A new invasion determined upon.... comparison of Japan and Korea....
Japanese scheme to get Admiral Yi into danger.... Admiral Yi
degraded.... second invasion.... Choryŭng Pass fortified.... Chinese
give aid.... Admiral Yi’s successor a failure.... great naval
victory for the Japanese.... Admiral Yi reinstated.... siege and
fall of Nam-wŭn.... Korean naval victories.... Admiral Yi’s
policy.... Japanese advance checked.... rejoicing in Seoul.... siege
of Ul-san.... siege raised.... Roman Catholic missionaries.... the
Japanese army.... the “ear and nose mound”.... number of Chinese....
a Japanese settlement.... Chinese admirals.... Admiral Yi’s
diplomacy.... Gen. Yang Ho recalled.... the King accused.... the
defense.
We have now reached the halfway point between the two invasions, or
rather between the two parts of the double invasion. Hideyoshi was still
furious over the failure of his great plan of invading China, and he
must needs find some way to vent his spleen. He determined upon a second
invasion of Korea, not this time with a view to the invasion of China
but with the more modest desire to punish Korea, though what Korea had
done to deserve punishment it would be hard to say. To be sure she had
proved an obstacle to his vaulting ambition, for had Hideyoshi’s
original army sailed straight for China instead of landing at Fusan, it
probably would have overthrown the Chinese capital. We must notice the
changed conditions which existed between the two countries. Korea had
now experienced the worst possible at the hands of the Japanese and knew
what to expect. Their soldiers had felt the prick of Japanese swords and
had in turn tasted the delights of victory. That terrible glamor which
surrounded the dreaded islanders upon their first appearance had worn
off and some sort of equality had been effected between them. The
Koreans had meanwhile become possessed of firearms and were measurably
skilled in their use. They had learned never to trust themselves to open
battle when geurilla warfare was feasible. They had demonstrated their
great superiority on the sea in the person of the Admiral Yi. When
therefore we remember that the Japanese had to leave their base of
supplies and live on what they could forage in the peninsula, it appears
that in spite of their prowess they had not much advantage over the
Koreans. But before making this second descent upon the shores of Korea
it was necessary for the Japanese to get the redoubtable Admiral Yi
Sun-sin out of the way. No fleet from Japan would risk an encounter with
him in his “Tortoise Boat.” The Japanese had seen how the mutual
jealousies of the Koreans worked in their favor and they determined to
use this in getting Admiral Yi removed. So one day a Japanese named
Yo-si-ra made his appearance at the camp of Gen. Kim Eung-sŭ, saying
that he was tired of being a Japanese and that he wanted to become a
Korean. He dressed in Korean clothes and kept going back and forth
between the Japanese and Koreans, giving the latter what seemed to be
much valuable information. He seemed to be devoted to the Korean
interests. One day he came in a state of great excitement and said that
the Japanese General Kato was coming to Korea with a great fleet and
that, as he was to pass a certain island off the coast, Admiral Yi ought
to be sent to lie in wait there and drive the invading fleet back or to
sink it. So Gen. Kim wrote to the king about it and asked for orders.
The king, trusting in the prowess of Admiral Yi, gave his consent; but
when that officer received these orders he promptly replied that it was
a trick to entrap him and thus clear a way for a descent upon the
mainland of Korea. He therefore declined to run the risk, especially as
the place mentioned was studded with sunken rocks and was specially
dangerous for navigation. But the Japanese Yo-si-ra kept urging Gen. Kim
to see to it that the plan was carried out and at last the General wrote
to the king saying that Admiral Yi declined to go. As may be supposed
Admiral Yi had enemies at court who could not let such an opportunity
pass of getting him into trouble. Consequently the iniquitous decree
went forth that Admiral Yi be seized and brought to Seoul and that Wŭn
Kyun be put in his place. The king intended to put Admiral Yi to death,
but one of the officials urged his former services in palliation of his
present offense and so the punishment was commuted to loss of position
alone. So it was that Admiral Yi, the best soldier that Korea contained
and to whom the king owed his crown twice over, was degraded to the
ranks and became a common soldier. But most remarkable of all, he made
no complaint, but went quietly about his work as if nothing had
happened.
