2
1st. Sunday. Bright. Chilly but Spring-like.
3
Seoul home. Called on Mr. Ryang 4p.m. He read me two letters from Mr. Fisher―in both of which the writer mentions the Nash case as an instance of the abuse of autocratic authority on the part of Dr. Cynn. It seems to be the unanimous opinion or resentment on the part of the missionaries that Nash was unjustly dealt with just because he disagreed with Mr. C. The truth is this: I left the inter-foreigner secretarial affairs to the Americans―as to their allocation payment etc. When any of them―Gregg―for instance, got a sum of money for any special purpose from America I just let him use that money as said fit. Cynn calls that an empire within empire. He compelled the foreign secretaries to obey his orders implicitly. He appropriated the specially ear-marked money to pay the debt of the local Association. His contention and conduct perfectly correct and would be the only right thing to do if we could afford to be without any help of men and money from America. But as long as we need and need and need badly, both men and money from abroad Cynn's theory and act only kill the goose that lay golden eggs. After Gregg left the Y. industrial department not a piece of machinery, not a cent of money has come. The Nash affair interpreted as an act of Korean bossism against foreigners will tend to keep away foreigners from Korean Y. Dr. Avison on various occasions showed signs of uneasiness in this state of affairs, no doubt, for the sake of his son Gordon, who is in the service of the Korean National Council.
5
2nd. Monday. Cloud-Chilly a.m.
8
3rd. Tuesday. Bright. Cold.
9
Seoul home. Lunch at 百合園 given by Mr. 具滋祿 to the members of Board of Directors of the 彰文社. Mr. 朴治鎬 the former manager(支配人) of the Company who had resigned on account of poor health has been pressing for the payment of ￥4,400.00 which the company owes him. He was put in by my request. Fortunately he didn't eat up any money as 朴勝鳳, 李康浩 and other big and little thieves whose sole object was not the success of the Company but squeezing money out of my pocket. Men like Mr. 兪億兼, 申興雨, 具滋綠, 催在鶴 look to or expect me to pay the debt―because I had recommended 朴. If that logic holds 兪星濬, 朴勝鳳 who promoted the Company against my protest, who either for shook me like 兪星濬 or robbed me, like 朴勝鳳, ought to pay. Besides I gave away all my shares of and claims on, the Company 3 years ago and hundred over the whole plant without debt to the present Directors. To ask me to risk any more loss is certainly unreasonable.
11
4th. Wednesday. Rain. Mild.
12
Seoul home. Thirty years ago, when I was the 監理 of Wonsan for the second term, the then Government proposed first to annex the district of 城津 to that of 吉州, then to reverse the process. Mr. 李乾夏 was the Minister of Home Affairs(內部大臣) . Both districts whose interests were or supposed to be threatened sent delegates to petition the Home Minister to decide the question in their respective favor. Everytime the decision was made either for 城津 or 吉州, a large package of money was put into the hand of the Home Minister. Thus to my memory, the process of annexation and separation was repeated 13 times or more. That was one of the signs of unspeakable rottenness of the then Government. Something of the kind is being played by the Government General. When Genl. 山梨 was the Gov. General, he took bribes from all comers for various public concessions. One of his tricks was the transfer or promise to transfer, the capital of a province from one place to another―his main guiding principle in the choice of location being the interest of the Japanese backed by the largest bribe. Kong Joo(公州) the capital of South Choong Chung Do, which the Japanese of 大田 thought to be inferior to their town, was threatened. When Governor 劑蕂 came, he announced or promised the 公州 people that their capital wouldn't be transferred. Only a few weeks ago the Government Genl. definitely and officially proclaimed that the capital of the So. Choong Chung Do is to be located at 大田.
13
This against the most urgent protest of the 公州 people.
15
5th. Thursday. Big snow last night. Mild.
16
Seoul home. Supper at Mr. 丹羽’s home. Streets all mud, slush and water. Received a letter from Bishop Welch. Thank him.
18
6th. Friday. Cold enough a.m. to keep streets frozen.
19
Seoul home. Lovely sunshine p.m.
