DONCERNING KOREA.

Mataura Ensign, 27 January 1911, Page 2

DONCERNING KOREA.

JAPAN'S NEW COLONY. A PICTURESQUE PEOPLE. "Annexation of Korea by Japan." That was the. heading which stood prominently in every paper a short time ago. To the ordinary reader it conveyed little, beyond the vague impression .that our Far Eastern ally had taken another of those steps which are-making her a world power. There is another side of the picture. Eor the Koreans it is the end of centuries of consistent effort to preserve a dignified independence under their own Emperor. A quiet, peaceful, unoppressive yet intelligent race, the Koreans have kept themselves to themselves, wishing no other treatment from the other nations of the East than to be left alone. Beyond the swift, though narrow, River Yalu, which rushes from an inland sea between the two peaks of th>-> Ever AVhiic Mountain, lies Manchuria and the "Great Nation," as the people have always called China. Southward of this torrent is the peninsula m which Japan has ?:o lorn; <-ast longing eyes. Thz 02d Ortfcr Changeth. The nat iiv.l impression of many is that tin .-. little territory, of the size of Great Britain, is peopled like the rest of the mainland. This is not so. The Korean differs from the Chinaman, and ironi his traditional foe across the 100 miles of sea to tho southward, as much as does thj Italian from the German or the Pole. He differs in language, in custom, in dress, and in Enumerable other ways' from cither. ' | Beyond the Yalu, the Chinaman, in blue smock and flowing pigtail, guides his wooden ploigh, and exhorts his mule-team ; while, just across the river, cxen, even-tempered and slow, drag a rteel-shod plough, behind which stalks the solemn-faced Korean, wearing his hair in a top-knot, hi.; body swathed in spotless white garments. Korev, low that it lias become a province of the progressive Japanese, will be forced to abandon its old customs and beliefs. The old will give place to tli" new ideas in agriculture. The mechanical devices of the West will supersede the means of transport and traction, considered by the indolent native to be quite, good enough for hundreds of years. Pigtail Football. The rich, rice-fields and rye-fields of the valleys, planted generation after generation by father and son, will, in many eases, own new masters. Mines \w!l. develop the hidden treasures of the ! mountains. The silence in which the monks of Buddha have so long rejoiced in their mountain retreats will be shattered by noise of stamps and other machinery. Amongst the bleak and barren hills, perhaps, townships will spring up. But will this strange, silent people take kindly to the new conditions? To the present time the uneventful life of the Korean has been the strangest contrast to the hustle of life as we know it. As a child, lie may not have such a profusi'i t of toys as may be found in an

English nursory ; but he has his kites, and his tops ant! his own particular games, which he plays with real z,cst. "I he missionaries of the English Church have introduced fort-ball, which is played with a vigor and contempt of rides which would break the heart of a lefc-ree. At'six or seven the boy goes to school —that is to say, he attends at a place where knowledge is expected to be acquired, the knowledge consisting of learning to write "real writing"—i.e., in Chinese characters. 'This having been, to some extent, mastered, together with a certain amount of ability to read, he proceeds to study the classics of Confucius. Ho works now from dawn to evening, week in, week out, with no rest on Saturdays or Sundays, and with only such holidays as fall to his lot because of the occurrence of some festival or religious feast. The monotony of his existence is relieved by the prospect of marriage. Tins may happen at any age from twelve to twenty, according as his parents may decree. A irontloman whose profession is to arrange these social contracts is consulted. The murriairo-broker is a man of considerable genius. Ke plans the alliance and settles the terms, and saves the families immense trouble and probably not a few unpleasant incidents. Marriags " Buns." The wedding-day of a Korean boy is the one occasion when he is important. His pigtail is no longer at large, it becomes a sedate "bun" on the top of his head. He as.'.umes a wonderful garment and head-dress, similar to those worn by Court officials. Accompanied by his father, and mounted on a horse of diminutive si/.e, he proceeds to the abode of he; bride—whom he has never yet seen—and demands her surrender. Poor child! Her life is now to begin. And such a life! Her face, for this great occasion, is hiddoirb •neath a coat, of p.iint and "powder; her eyes are sealed by a kind of wax, and her eyebrows are pencilled. The broker presents the parties to each othe: - , and the bride is hurried into a litter. Nothing is permitted to obstruct this cavaknde. E-eryona makes way as for Royalty. On reaching the house of the bridegroom's parents the bride's party are presented with much formality. Profound bows are made, a cup of wine is sipped by each, obeisance is made to the tablets of the family forefathers, and the marriage feast begins. From this moment the child-bride is the slave of her mother-in-law. That is t,h > "rear dav to which a Korean looks—the wdding-day :iT her first son. Tt means, for her an end of work: for has she -lot now ;; daughter-in-law whom she may beat and scold and put upon, just, in she herself was served before her? The bridegroom cannot assert himself t< nrotect her. He eats the meals his child-wife cooks in solemn state alone; while she may take away what he leaves as her portion. AH old customs and traditions di° hard, and the elder women of Korea will, no doubt, sindi before long for the good oh! days when daughters-in-law 1 n<j\v their place.