Conditions on Every Side, and Measures Gone Astray, Point by Point條陳四方形止處置失宜狀

Heaven has not yet repented of the calamity, and the enemy's strength is fierce as before, so that your servant's heart is truly sore. Of late, by word going back and forth, he hears now and then how matters stand on every side, and among them the cases where men's planning has been poor and measures have gone astray are many as well. Unable to keep from reporting it, he prostrates himself and begs you to give it your mind.

One. The ill of gathering troops to guard one's own person.

Of old, in the time of the Tang, the Army Supervisors (監軍) gathered all the choice and swift troops of the host and named them yabyeong (牙兵), the troops of the commander's own standard. Facing the ranks they did not fight, and when the troops broke they fled first of all, so that Heshuo (河朔) in the end could not rouse itself.

Now it is heard that the Patrol Commissioners and magistrates of Gyeonggi and those parts gather all the choice troops of the province to attend their own persons, or divide them off to guard their own households. In ordinary times they go in and out of the districts and work ills of many kinds, while avoiding the enemy and moving in secret, and have not fought even once. The moment they hear word of the enemy, without asking whether they be many or few, they abandon their troops on the instant and flee first of all.

The people of Gwangju (廣州), Suwon (水原), Gapyeong (加平), Goyang (高陽) and those parts at first still banded together, set ambushes and took the enemy; but now they are all scattered and gone to this place and that, and cannot keep the enemy off. Government offices and villages fall in ruin one after another, which is truly grievous. Let a written caution now be issued, that the former fault be not trodden again.

Again, among the several generals of the one province of Gyeonggi, only Go Eonbaek (高彥伯), Magistrate of Yangju, is somewhat to be relied on. Let the troops of Yangju, Yeongpyeong (永平), Gapyeong and Pocheon (抱川) all be given Eonbaek to command, that he may press and take the enemy east of the capital. And let the troops of Jeolla Province, with the righteous armies of the two provinces of Chungcheong and Jeolla, gather and join to them the troops of Goyang, Gyoha (交河) and those parts, and strike and take the enemy west of the capital, so forming a posture that grips them front and rear.

Again, let the troops of the districts of Gwacheon (果川), Gwangju, Gimpo (金浦), Tongjin (通津), Incheon (仁川), Bupyeong (富平), Namyang (南陽), Suwon and the rest be given one general to command; and let bowmen all be chosen out with care, encamped in divisions each in its own ground, ambushes set, and the watch kept strictly. When the enemy come, let them give word to one another and break them on the instant; let them also block the south so that the enemy cannot go down; and let Chungcheong and Jeolla Provinces follow on behind in support. Do this, and the strength of the enemy at the capital will shrink by the day, and the posture for recovering it will already be formed.

Again, in the one province of Gangwon the hills and woods are rugged and closed in and the trees deep and thick, so that here and there are rugged places that even few troops could hold. Though the able-bodied men fit for soldiers in the province be said to be few, those called sancheok (山尺), who live by hunting in the mountain valleys, are very many. Truly, if they were called in with generous rewards offered, and the plan of action taught them, so that they watched the enemy's coming and going and in place after place blocked the passes, struck and shot them dead, the enemy would surely shrink and not dare to range about as they please. Yet now men avoid them in fear and flee first, as though afraid of being too late, and so let the enemy tread as on ground without people. In this sense too, let a written order be issued to the provincial governor to carry it out.

If, when there is one among the people who has killed an enemy, the goods he has taken are all given to him, and the government may not claim them and no other may seize them, then every man will surely strive to kill the enemy.

One. To rebuild the mountain fortresses and press the people to go within and hold them is the most urgent business.

Of late those fleeing the war from far and near have mostly all fled into the mountain valleys to hide and have no place to settle and live, and those ground to dust at the brigands' hands are counted by the thousand and the ten thousand day by day. How should there be a thing as cruel and grievous as this?

If they were set to live within the mountain fortresses and troops gathered to hold them, then though the enemy scatter and come out on every side, the hearts of the people would have something to trust in and would not come to breaking. And since the fortresses left whole within a province are many, if, when the enemy come, men hold the rugged ground and fight with all their strength, and, when the enemy withdraw, take the momentum and pursue them, the enemy will surely not dare to strike and plunder as they please.

In general, since Dongnae (東萊) and Busan (釜山) lost their walls, men have held the defence of a fortress to be a sure road to death and have been unwilling to hold one, so that the enemy trod as on ground without people. Now Jeonju (全州) and Yeonan (延安) have both held fast and come through whole, and so men know well enough the advantage of holding a fortress. If measures were taken while this moment lasts, men would surely trust and follow, and the thing could be brought about.

Still more, the autumn air grows colder by the day and the enemy troops have not withdrawn. When the leaves of the woods have fallen, where will men hide and take shelter? Let the office concerned be made to give word in haste and carry it out, and save even one in ten thousand.

One. Among the eight provinces today, those fallen into ruin most severely are the northern province and Gangwon, Gyeonggi and Hwanghae.

