Treaty Ports (_continued_)—Wi-ju—Syön-chyön-po—Chin-am-po—Pyöng-yang—
Kun-san—Syöng-chin
The ports which remain to be mentioned, have not yet attained a
commercial importance entitling them to any great consideration. They
afford, however, a signal illustration of the enterprising spirit in
which the Koreans have met the demands made upon them, and, as the
interests of the country increase, the natural expansion of the inland
trade will enhance their value.
Hitherto, Southern Korea has been better served in the matter of open
ports than the northern half of the kingdom. With the addition to the
list of treaty ports of Syöng-chin, upon the north-eastern coast, and
Chin-am-po (with Pyöng-yang, an old-time capital of Korea, and ranking
to-day as the third city of the Empire, in close proximity), upon the
western coast, greater facilities have been accorded to the commercial
development of the almost unknown markets of Northern Korea. In view,
however, of the trade in the southern provinces of the kingdom, the port
of Kun-san was created on the west coast simultaneously with the opening
of Syöng-chin in 1899 upon the north-east shore. This port lies between
Chemulpo and Mok-po, at the mouth of the Keum River, the natural boundary
between the two provinces, Chyöl-la and Chyung-chyöng.
It is, nevertheless, to the north and north-east regions that foreign
commerce must look for that impetus to industrial activity, which comes
from the opening of new markets. A most important trade-centre already
exists in Wi-ju, at the mouth of the Yalu river. This town requires to
be opened; in the meantime, its position upon the border of Manchuria
attracts a varied and valuable direct trade. Moreover, if Wi-ju were
brought under the administration and control of the Maritime Customs of
Korea, and included among those ports which have already been declared,
a greater restraint could be put upon the smugglers, who have made it
a centre of communication in their illicit trade. At this moment it is
difficult to say whether Wi-ju may be quite properly included among
the treaty ports. If official assurances can be safely accepted, the
Government of Korea decided on August 22nd, 1903, to declare Wi-ju an
open port, at the same time placing a Customs house at Yong-an-po.
The difference between the two is hardly greater than that separating
Pyöng-yang from Chin-am-po. Unfortunately, this decision is by no means
definite, although a few days later, on September 4th, an announcement
to the same effect was made by the Foreign Office at Seoul to the
foreign representatives. This official ratification of its previous
decision would carry conviction if the policy of the Korean Cabinet
were less vacillating, and the opposition of the Russian Minister less
strenuous. The Russian Minister objects in an equal degree to the opening
of Yong-an-po, and, since M. Colin de Plancy, the French Minister, is
supporting his Russian colleague, M. Pavloff, in opposition to the
opening of Wi-ju, future developments may prove M. Pavloff to have
withdrawn his objections against Wi-ju in order that he can concentrate
them upon Yong-an-po. Unfortunately for Russian interests, British policy
in Korea favours the opening of both ports, an action in which Mr.
Jordan, the British Minister in Seoul, is cordially supported by many of
his colleagues.
The action of the British Government in respect of these ports on the
Yalu is quite encouraging, and it is equally satisfactory to see that
Mr. Jordan has maintained his attitude with admirable consistency. The
demand of the British Government was presented to his Majesty at a
special audience on July 14th, 1903. It evoked at once the opposition
of the Russians, whose objections were communicated officially to the
Korean Government when, a few days later, the British Minister sent a
despatch to the Foreign Office to inquire upon what date Wi-ju would
become an open port. Meanwhile, the Japanese Minister reiterated the
request of the British Government, which, at the same time, was supported
by an identical demand from the Chinese Foreign Office, through the
Korean Minister in Pekin. For a few days matters remained stationary, the
situation becoming a little involved by the resignation of the Minister
of Foreign Affairs, Yi To-chai, upon the plea of ill-health. The Emperor
refused the resignation, and on August 9th the British Minister sent an
urgent despatch, which demanded the opening of Wi-ju within seven days.
A few days later a decision, favourable to the request of the British
Minister, was delivered, and it remains to be seen whether permanent
effect will be given to it. Meanwhile, as the readiest means of giving
effect to the new dignity of the port, a small _posse_ of Japanese police
has been sent to Wi-ju to protect the settlement.
