Painting in Seoul--Messages from the king--Royal princes sitting for
their portraits--Breaking the mourning law--Quaint notions--Delight and
despair--Calling in of State ceremony--Corean soldiers--How they mount
guard--Drill--Honours--A much admired shoe--A gift.
I had made so many sketches in Seoul, that at last a rumour reached the
Court of the rapidity with which I portrayed streets and people. The
consequence was that both king and princes were very anxious to see what
"European painting" was like, as they had never yet seen a picture
painted by a European; so one fine day, to my great astonishment, through
the kindness of Mr. Greathouse and General Le Gendre, I was able to
induce one of the Queen's nephews, young Min-san-ho, to sit for his
likeness in his Court dress. The picture, a life-size one, was painted in
the course of an afternoon and was pronounced a success by my Corean
critics. In Cho-senese eyes, unaccustomed to the effects of light, shade,
and variety of colour in painting, the work merited a great deal of
admiration, and many were the visitors who came to inspect it. It was
not, they said, at all like a picture, but just like the man himself
sitting donned in his white Court robes and winged cap. So great was the
sensation produced by this portrait, that before many days had passed
the King ordered it to be brought into his presence, upon which being
done he sat gazing at it, surrounded by his family and whole household.
The painting was kept at the Palace for two entire days, and when
returned to me was simply covered with finger marks, royal and not royal,
smeared on the paint, which was still moist, and that, notwithstanding
that I had been provident enough to paste in a corner of the canvas a
label in the Corean language to the effect that fingers were to be kept
off. The King declared himself so satisfied with it that he expressed the
wish that before leaving the country I should paint the portraits of the
two most important personages in Cho-sen after himself, viz.: the two
Princes, Min-Young-Huan, and Min-Young-Chun, the former of whom was
Commander-in-chief of the Corean land forces, and the other, Prime
Minister of the kingdom, in fact, the Bismarck of Cho-sen.
No sooner had I answered "yes" to this request than the sitting was fixed
for the next morning at 11 o'clock. The crucial matter, of course, was
the question of precedence, and this would have been difficult to settle
had not the Prime Minister caught a bad cold, which caused his sitting to
be delayed for some days. Hence it was that at 11 o'clock punctually I
was to portray prince Min-Young-Huan, the commander-in-chief of the
Corean troops.
[Illustration: H.R.H. PRINCE MIN-YOUNG-HUAN]
General Le Gendre, with his usual kindness, had offered me a room in his
house, in which I could receive, and paint His Royal Highness. The
excitement at Court on the subject of these pictures, had apparently been
great, for late at night a message was brought me from the palace to
the effect that the King, having heard that I preferred painting the two
princes in their smartest dark blue gowns of lovely silk instead of in
their white mourning ones, had given Min orders to comply with my wish.
The grant of such a privilege was, indeed, remarkable, when it is
remembered how strict the rules as to mourning were, not only at Court,
but all over the country; for so strict are the mourning rules of the
country, that the slightest exception to them may mean the loss of one's
head. The precaution, however, was taken to bind me to secrecy, on the
ground that a bad example of this kind coming from royalty might actually
cause a revolutionary outbreak. It was naturally with the greatest
pleasure, at my success, and the courtesy shown me, that I went to bed,
not, however, without having received yet another message from General Le
Gendre, asking me to be in attendance punctually at 11 A.M.
It was just 6.30 in the morning, when there was a loud tap at my door,
and the servant rushed in, in the wildest state of excitement, handing me
a note from General Le Gendre. The note read somewhat as follows: "Dear
Mr. Landor, Prince Min has arrived at my house to sit for his picture.
Please come at once."
That is punctuality, is it not? To make an appointment, and go to the
place to keep it four-and-a-half hours before the time appointed!
In less than no time I was on the spot. Le Gendre's house was, as it
were, in a state of siege, for hundreds of armed soldiers were drawn up,
in the little lane leading to it, while the court of his compound was
crammed with followers and officers, in their smartest clothes. The
warriors, who had already made themselves comfortable, and were squatting
on their heels, playing cards and other games, got up most respectfully
as I passed, and, by command of one of the officers, rendered me a
military salute, which I must confess made me feel very important. I had
never suspected that such an armed force was necessary to protect a man
who was going to have his portrait painted, but of course, I am well
aware that artists are always most unreliable people. When the real
reason of this display was explained, I did indeed feel much flattered.
