Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1898-02-06
STATUS OF TIE JAPANESE.
The Question Of What Rights They
Will Have, If Hawaii is Annexed.

Will 1dVt, III hawaii Is Annexed,
Has Been Raised, and It Seems
| Difficult One to Answer-Japan.
csc Have Been Admitted to Citi-
zenship in America, But Thera
Are Cases Where Such Citizen.
ship Has Been Refused-The Jams
Are Not Mongolians, in the Strict
Sense Of the Term, But Are Thew
White2 Supreme Court Has
Never Passed Upon the Question.
| Washington, February 5.-In view
| of the question that has been raised as
| to the correctness of the conclusion
reached by the officials Of the State
Department who have been engaged in
the negotiations with the Japanese
! government as to the status ol~Japan-
ese in Hawaii after annexation is com.
pleted, further inquiry was made to-
day to ascertain the ground for the
/ statement that the japanese. unless,
there was legislation to the contrary
| by Congress, would be entitled to the
| privileges of naturalization ii they 50
desire and are otherwise enabled to
meet the requirements of the law. The
officials naturally are reluctant to dis
cuss publicly a question of this kind,
which mast be hypothetical in advance
of the disposition of the pending an
nexation treaty, and, moreover, are
disposed to be put in the position Of
| laying down legal principles. But in
substance, their contention is that un-
der the laws as they exist to-day ia
panese in the United States are en-
titled to naturalization. They freely
admit that in some instances the
United States courts have taken the
ground that such applications cannot
be entertained, notably the Boston
case, decided June %, 49,, known as
In Re Saito," but they also assert that
the practice Of the courts has not been
by any means uniform 4 tbs matter
and that there are veryN AMY gases
| where Japanese Aa,sct.
HAVE BEEN -. ''sa,Is *;
to the rights of, natural Ion
the slightest objection on I1sT -.115Tt of
the court. 1t is not 5nied that the
State Department itsof has not been
consistent in it's treatment of the ques-
ton as is made plain by reference to
the existing regulations for the gov
eminent or diplomatic service in which,
is to be found a direction to United
States officers aboard to refuse to rec
ognize the claims of Japanese to matt
uralized citizens rights. However, the
regulation was founded upon the old
statute, section 2169, which WGs couch
ed in terms so vague as to give rise to
the varying constructions placed upon
it by the courts, and the last view OF
the department is, as stated, that the
Japanese may apply for naturalization.
| This statute seems to limit natural
izaton to white persons and persons
of African descent. 1t was plainly
piece of patch work as its history re-
| yeaIs and an exact application OF the
test of language to it would not, II IS
held serve the real purpose OF lIs au-
thors But aside from that the proau
question has been raised that the Jap
anese are not to be regarded as. ous-
side of the white races, they fFYC DelHg
monaghan in the true ethologlcai
sense. 1t is probably sufficient for the
purpose of this explanation OF the de-
Dartment's position to cite these con-
siderations as matter that might read
ilv account for the failure OF the
courts
TO REACH UNANIMITY
in the construction of these laws.
There has been, up to this time, II Is
said. no expression of opinion on inc
mart of the court of last resort Ontn
such an opinion shall have been called
forth the question cannot be regarded
as settled. When that opinion IS rem
dered. of course the Department Oh
state will be bound by it, and mean
while it has no desire to pose as a
usurper of the rights Of the Juuici@'
branch of the government.
AS for the conditions that VIII ARISE
under the new treaty WIN JdpdA' oiii 1
goes into effect in 1893, the department
holds that it confers upon tle japan,
csc the rights of favored nalions III -
matters. While there does hot ~ yee
exist any naturalization treaty oe1"oel
Japan and the United States thiS Udi-
not be regarded as par 10 ld' - g 'S,.
tion for there are no such lredtlea
listing with number OF countries 'no
citizens of which are adhllIOeu -
United States citizenship upon 0oinpiA
ance with the laws.
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AMONG THE PosTMAsTERS.