Sick men, women and boys and old men are flogged.

In the disturbances of 1919 wounded men who were being nursed in the foreign hospitals in Seoul were taken out by the police to be flogged, despite the protests of doctors and nurses.  There were many cases reported of old men being flogged.  The stripping and flogging of women, particularly young women, was notorious.

Here is one case of the flogging of boys.

The following letter from a missionary in Sun-chon—­where there is a Presbyterian hospital,—­dated May 25, 1919, was printed in the report of the Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America.  I have seen other communications from people who saw these boys, amply confirming the letter, if it requires confirmation.

Eleven Kangkei boys came here from ——.  All the eleven were beaten ninety stripes—­thirty each day for three days, May 16, 17 and 18, and let out May 18th.  Nine came here May 22nd, and two more May 24th.

     Tak Chan-kuk died about noon, May 23rd.

     Kim Myungha died this evening.

     Kim Hyungsun is very sick.

     Kim Chungsun and Song Taksam are able to walk but are badly
     broken.

     Kim Oosik seemed very doubtful but afterwards improved.

     Choi Tungwon, Kim Changook, Kim Sungkil, and Ko Pongsu are able
     to be about, though the two have broken flesh.

Kim Syungha rode from ——­ on his bicycle and reached here about an hour before his brother died.  The first six who came into the hospital were in a dreadful fix, four days after the beating.  No dressing or anything had been done for them.  Dr. Sharrocks just told me that he feels doubtful about some of the others since Myungha died.  It is gangrene.  One of these boys is a Chun Kyoin, and another is not a Christian, but the rest are all Christians.

     Mr. Lampe has photographs.  The stripes were laid on to the
     buttocks and the flesh pounded into a pulp.

Greater humanity!  Avoiding unnecessary pain!  It is obvious that the method of police absolutism is open to very great abuse.  In practice it works out as galling tyranny.  A quotation from the Japan Chronicle illustrates one of the abuses: 

“In the course of interpellations put forward by a certain member in the last session of the Diet, he remarked on the strength of a statement made by a public procurator of high rank in Korea, that it was usual for a gendarme who visits a Korean house for the purpose of searching for a criminal to violate any female inmate of the house and to take away any article that suits his fancy.  And not only had the wronged Koreans no means of obtaining redress for this outrageous conduct, but the judicial authorities could take no proceedings against the offender as they must necessarily depend upon the gendarmerie for acceptable evidence of crime.”