies at Juirt the right plane
td.be the battlefield of three nations. It
hangs down like a great nose on the east
face of Asia, Its bottom almost touching
the hungry.' overcrowded empire of Japan.
Ita 'top ends at Manchuria, beyond which
' If Siberia, with her Pacific ports, Icebonnd
half the year round and needing it for an
outlet to the warm open seas. On the west
la China, with Its vast horde of almond
5ed subjects, who are Just beginning to
adopt the modern civilization and will soon
covet the world. All of these powers would
Ifke.to chew at the bone of Korea. 'The
Chinese dog Is still too weak to more than
narl at !t. and Russia, for the time, has
been driven back by the Iron teeth of
Japan. The sweej morsel now lies In the
paws of the latter, and she Is wondering
whether she dare eat It or not.
-4-
Korea's Put TnahlM.
'Korea has been ravaged by Japan and
China again and again. The Japanese
came here as far back as A. D. 300 and
under the Empress Jingo conquered the
country. About 100 years after Columbus'
discovered America they again overran
It ' under their "Monkey-faced General"
Hldaynshl, who had taken an army across
the strait, Intending to proceed onward
to" the conquest of China.
I am not aura
"uro
during . which Invasion lt was
that the
Korean! took the skins of the Japanese
and' used them for -drumheads: and the
Japanese, in turn, carried back hotne with
them . several hundred thousand human
ear, which they burled near one of their
KVJ ZSr Ly I " ,
n?22.
"tW Chlnsi nraclr ,t iJ.
KW un to Z ?w.r 'tnLnanTinr!
tVth. right, of the Japanese here. I was
ID th country when the war broke out.
K. kin, e ... h. ..ni.
tribute to - Peking. Tuan-Shl-Kal. who
Was consul general from China to Korea,
was then practically the dictator of this
country', foreign policy, and he had a
way of riding with hi. retinue which
etiquette and custom prescribe for hi.
majesty alone.
.After the war, the Japanese took the
lead and began to bulldoze Korea. At
the same time, Russia drew nearer and
nyarm- mo oorm ana Dgnn 10 cnew
,. tVl. at,. i.-.i .v,
t..r. nn....! r A,7a f.inH.l!
tne jtpanes declared war uwn hernS
t. h. ei,i, in m.
hurla. which has now thrown Korea
into the pawa of Japan.
) v t,
(-' ' , Will Japan Eat Korea t
V.The live question before the world to-
day is whether the great Japanese dog
will est this fat and Juicy Korea. I have
From the Story
Balls Wltnoat Horns.
N HI8 "Irish Ufe and Char
acter," Michael Macdonagh has
a choice collection of bulls.
He called on a hairdresser in
Kingstown. As he was leav
ing the man tried to Induce
tilm to buy a bottle of hairwash. "What
rt of stuff, I. It?" he asked. "Oh, If.
grand .tuff." the man replied. "If. a sort
qf multum in parvo the less you take of
It. th. better."
, 'A' few day. later the writer wa. walk
;)(,' with a friend over the Wlcklow.
.mountains, where they met a "character."
''JWell, Mick." said my friend, "I've heard
some . queer stories about your doings
lately. Och. don't believe thim, suit."
replied Mick. "Sure, half the lies tould
abu'ut me by the naybours Isn't true."
?Xhe following notice Mr. Macdonagh saw
posted In a pleasure boat on the sulr:
'Tha chair, ln tha cabinet are for th
JadUa. Gentlemen are requested not to
rtiiks use of them till the ladles are
I Mated.
i . "r" . ,, , , .,.
