ART. V.-OPPERT'S KINGDOM OF COREA.

A Forbidden Land: Voyages to the Corea. With an account of its Geography, History, Productions, and Commercial Capabilities, &c. By ERNEST OPPERT. With two charts and twenty-one illustrations. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 182 Fifth Avenue. New York: 1880. 8vo. pp. 350.

THIS is, in many respects, an interesting book. A volume which can tell us anything reliable about the inhabitants and condition of a land so little known as Corea, is likely to be acceptable. The principal interest of the present one, however, lies in the narrative of Mr. Oppert's three attempts to reach Saoul, the capital, and open communications with its authorities. In his account, he tells us enough to show that he is one of that class of adventurous men who are willing and desirous of running great risks for the sake of excitement and a chance of success, but not so willing to bear patiently the failure of a pet scheme; and who never give a thought as to what may be the evil consequences of their deeds upon others who come after them. His account of this expedition to exhume the relics of an ancient Corean king, in order to use them to extort a treaty of amity and commerce from the authorities of that land, will form a rare chapter in its future annals; and the attempt has already placed him in a conspicuous niche among modern buccaneers.

He withholds some features of these attempts to open a trade with Corea which would have shown more clearly the inducements that promised some return for the outlay in the kind of goods taken there; but gives us proofs of his own daring, and notices of the resources, inhabitants, and policy of the Corean Kingdom, which make altogether a readable volume.

Mr. Oppert visited Nagasaki soon after the opening of that port in 1859, to see what he could do in the way of trade, but apparently without much success. On his return to Shanghai, the claims of Corea to be opened to foreign commerce were

urged upon him by several of his native friends, "enterprising and intelligent Chinese merchants, who had for years past cast their eyes in that direction, and collected a good deal of information upon the commercial capacities of the country." How they obtained it is not stated; and as the only trade with the Chinese coast was carried on by Corean and Chinese boats going across the Yellow Sea from Shantung to the islands in the Archipelago on the west coast of Corea, the information could not have been very accurate or extensive. It was in one of these smuggling craft that an English missionary, Mr. Thomas, lived many months, going from island to island, in order to learn the Corean language, and see what the prospects were for entering the kingdom.

About the year 1866, Mr. Oppert got aid from Mr. Whittall, of the British firm of Jardine, Matheson & Co., to make an attempt in the steamer Rona to find the river leading up to Saoul. A French squadron, in 1845, had surveyed the labyrinth of islands, and had lost two ships in those seas; but the entrance of the River Kang had eluded the eyes of the surveyors. Mr. Oppert approached the coast in Caroline Bay, where he met a local official named Ta-wha, who did all he could to dissuade his further progress, but agreed to forward a letter to Saoul in which the object of the voyage was stated. The Rona being obliged to remain, a party from her undertook an excursion into the country, which afforded some glimpses of the Forbidden Land. The authorities had set men to watch the course they took, who were found on guard, and thus admonished not to interfere with their progress:

"Descending into the large plain before us, we found several natives squatting down at a certain distance from each other, who tried to prevent our going on by threatening looks and calls. As we had to pass them on our way, I determined to put an end to this at once; and going up to the first lot with the hand to my revolver, made them understand in so plain a way, how little we were afraid of or cared for them, that they turned at once cringingly polite; and passing purposely close by those who sat forming a line further on, without appearing to take any notice of them, while they did not venture to move or utter a word, we walked on without any further hindrance. This was the first and last time that an attempt was made to stop us on the road; and I have no doubt that nothing but the determined, and not to be mistaken way, in which it was treated, prevented a later recurrence. On the contrary, from that time forward, everybody seemed eager to receive us as kindly as possible."--page 198.

The same

Still such arguments did not further the main object in view; and though Mr. Oppert persistently proposed to remain on shore till the reply to his letter was received, he was unable to obtain permission, and the ship returned to China soon after. On reaching Shanghai, he learned that nine French missionaries had been imprisoned and put to death by the Corean Regent in the spring of 1866; and three others were fleeing and hiding for their lives while he was in Caroline Bay. His ardor in his enterprise was not abated by the sad news. Firm assisted him to renew the attempt in a smaller steamer, the Emperor, carrying six Europeans and nineteen lascars and natives; together with an armament of one nine-pound cannon, a few swivel guns, muskets, revolvers, lances, cutlasses, etc. She reached Caroline Bay in five days, and Mr. Oppert landed near the previous anchorage, where he again saw his former acquaintance, Ta-wha. One of the best defenses of Corea on its west side, is the great extent of the sandbanks made by strong tides which deposit their silt along the shores as they rise and fall twenty feet each ebb and flood.