The Prince had, in fact, come to me in his grandest style, and with his
full escort, just as if his object had been to call on some royal
personage, such as the King himself. The compliment was, I need hardly
say, much appreciated by me. I was actually lifted up the steps of the
house by his servants, for it was supposed that the legs of such a grand
personage must indeed be incapable of bearing his body, and thus I was
brought into his presence. As usual, he was most affable, and full of wit
and fun. So great had been his anxiety to be down on canvas, that he had
been quite unable to sleep. He could only wish for the daylight to come,
which was to immortalise him, and that was why he had come "a little"
before his time.
Having assured himself that there was no one else in the room, he
discarded his mourning clothes, and put on a magnificent blue silk gown
with baggy sleeves, upon which dragons were depicted, in rather lighter
tones. On his chest, he wore a square on which in multicoloured
embroideries were represented the flying phoenix and the tiger, and the
corners of which were filled in artistically with numerous scrolls. He
had also a rectangular jewelled metal belt, projecting both at his chest
and at the back, and held in position by a ribbon on both sides of his
body. His cap was of the finest black horse-hair with wings fastened at
the back. He seemed most proud of his three white leather satchels, and a
writing pad, which hung down from his left side, by wide white straps.
Into these straps, in time of war, is passed the sword of supreme
command, and by them in time of peace is his high military rank made
known. His sword was a magnificent old blade, which had been handed down
from his ancestors, and naturally he was very proud of it. While showing
it to me, he related the noble deeds, which had been accomplished by its
aid, his eyes glistening all the time, but, as he was about to
graphically describe in what way such and such an ancestor had done away
with his foe, I, who am not at all fond of playing with razor-edged
swords, thought it prudent to interrupt him by placing him in position
for the picture. As I posed him, he did not utter a word, nor wink an
eye. And during the whole of a sitting of nearly three hours he sat
motionless and speechless, like a statue.
"It is finished," I finally said, and he sprang up in a childish fashion
and came over to look at the work. His delight was unbounded, and he
seized my hand and shook it for nearly half an hour; after which, he
suddenly became grave, stared at the canvas, and then looked at the back
of it. He seemed horrified.
"What is it?" I inquired of His Royal Highness.
"You have not put in my jade decoration," said he, almost in despair.
I had, of course, painted his portrait full face, and as the Coreans have
the strange notion of wearing their decorations in the shape of a small
button of jade, gold, silver or amber, behind the left ear, these did not
appear thereon. I then tried to remonstrate, saying that it was
impossible in European art to accomplish such a feat as to show both
front and back at once, but, as he seemed distressed at what to him
seemed a defect, I made him sit again, and compromised the matter by
making another large but rapid sketch of him from a side point of view,
so as to include the decoration and the rest rather magnified in size. It
is from this portrait that the illustration is taken; for I corrected it
as soon as he was out of sight. But with this second portrait my Corean
sitter was more grieved than ever, for, he remarked, now he could see the
decoration, but not his other eye!
These difficulties having, with the exercise of a good deal of patience
and time, been finally overcome by my proving to him that one cannot see
through things that are not transparent, we were entertained by General
Le Gendre to an excellent lunch, during which toasts to the health of
everybody under the sun were drunk in numberless bottles of champagne.
Then he began to wax quite enthusiastic about his likeness. He called in
his officers and followers; by this time, of course, he had got into his
mourning clothes again, and donned his semi-spherical crane-surmounted
hat; and they all showed great admiration of the work, although many went
round, as he had done, to look at the backs of the two canvases to find
"the eye," or the other missing "button."
He wanted to purchase both pictures there and then, but I declined,
saying that I would be pleased to present him with a smaller copy when
completed. With this promise he departed happy.
