Account of a voyage of discovery to the west coast of Corea, and the great Loo-Choo Island — John Shaqi
Account of a voyage of discovery to the west coast of Corea, and the great Loo-Choo IslandHall, Basil
History
Account of a voyage of discovery to the west coast of Corea, and the great Loo-Choo Island
Hall, Basil
Korea -- Description and travel; Ryukyu Islands -- Description and travel
As soon as we had completed our investigation of this spot, we went
round in the boats to a small bay where there was good landing. Here we
were met by the natives, who addressed several long speeches to us in a
very loud tone of voice; to which we replied in English, that our wish
was merely to look at the island, without interfering with any body; at
the same time we proceeded up a foot-path to the brow of a hill. This
the natives did not seem at all to relish, and they made use of a sign
which was sufficiently expressive of their anxiety, though we could not
determine exactly to whom it referred. They drew their fans across their
own throats, and sometimes across ours, as if to signify that our going
on would lead to heads being cut off; but whether they or we were to be
the sufferers was not apparent. It was suggested by one of our party
that they dreaded being called to account by their own chiefs for
permitting us to land. All these signs, however, did not prevent our
advancing till we had reached the brow of the hill to which the path
led; from this place we had a view of a village at the distance of half
a mile, of a much better appearance than that above described. Trees
were interspersed among the houses, which were pleasantly situated at
the bottom of a little cove, with fishing-boats at anchor near it. We
explained readily enough that our wish was to go to the village, but it
was all in vain, for their anxiety increased every moment, and we
desisted from any further attempts to advance.
The dress of these people is a loose white robe, cloth shoes, and a few
wear the broad hats before described; by most the hair is tied in a high
conical knot on the top of the head, but by others it is allowed to fly
loose, so as to give them a wild appearance. Some confine the short hair
by a small gauze band with a star on one side, forming, along with the
top knot, rather a becoming head-dress. Their beards and whiskers which,
apparently, had never been cut, and their fans and long tobacco-pipes,
and their strange language and manners, gave a grotesque air to the
whole group, which it is impossible to describe. They crowded about us,
and, by repeated shouts, manifested their surprise at the form and
texture of our clothes; but on a watch being shewn, they disregarded
every thing else, and entreated to be allowed to examine it closely. It
was evidently the first they had seen, and some of them while watching
the second-hand, looked as if they thought it alive. From the watch they
proceeded to examine the seals and keys; with the former they shewed
themselves acquainted by pressing them on their hands, so as to cause an
impression. Their attention was drawn away from the watch by our firing
a musket, which made the whole party fall back several paces.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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