In the first moon of the year 1597 the Japanese fleet set sail from
Japan. This army was led by Kato and Konishi although the nominal
commander in chief was a lad of seventeen named Hideyaki. It is said
that it took a thousand boats to bring the army across the straits. Had
Admiral Yi Sun-sin been at his old post this fleet would never have
touched keel on the Korean coast but as it was there was no difficulty,
and the entire army landed safely at So-sang Harbor and immediately
threw up fortifications and went into camp.
The first thought of the Koreans was to fortify Cho-ryŭng Pass the one
break in the mountain chain which the Japanese must pass if they wished
to march on Seoul. Gen. Kwŭn Ryŭl with 23,000 men and other generals
with troops hastily gathered from various districts hastened to that
important pass and put the fortifications in good order, and the king
forthwith sent Kwŭn Hyŭp as envoy to Nanking to implore the intervention
of China. And now we see the evil results of Hideyoshi’s ill-treatment
of the Chinese and Korean envoys in Japan; for instead of making the
Koreans send time and again asking for help the Emperor was eager to
send troops into the peninsula to avenge himself upon the Japanese. The
Chinese army was put in charge of three men: Gen. Yang Ho with rank of
Military Commissioner, Gen. Hyöng Kă as general-in chief and Admiral Ma
Gwi as commander of all the naval forces. Under these were Generals Yang
Wŭn, O Yu-ch’ung, U Păk-yŏng, Chin U-ch’ung, So Eung-gung, Chin Hyo and
Tong Han-yu. Gen. Yang Ho came no further than P’yŭng-yang, his duties
not requiring his presence on the field of battle. Admiral Ma Kwi and
all the others came on to Seoul. From that point they branched out in
several directions, one going to Nam-wŭn in Chŭl-la province, another to
Song-ju in Kyŭng-sang Province, another to Chŭn-ju, Chŭl-la Province,
and another to Ch’ung-ju in Ch’ung-ch’ŭng Province.
Admiral Wŭn Kyun, who had supplanted Yi Sun-sin, went to Han-san where
Admiral Yi had worked so diligently to build barracks with the proceeds
of salt manufacture. His first work was to overthrow all the rules and
regulations which his predecessor had so wisely promulgated. He then
drove away all who had been at all intimate with the former admiral, who
was now a common soldier under Kwŭn Ryul. He then built a paling about
the council-hall that Yi Sun-sin had built and there he housed his harem
and spent his time in revelry and feasting. He would frequently have
innocent men called up and severely punished for mere amusement. And
thus he soon alienated the good will of all the troops stationed there.
But Kato, the astute Japanese general, through his tool Yo-si-ra, kept
at Gen. Kim, urging him to have a fleet sent to intercept a fleet of
Japanese boats. He named a day on which the Korean fleet would be sure
to intercept a fleet of the enemy. At last the order was given for
Admiral Wŭn Kyun to carry out this manoeuvre and though he had no
stomach for the enterprise he could not well demur, for this was the
very thing that had cost Admiral Yi his position. So he got his boats
together and sailed out to Chŭl-yŭng Island off Fusan. But a strong
breeze sprang up and the sea was rather rough and in the darkness of
night the Korean fleet became scattered. The next day the larger part of
them rendezvoused at Ka-dok Island where they unexpectedly met the
Japanese fleet and were vigorously attacked. Almost immediately all
Admiral Wŭn’s forces deserted him and his only recourse was flight.
Beaching his boat on Ch‘il-ch‘ŭn Island he landed and drew about him
what remnants of his force he could find. When Gen. Kwŭn Ryul heard of
this he sent a stern order demanding that the admiral come out and
fight. That valliant man first filled himself with wine then sallied
forth only to be deserted again by his men. So the doughty admiral again
ran his boat aground and took to his heels. He was so fat however that
he could not run far, so he sat down under a tree to get his breath.
There the Japanese overtook him and carried away his head in triumph.
The second in command, Yi Yŭ-geui, fled by boat after burning all the
barracks and provisions that were stored at Han-san.
When these events became known the whole country was in consternation.