Now it was the turn of his Prime Minister brother, Prince Min. He also
came in full state, with hundreds of servants and followers, hours before
his time; was a most restless model; and, having profited by his
brother's experience, was continually coming over to examine the painting
and reminding me not to forget this and that and the other
thing--generally what was on the other side of his body, or what from my
point of vantage I could not see. This time, however, I had chosen a
three-quarter face pose, and he expressed the fullest satisfaction with
the result, until, going to poke his nose into the canvas, which was
about 4 feet by 3, he began to take objections to the shadows. He
insisted that his face was all perfectly white; whereas I had made
one-half his nose darker in colour than the other; also that there was
the same defect under the chin; his untrained mind being unable to grasp
the fact that the same colour under different lights becomes lighter or
darker in tone. I would have lost my patience with him if I had had any
to lose, but, remaining silent, I smiled idiotically at his observations,
and did exactly the reverse of what he wished me to do. The beautifying
touches having been duly added, and the high lights put in where it
seemed proper that they should go, I summoned the Prince to see the
effect, this time building up a barricade of chairs and tables in front
of the canvas, in order that His Royal Highness might be compelled to
conduct his examination of it at the right distance. This had the desired
effect, and, as he now gazed at it, he found the likeness excellent and
to use his words "just like a living other-self." It seemed to him a most
inexplicable circumstance that when he got his nose close to the canvas
the picture appeared so different from what it was when inspected at the
right distance. This sitting also ended with a feast, and everything
passed off in the best of ways.
The result of this amicable intercourse with the Royal Princes was that
calls had to be duly exchanged according to the rules of Corean
etiquette. Both Princes came again in their state array to call upon me
in person, a privilege which I was told had never before been bestowed on
any Europeans, not even the Diplomatic Agents in the land, after which
upon the following day I proceeded to return their calls.
The morning was dedicated to the commander-in-chief, Prince
Min-Young-Huan. Since to go on foot, even though the distance was only a
few hundred yards from Mr. Greathouse's, where I was living, would have
been, according to Corean etiquette, a disgrace and an insult, I rode up
to his door on horseback. His house stood, surrounded by a strong wall of
masonry and with impregnable iron-banded gates, in the centre of a large
piece of ground. His ensign flew at one corner of the enclosure, and a
detachment of picked troops was always at his beck and call in the
immediate neighbourhood. At the door were sentries, and it was curious to
note the way in which guard is mounted in the land of Cho-sen.
I suppose what I am going to narrate will not be believed, but it is none
the less perfectly true. The Corean Tommy Atkins mounts guard curled up
in a basket filled with rags and cotton-wool! Even at the royal palace
one sees them. The Cho-senese warrior is not a giant; on the contrary, he
is very small, only a little over five feet, or even less, so that the
round basket which contains him is made only about four feet in diameter,
and three-and-a-half feet deep. In the inner enclosures of the royal
palace, where two soldiers at a time are on guard, the baskets are
bigger, and the two men contained in them squat or curl up together like
two birds in a nest. Their rifles are generally left standing against the
wall; but, occasionally, when the position to be guarded is a very
responsible one, they are nursed in the basket.
The infantry soldier, seen at his best, is a funny individual. He thinks
he is dressed like a European soldier, but the reader can imagine the
resemblance. His head-gear consists of a felt hat with a large brim,
which he keeps on his head by means of two ribbons tied under his chin;
for the fashion is, in military circles, to have a head-gear many times
too small for his head. He wears a pair of calico trousers of a
nondescript colour resembling green and black, under which his own padded
"unmentionables" are concealed, a fact which of itself is sufficient to
make him look a little baggy. Then there is his shortish coat with large
sleeves and woollen wristlets; and a belt, with a brass buckle, somewhere
about five inches above or below his waist, according to the amount of
dinner he has eaten and the purses he has stuffed under his coat. Yes,
the Coreans are not yet civilised enough to possess pockets, and all that
they have to carry must be stuffed into small leather, cloth, or silk
purses with long strings. By ordinary individuals these purses are
fastened inside or outside the coat, but among the military it is
strictly forbidden to show purses over the coat; wherefore the regulation
method is to carry these underneath, tied to the trouser's band.
Accordingly, as the number of purses is larger or smaller, the belt over
the jacket is higher or lower on the waist, the coat sticking out in the
most ridiculous manner.
In the illustration a Corean warrior of the latest fashion may be seen in
his full uniform. He is an infantry soldier.
[Illustration: AN INFANTRY SOLDIER]
The guns with which these men are armed, are of all sorts, descriptions
and ages, from the old flint-locks to repeating breech-loaders, and it
can easily be imagined how difficult it must be to train the troops,
hardly two soldiers having guns of even a similar make! A couple of
American Army instructors were employed by the King to coach the soldiery
in the art of foreign warfare, and to teach them how to use their
weapons, but, if I remember rightly, one of the greatest difficulties
they had to contend with was the utter want of discipline; for to this
the easy-going Corean Tommy Atkins could on no account be made to
submit. They are brave enough when it comes to fighting; that is, when
this is done in their own way; and rather than give way an inch they will
die like valiant warriors. It is an impossibility, however, to make them
understand that when a man is a soldier, in European fashion, he is no
more a man, but a machine.
