The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-07-11
JAPS FROM THE ISLANDS.
A Proposition to Ship Coolies
From Honolulu to Cali
fornia.
4. TWO TELLTALE LETTERS.
How the United States Contract
Labor Laws Have Been Grossly
Violated.

Deputy Labor Commissioner Dam has OBJ
tanned some startling information concern
ing the importation of Japanese cody labor
ers to this coast. His information is backed
up by correspondence that proves that
hundreds of japanese have been imported
to this State from Honolulu and thousands
more are ready to leave for California as
soon as the contractor is sure that work
will be provided for the coolies. In giving
out the copies of the letters Mr.. Dam has
withheld the names in order that the
Labor Bureau may probe deeper in the
matter. The first letter reads:
HONOLULU H. l., January 80, 1895.
Dear Sir: l would be very pleased to hear
from you as to the labor m arketin San Fran
cisco, and also if you could secure work for
japanese whose terms of service have ended at
the different sugar planta tons here.
The japanese who are DESTROYS of coming to
the coast would make excellent fruit-pickers,
and a contract could be made after they landed
to work for their employers by the season,
job, ETC., thereby preventing strikes at the
busiest time.
The Japanese plantation laborer only gets
$12 so per month and finds his own food,
therefore he would be quite willing to work on
the coast for that amount, with his board
added, leaving him say $12 cash.
If you see your way clear to handle these
coast.
In the event of you sending me favorable
answer, it would be necessary to find Japa-
nese lodging-house or hotel, where they could
stay until you needed them.
Please be good enough 70 drop me line by
next mail. Yours, very truly. -
The second letter is equally interesting
and is as follows:
HONOLULU, H. l., Feb. 16, 1895
Dear Sir: Yours of February to hand to-
day. AS the steamship Oceanic leaves to-
morrow reply at once.
The men I spoke to you of in former letter
will all pay their own passage up and have q
balance on hand to keep them until you can
AS to the number could get depends on the
success which the first lot meets with. If you
can place them with men who will treat them
kindly and start them as fruit-pickers at S15 a
month and board ! can send about 200 q
month.
1t would not do for me to send any more than
you would place quickly. because their
countrymen who have been in California be-
fore them would try and influence them to get
higher pay
Another thing, by shipping them up in small
numbers it's not likely to create notice, but 9
big number by steamer might do so.
II you see an opening to use these men let
me know as early as possible and l will fill
your orders. Sincerely yours. -
The gentleman who received these LETT
tiers is not in the Japanese contracting
DuSlUeSS+ anu lie explained 10 MT. lam
that while he is DESTROYS of assisting in
putting down cody labor importation he
does not care to run the risk of having his
private business injured by being identi-
fed with the Labor Commissioners anti
Japanese crusade. It is well known that
there are many thousand Jap coolies on
the Sandwich Islands, and at the end of
the sugar plantation season large numbers
are DESTROYS of leaving for the United
States. The writer of these letters is a
contractor who has made money, it is said,
in importing Japs from Japan to the
islands. and he is anxious to enlarge his
field by sending the coolies to this coast
to work in the orchards. The man in his
writing shows that he is familiar with
United States contract labor laws by stating
that "a contract could be made after they
landed, the last three words being under
lined.
The recent investigation of the Japanese
cody question showed that thousands
have been brought into this State upon
implied contracts such as the contractor in
Honolulu suggests and in several instances
the contracts were more than implied.
However, the evidence has not been strong
enough from legal standpoint to warrant
arresting or attem pting to deport those
who are landed. This additional evidence
of the importation of Japanese cody To-
borers into the United States will add
strength to the Labor Commissioner pro-
posed memorial and petition to Con-
gress for Japanese restriction act.