Yi Hang-bok, the king’s trusted councillor, said, “Yi Sun-sin must be
reinstated in his former position.” It was a case of dire necessity and
so the king sent and conferred upon that faithful man his former office.
The trusty Yi set out on foot and rested not day nor night until he
reached his former position, Han-san. On all sides he met the scattered
and flying remnants of his former force. He rallied them about him,
promising that the Japanese should still be held in check.
But before Admiral Yi arrived on the scene of action a tremendous force
of Japanese both military and naval had landed on the southern coast.
Their objective point was Nam-wŭn, where the Chinese general Yang Wŭn
had pitched his camp. Upon the approach of the Japanese the latter
burned all the houses outside the wall to prevent their offering cover
to an attacking force; but the Japanese soon built a rough fence or
palisade about the town, from behind which they picked off the Chinese
soldiers on the wall, at leisure. The Chinese attempted to make a sortie
but in their eagerness to get out of the gate they became jammed in it
and were mown down by the long swords of the besiegers. Unfortunately
for the Chinese and Koreans the following night was full moon and the
Japanese cut down every man that attempted to escape. To the line of
stakes which they had planted about the town the Japanese fastened
swords, and when the people from the town tried to make good their
escape they found themselves impaled upon these weapons. The Chinese
commander, Yang Wŭn, rode at this barrier and his horse was so impaled,
but he succeeded in getting over and making good his escape. The
Japanese attacked the wall in its weakest point and forced an entrance.
The massacre within the town beggars description. The Korean generals
Chöng Keui-wŭn, Yi Pong-nam, O Eung-jung, Kim Kyöng-no, Sin Ho, Im Hyŭn,
Yi Tŭk-whe and Yi Wŭn-ch‘un were all killed, which indicates how
sanguinary must have been the fight.
Immediately all northern Chŭl-la was in confusion and the troops
everywhere began to fall back toward the north. In Seoul itself there
was consternation. The king called his officials about him and asked
what should be done. They all urged that the king stay in the capital.
The queen and the crown prince however were sent to Su-an in Ham-gyŭng
Province and the king prepared to move whenever it should seem
necessary.
But by this time Admiral Yi was again on the stage of action and as
alert as ever. He had as yet only ten boats under him, but he had no
lack of men, for the people all along the coast, when they heard of his
reinstatement, flocked to him. He drew up his little fleet of ten boats
in the shadow of a mountain on Chin-do (island) and sent out
reconnoitering boats which returned just at night saying that the
Japanese were approaching. As the moon dropped behind the mountain it
left the Korean fleet in complete darkness and soon the Japanese boats
came sailing along in single file. Admiral Yi deployed his boats in a
long line and suddenly they all raised a loud shout and fired point
blank at the unsuspecting Japanese. The latter thought they had run into
a powerful fleet and soon scattered in all directions. The next day
there was more serious work, however, for a fleet of several hundred
boats appeared. The Koreans were in some trepidation, but the fearless
admiral made straight for the enemy and though soon surrounded he
succeeded in sinking thirty of the enemy’s boats. The rest evidently
recognized the master hand of Admiral Yi and turned and fled. He gave
chase, and before the battle ended the Japanese commander Ma-da-si was
killed. Returning from this remarkable fight Admiral Yi proceeded to
Han-san and set to work rebuilding the barracks and making salt. It is
said that in two months time he stored away 20,000 bags of rice. His
former captains and soldiers came back to him in “clouds.” He also found
another source of revenue. The wealthy men all through the south desired
to get away from the disturbed districts and so loaded their effects
upon boats and sailed away. Admiral Yi however stood in the way and made
them pay a toll of from one to three bags of rice for each boat. From
this source alone he collected above a thousand bags of rice. He used
this revenue in the purchase of copper for the casting of cannon, and
for the building of boats. Thousands of people who feared to live on the
mainland came and built huts about his camp, until the island actually
became too small to hold more.