Syön-chyön-po, the youngest of the open ports, is in its very early
days. It is situated about forty miles to the south of Wi-ju. Its future
prosperity is uncertain, but from its position, midway between Chin-am-po
and Wi-ju, it should become an important port of call for native
shipping. At present Syön-chyön-po is administered from Chin-am-po,
but the lines of its future settlement have been planned, and it will
doubtless develop into a thriving Japanese colony. For the moment there
is little trade.
[Illustration: CHEMULPO]
The Ta-dong River, at the estuary of which Chin-am-po lies, is one of
the most important and picturesque streams in the country. It drains
the southern and south-eastern divisions of Pyöng-an Province; upon its
banks, sixty-seven miles from the sea, is Pyöng-yang, the early capital
and oldest city of the Empire. Around Pyöng-yang still lingers a host
of romantic associations, historical and legendary. Towns and villages
are found upon the banks of the Ta-dong; there is much rugged beauty
in the scenery, and the water-shed has landmarks of great physical and
historical importance. The velocity of the river current during the
spring tides averages three and a quarter knots. During the ebb, over
against the Chin-am-po bank, there is an increase of two knots caused by
a projecting point upon the opposite shore of the river. The formation of
the Ta-dong inlet is irregular; many indentations, which mark the outline
of the anchorage, become mud flats at low water. Prior to the selection
of Chin-am-po as a treaty port, the native village consisted of a few
straggling huts and a population of less than one thousand. Now, however,
the old order has given way to the new. The mud flats have been reclaimed
and so many improvements have taken place in the general conditions of
the port that a bright future may be confidently predicted for it.
Chin-am-po, the settlement, is situated upon the northern shore of the
Ta-dong inlet, about fifteen miles from its entrance in the extreme
south-west of Pyöng-an Province. The port was opened to foreign trade
in October 1897. During the few years of its existence as an open port,
Chin-am-po has made no little progress. At the present time it gives
promise of becoming an exceedingly important commercial centre. The
increase of the foreign trade and the flourishing condition of the native
market have attracted the attention of the Japanese, who have already
made a considerable settlement in the port. Estimates of the native
population vary from fifteen to forty thousand, the smaller figure being
nearer the mark. The trade compares favourably, in point of value and
bulk, with that of ports of equal capacity, similarly situated. Its
development is somewhat restricted, the two great forces contributing
to its material economy being the impetus which has been given to local
agricultural resources, and the mining industry. When the concessions
of the American and British Mining Companies at Un-san and Eun-san were
granted, Chin-am-po became the port of shipment for much of their traffic.
The commercial possibilities of the region, which lies between the
Ta-dong River and the water-shed of the Yalu, are in the earliest stages
of development. Much might be predicted of the returns which these new
fields would yield to intelligent exploitation. Cut off from the eastern
division of the kingdom by ranges of mountains, and extending from
Po-reup-san, near Chin-am-po, in the south, to the mountain fastnesses
of the northern frontiers of the Empire, is a stretch of country in
part uninhabited. It is frequented by bands of Korean robbers and
Chinese bandits; the centre of much native mining and the scene of
perpetual border warfare. The haunt of the wild beast, barren and almost
impenetrable, it is practically untouched by Western civilisation. Its
groves of pines and firs, and acres of woods, recall the time when
Northern Korea was one vast forest. Until quite lately there were but two
open ports for the service of this region, Chin-am-po and Pyöng-yang.
The third, Syön-chyön-po, in its northern extremity, is still closed
to Europeans. Gold and coal, iron and copper, are among its natural
resources. The soil is productive; and the moment is ripe for the
initiation of industrial enterprises. Moreover, commercial prosperity
would introduce a more pacific note into the condition of these lone
lands.
Pyöng-yang lies upon the borders of an extensive anthracite and
bituminous coal district. The outcroppings are plainly traceable,
although at present not indicative of any very serviceable quality
of fuel. Coal, however, is not the least of the minerals, nor are
the resources of the soil confined to the production of beans. Stone
quarrying and the timber industry flourish in the province. The
authentic records of Pyöng-yang go back some three thousand years, the
creation of the city coinciding with that of the Kingdom of Israel. Saul,
David, and Solomon were the contemporaries of Ki-ja and his successors.
In more modern times the most stirring events recorded are the massacre
of the crew of the “General Sherman,” in 1866, and the long chapter of
vicissitudes which befell the city during the Chino-Japanese campaign.