.u- u. .- . n.mg.town
newspaper
'Jame. O'M-hony. wine and spirit mer
chant. Kingstown, ha. .till on his hands
a small quanlty of the whiskey which was
drunk by the - Duke of York, while in
Dublin."
t.V $
t.. Retreat r Never I
i In an - Irish garrison town a ' theatrical
sompany wa. giving performances, and
soroe soldiers from th local barracks were
engaged to act aa super., xneir duties in-
eluded the waging ot a fierce, fight In
Winch, after a stirring struggle, one army
was defeated on a given signal from th
prompter, ror a tew nignt. all went wen.
nut on th Friday evening a special per
formance of th plec wa. to be given
under, th patronag ot th colonel and
other . officer ot th garrison. The two
armies met aa usual at th end of the
m
Jo
feronq aci. wneu mey lougni ana lougni mis Mabel," remarked th West Vir
and kept on fighting, regardless of th gini,, s-nator. "you hav entirely rolscal
gonlaad glar. In th ey of their (actor) culated the length of that chain. I s;ues.
aTenerfcl. who hoarsely ordered the proper you don't know how broad Taft 1. a "vs
array, to "retreat, confound you." But the the front. Just try tt on me." and th.
fjght .till went on, and soon the horrified svnatur pircuird a fairly rotund form, and
wuiQagar saw th wrong army being driven It was found that th watch chain would
Jowly off th. .tag, atllf flghUng desper- hav stretched Ilk a taut hawser across
a,tJy.'. Down cam th curtain amid roar. th. front of th president Upon this
uf 'laughter, and th fuming manager measurement five inches were added to th
ztastaaad to ask th delinquents why tbey chain In order to mak It fit th presiden
ts failed to retreat oa hearing th signal, tlal frontage without causing any lncon-
"Retreat. " roared a burly fu.tlller, whoa venienc. ,
18 BROUGHT TO CONSUMER.
come here to find out, and In these letters
nope to tell you or Jut What the morsel
constats and all I can learn as to Its
prospective mastication, tmrlng the past
few months I have been traveling in
Japan, and. If hunger Is any Index, then-
Is no question but that Korea will even-
tually rest In the Japanese stomiuh. Just ,
now the government Is acting Bomewliat
on the humanitarian plan which we have
adopted as to the Philippine Islands. This
was originated by Prince Ito, and, as far
as he and tils assistants can go, It Is be
ing carried out ln good faith. The situa
tion, however, is such that It Is doubtful
whether this can be long continued.
Let me give you -one phase of lt In a
nutshell. Japan now. has 50,000,000 of tha
most Industrious, most aggressive and most
entertaining souls upon earth, and to these
she Is an-dln Rflftoiin more. In hlrth everv
year. All these are confined to a country
about the slzo of California, a country so
mountainous that Its good farming land Is
only 12,000.000 acres. Collected ln one place,
It would be about half the size of. Ken-
tucky, and this small area Is now support-
Ing the whole fifty millions. If all the
land were divided equally there would only
be one-quarter acre per head and the hold
ings all told average less than two acres
ln slse. Suppose you were to cut our
farmers' holdings down to two acres each
and put the whole American people Into
Kentucky, you would have about the condl-
tlons that prevail ln Japan. At the same
time. Imagine that Indiana, Just over the
Ohio river, had a more fertile soil and that
" wawnair tinea, witn mucn lana lying
.. .. . ......
h . . . ... . . ...
vacant! could anyone Keep tne Kentucky
man out of It?
Javanese Immigration.
Ja am, Korea Tne whch fl
between tne countries can be crossed In a
ht- ana today -the Japanese are emlgrat-
,n gradually taking
Po-ei.lon of this territory which they have
Thr e tna offlclals and
Rrmy, 160.000 of them on the ground, and
they are raoldly chanrirut the face of the
country. They have their settlement. In
all the large centers. I found Fusan a new
city when I landed there a few weeks ago.
Instead of mud huts, thatched with straw,
runrlng along dirty alleys, covered with
filth, a new Japanese city had arisen. Wide
streets, as cloan aa a Dutoh kitchen floor,
crossed one another at right angle., run-
ng far up the hill.. There were many
two - story buildings, and .hop. with all
kmu f Koodg- t -j, several miles
. - .- - .
through business streets of one kind and
"n0ther' pR8Bed 'VenU "ch00lB and bl
city Duuuing, ana nnauy stopped at
three - story structure which proved to be a
commercial museum, containing every va-
riety of goods, both Japanese and Korean.
lh(re were sample, of Korean cotton and
Korean silk, and many suggestion, to the
native, as to how they might develop their
country.
