The four men with spades now began their work, and soon levelled the mound. They had dug out a considerable quantity of earth, when their shovels struck on a rocky slab, which seemed to be the lid of the tomb proper, or the sarcophagus. This they could not move. All efforts to budge or pry it up were vain. Having no crowbars they were, after much useless labor, with perhaps not a little swearing, compelled to give up their task.
On their return march, the exasperated Coreans, plucking up courage, attempted to molest them, but the marauders, firing their guns in the air, kept their assailants at a respectful distance. The party and tender dropped down the river and rejoined the steamer at noon, the weather being foggy.
Further proceedings of the expedition are known only in outline. The steamer weighed anchor and left for Kang-wa Island. They put themselves in communication with the local magistrate during three days. On the third day a party landed from the ship, and while on shore were fired upon. Two men were killed and one wounded.
The expedition remained in Corea ten days, returning to Shanghae after two weeks’ absence.
In the foregoing trial it is most evident that many details were concealed. The quantity of truth divulged was probably in proportion to the whole amount, as the puffs of steam from a safety-valve are to the volume in the boiler. The accused let out just enough to save them from conviction and to secure their acquittal.
The defendant was discharged with the Scotch verdict “not proven.” Mr. George F. Seward, however, wrote to the State Department at Washington his opinion, that the expedition was “an attempt to take from their tombs the remains of one or more sovereigns of Corea, for the purpose, it would seem, of holding them to ransom.”
Whether any great amount of treasure is ever buried with the sovereigns or grandees of Chō-sen is not known to us. Certain it [[400]]is that the national sentiment is that of horror against the disturbance or rifling of sepulchres. Now they had before their eyes a fresh confirmation of their suspicions that the chief purpose of foreign invaders was to rob the dead and violate the most holy instincts of humanity. The national mind now settled into the conviction that, beyond all doubt, foreigners were barbarians and many of them thieves and robbers. With such eyes were they ready to look upon the flag and ships of the United States when they came in 1871.
Map Illustrating the “China” Affair.
Note.—Nearly every word of the above was written in December, 1877, the information having been derived from the United States Diplomatic Correspondence. At that time we suspected that “Farout” was the fictitious name of Feron, the French Roman Catholic missionary, who had escaped the persecutions of 1866. It seems that three countries and three religions were represented in this body-snatching expedition, which was of a truly international character.