The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1897-04-10
THOSE STUDENTS.

Once more the customs authorities
have to face the very difficult problem
of the Japanese student" Their
handling of the matter in the past is
guarantee of their action in the pres
ent case. This attempt to flood the
country with japanese is decidedly no
Government measure of the Millado's
Cabinet. 1t is the deliberate attempt
of an immigration company to run in
lot of its own countrymen for the
sake of the profit to be made out of
them. The japanese student" who is
brought over is induced to come to the
supposed Hesperides-only that, from
Japan, our islands are at the exact
opposite side of the compass from the
tabled classic isles-with dreams some
what similar to those with which the
country yokel used to regard Lon
don town" The streets were to be
paved with silver and gold and the
bright metals were to be had for the
picking up.
Wherever there is recruiting of this
kind there is bound to be double deal
ing. There is misrepresentation to the
emigrant to induce him to scrape to-
gether and borrow what he can get in
Japan to pay his passage out here.
say something like Capt Nichols
style in his book "From Sword to
Share" or Fortune in Five Years in
Hawaii" which, by the way, the gal
Ian captain was never able to realize
himself-and there is misrepresenta-
ton when dealing with the immigra-
tions laws and customs orncials of the
Government of Hawaii.
That there should be so is nothing
10 be wondered at, the Japanese
understands commercial methods as
well as any one on the face of the
earth, and is as INSCRIPTIONS as many
of his Western brethren are. He has
the advantage of IA double set of COM
mercial ethics. His own, stretching
for centuries back, into dim realm
of fanciful fables, and the code he has
acquired from the Western nations
and readily assimilated. With these
two systems of commercial ethics, II
he can't beat the Westerner on his
own ground, why he ought to. The
importation of students" is only Il
phase of his commercial methods, but
we can feel quite assured that our
custom house authorities are now
wide awake and are quite capable of
handling the Student" and his very
astute importers, the members of the
immigration companies.
The question is a very vital one to
the mechanics, for in many cases the
japanese are skilled handicraftsmen.
Moreover these men are willing to
work at a very low rate of wages,
where they have not the requisite skill,
purely to obtain an insight into our
methods of doing work, and then set
out, having required a veneer of our
methods to just underbid the men of
our own race. That agitation should
be commenced against the Japanese
inroads is plain and that organization
should be instituted to impress upon
the government the vital necessity Of
making an effort to obtain Il revision
of the Hawaiio-Japanese treaty is
palmer still. This should be taken in
hand by some of our leading me
chanics, among whom are to be found
the very best of our citizens. a move
ment such as this should be irrespec-
tive of party lines and local bick'r-
ings. 1t is movement in which all
can participate, for all have to meet a
common danger.
1t is not that The Star does not
think that the Government has not
been doing its duty in this matter, but
it strengthens the hands and in
creases the power of speech OF Gov
eminent when it knows that behind it
stands the strong public opinion of
those it represents. That something
must be done with regard to change
in the treaty is evident to even the
most thoughtless, and the sooner it is
initiated the better, as was remarked
week or so ago, an ounce of NOV"
is worth a dozen pounds of then"
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