After the fall of Nam-wŭn the Japanese, flushed with victory, started
northward toward Seoul, thinking without doubt that they would have as
easy a victory as before. Yang Ho, hearing of the defeat of the Chinese,
came post haste from P’yŭng-yang and severely upbraided the generals and
charged them with lack of bravery. Without an hour’s delay it was
arranged that Generals Ha Sang, U Pak-yung, Yang Teung and P‘a Sa should
take a strong body of troops and move southward to Ch‘ung-ch‘ŭng
Province and intercept the Japanese. This was done and the army ambushed
at Keum-o-p‘yŭng in the district of Chik-san. Soon the Japanese came
streaming along, neglecting all precautions, for they had no idea of
meeting an enemy. When therefore the ambuscade opened fire on them it
took but a few moments to throw them into utter confusion. In the rout
which ensued an enormous number of the Japanese were killed. On the
following day the Japanese, who had mended their broken ranks as best
they could, came on to the attack, but their losses had been so great
that in spite of wonders of bravery which they showed they were again
crushed. The remnant of their force fled southward to Mok-ch‘un and
Ch‘ung-ju. This was one of the three great battles of the war and in
importance it was exceeded by none; for, though the forces engaged were
not so numerous nor the number of slain so great, it broke once for all
the self-confidence of the Japanese, and they never again had the
hardihood to attempt the approach to Seoul. By this battle the war was
definitely confined to the southern provinces. The Commissioner Yang Ho
suggested to the king that he go out and survey the battle field, and so
the royal cavalcade rode out the South Gate. One of the Chinese generals
suspected that the king was something of a coward and so, to test him,
he gave the horse the king was riding a sharp cut with a whip. The horse
leaped into the air with terror but the king held his seat and showed no
sign of fear. The Chinese were pleased at this and their respect for the
king was visibly increased.
Seoul gave itself up to universal holiday in honor of the victory, for
it was still fresh in the minds of many how Seoul had fared before at
the hands of the invaders.
In the tenth moon Gen. Konishi built a strong fort on a bluff
overlooking the sea at Ul-san in Kyŭng-sang Province. He named it
To-san. The Chinese Yang Ho determined to cut the war short by attacking
and taking this position and by so doing he expected to cut off the
right arm of the invading army. Collecting all the forces that were
within reach, he started south to attack Ul-san. The army consisted of
40,000 men and it went in three divisions. The left or eastern division
being led by Gen. Yi Pang-ch‘ŭn, the middle division by Gen. Ko Ch‘ak
and the western division by Gen. P ăng U-dŭk. Gen. Ma Kwi was sent on
ahead and acted as _avant-coureur_. Stopping a few miles from the
Japanese position he ordered Gen. P‘a Sa to go and make a preliminary
attack upon the fort to discover something as to the lay of the land,
and if possible to discover the number and equipment of the enemy. The
attack was made with fire-arrows. Almost immediately the Japanese made a
sortie, but were driven back with a loss of four hundred and sixty men.
Shortly after this the three grand army corps arrived. The Japanese were
arranged in three divisions. In the middle was the fort proper. On the
north was a fortified camp called the Pan-gu-jun and off the south was
another called the P‘a-wha-gang. It was the first business of the
Chinese and Korean allies to drive these outer divisions into the
central fort. To this end the left division of the army attacked the
Pan-gu-jun and the right division the P‘a-wha-gang. Gen. Yang Ho put on
his armor and went into the thick of the fight and urged on his men. The
air was filled with the noise of drums, musketry-fire and shouts of the
combatants, and a cloud of arrows concealed the heavens. Some of the
Japanese huts were on fire and great clouds of smoke and flame rolled
heavenward. Slowly the Japanese were forced back and finally they all
entered the gates of the main fort of To-san. This fort was set on a
rugged hill where it was difficult for an attacking force to manoeuvre,
but there was little water in the fort and the Japanese were forced to
come out secretly at night and draw water from a well nearby. Being
aware of this, Gen. Kim Eung-sŭ, a Korean, placed an ambush about the
well and caught upwards of a hundred of the enemy. They were badly
emaciated and said that surrender was a matter of only a few days. It
came on to rain, and this was followed by severe cold, as it was now the
beginning of winter. Many of the besieging army had their hands and feet
frozen. One of Gen. Konishi’s lieutenants wrote repeatedly to the Korean
general Song Yun-mun asking for terms of peace. Gen. Yang Ho answered,
“Konishi must come out and surrender and he will be treated well.” By
this time the Japanese were well-nigh exhausted. They had neither food
nor water, and every day they died in such numbers that it is said they
had “a mountain of dead.” Many a time Gen. Konishi meditated suicide but
each time was restrained by one means or another. As a last resort the
Japanese threw gold and silver over the wall to bribe the soldiers
without and keep them from making an attack.
