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I began learning the Korean language almost 50 years ago. Perhaps the most basic error I made, and the error of my language teacher, was to spell out Korean words in the familiar alphabet of many European languages: Latin or Roman. Only later did I begin to understand the simple beauty of Hangeul and its straightforward representation of Korean language phonetics. Most people can learn to read Hangeul with only a few hours of work. Writing takes a bit more practice, and although I have been reading and writing Hangeul for most of my life, my handwriting is poor (but then, my English handwriting is no better ― I am impatient). With the advent of computers, typing in English or Hangeul is much faster and more accurate for my lazy hands. ....
In the 19th century, Korea was often referred to as the “Land of the Morning Calm” but it was far from accurate - especially at night when it became a realm of loud mourning. ....
Korean historians have not been kind to the Rev. Dr. James Scarth Gale (1863-1937). Some have either ignorantly or deliberately misinterpreted or mistranslated Gale s writings. Such is true especially regarding the Japanese takeover of the Korean Empire in 1905-10. These same Korean historians had a clear agenda. They wanted all Western missionaries in Korea to be overtly anti-Japanese or outright independence fighters. In truth, Western missionaries could not be either and still be faithful to the pastoral care of their flocks, many of whom were first-generation Christians. The missionaries were placed in an awkward position. ....
In May 1880, the Korean port of Wonsan opened to Japanese trade and almost immediately the first tales of tiger encounters began to appear in Japanese newspapers. A Japanese resident in that port described - almost poetically - one of these early encounters. ....