20
Yesterday in response to a cable request from 致旺, we, I and brother 致昌 sent him ￡100/s. or ￥1,000.00. Brother 旺’s sundry deposits have been exhausted and I have to advance for taxes etc. near ￥1,700.00. 旺弟 is one of the happy-go-lucky individuals who spends faster than he makes.
21
7 p.m. went to the Station to welcome, yes; welcome our dear 恩姬 back from Tokyo. She and her companion 劉鳳姬 had a most flattering receptions in Tokyo. Messrs. Usami and 阿部 called on them in person. The people of the 中央協會 under the chairmanship of Baron Sakatani did much to make our girls feel at home in that great city.
23
7th. Saturday. Biting cold. Lovely sunshine p.m.
26
8th. Sunday. Bitter cold’Lovely sunshine.
27
Seoul home. One of the coldest days of this winter.
28
Must be no less than 20˚C below zero.
30
9th. Monday. Gloomy. a little milder but cold.
31
Seoul home. Lunch at 白合園 given by Dr. Cynn to the members of the Institute of Pacific relations(I.P.R.) .
32
5 p.m. went to 槿花女學校 at the invitation of the faculty to hear Mrs. Kim Melissa and Mr. 尹槿 explain, or accuse each other, for the strike now in progress. Facts: Mrs. K. asked 尹槿, who had taught in the school for the last 10 years, to resign charging him with improper use of the school fund and illicit intercourse with certain girls in the school. Mrs. K. unwisely made these accusations in the presence of the whole body of the students. Then 尹槿 in self-defence charged Mrs. K. with appropriating funds collected from students on false presence and with having sold one girl to a rich man for concubine and another to Prince Wiwha for prostitution. Then the students struck a day or two ago. Representatives of the Korean Press, or the Education Association etc. came tonight not to judge the case but to find some means of breaking the strike. Home nearly 12.
34
10th. Tuesday. Pale sun. Chilly.
35
Seoul home. What the girls of 槿花 complain of is the (1) vulgar and abusive language which Kim Melissa uses when in temper; (2) her discriminatory treatment of poor girls; (3) her appropriating the 學友會 collections, athletic fees, money subscribed my parents for chemical and physics apparatus etc. to the payment of the school debts without consulting the girls; (4) her refusal to lower the board inspite of the fact that rice now costs her only half a much as a year ago.
37
11th. Wednesday. Chilly―Bright.
40
12th. Thursday. Lovely sunshine―Chilly to the bone.
41
Seoul home. This is my 67th birthday according to the Old Calendar. Instead of inviting friends to a feast, I have ￥20.00 to the kindergarten of the poor people of 新堂里 and ￥20.00 to the wife of Mr. 趙炳玉 who has been in the prison for the last 12 months. Last year gave ￥50.00 to the needy of my native village. I find this method of celebrating(?) by birthday more satisfactory.
42
成姬, the youngest daughter of 光善 had to enter the Severance Hospital today with a trouble in the spinal column. The poor little thing, only 2 years old, suffers much.
44
14th. Saturday. Pale―Cold.
45
Seoul home. Among the American missionaries, men like Mr. Fisher, interprets our desire for keeping up an organic relation with the mother methodist churches in America, as our desire for placing the Korean Methodist Church under the almighty wing of the American eagle! Mr. F. actually writes to Mr. Ryang that the American government would never risk the life of a single soldier for the protection of the Korean Christians. He either gives a very little credit to the intelligence of the Korean Methodist leaders or shows that he has even less of it than they. He seriously tells Mr. Ryang that we Korean Christian should look to Japan for spiritual and financial help rather than to America. He of course doesn't know that the "kumi-ai"(組合) or Congregational Church of Japan which showed a deal of interest in Korea, and which collected number of converts under the patronage of the Govt. Genl. 15 years ago, had to withdraw its work for lack of support and following. Mr. 李源兢 who attempted to affiliate his church with the Japanese Presbyterian Church also failed.
47
15th. Sunday. Pale sun. Cold.
48
Seoul home. Bishop Kern preached at the 宗矯 Church.
