Page:A modern pioneer in Korea-Henry G. Appenzeller-by William Elliot Griffis.djvu/34

 26 to the native. The choice places of resort and famous scenery have been celebrated in the common language and in the poets' lore of a thousand years.

As if the blendings and variegations of earth and sky, of the interplay of aerial moisture and sunshine did not sufficiently enrich Nature's palette, there are other tints, varied and abundant in the plumage of the birds and the fur of a rich fauna. The black and white of the snowy heron, the pink of the ibis and the brilliant markings of the pheasant attract, while even the striping of the tigers and spotting of the leopards are noteworthy—though best enjoyed when off the beasts and on chair or floor. Those with a passion for colour will find in the veinings and stains of the rocks, the tinting of the soil, the variety in gems, metals and building stones much to please the eye, even though granite is the predominating rock, its mass making mountains, and its attrition the whitish-looking soil seen everywhere.

One may easily believe in the recently elaborated theory that all great races and civilisations are permanently maintained only in regions visited by a certain number of storms annually and where the climate is, in large measure, an uncertainty. In this view, Korea, which has one of the most delightful climates in the world, with seasons that are almost too regular, is not calculated to breed a hardy, self-reliant race capable of the greatest achievements. There are indeed extremes of temperature, from ten degrees below to a hundred above zero. In valleys in the north, snow to the