Koreans suffered most, and a circular note sent by the heads of the county to village headmen is now regarded as having been the chief means of instigating the people, through the Vigilance Committees, against the unfortunate Koreans, inasmuch as this note was regarded as official and anything official in the villages in Japan is tantamount to the truth. The note was as follows: "There is great fear of some of the Koreans in Tokio, in collusion with the radicals, causing trouble, profiting by the chaotic conditions existing in the capital. We, therefore, urge, under instructions from the Police Headquarters, that local firemen, ex-service men and members of young men's, associations ce-operate in guarding the Lines and property of citizesvs and in taking—suitable action in case of emergency.
One feels that the authorities are more to blame for all that transpired than are the unsophisticated villagers. A friend of mine in Honmoku, Yokohama, whose house had collapsed but had not burnt, and who with the aid of his Japanese servant had managed to erect a sort of a shanty with boards rescued from the debris, told me that on Sanday, September 2, as he was seated in his improvised home, he heard piercing shrieks of ''Hitogoroshii" (Murder). He went to the spot from where the screams came and saw six Koreans, tied hand and foot, who were calling on all the gods to witness that they had done nothing and grovelled in the dust begging that their lives be spared. They were forced to bow their heads and a man with a sword came along and beheaded them. The sword was none too sharp and the gruesome operation took more than one blow. The crowd calmly looked on, while some ceremoniously declared "Thus may the enemies of Japan perish!' The pity and pathos of the whole thing was that these unfortunate Koreans were not enemies of Japan. Their Ppersecutors and murderers were the real enemies.
Another batch of Koreans being taken by the police in automobiles were attacked by the same mob and were killed, The mob then turned its fury on the police, shouting. "Kill the Police who befriended the Koreans who destroyed Tokio." The Police just barely managed to escape, thanks to the arrival of a batch of cavalry who dispersed the Vigilance Committee.
Similar incidents occurred in various other parts of the stricken regions. At Kumagae, near Tokio, 42 Koreans were done to death after a scuffle between the local Vigilance Committee.and_ the, police for the possession of the unfortunate Koreans.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.