In Gyeonggi and Hwanghae there are still men who cry out for righteousness and strike the enemy; but when it comes to the northern province and Gangwon, the hearts of the people have broken and they scarcely know that a country exists, which is most alarming. They must now be gathered and set in order with all haste.

Gangwon Province above all has the deepest and most rugged hills and woods, with places here and there where men cannot pass. Though the soldiers in the province be few, those called sancheok, who strike and kill fierce beasts in the mountain valleys, are a very numerous body. If rewards were offered to gather them in place after place, and ambushes set at the key passes to shoot the enemy on sight, the enemy would surely not dare come near the borders. Yet the provincial governor and the magistrates have minds for nothing but fleeing and taking cover when they meet the enemy, and have not laid a plan even once, and so have let all fall in ruin.

The northern province and Gangwon have become wholly the enemy's lair and have joined their strength to the enemy in Gyeonggi; and from the coast of Gyeongsang Province they are parted by but a single pass. If in the several places there is no one at all to pursue and take them, then though Pak Jin (朴晉) alone be in Gyeongsang Province, could he hold them off? And if they are not held off, there will be no ground in all eight quarters left to be our country. The peril and urgency of the matter has come to this, and it is grievous.

In the northern province the enemy's strength is spread everywhere and truly cannot be gathered in, in time; but the business of Gangwon and Gyeonggi should be dealt with while the time still serves.

Your servant begs leave to speak of the posture of Gyeonggi. Let the troops of the districts of Yangju, Jeokseong (積城), Pocheon, Yeongpyeong, Gapyeong and the rest be given one general to command, to screen the east of the capital; the troops of the districts of Ganghwa (江華), Gyodong (喬桐), Goyang, Gyoha, Jangdan (長湍), Paju (坡州) and the rest be given one general to command, to block the west of the capital; and the troops of the districts of Gwangju, Gwacheon, Geumcheon (衿川), Ansan (安山), Suwon, Namyang and the rest be given yet another general to command, to block the south. If the three faces join their strength, their agreements pass between them, and the word of command comes back to one, then their strength will be continuous. And let them be of one mind with the righteous armies of the several places and gather their strength, planning to bring the thing about.

As your servant sees it, among the several generals of Gyeonggi today only Go Eonbaek is most to be entrusted. Let the eastern troops be entrusted to Eonbaek throughout, and the generals to be set in the west and the south are likewise for the court alone to choose. Only when this is done will the troops of Gangwon Province join their strength with the eastern troops of Gyeonggi, the troops of Choe Won (崔遠) and Kim Cheonil (金千鎰) join their strength with the western troops, and the troops of Chungcheong Province and of the righteous army under Hong Gyenam (洪季男) and others join their strength with the troops of Gwangju and the other districts. Let the three faces grip the enemy front and rear and watch for an opening to advance and take them; and if choice troops be first picked out, sent by divided roads to advance where they are not looked for, and the enemy who have scattered abroad struck down one after another, then the enemy within the walls will shrink in strength by the day, and among our people in the capital there will surely be those who answer from within and plan together with us.

Gwon Jing (權徵), Patrol Commissioner of Gyeonggi, has handled affairs amiss, so that the hearts of the people are angered and chafed, yet the court has again committed the office of patrol to him. Jing gives no thought to striking the enemy, but only gathers the able-bodied men of the province, calling them yabyeong and officers, and guards his own person and his household. When the enemy withdraw, he goes in and out of the districts pressing them to provide his entertainment, and becomes an ill to the people; when the enemy come, he scatters his troops tens of ri away and flees. Again, though Go Eonbaek and the others would take the enemy with all their strength, he will not divide the choice and swift troops among them. A great force was committed to Byeon Eonsu (邊彥琇) and Gwangju fell; many troops were committed to Jo Gyeong (趙儆) and it came to Gapyeong's not being held. Your servant does not know how many defeats the present posture of the country can bear.

That the court rouses the hearts of the people, urging them on and also chastising them, rests wholly on reward and punishment. It is so even in ordinary times; how much more in a time of peril and hardship. Jo Indeuk (趙仁得), former governor of Hwanghae, since failing to hold Imjin (臨津) has been in ground within sight of it and has never sent a single soldier to aid the king. Again, while holding Haeju (海州) to be a wall of iron and a barrier gate, he took boat and fled before the enemy troops arrived; and having been removed from the governorship he was at once made patrol commissioner. Yi Taehyeong (李泰亨), Magistrate of Haeju, abandoned the walls and fled, left his troops in perilous ground and quit the camp to sleep alone, and so let the blood and flesh of the people of Gangnyeong (康翎) and Ongjin (瓮津) be scattered in confusion. His guilt being such, he still keeps his office. Hearing of this, men on every side say that there is no rule in the court's rewards and punishments; and your servant greatly regrets it.

Such things your servant has by right no business to speak of rashly; only, the business of the state being perilous and pressing as this, and he presuming to hold a minister's place, what already bears on gain and loss he cannot but report. He is filled with awe beyond measure. Kang Sin (姜紳), governor of Gangwon, is likewise no timber for commanding and governing; let another man be put in his place.