Teller's Pack
visage had been badly battered, "and la lt
retrate ye'd have us, wld the colonel and
all the officer, in the boxsT"-4adon
Tkl-Blts.
Making; it Plain.
In the course of his sermon a preacher
In a rural district used the word phe
nomenon. This word caused one of tho
memebera stime trouble, for he was unable
to attach any meaning to lt. Finally, he
determined to seek an explanation from
the minister, and at 'he close of the serv
ice approached him on the subject.
"What did you mean by that there long
word yer used In yer rermon?" he began. -
"Oh, I see you do not know what a
phenomenon Is," replied the minister. "Well
have you ever seen a cow grazing in a
field in which thistles were .growing?" ,
"Yes; many a time."
"That la not a phenomenon. And no
doubt you have often listened to a lark
singing merrily away up in the clouds?"
"Yes."
"Tnat, again is not a phenomenon. But
If you saw that cow sitting on a thistle
,-, ,ke ,.,k thtU woula .
pheno-
menon Cleveland Leader.
Blse of Tnft'a Vest.
It would naturally be supposed that a
woman who knows President Taft as well
as Miss Mabel Board man would have been
the right person to select a present for th.
executive. Tha "Tafters." that IsAh. party
that made the trip with Taft to the Philip
pines, decided to give the president a
watch and chain. Miss Boardmau was e-
iece(1 t0 procure the present.
Tlle watch W(1. , .ub.tntiaj one) lt
.hould be for a man like the president.
ani lh. cha!n WM on. of neavy old
link chains which stretch, from on. vest
pocket to another across tha front of th.
wearer, relate, the St. Loots Star.
Before presentation was made one ot th
"Tafters," Senator 8cott of West Virginia,
called at the Boardman house and was
shown th watch and chain. "Look her.
Hermit Kingdom Under Influence of the
i - i
A."!
' 1 v
-
At ' Talku, a city of 60,000. a hundred
miles furtTier north, there la another large
Japanese settlement, and Japanese cities
have sprung up at Pyengyang and Gensan.
pyengyang Is the biggest town between
P(H)Ul 9Tii the Talu prev0UB t0 tne japan-
chln. lt contttln.d an non nennl. and It
now tne thr(J IarKest clty ln the empre.
It lies on the right bank of the Tatdong
river, some distance Inland from the sea,
and Its situation Is such that some think
It will eventually be the blaaeBt town ln
Corea. It has already ln the neighborhood
of 10.000 Jananeaa settler.. n,1 . seetlnn
devoted to them has been laid out near
the station and Is fast building up. Public
buildings have- been erected. The Dal-
Ichil Glnko has erected a new bank build-
'"K cloae to the gate and the settlement
has a city hall, a clubhouse, a theater and
a government hospital. Schools for both
JTanese and Coreans are going up and the
dry bones of the natives are beginning to
m,w the changes.
There are now between 6,000 and 10.000
aPnese at Gensan on the west coast.
"' nere a 20,000 or more here at Seoul,
wltn another large settlement at Chemulpo.
on the Yellow sea. twentv-slx miles
away. More than 30,000 Immigrants came
In last year and the prospects are for a
steady Increase from now on. This Is
especially so from the fact that a big
colonization company, backed by the gov-
"nmeni. "aa een rormea In Japan. .This
na capital ' of $5,000,000. and it will ex-
P,oU tno crown lands which were taken
rnirva n r iihrtn. v a i i . ,
" -. .ii vuuumuiis vy mo
.linii,... c t .v.. .ui .i a l. -
1 uj.-nun ui mm oiu
emperor now almost two years ago.
S
Look mi Corea.
But first let mt give you a bird's-eye
view of Corea. The peninsula Is ot about
th aame a"aP Florida, and Its area
f " out that of Kansas. It is a.
'ng from north to south a. from New
ork to Cleveland and in some place, a.