But the tables were about to be turned. All the other Japanese forces in
the south had become aware of the desperate straits to which their
comrades were reduced at To-san. And so now at the last moment a large
fleet appeared and the hard won victory was snatched from between the
teeth of the Chinese and Korean allies. The exposure had greatly
weakened the besieging force. Their provisions were almost exhausted and
they had used up all their arrows. They were far stronger than the
beleagured Japanese but were not fit to cope with the fresh army which
was burning with zeal to avenge their starving compatriots. So it was
that Gen. Yang Ho was compelled to raise the siege and fall back toward
Seoul. During this siege the Chinese loss was fourteen hundred, though
many thousands were wounded.
From this time date the first efforts of the Roman Catholic Church to
enter Korea. Japan had already many thousands of converts to Romanism
and Hideyoshi was determined to leave no means untried to eradicate the
foreign cult. To this end he sent many of the Catholic converts to
Korea. But the most distinguished of them all was the young and vigorous
Gen. Konishi who had received baptism at the hands of the Catholics and
had received the name of Augustine Arimandano. It may have been because
of Hideyoshi’s desire to get the Catholics out of the country that Gen.
Konishi was appointed to the post in Korea. Kato was as pronounced a
Buddhist as Konishi was a Christian and this of course intensified the
hatred and rivalry between them. Gen. Konishi was desirous of having
Catholic teachers come over to the peninsula and attend to the spiritual
needs of the Christians in the army; and to this end the Vice-provincial
of the Jesuits in Japan appointed Padre Gregoris de Cespedes to this
arduous and important post. With him went a Japanese priest. The two
first went to Tsushima and finding no means of getting to the peninsula
remained there over the winter and carried on a successful mission work.
The next spring they made their way to Korea and finally reached Gen.
Konishi’s headquarters at a place that the Japanese call Comangai, which
was without doubt the fort of Ul-san. Here they worked a year but
finally, through the machinations of Gen. Kato, who worked upon the
prejudices of Hideyoshi, both the foreign and native priests were sent
back to Japan, and this had no little to do with the return of Gen.
Konishi, who went to clear himself before his master.
To anticipate a little, we might here say that many Koreans who were
carried captive to Japan from time to time during this war, became
Christians at Nagasaki and though slaves were so firm in their belief as
to be willing to suffer martyrdom during the terrible persecutions which
raged in Japan between 1610 and 1630, but with the departure of Cespedes
from Korea the distinctive work in Korea was abandoned.
Let us pause a moment here to compare the two contending armies. In this
second invasion the total number of Japanese that reached Korean soil
was 105,400, or about half as many as formed the first army of invasion.
They were led by twenty-seven generals, prominent among whom were Kato
and Konishi. As a mark of his spiteful spirit, Hideyoshi ordered that in
this second invasion the noses and ears of all Koreans killed or
captured should be cut off and sent to Japan. And so from time to time
these half-savage soldiers sent loads of Korean noses and ears, pickled
in salt, and they were buried in the monastery of Ta-bul-sa in the city
of Kyoto, there to remain to all ages a disgusting memento of the most
unprovoked and wanton cruelty that ever disgraced the annals of a great
people. Many of the Koreans who lost their noses or ears at that time
survived many years, and it cannot be wondered at that the Koreans have
never since cared to accept favors at the hands of their island
neighbors.
The total number of Chinese was 210,000. With them came 2,000,000 ounces
of silver to pay for their sustenance. From Shantung were sent by boat
200,000 bags of rice. There were also sent for the relief of the army
5,832,000 ounces of silver. And for the relief of the Korean famine
sufferers an additional 3,000,000 ounces were sent. When we consider the
vast number of men and the millions of wealth that China poured into
Korea at this time it may well be believed, as the Koreans affirm, that
China, by so doing, impoverished herself so that she became an easier
prey to the Manchus who, a few years later, wrested the scepter from
her.
