rawn from a well. The water-coolie
carries a peculiar arrangement on his shoulders, a long pole fastened
cross-wise upon his shoulder-blades, by straps going under and round the
arms; by which means he is enabled to carry two buckets of water at a
time. The arrangement, though more complicated, is not dissimilar to
that used for the same purpose, by women in Holland, or to that for
carrying milk in many parts of Switzerland. In winter time the buckets of
water become buckets of ice the moment they are drawn from the well, and
then it is really pitiable to see these poor beggars with the skin of
their hands all cracked and bleeding with the cold. They run along at a
good pace when loaded, and show great judgment in avoiding collision,
sighing as they go a loud _hess! hess! hess! hess!_ to which they keep
time with their steps. They are considered about the lowest creatures in
the kingdom, and enjoy some of the privileges of children and unmarried
men as regards clothing; for instance, they generally wear a light blue
jacket even when the country is in mourning. When on duty they never wear
hats, and often no head-bands, having, instead, blue kerchiefs wrapt
round the head. The inevitable long pipe is not forgotten, and is
carried, after the fashion of the _mapu_, stuck down the back.

[Illustration: A WATER-COOLIE]

The lock-carrier, again, is by no means the dirtiest individual in the
land of Cho-sen, at least as far as it was my good fortune to see.
Nevertheless, his clothes are invariably in a state of dilapidation, and,
though intended to be white, are usually black with grease and dirt. As
he is employed by the Government he wears the deepest mourning; his face,
and one half of his body being actually hidden under the huge hat
provided for deep mourners. He seldom possesses a pair of padded socks
and sandals, and in the coldest days walks about bare-footed with his
trousers turned up to the knees. He is visible only at sunrise and
sunset, when he goes on his round to all the city gates in order to
inspect the locks and bring or take away the keys. Slung down his back,
he carries a large leather bag, something like a tennis bag, which
contains numberless iron implements of different shapes and weights. He
appears to be friendless and despised by everybody, and I have never seen
him talk to any one. I rather pitied the poor fellow as I saw him go
night after night, with his long unwashed face and hands, along the
ram