One. The enemy troops have been encamped and holding fast at the capital for long already, so that the hearts of the people have grown used to it and think it secure.

Driven by hunger, more than half have gone in to live there, and they seem almost to have forgotten one another, which is bitterly disheartening. Yet when the enemy are beaten and go, they will surely cut them all down to vent their venom; and even if they do not cut them down, they will surely take them captive and carry them off. Every kind of artisan and skilled man will fall into Japanese hands, and there will be nothing in the way of cannon, sea fighting, bow and arrow that they are not taught by them; so how should there be an end to the trouble of later days?

In this too let a plan of action be set out in haste, and let them be admonished with what brings calamity and what brings blessing, so that they may slip out of themselves on the instant and escape death. And those who have a mind to answer from within should be urged on with generous rewards, to move their hearts. This too is the most urgent business of today.

One. The generals and officers of each province cannot but be reduced.

In general the generals and officers are too many, so that orders come out in confusion and the magistrates and the people do not know what to follow. They work ills merely and add nothing to the business. Let those of them who cannot do the work now be reduced in haste. As for the recruiting officers (召募官) too, those who merely make a stir and have no plain result to show should for the present be dismissed and sent away.

One. The urgent business of the present lies solely in rousing the hearts of the people so that they rise up.

Whether a slave of the government or of a private house, whoever takes and kills a Japanese enemy should at once be granted release from his base status; we must not hold back and so lose the hearts of the people. An old saying has it, "Beneath a heavy reward there are always soldiers who will go out to their death."

Again, it is heard that in Gangwon Province and those parts, when the people shoot a Japanese enemy dead, the goods taken are all treated after the ordinary-times precedent for stolen property: the district reports to the governor, enters them in the ledger and claims them, and if any be lost the people are made to make it good with their own cattle and horses. Yet the governor treats them as his own and gives them privately to those he knows, so that the people all resent and chafe at it and will not set their minds on shooting the enemy. The unreasonableness of it is extreme.

Let it now be made widely known that whatever goods are got by taking an enemy are all given to that man, that the government may not claim them and no other may seize them. Then the village people will all know the advantage of killing the enemy and will rise like swarming bees in place after place, and the enemy's strength will decline somewhat.

One. What is to be relied on today is the hearts of the people.

The men of old moved an army with a single cask of wine, and when the king of Chu stroked and comforted his fighting men the three armies felt as though clad in padded coats. In general resentment does not lie in great things, nor kindness in small; what is precious is only this, to show forth one's true heart wholly to others.

Let all the troops now in the field be stroked and cared for. To the southern troops and the righteous armies at Ganghwa and other places, let a separate royal rescript be sent by the envoys going to and fro, to comfort them and soothe their toil. Let inquiry be made after those who have taken an enemy privately among the villages, and the officials there be made to write up every case in full and report it, and rewards be given, that men may have a mind to rise up.

One. Of late the enemy troops grow more and more, but in truth more than half are our own people who have gone in among them.

By report, at the battle of Geumsan (錦山) the arrows shot from the enemy ranks came like rain, and these were none but our own people, which is most alarming. In general, when the enemy get hold of the strong and sturdy among our people, they at once shave their heads, change them into the Japanese fashion and put them to use. Hence, though the people now and then wish to flee and come out, they fear being killed by the government troops and so willingly attach themselves to the enemy and add to their strength; which is truly grievous.

Let separate articles now be drawn up and notices posted in place after place, declaring that those who come over from among the enemy shall not be cut down but each sent back to the place where he lived. And let those who kill an enemy, or come and report the enemy's condition, be richly rewarded, so widening the road by which men may return and submit.

One. The Japanese are unskilled in fighting at sea.

Yet at the first, men of shallow thought said rashly that fighting at sea was not advantageous, and so let the enemy come ashore as they pleased. That men's planning was poor is likewise Heaven's doing; what more is there to say?

Now the naval forces of Jeolla Province are very strong, but those of Gyeongsang have broken and are all but finished. Providing against next year's trouble, too, is a matter of only a few months. Though we should by good fortune beat this enemy, if the ships of Gyeongsang are not provided at once, next year will be no better than this.

Your servant's view is this. Meeting such a time of peril for the state, we should reckon nothing of other matters and put our strength solely into holding and defending. Let the ministers in charge be told beforehand that the slave tribute of the three lower provinces and whatever else they yield are all to be made military funds; and between winter and spring, as the enemy withdraw from a place, let a hundred and more roofed warships (板屋戰船) be built there. And let men practised in sea fighting be made naval commanders (水使); and only when the rice that in ordinary times fed the Japanese in Gyeongsang Province and the cloth paid them in exchange are all used to feed the fighting men, who wait at the sea mouths for whatever comes, can it be brought about.

Now the enemy within have not withdrawn, and truly it is hard to discuss this. Yet nothing stands unless it is done beforehand; and a minister charged with one quarter must not fail to know it.