Los Angeles herald., 1906-12-05

with reference to tther men I'm which
he Is guided, not by self-interest, but
by public spirit by regard for the
rights Of others, by a disinterested pur-
pose to do good to others, and to raise
the tone Of the community as a whole.
Similarly a really great nation must
often act, and as a matter OF fact often
does act, toward other nations In a
spirit not In the least Of mere self-in-
terest, but paying heed chiefly to ethi-
cal reasons; and as the centuries go by
this disinterestedness In international
action, this tendency of the individuals
comprising a nation to REQUIRE that ma
tion to act with Justice toward its neigh
bors, steadily grows and strengthens,
IL Is neither wise nor right for a nation
to disregard its own needs, and It Is
foolish-and may be wicked-to think
that other nations will disregard theirs.
But It Is wicked for a nation only to
regard its own interest, and foolish to
believe that such is the sole motive
that aotuaten any other nation. 1t
should be our steady aim to raise the
ethical standard of individual action.
Our Duty to Strangers
Not only must we treat all nations
fairly but we must treat with justice
and good will all immigrants who come
here under the law. Whether they are
Catholic or Protestant, Jew or Gentle;
whether they come from England or
/ Germany, Russia, Japan or Italy, mat
ters nothing. All we have a right to
question is the mans conduct II he
is honest and upright in his dealings
with his neighbor and with the state,
then he is entitled to respect and good
treatment. Especially do we need to
| remember our duty to the stranger
/ " nT4 al tr sNNrn safly
of low civilization, low morality, to
abuse or discriminate against or in any
way humiliate such stranger who has
come here lawfully and who is con-
Quoting himself properly. To remem-
ber this Is incumbent on every Ameri-
can citizen, and it is of course pecu-
liarly incumbent on every government
official, whether of the nation or of the
several states.
Deprecates Hostility to Japanese
I am prompted to say this by the
attitude of hostility here and there as
sumed toward the Japanese in this
country. This hostility is sporadic and
is limited to very few places. Never
theless, it is most discreditable to us
as a people, and it may be fraught
with the gravest consequences to the
nation. The friendship between the
, United States and Japan has been con-
| tinuous since the time over half CEN
tury ago. when Commodore Perry, by
his expedition to Japan, first opened
the islands to western civilization.
Since then the growth of Japan has
been literally astounding. There is not
only nothing to parallel it, but moth
| ing to approach it in the history of
civilized mankind. Japan has a glori-
Gus and an ancient past. Her civilization
is older than that of the nations of
northern Europe-the nations from
whom the people of the United States
have chiefly sprung. But fifty years
ago Japan's development was still that
OF the Middle Ages. During that fifty
years the progress of the country in
every walk in life has been a marvel
| to mankind, and she now stands as one
Of the greatest civilized nations; great
| in the arts of war and in the art of
peace; great in military, in Industrial
in artistic development and achieve
ment. Japanese soldiers and sailor:
have shown themselves equal in com
bat to any of whom history makes
note. She has produced great generals
} and mighty admirals her fighting men
afloat and ashore, show all the heroic
courage, the unquestioning. unfalterint
loyalty, the splendid indifference tC
hardship and death, which marked the
loyal Romans; and they show also that
they possess the highest ideal OF
patriotism. Japanese artists of every
kind see their products eagerly sought
for in all lands. The industrial and
commercial development of Japan has
been phenomenal; greater than that OF
any other country during the same
period. At the same time the advance
in science and philosophy is no less
marked. The admirable management
of the Japanese Red Cross during the
| late war, the efficiency and humanity
of the Japanese officials, nurses and
doctors, won the respectful admiration
of all acquainted with the facts,
Through the Red Cross the Japanese
people sent over 100000 to the suf-
ferers of San Francisco. and the gift
was accepted with gratitude by our
people. The courtesy of the Japanese,
nationally and individually, has become
proverbial
"a Wicked Absurdlty'
To no other country has there been
such an increasing number of visitors
from this land as to Japan. In return
Japanese have come here in great
numbers. They are welcome, socially
and intellectually, in all our colleges
and institutions of higher learning, in
|
The Japanese have won in single
generation the right to stand abreast
of the foremost and most enlightened
peoples of Europe and America; they
have won on their own merits and by
their own exertions the right to treat
ment on a basis of full and frank
equality. The overwhelming mass of
our people cherish lively regard and
respect for the people of Japan, and
in almost every quarter of the union
the stranger from Japan is treated as
he deserves: that is, he is treated as
the stranger from any part of civilized
Europe is and deserves to be treated.
But here and there most unworthy
feeling has manifested itself toward
the Japanese-the feeling that has
been shown in shutting them out from
the common schools in San Francisco,
and in mutterings against them in one
or two other places, because of their
efficiency as workers. To shut them
out from the public schools is a wicked
absurdity, when there are no first
class colleges in the land, including
the universities and colleges of Cali
fornia, which do not gladly welcome
Japanese students and on which Japan
ese students do not reflect credit. We
have as much to learn from Japan as
Japan has TO learn from us; and no
q 10 Do, oil