Young L. Park, Manifesto to the Spirit of Justice Throughout the World, Korea Herein Expresses her Cause… 14”x 8.5”, [1919], 4 leaves, offset, about 2500 words. Bound with a silk tie at top. Condition: very good , though it was folded in quarters, horizontally, leaving three creases throughout the document. That said, it probably saved the document from being destroyed or damaged given how tall and relatively flimsy it is. Provenance: “Pamphlet Collections”, Library of Congress. Scarce—only one copy located in WorldCat (Johns Hopkins). SOLD

This is a strong argument from Young L. Park (of the United Asiatic Society, of Detroit), addressing members to the Paris Peace Conference (also known as the Versailles Conference, 1919-1920) in which he wrote on the inequality and oppressive nature of Japanese expansion into and control of Korea, and that the outcome of redistribution of former colonial territories following WWI should include the liberation of Korea. But Park and Korea would soon learn that those discussions were limited to colonies of Europeans defeated in the war, and the issue of Korea would not be of concern at the conference. (For example the conference would create the British Mandate of Palestine and in the creation of Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan as nation states.)

“Korea, now prostrate and oppressed…(should) be left to re-establish her nationhood. She is now a declared republic and is seeking her political freedom from Japan…(and to be released from “enslavement”). It is all pretty strong language, nestled even as it is in halting official discourse in its plea to member nations of Conference.