Large numbers of Japanese who had been in the country for years and were
tired of the war deserted from the ranks, married Korean women and
settled down to farming in various places in the south. At Mi-ryang in
the Province of Kyŭng-sang there was a whole settlement of them. It was
called the Hang-wă or “Settlement of the Surrendered Japanese.” Some of
them were also to be found in Ham-gyŭng and P‘yŭng-an Provinces. These
had been left behind and abandoned by their fellows for one cause or
another when the Japanese retired from the north. They were all destined
to be destroyed a quarter of a century later during the rebellion of Yi
Kwal.
About this time there arose in the Chinese court a determined enemy of
Gen. Yang Ho named Chŭng Eung-t‘ă who accused Gen. Yang to the Emperor
in twenty-five specifications, five of which implicated the king of
Korea and which at a later date caused a deal of trouble.
We now enter upon a new phase of the war, the closing epoch. In the
first moon of the following year, 1598, the Emperor sent two admirals to
Korea, the one being Tong Il-wun and the other Chil Lin. The former was
to have charge of the naval operations off the coast of Chŭl-la and the
other of those off Kyŭng-sang Province. Chil Lin, under the title of
Great Admiral came up the Han River with 500 boats as far as Tong-jak,
the first village above Yong-san. The king and the court went down and
reviewed this fleet and saw it start off to join Admiral Yi Sun-sin in
the south. This admiral, Chil Lin, was a good soldier but inordinately
vain. He would take no one’s advice, and it looked as if stormy times
were in store for the plain, blunt Admiral Yi. The king told Admiral
Chil Lin that he was not sure about Admiral Yi, and this of course had
its influence with the Chinese admiral. Admiral Yi was then at Ko-geum
Island off Chŭl-la Province. When he heard that Admiral Chil Lin was
coming he showed by his first act that he was as good a diplomat as
soldier. He may or may not have known what sort of man the Chinese
admiral was but he knew that in any case it would not do to antagonize
him, and he acted accordingly. He collected a great store of fish and
game and wine and went out to meet the approaching fleet. Returning with
the Chinese admiral he spread a great feast and the whole company got
splendidly drunk and vowed that Admiral Yi was a royal good fellow.
Admiral Chil Lin himself joined in the praise. Soon after this Admiral
Yi had the good luck to take two score of Japanese heads, but instead of
claiming the honor himself he handed them over to the Chinese admiral to
forward as his own trophies. This finished Admiral Yi’s conquest of
Admiral Chil Lin’s good graces. From this time on it was Gen. Yi who
suggested and planned and it was Admiral Chil Lin who assented and
reaped the praise. This course of conduct was a master-piece of genius
on the part of Admiral Yi, for by so doing he accomplished at least
three important things. In the first place he kept himself in his
position, which he would have lost had he antagonized the Chinaman. In
the second place he saved himself to his country at a time when she
could not have spared him. He was willing to forego the praise and let
others reap the commendation if only he might ward off the enemies of
his country. In the third place he made the Chinese seem successful and
so encouraged them and got out of them for Korea all that was to be
hoped. He was willing to seem to be toadying to Admiral Chil Lin when in
reality that gentleman was, to use a pregnant Korean phrase, “in his
sleeve.” Being always near the Chinese admiral he could always see to it
that no great blunders were made. At first the Chinese soldiery
committed great excesses among the people of the country, stealing their
valuables and otherwise injuring them. Admiral Yi quietly asked that the
discipline of the army be put in his hands and from that day on the
smallest irregularity was severely punished and the most perfect order
prevailed. This did not escape the eye of Admiral Chil Lin, and he wrote
to the king that Admiral Yi was a remarkable man and that the world did
not contain another soldier like him. One day as they sat in a
summer-house overlooking the sea a fleet of Japanese boats appeared in
the distance. Admiral Chil Lin was much excited and a little nervous but
Admiral Yi laughed and said, “Sit here and watch me give those fellows a
whipping.” He got out his boats and in an hour he had forty of the
enemy’s boats on fire and the rest fled. Admiral Chil Lin could not
praise him enough after this and declared that the universe did not
contain another man who could perform the feats that Admiral Yi
apparently found easy.
