Glimpses of Korea by C. L. Butterfield

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Jul 7, 1909

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 36, No. 26.

Glimpses of Korea

By C. L. Butterfield

It has always been with interest that I have followed the work in foreign fields through the Mission Department of the SIGNS, and now as I find myself located in a foreign field, my interest in this department is as great as before.

Nearly two months have passed since our arrival in this interesting field. This time has been fully occupied, as winter is now on us and we had to build a little house to live in. Some time has also been spent in looking for a suitable location for the headquarters of our work and another mission station. It has been decided to move our headquarters to Seoul, the capital of Korea, and a place of about 200,000 inhabitants, as soon as possible.

Elder I. H. Evans spent about ten days with us in organizing Korea into a separate mission field. We very much appreciated his counsel and timely suggestions.

Korea is densely populated, especially the southern and western parts. The people are very interesting and have many peculiar ways and customs. Both men and women dress in white. As two or three hundred of them gather together in a little village on market days, it makes a very interesting sight. Early in the morning one will see them coming from all directions to market, bringing bundles of grain, straw sandals, crockery, cloth, dried fish, and many other small things. There is a market in our village every five days.

The Koreans accept the teachings of the Gospel very readily and one can get a hearing at most any place at almost any time. They are never too busy to stop and listen. One morning I went with Dr. Russell to see a man who had been kicked on the knee by a policeman. As we entered the house, we were surrounded by about twenty people who wanted to see what was going to be done and to say something about the injury. The man, who was lying on a mat, raised himself and spit on his knee and then wiped it with his hand so that the doctor could better see what was the matter. They know nothing of quarantine laws in this country. It is not uncommon for one to come to see the doctor and, after being in the house a few minutes, say that some of his folks have the smallpox or some disease just as bad.

At church or school the men and women are separated by a curtain or partition, as a man is not supposed to look on the face of any woman but his own wife.

We have a training-school here at Soonan that is doing good work in fitting young people to go out and give the message of a soon-coming Saviour to these people in heathen darkness. About twenty students are attending at present.

We are now at the difficult task of learning the Korean language. This calls for much hard study and patience. Pray for us that we may be successful in mastering the language, and be able to bring many of these people to a saving knowledge of the truth.

C. L. BUTTERFIELD.