Tha coun try lie. Jus opposite our eastern
tata n the otner sloe of the globe. If I
00,1,(1 VTt a hole right through the earth
from "here I now am and had the right
sort of glass I might see the American
un within a short distance of New York
city. The latitude is Just about the same
a. that of Boston, New York.. Philadelphia
and Washington, and the climate la better
than ours. For the greater part of the
year the skies are aa blue as those of
Colorado, and then it rain, for two or three
months, off and on, giving a plentiful sup-
P'V of water for crops. If the mountains
- ' -
had not been sklnrd of their timber the
r8jnfaU " 'UCh tHat they m'Kht be CUlt'"
W. C. T.
T HAS been Omaha's privilege
to entertain many distin
guished women, but few
among them have enjoyed tho
world-wide distinction of Mrs.
Lillian M. N. Stevens of
Portland, Me., and Miss Anna Gordon of
Evanston, 111., president and vice presi
dent of the National Woman's Christian
Temperance union, who spent a part of
last week and the week before ln the
city.' A few years ago they took up the
work that Frances Wlllard laid down be
cause they, through their long and close
association with her, were deemed beat
fitted to carry on and carry out the plans
she had so wisely laid ln the work for
temperance.
Mrs. Stevena 1. a woman of exceptional
executive ability. She has the kindliness
and the firmness that, combined with
thorough knowledge of parliamentary law
and quick Judgment, make the admirable
presiding officer. She is also one of the
comparatively few women who possess
all th. essential, of the successful public
1 .
w.
C. T. It. COMMITTEE THAT INSPECTED THB OMAHA AUDITORIUM IN
CONVENTION.
THE OMAIIA SUNDAY BEE: MAY
'r . - --.--,.--. t
rixwnNO II KOREA.
vated clear to. their tops, and by reforesta-
tlon auch farming- will probably be done.
Land ot Moaatslni.
. Corea, like Japan, Is a land of moun
tains, but the mountains are less steep
and there are more broad, open valleys.
There Is a range which runs north and
south from Manchuria to the Strait of
Corea, with spurs branching off here and
there. The range Is not lofty. There are
but few peaks a mile above the sea, and
he highest of them all is only 8,000 feet.
This Is Mount PaJk-To-Ban. an extinct
volcano, whose crater Is filled with water.
forming a beautiful lake of unknown
depth. The average hills are below the
altitude of the Blue Ridge In Virginia, and
some slope off Into plains,
All of these mountains were at one time
'eIl wooded
There were forests from one
nd of the peninsula to the other, and the
farms rar. up the sides of the hills. Today
In the central and lower parts of Corea
the tops of the ridges are as bare as the
desert of Sahara, and there. Is only a
thin growth of pines on the sides. This
Is so all the way from Fusan to Seoul.
Right here at the capital, which lies In a
hasln surrounded by mountains, the most
ot the llla are a" nare aa the Rockies,
nd the clay has been washed down )nlo
,ne valleys. Trees will grow easily, but
tne people skit the mountains year after
'T "-ry vegemiun in oraer
hat 11 may be used for fuel. First they
cut down the tree- ter they chop
nwnv rnn Hnrnui nnn vn mi vrnwrn a n n
- "
flnollv null im Ihm mramm until tha OAtintro
- -
looks as though It had been plowed over.
f over by men and women. The clods are
How Corea Keep. Warm. broken up with mallets, which the peo-
At this writing the street, of Seoul are pie swing back and forth as they, walk
filled with bullocks, ponies and men loaded through the furrows. TheTe Is no machln
with fuel which they havV brought Into ' ry of any kind." "The grain Is all sowed
the city for sale. Porters go along with hy hand. It Is threshed with flails and
cartloads of evergreen branches fastened winnowed In the wind, the grain and chaff
to the llta-v. a sort of framework which being thrown" high Into the air.
they wear upon their backs. Bullocks by
scores are entirely covered with bundle,
of similar fuel. A single animal will carry
almost 1,000 pounds, or as much as one
horse could haul In a cart ln our country.
