The History of Korea (vol. 2 of 2)Hulbert, Homer B. (Homer Bezaleel)
History
The History of Korea (vol. 2 of 2)
Hulbert, Homer B. (Homer Bezaleel)
Korea -- History
Three documents were prepared by those present and placed before His
Majesty for signature, one of them guaranteeing that the Cabinet should
thereafter manage the affairs of the country, the second appointing Yi
Chă-myŭn, the King’s brother, as Minister of the Household in place of
Yi Kyŭng-jik who had just been killed, and the third appointing a
vice-Minister of the Household. These documents the king perforce
signed. Whereupon all Japanese troops were removed from the palace and
only the Japanese-trained Korean troops were left as a palace-guard.
Later in the day Ministers of War and Police were appointed in the
persons of Cho Heui-yŭn and Kwŭn Yŭng-jin, both strong partisans of the
Japanese and doubtless privy to the attack upon the palace and the
murder of the Queen. In other words the King and court was surrounded by
men every one of whom were in sympathy with the movement which had been
planned by Viscount Miura.
Very early in the morning, while it was still scarcely daylight, Mr.
Waeber the Russian _Charge d’Affaires_ and Dr. Allen the American
_Charge d’Affaires ad interim_ came to the palace and sought audience
with the King but were told that the King was unwell and could not see
them. They insisted, however, and succeeded in seeing His Majesty, who
told them that he still had hopes that the Queen had escaped, and
besought their friendly offices to prevent further trouble. Other
foreign representatives were received later in the day.
It soon became evident that the Japanese authorities intended to deny
any responsibility for the outrages committed. Miura stated in his
dispatches to his government that the origin of the _emeute_ was a
conflict between the Japanese-drilled Korean troops, who desired to lay
a complaint before His Majesty, and the palace guards who tried to
prevent their entrance into the palace. Miura even sought to strengthen
his disclaimer by obtaining from the newly appointed Minister of War a
definite official statement that the rumors of his (Miura’s) complicity
in the affair were without foundation. The document that the Minister of
War sent in reply proved altogether too much and defeated its own
purpose, for it stated baldly that there was not a single Japanese in
the palace on the night of the eighth of October, when the Queen was
murdered. As this Minister was a creature of the Japanese and as the
presence of Japanese in the palace was clearly proved subsequently it is
evident that Miura, by this sort of trickery, only succeeded in further
implicating himself.
On the ninth, the day after the _emeute_, a full cabinet was appointed
composed entirely of Japanese sympathisers, but with one or two
exceptions they were not privy to the assassination of the Queen, though
they were willing to profit by that crime in accepting office at the
hands of the perpetrators. The men appointed were Yi Chă-myŭn, Kim
Hong-jip, Kim Yun-sik, Pak Chöng-yang, Sim Sang-hun, Cho Heui-yŭn, So
Kwang-böm and Chong Pyung-ha.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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