Corea affairs are likely to occupy a good deal of the attention of the rulers of China and Japan during the coming winter. The King is a weak creature who does not appreciate the dangers of his position; and it would require a firm and sagacious ruler to keep Corea safe among the dangers that surround j her. He was secure from interference by his powerfal neighbours, and in a more independent position than any of his predecessors, at least in recent centuries, and bad he steered a safe course all would have been well with him.
But what he did do was, practically, to hand over much of the direction of foreign affairs to Herr von Méllendorfi, who has recently given the world a sketch of the motives which guided him in his negotiations with Rassia. That Russia was the only country which would supply officers to train the Corean gendarmerie without receiving an equivalent is extremely improbable. What equivalent could the United States, for instance, demand, from Corea? They have their friendly and commercial treaty, and it gives them all out, Corea would virtually have been a part of Russia, with this advantage to the astute people in St. Petersburg that the Coreans would have been obliged to pay the cost of the preparations for the destruction of their nationality. The full conversion of the country, into Russian territory would have been accomplished when it suited the St Petersburg authorities. Had it nep been for the publicity which we gave to the intended coup, the treaty would have been signed by the Corean King for everything had been so secretly arranged that none of the ropresentatives of foreign powers had the lerist inkling of what was going on, and the political agents of China and Japan had been asleep at their posts.
There is nothing that need excite surprise in the recent news or rumours from Corea, It was not to be expected. that the King would welcome back the Dai-in-Kun with open arms, or that the party opposed to the returned Prince would see his restoration to a share in the goverament with indifference, and submit to his presence without resorting to disorder and bloodshed. These make up a good
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.