Indeed, the load Is so large that you could
not put it into an American cart. Tt rises
six or eight feet above the back of the
Im 1 1 1 rf r gnH hanoi Hjtm.n nn Ih. al.l.. .1.
mQKt to feet tnat one we(1 llttle
more than his head, tall and hoofs an he
goes along the road. There are ponies
carrying wood, chorped Into stove lengths
and tied up In bundles, and men laden with
charcoal which has been made In the hills.
ins cnii-i uirm oi neaiing nere is Dy
fes. which run under the floor, and straw
twlB" and Plne branches are excellent for
The chief form of heating here Is by
U. Convention Committee
speaker. Convincing and eloquent, she
also has a voice of rare carrying quality
til at may be heard by thousands.
But Miss Anna Gordon, more than any
one else, perhaps, came closest Into the
life of Miss Wlllard. A Bostonlan by
birth, a. a young woman still In her
teens her association with the organizer
of the World's Woman's Christian Tem
perance union began. A. Miss Willard's
secretary and constant companion -he
was trained Into the work she has as
sumed as head of the Loyal Temperance
legion, the children's branch of the or
ganization. Rest. Cottage, Miss Wlllard'.
home at Evanston, at her death reverted
to Miss Gordon for her lifetime and after
that becomes the property of the organ
ization. This Miss Gordon maintains Just
as Miss Wlllard left lt and thousands of
people visit lt. The National Woman's
Christian Temperance union headquarters
are maintained under ylie same roof,
though In a separate and newly con
structed building. It Includes twelve
room, and house., beside, the records of
0
2, 1900.
' ""- ...- -M.
7y ' "
'""J;-.n"ri-
.. . .
this purpose. A bunch Is put In at the
entrance of the flues and lighted, and Its
flames spread out, making the floors hot
almost to roasting.
One of the first works of the Japanese
will be to stop this skinning of the moun
tains. They will plnnt trees as fast as
possible upon the available hills, thus con
serving the rainfall and greatly lncreiislng
the land susceptible to cultivation. ' They
have already planted model foTests ln the
vicinity of Seoul, Pyengyang and Talku,
Bn(1 as oon aa tlle nurseries are In good
hPe ePn the program to other
parts of the country.
Farms ot Corea.
Today most of the farms of Corea are
confined to the valleys. The area being
cultivated Is Just about half that which
Is tilled ln Japan, and If It were as In-
tenslvely farmed lt wo
000,000 people Instead of
would he feeding
less than 15,000,-
000. as now. I am told that the soil here
Is naturally much better than that of Ja
pan, but I doubt If the product Is one
fourth as large. The farmers fertilize but
little and they know nothing of artificial
manures. During a recent trip over the
country I saw men carrying manure from
the villages to the fields on their backs,
and farther on bullocks were used for the
purpose, the stuff being loaded Into baskets
of straw rope which hung down on each
side of the animal.
Everywhere the . methods of cultivation
were crude. The plows were little more
than forked sticks shod with Itoo. They
, . . . . .
are one-nanaieu niiairs, arawn Dy dui--
.-j....- - ... , - ...
iocks, reminding one oi me piows or me
scriptures. Much of the country Is hoed
The contrast between the country
scenes of Japan and Coiea is striking.
Everything ln the former country shines
with thrift. There is not a weed in the
fields, the houses are neat and well built
and the people clean and rosy from the
hot baths they take every day. All farm
ing here Is done ln the most slovenly
way. The methods of taxation and
squeezing have been such as to leave but
little Incentive to work, and the hulk
of the profits have gone to the officials.
The farmhouses are mean. They are
scfiialld huts of mud and stone with roofs
of straw thatch tied on with strings. They
are collected together in llttle villages
which often nestle on the sides of the
hills. There are no trees or gardens
about them. Every home Is surrounded
the organization, a working force of
twenty or more which carries on its
business.
In her mildness and gentleness of man
ner Miss Gordon is not unlike Miss
Wlllard. Her work for children is a work
of true love and her success in leading
hundreds of little folks ln temperance
demonstrations has been remarkable.
Mrs. Stevens and Miss Gordon visited
Omaha to confer with the local commit
tee regarding the entertatnment of the
National Woman's Christian Temperance
union convention next October. Monday
morning, with the committee, they In
spected the Auditorium, suggesting ar
rangement that would hare to be made
for the great gathering of women. In
the afternoon they addressed a big meet
ing of club women at the First Congre
gational church.
