The first day that we were in Seoul, the capital city of Korea, Pat McConnell and myself were walking down the main street of this interesting city toward the depot. Parallel with us marched a squad of Japanese soldiers. In front of them, going the same direction, was a poor Korean workman pushing a small cart that looked like our American wheelbarrow.
The Japanese soldiers were in formation and marching in the middle of a wide street. But deliberately; evidently with orders from their officer in charge; they edged over to that side of the street where the Korean was walking and pushed him into the curb stone, kicking his barrow as they passed, although this meant a useless swerving of, at least, fifteen feet out of their course to do so. It was a case of deliberate brutality.
"Korea is a land of trails and terraces," said a prominent missionary in that fair spot to me one day as we were riding from Fusan to Seoul.
"And terror," added another traveler from America. "It is a land of trails, terraces, and terror!"
One day a friend of mine was begging Baron Saito, the present Governor-General of Korea, to stop the cruelties of the Japanese gendarmes in villages in northern Korea. The Baron asked for the names of those who had given the missionary his information about the cruelties and he refused to give them.
"Why should you not give them?" asked Baron Saito.
"Because they would be killed for complaining," said the missionary.
Then he told Governor-General Saito how he had once complained to the police department when a father and son were cruelly beaten in prison.
"Give me their names," said the gendarme.
"I will if you will give me a promise that they will be protected."