Page:The passing of Korea.djvu/543

 shoes are soft, sandal-like arrangements that make no noise. Next come a number of banners of Oriental richness, borne aloft on bamboo poles, each surmounted by a handsome bunch of peacock feathers. From the cross-bar hangs the banner itself, ten feet long by four feet wide. The central panel is of white brocaded silk, on which are sewed Chinese characters in black and red. The border is of another colour of silk, and is deeply serrated at the edge. From the ends of the cross-bars hang lanterns and bells. The pole is covered with red felt, on which are gilt figures of men, birds and dragons. Each of the great guilds of Seoul is required to furnish one of these costly trinkets. They represent an expenditure of about one hundred and fifty dollars each. Next come a crowd of gaudily dressed bearers, carrying aloft on poles long scrolls of white paper on which are written eulogies of the dead by the most famous scholars of the land. They are substitutes for an obituary address. Behind these comes the chair of state which the deceased was wont to ride, a sumptuous affair borne high above the heads of a score of sturdy fellows. It is draped and canopied with costliest silks, and is bedizened on every side with bangles, knots and tassels. Before it is borne the royal red umbrella, and behind it, festooned upon a hundred poles or more, is carried the blue cloth fence within which the palace women ride on ponies to the place of burial. It is to protect them from the curious eyes of the crowd. It is not unlikely that this is a remnant of the ancient custom of burying several girls alive in the tomb of a dead king. History records one significant instance in which a king of Silla gave orders that in his case this barbaric custom must be omitted.

The next feature is a pack of hobgoblins or imps with enormous masks over their faces. These masks are three feet broad, and have two pairs of staring eyes and hideous grinning mouths. These are supposed to frighten away all evil spirits and make the pbsequies propitious. Behind these, after an interval, comes the master of ceremonies, mounted upon a splendid white horse, and surrounded by_ liveried attendants and armed troops. The