10:10

Korea Under Japanese Rule • Year 15 of 35 • Evening Edition

OCTOBER 1, 1925 • THURSDAY • EVENING

100 YEARS AGO TODAY

“As you wind down your day, reflect on a century of history”

 Published at 10:10 PM KST

As evening fell on October 1, 1925, census takers closed their ledgers. 19,522,945 souls counted like inventory. Every Korean, Japanese, and foreigner in the peninsula tallied up for colonial control.

Table of Contents

Thursday evening, as families gathered for dinner across Gyeongseong (today’s Seoul), Japan’s “Simple National Census” concluded – the first comprehensive population count in 15 years. Autumn darkness came early as Korea’s people became statistics, their identities reduced to numbers in colonial ledgers.

📰 Korea Under Japanese Rule – A Day’s End

Evening Reflection: As another day ended in colonial Korea, families gathered in secret to preserve their culture, speaking Korean in whispers after dark. The census represented more than numbers—it was a tool of control that would affect Korean lives for years to come.

Today’s Headlines in Review

“Simple National Census” completed across Korea
Final count: 19,522,945 people
Koreans: 18,540,000 | Japanese: 424,700 | Others: 58,245
Gyeongseong (Seoul) population confirmed over 300,000
By evening, census takers had visited every household in the capital

🏛️ Official Records

Government-General Order: Census data to be used for administrative planning
Purpose stated: Tax collection and resource management
Reality: Tightening surveillance over Korean population
Tonight, officials compile data to strengthen colonial grip

✊ Evening Acts of Resistance

Provisional Government in Shanghai elected Yi Sang-ryong (Sept 24)
After dark: Secret meetings to preserve Korean identity
Underground schools teaching Korean language after sunset
As census takers slept, resistance continued in shadows

💰 A Day’s Wages and Costs (1925)

Rice (1 doe): 20 jeon Korean workers earned 50 jeon per day

Evening meal at home: ~15 jeon Families saved all week for this

Japanese workers: 2 yen/day Four times Korean wages

🌏 East Asia After Dark

🇨🇳 China – Warlords & Revolution

Nationalist government in Guangzhou consolidating
Warlords planning next moves under cover of night
Korean exiles in Shanghai meeting after dark
Why this mattered to Korea: Safe haven for independence fighters

🇯🇵 Japan – Democracy vs Militarism

Taisho Democracy period waning
Rising militarism casting evening shadows
Peace Preservation Law tightening thought control
Impact on colonial policy: Increasing surveillance

🇷🇺 Soviet Union & Manchuria

Stalin’s rise to power continuing
500,000 Korean refugees in Manchuria tonight
Mitsuya Agreement restricting independence armies
Manchuria as refuge and battleground

[Image: Evening scene in Gyeongseong on October 1, 1925 – Namdaemun Market closing as census concludes]

🌍 The World in 1925 – As Day Ends

🇺🇸 America – The Roaring Twenties at Night

Jazz clubs opening for the night • Speakeasies hidden from Prohibition • Stock traders counting profits • F. Scott Fitzgerald writing by lamplight • “The Great Gatsby” published this April

🇪🇺 Europe – Between Wars

Weimar Germany struggling in darkness • Mussolini consolidating power • British Empire at its peak • Locarno Treaties to be signed this month

🔄 Colonial Parallels: Korea in Global Context

🇮🇳 British India

Gandhi’s non-cooperation movement
Similar language suppression
Both seeking independence

🇮🇪 Ireland

Just gained independence (1922)
Cultural revival movements
Inspiration for Korean fighters

🇵🇭 Philippines

Under US rule since 1898
English-only education
Similar cultural suppression

🇹🇼 Taiwan

Also under Japan (1895)
Different treatment than Korea
Less resistance, more integration

👤 Person of the Day – An Evening Portrait

The Census Taker’s Evening – A Korean Man’s Burden

As evening fell, Kim (name changed), age 34, returned home to his family in Jongno district. All day, he had counted his own people for their oppressors. He spoke Japanese to officials, Korean to residents. Each tally mark represented both survival and collaboration. Tonight at dinner, his children asked about his work. He couldn’t tell them the truth— that he was helping the colonizers control their own people.

“I count my people so they can be better controlled. This job feeds my family, but as night falls, the weight of what I’ve done today crushes my soul.”

As darkness covered Gyeongseong, thousands like him struggled with the same burden— survival in a system designed to erase their identity…

🏮 Understanding Evening Life in 1925 Seoul

🌅 Evening Rituals

Curfew bells at dusk (why this mattered)
Families gathering in fear and hope
Secret Korean lessons after dark
Traditional songs sung in whispers

🌙 Night Labor

Night shift workers: 30 sen/night
Women sewing by candlelight for extra income
Underground newspaper printing
Census data being compiled tonight

🎭 Hidden Night Culture

Secret Korean schools operating after sunset
Traditional music in basements
Resistance meetings in darkness
Cultural preservation under cover of night

[Image: Century comparison – Same location at night in 1925 vs 2025: Namdaemun area]

🔄 A Century Later: From Silent Nights to Global Spotlight

Aspect	1925 Evening	2025 Evening
Language	Korean whispered after dark	Korean taught worldwide online
Culture	Hidden in basements at night	K-dramas streaming globally
Night Life	Curfews and surveillance	Seoul never sleeps – vibrant nightlife
Global Status	Invisible colony, counted like inventory	Cultural superpower, G20 member

💡 Tonight’s Reflection

As you end your day, remember that 100 years ago tonight, Korean families ended theirs in fear and hope. The K-pop songs you stream tonight, the Korean dramas you watch before bed— they exist because those who whispered Korean in the dark never gave up their language. From 19.5 million counted souls in 1925 to 51.7 million free citizens in 2025. From silence to global voice. From colony to cultural superpower.

Tomorrow Evening’s Story

Tomorrow evening at 10:10 PM
October 2, 1925

“While the world sleeps, history continues…
Tomorrow evening, as Seoul Station nears completion,
we’ll explore how colonial ‘modernization’ transformed the capital…”

Yesterday Evening’s Story

September 30, 1925

10:10 PM

Tomorrow Evening’s Story

October 2, 1925

The Korean Today – Evening Edition
global@thekoreantoday.com

Bringing you forgotten stories from Korea’s colonial past
Every evening at 10:10 PM KST
A moment to reflect on history as your day ends