Page:Korea (1904).djvu/223

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WON SAN
171

tion. It is certainly a wonderful harbour; and worthy of the commotion caused at intervals by the desire of Russia to secure possession of the prize. The superb advantages with which it is endowed make it an object of solicitude to the Powers. If possession of this harbour were coupled with the occupation of Vladivostock and Port Arthur, the control of those northern seas would rest with the Russian fleet. Otherwise, it is a peaceful place to be the centre of so much political turmoil.

Won-san, the treaty port, is situated in the south-west corner of the harbour. The northern arm of the harbour is known as Port Lazareff; the south-eastern portion is Broughton Bay, the name which is usually given to the entire harbour. Captain W. R. Broughton, the English navigator, first entered it on October 4, 1797, in his sloop-of-war of 16 guns, Providence. Port Lazareff is about sixteen miles from Won-san, in a westerly direction across the bay, at the mouth of the Dun river. It is the point which Russia was credited with the intention of securing for the terminus of her Trans-Siberian Railway. There are two entrances into Broughton Bay, one giving direct admission into Port Lazareff. Russian men-of-war make the most of this advantage in visiting the harbour, for it enables them to enter without revealing their presence to the authorities upon shore. Upon one occasion, when I was visiting the neighbourhood, I surprised parties from two Russian men-of-war engaged in surveying the hills and taking soundings of the anchorages; their presence was quite unsuspected by the Japanese Consul or by the Commissioner of Customs.

The bay is well protected by chains of mountains, its physical perfections in this respect rendering it of peculiar