Durham Stevens facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Durham Stevens
Stevens in a 1903 photo
Born	(1851-02-01)February 1, 1851 Washington, D.C., U.S.
Died	March 25, 1908(1908-03-25) (aged 57) San Francisco, California, U.S.
Education	Oberlin College Columbian University Howard University
Occupation	Diplomat

Durham White Stevens (February 1, 1851 – March 25, 1908) was an American diplomat. He later worked for the Japanese government, helping with their plans for Korea. He was shot and killed by Korean-American activists Jang In-hwan and Jeon Myeong-un. This was an early act of protest by Koreans in the U.S. against Japan's control over Korea.

His death happened during many protests by Koreans. They were upset about the Japan–Korea Treaty of 1905. This treaty made Korea a colony of Japan. Other protests included the killing of Japan's leader in Korea, Itō Hirobumi. People in Korea also burned a pro-Japanese newspaper office. Crowds also fought with Japanese guards at the Gyeongbokgung Palace.

Early Life and Education

Durham Stevens was born and grew up in Washington, D.C.. He went to Oberlin College in Ohio and finished his studies in 1871.

Career as a Diplomat

After college, Stevens returned to Washington, D.C. He studied law at Columbian University and Howard University. In 1873, he became a lawyer.

His career with the U.S. government began in October 1873. President Ulysses S. Grant made him secretary of the American office in Tokyo, Japan. He worked there under John Bingham, who was the U.S. Minister to Japan. Bingham knew Stevens' father, who also went to Oberlin College. Both men were against slavery.

Stevens was excited about his new job. He loved learning new languages and already knew Latin, Greek, French, and German. He was one of only three staff members at the office. He worked as secretary until 1883. He also filled in as the head of the office in 1878–79 when Bingham was away. After this, he returned to the United States.

Working for Japan's Government

In November 1883, Stevens started working for the Japanese government. He became the English Secretary for their office in Washington. He got this job because his old boss, Bingham, had good connections with Japan.

In 1884, he was sent to Tokyo to work in Japan's Foreign Office. In 1884–85, he went to Korea with Count Inoue Kaoru. They worked on talks about some Japanese citizens who had been killed in Korea. For his help, Emperor Meiji gave him the Order of the Rising Sun, a special award.

He also helped at a conference in Tokyo from 1885 to 1887. This meeting aimed to change old, unfair treaties that Western countries had forced on Japan. After the conference, he went back to Washington, D.C. He was given the title of Honorary Counsellor. He worked under Count Mutsu Munemitsu, who was Japan's Minister in Washington. During this time, he helped Japan make its first treaty with Mexico. This treaty fully recognized Japan as an independent country.

When the First Sino-Japanese War started, Stevens wrote an article. He said the war was needed because China was holding Korea back. He believed that more Japanese influence in Korea would lead to good changes. For his work during the war, he received another award, the Order of the Sacred Treasure. He also traveled to Hawaii twice, in 1901 and 1902, to represent Japan's interests there. He received two more awards from Japan, including a higher class of the Order of the Rising Sun.

Adviser to the Korean Government

In November 1904, Stevens became an adviser to Korea's Foreign Office. Japan had pushed Korea to hire him. Stevens did not respond to requests to appoint a Korean consul in Hawaii. However, in 1905, Horace Newton Allen, an American, still spoke well of Stevens. Allen was interested in Koreans moving to Hawaii for work.

Japan wanted Stevens to stop Koreans from moving to Hawaii. But at first, he seemed open to the idea. He met with a Hawaiian sugar planter in Tokyo in mid-1905. However, the plan to send more Koreans to Hawaii did not work out.

Later that year, Stevens said that Japan would be okay with laws limiting Japanese immigrants to the U.S. He also said they wanted to stop people from moving to Hawaii. He stated that Japan hoped to get people to settle in Korea or northeast China instead. Even though he worked for the Korean government, he reportedly kept getting money from Japan. This money was to spread Japanese ideas among Americans.

In early 1906, Stevens made a bet with a Japanese official about when Japan would take over Korea. The official thought it would take three years. Stevens guessed five years, which was closer to the truth. The Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty was signed in 1910. However, Stevens did not live to see this happen.

Assassination

Stevens came back to the United States in March 1908. He visited his family in Washington, D.C., and planned a vacation. When he arrived, he spoke to a San Francisco newspaper. He said that ordinary Koreans were benefiting from Japan's presence. He also said that Korea was not ready to be an independent country.

These statements made two Korean groups in the area very angry. They held a meeting and decided they had to do something about Stevens. On March 22, 1908, four Korean men met Stevens at the Fairmont Hotel. Their leader, Earl Lee, asked him if he had made those statements. He also asked if "Japanese were not killing off the Koreans." Stevens said yes to the first question and no to the second. He then told Lee that he had "probably been too long away from his country to know the exact condition of the Government." After this, the four men hit Stevens with chairs. He fell and hit his head. Stevens backed against a wall until help arrived. After the attack, Lee reportedly said, "We are all very sorry that we did not do more to him."

The next day, Jang In-hwan and Jeon Myeong-un, two Korean immigrants, attacked Stevens again. This happened at the Port of San Francisco as he was going to catch a ferry. Stevens was shot twice. Doctors at the hospital first thought he would recover. He even gave a statement to the press that day. He said the attack was "evidently the work of a small band of student agitators." He believed they were upset about Japan protecting Korea and thought he was partly responsible.

However, his condition worsened on March 25. Doctors saw signs of infection in his wounds. They performed surgery that evening. He never woke up and died shortly after 11 p.m. He was buried in his hometown of Washington, D.C. Secretary of State Elihu Root was one of the people who carried his coffin.

Reactions to His Death

News of Stevens' death saddened diplomats in Japan and American missionaries in Korea. U.S. Ambassador to Japan Thomas O'Brien said everyone was very sad. He called Stevens a "true and useful friend."

A professor from Yale University, George Trumbull Ladd, wrote a letter to The New York Times. He called the attacks "cowardly and shockingly brutal." He said Koreans were a "bloody race." He compared Stevens' case to other attacks in Korea. He concluded that politically motivated attacks were not unusual in Korea. He said these events showed the "Korean character and the Korean method of self-government."

Jang and Jeon were tried separately for Stevens' murder. There was not enough proof that they had planned the attack together. The charges against Jeon were dropped due to lack of evidence. He was released and then left the country. The Korean community hired three lawyers to defend Jang. One lawyer, Nathan Coughlan, agreed to work for free. During the trial, he argued that Jang was not guilty because of "patriotic insanity." On December 23, Jang was found guilty of second-degree murder. Later, Koreans described Stevens as a traitor to Korea. They called Jeon and Jang patriots and heroes.