The next morning the captain went on shore to take observations, and brought back a letter from Père Ridel, one of the French missionaries who had thus far escaped arrest, asking for relief. An answer was returned, but the design to save the refugees was frustrated at this time, though they escaped a few weeks after, with some Christian converts, in a native boat going to Chefu.

Owing to the want of charts it took some days to find the mouth of the River Kang, and the steamer anchored near the town of Kiau-tong, about fifty miles from Saoul. While Mr. Oppert was on shore, he saw an officer and his escort approaching the ship's gig, and hurried down to receive him.

"This officer's large boat had just arrived when I got down to the foot of the hill, but he had such a villainous and repulsive look that I at once declined his offer to communicate with him, and ordered our crew to return to the Emperor. Enraged at my refusal to listen to him, he ordered some of his soldiers, armed with three-pronged lances, looking like Neptune's trident, to retain the gig; but when the most daring made a show of doing this, our uplifted oars descended so quickly and vigorously on their backs, that they retreated faster than they had come, and did not repeat the attempt. Seeing our revolvers pointed at his head, the fellow got cowed, and sulkily assented to follow me to the steamer, where I allowed only himself and two of his secretaries to come on board."--page 245.

During the visit the vessel was slowly going ahead, and at length they were bowed back into their boat, rather disconcerted at their ill-success. Before night she came opposite to the town of Kang-wha, near which a great crowd was seen. Going ashore, Mr. Oppert saw several officers in the midst, and induced them to go off to the vessel without delay. The oldest was the highest in rank, the governor of Kang-wha foo, in which prefecture she was then anchored, distant about twenty miles from Saoul. On learning the intention to go there, he dissuaded the foreigners from carrying it out by proposing to send a letter for them to the Regent. During the conference the boat sent ahead to sound the channel had returned, and reported that the passage was too shallow to proceed further; besides which the captain was told that there was just coal enough to take the steamer back to Shanghai.

Mr. Oppert's reports of another conference with the governor of Kang-wha, named Tschai Kim-heuni; afterwards with a special messenger, named Ni Eung-ini; and lastly with Pang Ou-seu, styled an envoy of the Government, both of whom had come from Saoul to declare that it was impossible to open Corea for foreign trade until the Emperor of China gave permission, all seem to strengthen his opinion of the Regent's willingness to have then terminated his exclusive policy as Japan had done. The causes which inclined to this course at that moment may have been fear of reprisals for killing the French missionaries, and the arguments derived from what he knew of affairs in Japan. But soon after the Emperor had sailed, the American schooner General Sherman, Captain Preston, came into the river from Tientsin, having on board Mr. Thomas and a Mr. Hogarth, with the design of disposing of a cargo of goods; her owners trusting very much to the former's knowledge of the Corean language to help on their enterprise. The circumstances attending her destruction and the death of all on board, have never been certainly ascertained; but the information obtained from some native Christians by Mr. Low, as stated in his dispatch of June 15, 1871, corresponds so well with Corean treachery, that it probably contains the most truth. The Coreans had circulated the improbable story in Peking that the crew had brought on their own destruction by

commencing a quarrel on shore, as they were trying to float the vessel, or guard it against the natives. One of these Christians, who resided near the scene of the disaster, told Mr. Low that the people on board the schooner were enticed on shore by fair promises of civil treatment and trade, and there entertained and treated to drugged spirits, during which they were suddenly seized, bound, and all massacred, some by beheading, others by being beaten with clubs. The cargo was taken out and the vessel burned for her iron; the cannon were sent to Saoul, and other guns cast like them. This took place only a few weeks before the attack of the French squadron, under Admiral Roze, of whose operations our author gives a succinct account on pages 94-103, but so imperfect that it is more tan talizing than satisfactory.

The repulse of the French squadron was sufficient to deter any others from following up the effort to open Corea. The rulers had wreaked their ill-will on all their subjects who were suspected of aiding foreigners in any way; destroying, according to lists furnished by the converts, more than ten thousand persons. The large company of Coreans which annually visit Peking for trade and ceremonies, and are usually willing to call on foreigners there, were that winter (1866-67) very shy. The chief point of interest to them was to learn the probability of the French admiral renewing his attempt to reach Saoul. They were no doubt rather amused when they read the proclamation of the French chargé d'affaires at Peking, announcing that the King of Corea henceforth held his position and authority only at the good pleasure of Napoleon III., and must conduct himself accordingly.

Two years passed, during which the visit of the U. S. frigate Shenandoah to Kang-wha had ascertained the resolve of the Regent to maintain his defiant attitude. Mr. Oppert had got information of matters within the country, and that no encouragement existed for another attempt, when he was approached by Père Féron, one of the three escaped missionaries, with a proposal to try again, and carry out a plan which the latter was sure would lead to the desired issue-" that is, to compel the Regent to accede to the demand to throw the country open." The promotion of commerce and religion was involved in the