50
16th. Monday. Lovely sunshine. Chilly.
51
Seoul home. Found a layer of snow on the ground when I opened the door at 6 a.m. The unusual frequency of snow during the winter―doesn't presage another year of good crops. Of course that will be a good thing but it will lower the price of rice may be 2 sen a 斤!
52
At 10 a.m. the Central Council met for the first time at the Women's Bible School. Bishop Kern in the chair.
54
17th. Tuesday. Pale sun. Cold.
55
Seoul home. This being the first day of the first moon of the Lunar Calendar the Korean population of the city keep or celebrate it as their own holiday in contrast to the new year's day of the official or Western Calendar which the Koreans have nicknamed the Wai-sul(倭歲日 the Japanese new year's day) .
56
I didn't go to the Central Council meeting today.
58
18th. Wednesday. Hazy sun―Chilly to the bone.
59
Seoul home. I hear Dr. Hardie, Messrs. Fisher and Branum on one side and Dr. Cynn, Mr. 鄭春洙 and Mr. 金明洙 on the other had some sharp verbal duels on the question "Who is to pay for the expenses of this first meeting of the Central Council?" Mr. Fisher etc. insisted that the Koreans should pay the expenses of the Korean delegates. The Northern Methodist missionaries seemed to have the opinion that the expenses of this meeting should be meet by the mission fund. Toward the new Korean Methodist Church, the attitude of the Southern Meth. missionaries is something like the attitude of the step-mother toward a step-daughter who has set up a new house-keeping of her own. The North M. Church leaders to begin with Bishop Welch, have so far behaved or acted like a real mother, toward the new Korean Church.
60
Mr. Ryang has the hardest time. His salary for the last two months hasn't been paid. He has no office, no secretary, no money to carry on the multitudinous duties that are piled on him from every side. But the most painful thing to him must be the apathy of the Korean Church and the hostile attitude of some missionaries.
62
19th. Thursday. Pale sun. Chilly.
64
The General Board of Managers(總理) for the Korean Methodist Church had its first official meeting at the Library of Women's Bible School.
66
20th. Friday. Pale sun. Chilly to the bone.
67
Seoul home. Brother 致昌 received two telegrams last evening from somewhere in China―later known to be from the City of Kilim―informing him that his father-in-law, Rev. 孫貞道 had passed away. At the insistence of his wife, 致昌 got ready to go to 長春 with her, by the 7:20 p.m. I got this news about 15 to 7. I hurried to the Station, trying to dissuade them from taking the hazardous trip. But up to 7:18 they didn't come. On phoning him, from the Station, I learned that his clock was half an hour late! So he phoned back saying that they leave by the 11 Express. I sent 明燮 to him strongly objecting to the proposed trip. Reasons. We don't know whether the telegrams are reliable or not. Even if the telegrams were all reliable, the people of the bereaved family needed money more than the presence of 致昌. Why not send say ￥300.00 thus saving the traveling expenses. If 致昌 didn't go they would get through get through with the funeral with a few hundred yen. But they will spend a thousand yen and make 致昌 pay the bill if he went. Worse of all, who will guarantee that some of the "patriots" or Bolsheviks among the Koreans will not kidnap either 致昌 or his wife or both for ransome? 致昌's wife swooned last night. So no going to Manchuria for the time being!
69
21st. Saturday. Pale sun. Mild.
72
22nd. Sunday. Bright. Mild.
75
23rd. Monday. Lovely. Bracing cold.
78
24th. Tuesday. Bright. Very cold.
81
25th. Wednesday. Bright. Very cold.
82
Seoul home. Snow enough early morning or last night―to have blanketed the ground with a layer of it.
83
Snow again from about 9 p.m.
85
26th. Thursday. Lovely―Cold―Big snow last night.
88
27th. Friday. Gloomy. Very chilly.
91
28th. Saturday. Bright. Biting cold.
92
Seoul and Song Do. Left Seoul 7:55 a.m. train for Song Do where arrived 9:40. One of the coldest days of the winter―to my senses, anyway.
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