"Why not have machines altogether?" seemed to be pretty much what they
thought when compelled to go through the, to them, apparently useless and
tiresome drill.
The target practice amused and interested them much when it took place,
which was but seldom, for the cost of the ammunition was found to be too
much for the authorities; there being, besides, the further difficulty of
providing different cartridges for the great variety of rifles used. Thus
it was that, though nearly every infantry soldier possessed a gun, he
hardly ever had a chance of firing it. So rarely was even a round of
blank cartridges fired in the capital, that, when this event did take
place for some purpose or other, the King invariably sent a message to
the few foreign residents in the town requesting them not to be
frightened or alarmed at the "report," or to suppose that a revolution
had broken out.
Having examined Tommy Atkins at his best, I sent in my name to the
Prince, and was waiting outside, when suddenly a great noise was heard
inside, the squeaky locks were unbolted, and gate after gate was thrown
open. The pony had to be left behind at the gate, and as I entered the
court, among the chin-chins of the courtiers, I saw the
Commander-in-chief waiting on the door-step to greet me with
outstretched arms. Honour after honour was bestowed upon me; which
extreme politeness amazed me, for Foreign Ministers and Consuls are never
received in this way, but are led into his presence, while he remains
comfortably seated in his audience chamber.
He took me by the hand, and, leading me into his reception room,
maintained a long and most friendly conversation with me, taking the most
unbounded interest in all matters pertaining to Western civilisation. As
we were thus busily engaged, "pop," went the cork of a champagne bottle
with a frightful explosion, through the paper window, and my interlocutor
and myself had a regular shower bath, as sudden as it was unexpected.
Then out of this healths were drunk, the servant who had opened the
bottle so clumsily, being promised fifty strokes of the paddle at the
earliest opportunity; after which I rose and bade his Royal Highness
good-bye. Again, his politeness was extreme, and he accompanied me to the
door, where, amidst the chin-chins of his followers and the "military
honours" of the assembled troops, I re-mounted my pony and galloped off
home.
The same afternoon I paid my visit to the Royal Prime Minister. This
time, being grown conceited, I suppose, by virtue of the honour received
in the course of the morning, though in part, perhaps, owing to the
advice of my friend Mr. Greathouse, who insisted upon my going in grand
state, I was carried in the "green sedan chair," the one, namely, which
is only brought out for officials and princes of the highest rank. I was
also accorded the full complement of four chair-bearers, and,
accompanied by the _Kissos_ (soldiers) and servants who were summoned to
form my escort, I gaily started.
"Oooohhhh!" my bearers sighed in a chorus, as they lifted me into the
sedan and sped me along the crowded streets; while the soldiers shouted
"Era, Era, Era, Picassa, Picassa!" thrusting to one side the astonished
natives that stood in the way. As I approached the palace, I noticed that
rows of other sedan-chairs, but yellow and blue ones, were waiting, their
official occupants anticipating an audience with the Prince and Prime
Minister. All these, however, had to make way before me, and a soldier
having been despatched in advance to inform His Royal Highness of my
coming, the gates were banged open as I approached them and closed again
so soon as I was within. The cordial reception which I had received from
the other prince, was now repeated; and Min Young Chun and his court were
actually standing on the door-step to receive me.
As I always complied with the habits of the country, I proceeded to take
off my shoes before entering the house, but the prince, having been
informed some time or other that such was not the custom in England,
insisted on my abstaining from doing so. I had already taken off one shoe
and was proceeding to untie the other when, catching me by one arm and
his followers by the other, he dragged me in. You can imagine how comical
and undignified I looked, with one shoe on and the other off! Still, I
managed to be equal to the occasion, and held a long _pourparler_ with
the Prince, his courtiers standing around, in a room which he had
furnished in the European style, with two Chinese chairs and a table!
As we were thus confabulating and I was being entertained with native
wine and sweets, I received a dreadful blow--that is to say, a moral one.
