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 WASHING CLOTHES IN A DRAIN

CHAPTER XXIV

Kang-wha, brief history of the island—A monastic retreat, an ideal rest—Nocturnal visitors—Midnight masses—Return to the capital—Preparations for a great journey—Riots and confusion

, the island to which I was sailing in these easy stages, lies in the north-east quarter of the gulf, formed by the right angle which the coast makes before taking that northerly sweep which carries it, with a curve, to the mouth of the Yalu River. On the south and south-west, Kang-wha is exposed to the open sea; on the north, the island is separated from the mainland by the Han estuary; and on the east a narrow strait, scarce two hundred yards wide, through which boats, journeying from Chemulpo to Seoul must travel, severs the island from the mainland.