The ravages of war and the devastation of pestilence in 1895 left a
deserted and ruined city. Nevertheless, as if to remind the inhabitants
of the former dignity of their town, the tide of its fortunes turned, and
some measure of prosperity returned. In the interval, trade revived; a
small foreign community now lives within the walls, and it is hoped that
the days of evil omen are as distant as are the times when this old-world
capital first enclosed herself within protecting walls. Commercially
and industrially it has advanced enormously; and, as a sign of the
times, may be mentioned the fact that the native community has founded a
private English Language school. Pyöng-yang is associated so intimately
with Chin-am-po that the two are inseparably united in any survey of
the fortunes of either. Nevertheless, the continuation of Pyöng-yang
as an open port is uncertain, the Korean Government having expressed
the intention of closing the port if they are compelled to throw open
Wi-ju. The British, American and Japanese representatives have resolutely
opposed this suggestion.
The port of Kun-san, which was thrown open in May 1899, to foreign
settlement and general trade, taps channels in the main identical
with those which supply Mok-po. Depending to a great extent upon the
agricultural resources of the provinces of Chyöl-la and Chyung-chyöng,
its trade is confined to the exportation of cereals, such as rice,
wheat, and beans; of grass-cloth, paper, and bamboo articles; and of
varieties of fish and seaweed. When the railway between Seoul and Fusan
is completed, the development of the agricultural resources of these
areas will re-act upon the fortunes of this port. It is, however, quietly
thriving in the interval, content to play a prominent _rôle_ in the
coast trade rather than to figure as a port of call, in any exchange of
commodities with China and Japan. In early days, the port itself was
well known as the export station for revenue rice, when the Government
revenues were paid in grain. The practice has not been maintained in
more recent years. In Kun-san there is an increasing colony of Japanese,
a large native population, and a small Chinese community. The import
trade, however, is confined to Japanese manufactures, including, broadly,
those counterfeits of foreign goods—Manchester shirtings, Chinese lawns,
Indian yarns, American kerosene and English and Swedish matches—in
the production of which our lively imitators have attained an unusual
standard of perfection.
The most isolated of all the open ports is Syöng-chin, upon the
north-eastern coast, in the province of Ham-kyöng, about one hundred
and twenty miles from Won-san. It was opened in May 1899; the trade,
principally with Won-san, and carried on by Japanese, is unimportant.
There is a field for expansion, as gold, copper, and coal exist within a
short distance of the town. There are also white granite quarries in the
neighbourhood. The off-shore sea-fishing supports a colony of Japanese;
large numbers of cattle are raised for the market in the province, and
the country around is under cultivation for beans. The export trade is
in beans, hides, and fish; the imports include kerosene, matches, and
cotton goods. There is no direct native trade with Japan. The present
condition of Syöng-chin suggests that it was once a fortified town of
importance. There are the ruins of a high protecting wall, surmounted
with watch-towers and battlements. Time, poverty and neglect are
responsible for its present impoverished condition. There is a small
native population. The anchorage is little more than an open roadstead.
It is easy of access, deep, and has an excellent holding. Vessels
drawing ten feet can lie within a short distance of the shore. Fogs and
high winds prevail in spring, but, upon the whole, the climate is more
temperate at all seasons than Won-san.
The port lies near the 41st parallel, facing nearly north-east, midway
between Won-san and Vladivostock. The prevailing wind, winter and
summer, blows from the south-west. It is only in times of atmospheric
disturbance, an infrequent condition in these latitudes, that a
north-east blow renders the anchorage unsafe, and compels vessels to
shift their moorings to the north-east end of the bay, where the Sarako
headland gives them shelter. Water to the depth of five fathoms obtains
within 200 yards of the shore. The rise and fall of spring tides is
about two feet. No obstacles present themselves to the building of a
landing-stage and boat harbour. When the port was opened, a few huts
represented the native town. Since then about 250 houses have been
erected, and more are being built. At no distant date it is probable
that Syöng-chin will displace the neighbouring Im-myöng as the market
place. The foreign community is represented by a Japanese Consul and
staff, Japanese police force and postal staff, schoolmaster, shipping
agent and workmen. A British doctor and his family, belonging to the
Canadian Mission, reside there. The only foreign house erected within the
settlement limits is that occupied by the Japanese Consul.