Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1906-12-18

dent Roosevelt today submitted h
congress his special message trans
mitting the report Of Secretary Met
calf on the San Francisco Japanes,
matter.
The presidents Introduction 10 th.
report follows:
To the Senate and House Of Rep
resentatives: ] enclose herewith fol
your Information the final report
made TO me personally by Secretary
Metcalf on the situation affecting IN.
! Japanese in San Francisco The ~
port deals With three matters OF con
troversy-firSr. the exclusion VI the
Japanese children from the San
Francisco schools: second. the boy
c0tting 0f Japanese restaurants, and
third, acts of violence committed
against the Japanese.
As 10 the first matter. I call your
especial attention TO the very small
! number 0f japanese children who at.
tend school, 10 the Testimony of the
brightness. cleanliness, aud good hc.
havior Of these Japanese children In
the schools. and to the fact that, ow.
Ing To their being scattered through.
out the city. the requirement for
them all TO go 10 one special school
Is impossible Of fulfillment aud means
that they cannot have school facili.
ties Let me point out further that
there would be no objection whatever
TO excluding from the schools any
Japanese on the score Of age. II Ii
obviously not desirable that young
men should go to school with chill.
dren. The only point is the exclusion
OF the children themselves The num-
ber OF Japanese children attending
the public schools In San Francisco
was very small. The government has
already directed that suit be brought
to test the constitutiunality of the
act in question; but my very earnest
hope Is that such suit will not be- nee
essary. and that as a matter of com,
ity the citizens of San Francisco will
refuse TO deprive these young Japan.
ese children OF education and will
permit them to go TO the schools
The question as To the violence
bly, put by Secretary Mctcaif, and !
have nothing to add To his statement,
| am entirely confident that. AZ Sec
rotary Mctcalf says. the overwhelm-
ing sentiment Of the state of Califor-
mia is for law and order and for the
protection of the Japanese in their
persons and property. Both the chiet
Of police and the acting mayor of San
Francisco assured Secretary Metcali
that everything possible would be
done to protect the japanese In the
city. ! authorized and directed Sec
retary Metcalf to state that II ther"
was failure to protect persons and
property. then the entire power ot
the federal government within the
limits Of the constitution would be
used promptly and vigorously to es'
force the observance of our treaty,
the supreme law OF the land. which
treaty guaranteed to Japanese resi-
dents everywhere in the Union full
and perfect protection for their per-
SONS and property; and to this end
everything in my power would n'
done, and all the forces of the United
States. both civil and military, which
could lawfully employ, would be
employed. cali especial attention
to the concluding sentence of Secre-
tary Metcalfs report Of November
26. 1906
THEODORE ROOSEVELT,
The White House
December s, 1906.
Note: Secretary Metcalf's report Is
long and includes many quotations
ercm Japanese and American newspa-
pcrs published on the Pacific coast
Owing TO the late hour at which IN"
special mtsbage was submitted. il ~
tmrossiblo TO reproduce the Secreta-
rvs report today.