In the seventh moon of this year the enemies of Gen. Yang Ho in Nanking
were successful and he was called from Korea, much to the regret of the
king who vainly sent an envoy to the Chinese court specially to plead
that the decree be not carried out. Gen. Yang had been the best of all
the generals that China had sent and his departure was a great loss to
Korea. When he went, the king and a large number of the people
accompanied him beyond the Peking Pass, and a stone tablet was raised
there in his honour. All of this of course made Gen. Yang’s enemies hate
the king as well, and so that official named Chung Eung-t’a fabricated
some astonishing stories about him. He claimed that while he had been in
Korea he had found a manuscript which proved that the king had received
investiture from Japan. He also charged the Koreans with showing
disloyalty to China by prefixing the word _ta_ (great) to the posthumous
titles of their kings. He also claimed that the first coming of the
Japanese was with a secret understanding with the king of Korea that
they would attack Liao-tung together. To these he added many minor
charges. The Emperor apparently believed these things and immediately
despatched an envoy, So Kwal-lan, to investigate the matter and report.
When the king was informed of these charges he was dumbfounded. All his
scrupulous care of the interests of his Chinese suzerain and the
extremes of hardship which he and his people had endured, rather than
grant the Japanese a free passage through Korea to strike China—all this
was thrown back upon him and his devotion was counted treachery. He left
his palace and took up his abode in a straw hut for one whole month as
penance for having been even suspected of such baseness. The whole
country was stirred to its depths by these unnatural and evidently
baseless charges. The king immediately sent his most trusted councillors
Yi Hang-bok and Yi Chung-gwi to Nanking with the following memorable
reply to the charges which had been preferred:
“These charges which have been made against me are very grave and if
they are true I deserve death. In order to answer them I must repeat
them, even though it defile my mouth. In the first place the origin of
the Japanese is far in the eastern sea. The way thither by boat is
exceeding far. They are such barbarians that heaven has separated them
far from other men. They have always been bad neighbors, for they live
by piracy; they come like a flash and are gone as suddenly. Since the
time of the fall of the Koryŭ dynasty great uneasiness has prevailed in
Japan. Law has been in abeyance and bands of freebooters have been
allowed to devastate our southern shores until nothing but weeds and
briers grow there. The founder of our present dynasty drove them out for
a time but they grew bold again and continued their depredations. The
natives of Tsushima liked to come and trade with us and we permitted it
at their request; then Japanese from the more distant islands came in
flocks like birds. Our people never liked them, but we permitted the
trade, as it was mutually profitable. We gave them rice to eat and
treated them kindly. We built a house in Seoul for the reception of
their envoys. In the days of king Se-jong they asked us to send an envoy
to Japan and we did so, primarily to spy out the land and discover
whether the country was rich or poor, strong or weak. The envoy obtained
the information and we immediately reported the matter to China. We
could not well refuse to send an envoy to Japan, but it does not argue
relations of friendship, much less of intimacy. In the days of the
Emperor Chong-t’ong the Japanese started to ravage a certain part of the
Chinese coast and took Quelpart on the way, but we attacked and drove
them out and sent their leader alive to China to be dealt with. Also in
the time of King Chung-jong the Japanese attacked the China coast at
Yong P’a-bu. They killed the Chinese general and then made off, but we
caught them and sent them to the Chinese authorities. Since that time we
have twice prevented Japanese attacks on the China coast. Not once nor
twice have we received high commendation from the Chinese Emperor for
our firm loyalty. We have always used our wits and our strength in the
interests of China. This was the duty of a vassal and this we have done.