The local entertainment committee In
cludes: Mrs. Louis Borshelm, Mrs.
George Tllden, Mrs. Edward Johnson,
Mrs. R. Scott Hyde, Mrs. Eaton and Mrs.
Elmer Thomas,
m
CONNECTION
WITH TUB NATIONAL
i--p "
'--""" "v: -r--
.J
... 'A
. ' v
L '
1 4..
v
, 1 (k:;
KOREAN
by a mud wall high enough to keep the
men on the streets from looking In at
the girls.
The streets sre winding alleys, where
the garbage of the houses Is thrown out
to rot In the sun. Sometimes ditches
run along the sides of the streets serving
as sewers, and the houses have no sani
tary arrangements whatever. The condi
tions are so bad that typhoid, cholera and
dlsentery are of frequent appearance and
smallpox Is almost universal. Nearly every
other face one sees Is more or less poc
marked. and parents, I am told, do not
count their children as permanent possibil
ities until after they have had that dis
ease. These are some of the conditions of
this country which Japan is trying to make
over.
Land Wltlvont Roads.
As to other things, Corea in many re
spects Is worse off than the Philippines.
There are -practically no roads. The only
ways from place to place are by bridle
paths with fords across the streams. Now
and then one finds a rude bridge, two or
three feet wldfc, propped up on poles, and
again he has" to make his way over such
streams by stepping stones or be carried
across on the back rf men. Practically all
transportation away from the railroads Is
by pack bullocks, ponies and porters. All
these carry great loads, and the men will
take as much aa 600 pounds at a pinch.
There Is a big guild of porters. Hi men
are found in every city and village and
can be seen everywhere carrying great
ltiads over the country.
One of the first things that the Japanese
will do will bo to make wagon" roads, and
military highways, connecting all parts of
Corea. I understand they sre building
some now, and that four main lines are to
be constructed. A number of new rail
roads have been planned and several
started. This Is In sdditlon to the 600 mile
line now In operation. At present, Japan
is so poor thst It cannot push this fea
ture of Its work, but It Is Its Intention to
extend the railroads at the earliest possible
time.
People of Corea,
I have space here for only a word about
the people of Corea, They are among
the queerest and most Interesting of the
Asiatic races and have great possibilities.
One on the
STATELY old professor was sp
proached by a young student
I ot.e day In one of the western
I colleges. Trying hard to keep
jHjj back a smile, the young mm
"Profeasor. you say you are an expert at
solving riddles, don't you?"
"I claim that I am, my boy."
"Well, then, can you tell me why a man
who has seen London on a foggy day and
a man who has not seen London on a
foggy day are like a ham sandwich?"
The professor studied for a long time,
venturing several answers which proved to
be wrong. Finally, at his wit's end, be
aid:
"I give it up."
"It's easy," said the other.
"Give It lip," repeated the professor. '
"Why," was the reply, "one has seen the
mist and the other has missed the scene.
Ha, ha! Catch on?"
"Of course I do, you lunatic! But what
has the sandwich got to do with It?"
After the youngster hsd recovered from a
pell of laughter he chuckled:
"Oh, that's what you bite on." Circle
Magazine.
A French Compliment.
Wit Illumines one of the dueling stories
In Monsieur Ronzler-Dorclere's recent book.
"Sur le Pre."
Prince Pierre Bonaparte and a French
gentleman, Monsieur de la Valette, fought
'with pistols.
Monsieur de la Valette fired first and
missed. The prince fired, hit De la Valette
Just above the belt, but did not mound
him, owing to a 6-franc piece In his wslst
eoat pocket, against which the bullet was
flattened.
"Sir," said Prince Bonaparte to his ad
versary, holding out his hand, "let us make
friends, and allow me to congratulate you
on the forealght with which you have In
vested your money." Youth's Companion.
Ualy the Kit Can Wed.
That they ar physically and morally fit
to wed Is what prospective brides and
bridegrooms In the state of Washington
will have to show by physhlans' certifi
cates and affidavits after Juu 1 befoi
any county auditor can Issue marriage
licenses.
