Tue historiette of affairs in Corea between 1882 and 1884 by Lieutonnut Foulk, of the United States Legation at Seoul, which we published lately, is supplemented by two despatches from General Fuote to the Secretary of State. These give an ncconut of the occnrtences on the night when Min Youg Ik was attacked and wounded, apparently as the first step in therevulution of which the progressive party were the soul. Phe story told by General Fuote dues not materially differ from the acco the émeule which we published soon it had occurred. Bat for the sake of ce we now give Ihe more material parts of the despatch of the United States Minister, There is thenticity about it which gi greater weight than attaches to the relations of outsider, In the first despatch, dated the 5th December 1884, General Foote says i—Wo are in the midst of a political revelation, It was innagarated lust evening by the attempted nesnesination of Min Yang Ik, lately one of the envoys to the United States, It occurred at a dinner party, which wae by Hong Yang Shik, vice-minister of the embassy to the United States, here were present Puk Yang Bio brother-in-law to the King; Kim Hong Chip, president. of the Corenn foreign office; Kim Ok Kirin vice-President Vou Millendorff, superiniendant of Customs; myself, my seoretary and interpreter; W. G, Aston, Her Britann' Mujesty's Secretary of Legation, and several other minor officials, As the dinner drew to a close an alarm of fire was given and nearly all the guests withdrew from the table and went out of doors ur to the windows to view the which seemed near at Land. Perceiving no immediate danger I returned with the president of the Corean foreign office and several others to the table.
A moment thereafler Min Youg Ik entered the room, his face and clothing covered with blood which was streaming from seven or eight ghastly wounds. The utmost consternation ensued; the Curenn officials, divesting themselves of their officint robes as they ran, rushed to the courtyard which was already half filled 6 and servaute, At this moment a shot was fired, and the entire crowd precipitated themselves over the rear walls and disappeared, In the despatch of 17th December, General Foote so; "Tt seems that the entire movement is an attempted revolution, concocted by elvised young mon, under vice "president of the Corean foreign office; Hong Hong Shik, Postmaster-General and Pak Yang Bio, brother-in-Jaw of the Ki Ostensibly dissatis cogressive spirit manifested by the leading officials, they determined to seize the Government, obtain control of the person of the King, and to administer public affairs for their own purposes, The fret move rheic plot was the attempted are snssination of Min Yang Ik, and during the excitement occasioned thereby, they rushed to the palace, nud informed the Kingthatthedanger he was in was great, and poraunded him toremovetoa smaller palace." The King then sent messengers to the Inpauese legation asking the Minister to come to the palace with his guard of soldiers. After three messages of this kind the Minister consented and went to the Palnoe, the Japanese goldiers—two hundred in number—being stationed at the meantime five of the lend officials of the Government were called to the palace, ostensibly by direction of the King, and while there were put to death, Lhe Minister then relates how the King him, the British and the German representatives to go to the Pulace for enfets, how the jnlace was guarded outside by Corenn and inside by Inpanese soldiers, and how the streets were crowded all the night of the 4th and 51h of December by excited woby, On the morning of the 6h the populace began to ory "death to the Inpanese" and during the day sume of them were killed and their property destroyed, and several came to the Legation for protection, " Between 4 and 5 o'clock p.m, on the 7th the Tupai soldiers and civilians left their Jegation grounds nnd marched out of the city on their way to Chemulpo. Two cannon shots were fired at them as they passed, and an occasional volley of musketry, which they returned," At night the Japanese Legation was in flames. On the morning of the 5th Minister, Mr. the German Commissioner went to the al General and
palace, where they found the King with little to say und in ® alate of great excitement. After this a of foreign representatives was held, when they tly counselled the Chinese Commissioner to do nothing to disturb the peace or excite the popu-Ince and under all circumstances to avoid a conflict between Japanese ai Chinese troops. He seemed to snuct this policy." General Foote in the concluding paragraph of his despateh says: " Recurring to the events of the 6th instant, I would say that the conflict with the Japanese troops was brought about by an attempt of the Chinese troops to force their way into ostensibly to pro-track the Corean troops joined forces with the Chinese. Dacing the engagement, the King determined to seek a place of greater safely.
Mr. Takezoye, the Japanese Minister says in a note to me, "I took leave of His Majesty and withdrew the Japanese gu Mr, Foulk in hi Jaable narrative of events up to immediately before the attempted revolution Corea has shown a marked leaning towards the progressive school, as he terms Kim Ok Kiun and his followers, and the Tupanese. It was perhaps natural that he sheld do ao; he hnd lived in intimacy with the londere and the flashy politico of Inpnn attrnoted him, His story la the first we think in which the events of 1882 to 1884 are told by thoroughly trustworthy writer, and Mr, Fontk dine plays the restless unive and foreign intrigue which went on in Seoul during that period in an authentic form, to which reference muy nlwass be If we have a fault to find it is with the extent of the confidence which he placed in the King and Kim Ok Kiun, The former seems weak, the Intter the mixture of nstuteneay and recklessness which revolutionists most frequently are, and Mr, Foulk should have seen that Corea could not. after cen. turies of seclusion be prepared for the advanced changes which Kim and the other conspirators sought to introduce, Nor was it likely that China would have stood by and seen political and other notions fermenting in the minely of people close by her door, over which she had possessed a suzerainty for hundreds of years, and this, notwithstanding hor having allowed Coren to make indepondent treaties, Is is evident that Admiral Shafeldt had riv confidence in the King of Corea or the progressive Corenns or in hie being able to do any good in Coren, It is evident also that much of the trouble which has occurred in Coren has sprung frow the want all along of 8 straightforward policy in regard to Corean affairs, and pro. bable that this was at the bottom of what occurred in Seoul this year, Even in the Lands of Li Hang-chung the course pursued by China in Corean matters ling vot been a success or done good to any Power, When it is left to be carried out by inferiors like the late Resident, Mr. Yuen, dieqnietnde to all concerned, and worse, may be expected, ANCIENT ARCHERY, An interesting pamphlet on Ancient and Modern methods of Arrow release has been sent ne by the Essex Institute of Salem, Magsnchuasotte, In la the production of Mr, Edward S, Morse, Director of the Penbudy Acndemy of Scionce, who anys that his interest in the subject was Grst aroused by the method of arrow shooting of a Japanese tries Up to that time Mr. Morse had not been aware that there wae more than one way of properly handling 80 simple ard primitive a weapon the bow and arrow, but he found the Japanese practice in every way different from the English, In the English practice the bow must be grasped with the firmness of a emith's vice; in the Japanese it is held as lightly as pousible; in both cases, however, it is held vertically, but the Huglish rest tie arrow on the left of the bow, while the Jupanese place it on the right. There are other differences, as in the nee of a gaurd of leather on the inner and lower part of the arm by the English, while none is required by the Japanese; the
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.