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<TITLE>Re: [KS] Korean Embassy arrived New York, The New York Times, Sept. 18, 1883</TITLE>
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<FONT FACE="Arial"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:14.0px'>The image of the three men, bowing to the floor with faces fully concealed, explains fully why there were prominent emblems at the back of their official uniforms. <BR>
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Lauren<BR>
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Lauren W. Deutsch<BR>
835 S. Lucerne Blvd., #103<BR>
Los Angeles CA 90005<BR>
Tel 323 930-2587 Cell 323 775-7454<BR>
E lwdeutsch@earthlink.net<BR>
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<HR ALIGN=CENTER SIZE="3" WIDTH="95%"><B>From: </B>Kwang On Yoo <lovehankook@gmail.com><BR>
<B>Reply-To: </B>Korean Studies Discussion List <koreanstudies@koreaweb.ws><BR>
<B>Date: </B>Thu, 22 Jul 2010 22:29:42 -0500<BR>
<B>To: </B>Korean Studies Discussion List <koreanstudies@koreaweb.ws><BR>
<B>Subject: </B>[KS] Korean Embassy arrived New York, The New York Times, Sept. 18, 1883<BR>
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<a href="http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9F0CEED71438E033A2575BC1A96F9C94629FD7CF"><http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9F0CEED71438E033A2575BC1A96F9C94629FD7CF></a> <a href="http://magazine.joins.com/_data/photo/2009/05/org_11171748.jpg"><http://magazine.joins.com/_data/photo/2009/05/org_11171748.jpg></a> <a href="http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=100&oid=001&aid=0003331008"><http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=100&oid=001&aid=0003331008></a> <BR>
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Hello Everyone,<BR>
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King Kojong sent the first ever Korean Embassy to the United States to reciprocate the opening of the U.S. Legation in Seoul.<BR>
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The New York times reports on their arrival in New York City to present their credentials to then President Arthur:<BR>
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<a href="http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9F0CEED71438E033A2575BC1A96F9C94629FD7CF">http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9F0CEED71438E033A2575BC1A96F9C94629FD7CF</a> <a href="http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9F0CEED71438E033A2575BC1A96F9C94629FD7CF"><http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9F0CEED71438E033A2575BC1A96F9C94629FD7CF></a> <BR>
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This is how they greeted the President:<BR>
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<a href="http://magazine.joins.com/_data/photo/2009/05/org_11171748.jpg">http://magazine.joins.com/_data/photo/2009/05/org_11171748.jpg</a><BR>
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The Korean Embassy was well served by Percival Lowell, of future Lowell Observatory fame. Lowell was a well educated Harvard man with a very good family connection. He took the Embassy to his hometown of Boston from New York by boat. <BR>
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He later returned to Japan with the Embassy. There he received an invitation from the Korean Court to visit Korea. He stayed three months and kept himself very busy while in Korea, as we will see. Based on the experience and material gathered during his stay, he wrote the now famous book, <I>Choson: The Land of Morning Calm. </I>But Lowell's work and actions while in Korea did not escape the scrutiny of U.S. Navy Ensign,* George Clayton Foulk, who was acting Minister in Korea at the time. King Kojong on down called him Pok Kongsa(복 공사), Minister Foulk.<BR>
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In a letter to his father dated March 13, 1886,** The American Man In Korea, Foulk writes, "Ever so many thanks for the newspaper slips on Lowell's book (Choson: The Land of the Morning Calm). They were interesting and useful. Lowell will hardly send me a copy of the book. I hear he is very bitter against me, but I forgive him and am glad his book is favorably received. I judge, however, it throws but real light on Korea. If I write a book it will be a sober exposition of facts, not flowery in any way. Lowell has done very well considering the time he spent here. I notice several great mistakes, about the King's divine origin (not so) and the status of women,which is not complete. <B>The evils women's seclusion are abominable and obscenity and filth exist which probably have no counterpart in the world. In other ways, however, Koreans are better than Lowell makes them."<BR>
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In the same letter, Foulk writes, "Lowell ought to know something about the women, as he lived with the fair creature he describes, and is said to have a child here."<BR>
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Understandably there are no records of the Korean woman or his child he fathered with her, as they could not be made public at the time in Korea.<BR>
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In the meantime, there was a very informative article on Pok Kongsa in the Yunhap News, Seoul, June 15, 2010:<BR>
<a href="http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=100&oid=001&aid=0003331008">http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=100&oid=001&aid=0003331008</a> <a href="http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=100&oid=001&aid=0003331008"><http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=100&oid=001&aid=0003331008></a> <BR>
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* Foulk was interpreting for the Korean Embassy in Japanes while they were in the U. S. before he was appointed to the post of the Naval Attache to Korea. <BR>
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* *America's Man in Korea<BR>
The Private Letters of George C. Foulk, 1884-1887, page 150<BR>
Edited by Samuel Hawley(전 연세대 교수)<BR>
Lexington Books, 2008<BR>
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Thank you.<BR>
<FONT COLOR="#888888"><BR>
Kwang-On Yoo</FONT><BR>
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