We let the Japanese live in the three harbors of Ch’e-p’o, Pu-san-p’o
and Yŭm-p’o but we prescribed limits of five or ten _li_ beyond which
they could not go. On the whole then is seems plain that the charge that
we called in the Japanese and asked them for troops must be a pure
fabrication. Again the book which Chung Eung-t’a claims to have found is
an actual book and is named the Ha-dong Keui-ryak. It was written by Sin
Suk-ju the envoy to Japan, on his return from that country, and it deals
with the laws and manners of the Japanese. It contains a map of Japan, a
genealogy and also the rules of etiquette to be observed toward the
Japanese envoy. This book our accuser seized upon as a sure sign of our
leaning toward Japan, and he twisted its meaning to correspond to his
theory. The Japanese have a different name for the year from that which
we use, and the writer of this book put the Chinese name beneath the
Japanese name as a sort of commentary, so that the reader could
understand what year was referred to. In a Japanese book one must put
the Japanese name of the year and if he wants to make plain the meaning
he must put the Chinese name underneath or in the margin. As to the
charge that we gave too high a title to our deceased kings we can only
say that we live beyond the sea and are ignorant and secluded. From the
days of Sil-la until now we have been accustomed to name our dead kings
in this way. The founder of the dynasty was scrupulously careful not to
overstep the recognized limits of his authority as a vassal of China and
we never for a moment have forgotten the gap which separates a vassal
king from his suzerain. The custom of giving these posthumous titles
dates from the days of Sil-la, so how could we be expected to know that
it was wrong, especially as it has never been called in question before?
If we are blamed for ignorance and boorishness we cry guilty, but if for
lack of loyalty, we humbly deny it. We have our calendar, our official
dress and writing all from China. This alone should speak for our
loyalty. The year before the beginning of the present war Hideyoshi
murdered his master and usurped his throne. Burning with a desire to
spring at the throat of China he sent us letters inviting us to join in
an invasion of that country. We sent his letter back with contumely. In
all this we advanced solely the interests of China. This is as clear as
day. When the invading army came it seemed as if all Japan had alighted
upon our shores. They covered our whole eight provinces and ravaged
them. They seized our three capitals and desecrated two royal tombs.
They burned our ancestral temple and other sacred places and then swept
northward to P’yŭng Yang. We were unable to hold them in check or save
our capital from their hands. We were driven to the verge of desperation
and were about to cross into the parent land to die. Is it conceivable
that if we had the least friendship for Hideyoshi we would have suffered
all this at his hands? If we look at nature do we find any analogy for
such a thing? If this charge is true why did our forces join with yours
in striking the invaders and why have we been hanging on their flanks
and harassing them for years? Let the Emperor know that there is a
reason why we have suffered this slander at the mouth of Chung Eung-t’a.
It is because we took Gen. Yang Ho’s part when Chung Eung-t’a desired
his recall from Korea in disgrace. Gen. Yang Ho was with us a long time
and he was a true friend of Korea. We all had the utmost confidence in
him and it was a great pity that so good a man should have met the
reward he did. It is a cause of poignant grief to us. We are a small
people and our destruction is a matter of small consequence, but for a
general of China to be treated in this manner is a serious matter. We
are an outside people and we have never had the pleasure of visiting the
Emperor’s court, and so there is no one to plead our cause for us, but
the Emperor will be able to judge our case without further plea. Chung
Eung-t’a has called me a traitor, and I would rather die than live with
such a charge upon me, even though it be untrue. Let the Emperor take
this letter and sit in judgment on the case and if it appears that I am
guilty let my head pay the penalty, but if not then let the Emperor
acquit me before the world and I shall again be able to endure the light
of day.”
This letter is clear, logical and to the point, and it breathes a spirit
of self-respect which does credit to the king. It shows not a servile
dependence but a true self-respecting loyalty, and in the firm denial of
the charges and the final demand for condemnation or public acquital
there is the ring of genuine manhood which would do honor to any man in
any age.
When the Emperor read this letter his judicial mind found in it the ring
of conscious rectitude and like the man he was he instantly acknowledged
his error. He ordered the letter to be printed by the thousands and tens
of thousands and scattered broadcast over his empire, for he apparently
felt it a personal honor to have so true and genuine a man for a vassal.
He answered the letter in the following terms:
“I believed the words of slander spoken by that small man Chung
Eung-t‘a, and doubted in my mind as to the loyalty of the king of Korea.
I cannot now be oblivious to the unmerited sufferings of Gen. Yang Ho.
Chung Eung-t‘a is a radically bad man. I was on the brink of a
disastrous mistake. I will now deprive him of rank and make him one of
the common herd. Let him appear before me at once.”
When Chung Eung-t‘a arrived in Nanking he was cut in two at the waist.