Page:History of Corea, ancient and modern; with description of manners and customs, language and geography (1879).djvu/219

VERY MAGICAI^ 195 disgrace. He raised the siege immediately after, and retired to the Corean capital He is described with a most hideous face. It is mmecessary to say that the emperor never saw Funghwang chung, nor did Gaisoowun himself lead an army against him ; the story being founded on the attack on Yenshow at Anshu, where Tingwei displayed such, extraordinary prowess, and was 60 greatly rewarded But our novel does not permit him to get rewarded ; his white dress concealing some secret which compels him to keep out of preferment's way, and is more tantalising than the iron mask. He is, however, feared by the Coreans to this day, and regarded by them as the one man who conquered their country, and without whom they would have been able to defend their imdependence. The account of the Funghwang is given at length, as it is the ^'phoenix of China. It is usually painted with an intensely bright scarlet head and neck ; the head somewhat resembling a cocVa There is infinitely more magic in this novel than divinities in Homer.