The new law provides also that women
must be of legal age, fixed at 18 years,
and men a years; also that th. parent
cannot glv consent uoleM th girl U mor
than U year, of ag.
D
Japanese
l iT7 ..;.,yS;:
PORTERS.
As to tholr number, a census wa. taken
some time ago and the count made 10.0OV
000. They have been so squeezed and
ground down by taxation, however, that
they will not give out the full number of
souls In each house, and the probability Is
that there are many more than were
counted. A fair estimate, I am told, would
be 14.000,000. The Coreans themselves esti
mate the population at 20.000,000, but their
figures are ot little value, aa they have
no basis to go on.
The most of these people live In villages
such as I have described. There are nn
very large cities. Seoul has now pertiHps
SK0.000, although the census gave It only
about 200,000, Pyengyang has 80,000, Talku
60,000, and after that come Chemulpo, Fu
san, Gensan and Snngdo.
Social Conditions.
The people are divided into classes, and,
formerly, the emperor and the nobility
owned most of the lands and held all the
oTfices. They have been the curse of the
country and have squeezed the others un
mercifully. The nobility until now have
gope about dressed in silks and fin. grass
cloths, with a lot of retainers about them.
They have had coolies with them to hold
tip their arms as. they walked, and If they.
Tode, a servant would go along on each
side of the horse to see that they did not
fall from the saddle. They did absolutely
no work and considered lt a disgrace to
carry a bundle. The boys who went to th
modern school, established by th emperor,
took servants along with them to carry
their pencils and paper, and some tramped
to the school building through the rain, lie
cause they would not endure tha disgrace
of carrying an umbrella.
This sentiment prevails somewhat todsy.
although it Is fast disappearing. By the
coming in of the Japanese the most of the
nobility have lost their fat Incomes and
the farmers and common people are now to
have a better show. It Is claimed that
they are being oppressed by the Japanese,
but their condition cannot possibly be as
bad as it has been In the past and the
dawn of freedom seems to be breaking.
The Japanese are establishing courts ln the
cities, and they propose to thoroughly re
organize the government of the provinces
as well as that here at Seoul.
FRANK G. CARPENTER.
Professor
The penalty for giving false information
or performing such marriage is a fine ol
not more than $1,000 or Imprisonment in the
state penltentisry for not more than three
years, or both.
It is also provided that no woman under
46 years of ago or man of any age, ex
cept he marry a woman ot more than
45 years, either of whom Is a common
drunkard, habitual drunkard, epileptic,
feeble-minded. Idiot or insane person, or
formerly afflicted with hereditary Insanity,
or is afflicted with, pulmonary tuberculosis,
or any contagious disease, sball Intermarry
or marry any other person within the
state. .
One on tu ttrgnlar.
During the encampment of several regi
ments of British soldiers fn a certain din
trie t the wood and turf used for cooking
purposes were carted by the neighboring
farmers. One day a donkey cart full of
turf was brought In, the driver being a
country lad. Aa a regimental band was
playing he stood In front of the donkey
and held the animal tightly by the head.
Some of the "smart ones" gathered round
highly pleased, and 'the wit of th party
asked why he "held his brother so
tightly." , . .
The reply wa. crushing: "I'm afraid h
might enlUt." . '
Secretary Wilson, of the Department of
Agriculture, said the other day of a certain
farmer:
"He is now profiting by t lie department a
advice, but he was very stupid at the be
ginning. He farmed as a Philadelphia
woman, one spring season, planted her
garden.
"The woman's husband cime home and
found her poring over a seed catalogue.
She had a long list of seeds written on a
Sheet of paper.
" 'This as a list, my dear,' she sal !,
that I want you to buy for me tomonow
at the scedtnan'a.'
"Her husband looked at the list. Then
he laughed loud and long.
" 'You want these flowers to bloom th:
su.umer, dou'l ou? said ht.
" 'Yes, of course. '
" 'Well, those you have put down here
don't bloom till the second summer.'
" 'Oh, that's all right,' the lady aaiu.
easily.'
" 'All right? How Is It all rlghtr .
" 'I am making up my list,' sh. rs
phUnedT 'from a, last year'. oataJogua'
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