A youth, a relation of the prince, ran into the room and whispered
something in the royal ears, whereupon his eyes glittered with
astonishment and curiosity, and in a moment there was a general stampede
out of the room on the part of all the courtiers and eunuchs. A minute
after, amidst the deepest silence, was brought triumphantly into the
audience-room and deposited in the middle of the table:--what do you
think?--my shoe, that, namely, which I had left outside!
Such a blow as this I had never experienced in my life, for the man I was
calling upon, you must remember, held a position in Corea equal to that
of the Prince of Wales and Lord Rosebery combined, and if you can imagine
being entertained by a dignitary of this high order with one of your
shoes in its right place and the other on the table, you will agree that
my position was more than comical. It appeared that this special state of
sensation was produced entirely by the fact that my unfortunate foot-gear
was made of patent leather, and that, being almost new, it shone
beautifully. Neither Prince nor Court had ever seen patent leather
before, and much ravishment, mingled with childish surprise, was on the
face of everybody, when it was whispered round and believed that the shoe
was covered with a glass coating. The Prince examined it carefully all
over, and then passed it round to his courtiers, signs of the greatest
admiration being expressed at this wonderful object.
[Illustration: H.R.H. PRINCE MIN-YOUNG-CHUN]
I, on my, side, took things quite philosophically, after having recovered
from the first shock; and, taking off the other shoe, put it also on the
table, gracefully, and quite in the Eastern fashion, begging the Prince
to accept the pair as a gift, if he was agreeable to have them.
Fortunately for me, however, he even more gracefully declined the offer,
though, as long as our interview lasted, I noticed that his eyes were
constantly fixed on them and that every now and then he again went into
raptures over them!
On the occasion of this visit I presented him with a portrait of himself
reproduced on a small scale from the larger painting which I had made. He
seemed to much appreciate this picture so far as the painting was
concerned, but was much taken aback when he discovered that it was on the
surface of a wooden panel and could not, therefore, be rolled up. The
Eastern idea is that, to preserve a picture, it should always be kept
rolled, and unrolled as seldom as possible, that is to say, only on grand
solemnities.
When it was time to go, the Prince conducted me to the door in person,
and, having had my shoes put on and laced by one of his pages, I finally
took my leave of him.
A very curious episode, the direct consequence of my having portrayed
these Princes, occurred some days afterwards. I was walking in the
grounds of Mr. Greathouse's residence, when I perceived a number of
coolies, headed by two soldiers and a sort of _Maggiordomo_, coming
towards the house. They were carrying several baskets, while the
_Maggiordomo_ himself gracefully held a note between two fingers. As soon
as they saw me, the _Maggiordomo_ made a grand bow, and, delivering the
letter into my hands, said that it came from Prince Min-Young-Huan, the
Commander-in-chief of the Corean army. What astonished me even more was
that he placed at my feet the different baskets and parcels, announcing
that they were now my property. The letter ran as follows:
"MY DEAR MR. LANDOR,--I send you some Corean hens, and some eggs,
and some persimmons, and some beef, and some pork, and some nuts,
and some screens, and a leopard skin. I hope that you will
receive them. I thank you very much for the beautiful picture you
have done of me, and I send you this as a remembrance of
me.--Your friend,
"MIN-YOUNG-HUAN."
Greathouse and all the household having been at once summoned, the gifts
were duly displayed and admired. The eggs numbered four hundred; then,
there were ten live native hens with lovely feathers, about forty pounds
of beef and pork, and two full bags, the one of nuts and the other of
persimmons. There was enough to last one a month. The part of the present
which pleased me most, however, was that containing the split bamboo
window screens, which are only manufactured for, and presented to the
King and royal princes by faithful subjects, and can scarcely be obtained
for love or money under ordinary circumstances. The leopard skin, also,
was a lovely one of its kind, with long fur and fat long tail,
beautifully marked, in short an excellent specimen of what is called, I
believe, a snow-leopard. Never before had I made so good a bargain for
any picture of mine, and I could not but wonder whether I should ever
again have another like it.
I am sorry to say that a large portion of the eggs were consumed in
making egg-noggs, an excellent American drink, at the concocting of which
Greathouse was a master, a sustaining "refresher" which helped us much in
passing away the long dull winter evenings. The hens, whose plumage we
much admired, were let loose for some days, but they created such a
nuisance with their early crowing, that they were soon condemned, like
most hens, to suffer from an overstretch of neck. The screens and
leopard-skins I brought back with me to England as a memento of my
portrait-painting experiences in Corea, and these I still possess.