The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-08-18
The Jap Question
In British Columbia

ests or through imperial neglect, and
while we may have stood for unjust
adjudication of boundary disputes, we
viii not stand to be made the dump
ing ground of Asiatics for imperial OF
any other reasons.
Much less will we stand for the
wholesale importation of Jap coolies in
the interests of railways or other cor
porations. The temper of the province
is now such that the interests of gov
ernments. political parties and trans
continental railways will receive scant
consideration in dealing with the mat
ter.
1T is no longer case of making ex-
cuses at either Victoria or Ottawa 1t
has been said that the Grand Trunk
Pacific cannot be built without coolie
labor. This may be the view of those
who want the cheapest kind of labor,
regardless of what the future results
to the province will be. Better let the
Grand Trunk Pacific wait till it can
be built with white labor than create
for ourselves a situation which in a
few years is bound to become an in
tolerable and fostering sore"
The Grand Trunk Pacific has since
then publicly announced that only
| white labor will be employed in its con-
structiOn.
The Ottawa government has taken a
new tack in the matter and Hon. Frank
Oliver. Canadian minister of the inter
Tor, is in Vancouver to investigate the
Jap situation. On the eve of his ar
rival the Asiatic Exclusion league an
nounced that the coast province sim
ply will not permit itself to be over
run by Japs and no matter what the
cost, the influx must and will be
stopped.
K. Ishii, representing the Japanese
foreign office, will come direct to Van
couver to assist in the solution Of the
Jap problem. His original intention
was to go from San Francisco to Wash
ington, D. c., and Ottawa to do the
customary Jap softsoaping act. The
Vancouver situation gave him jolt,
however.
Some weeks ago it was said that the
Canadian Pacific railroad was import
ing the coolies. However that may be,
the company strenuously denies this.
Eight Thousand Coming.
Some three weeks ago the writer had
a conversation with a Jap whom he
knew in the days Of Nippon in the fall
of 1898. The conversation occurred in
the state of Washington and only a
Few miles across the DOfueI- Nule years
make changes in the appearances of
the average American evidently, for
the writer was not recognized as the
oft time guest OF a Jap infantry officer
in the city Of Kobe, Japan. Thinking
he was addressing a Canadian the Off
/ Ger Che holds his rank and draws his
salary right along, gave away a few
| little secrets to an American. He has
for a year past been employed on one
of Jim Hills railroads in Washington,
And what he does not know about that
road from st. Paul to Seattle is not
worth knowing. In so many words he
told me at that time that in the neigh
borhood of 5000 Japs were to be landed
in British Columbia during the summer
and early fall and that they were to be
scattered throughout Canada, yet not
too far away from each other. The
writer is under the impression that the
Asiatic Exclusion league will probably
interfere with these plans
He made close inquiries as to the
status of the government of provinces
in Canada as regards the central fed
eraI government at ottawa. He was
laboring under the impression that if
Ottawa pulled a string all Canadians
would dance. He'll learn, however, so
the writer did not tarry to enlighten
portance. Turning the matter around
| the right way, the Jap officer became
the one to give answers to questions
| instead of being the questioner. The
| treaty covering emigration from Japan
to Canada provides that il is restricted
to one a month out of forty districts,
or less than SOC year. That is nice.
Yes, but the hordes of Japs coming
to Canada and Mexico do not come d.
frrv
Honolulu. Nice little loophole, isn't
it? With pride shining in his eyes the
pseudo laborer told the writer that 80
per cent of the thousands to be landed
here had seen army service in their
native land, were trained soldiers Of
all branches of the service. On being
asked what difference that made, he
said: ITO the south of Canada lies the
United States and they have gained the
enmity of the Nippon, and sooner or
later the matter will be settled"
On being asked if he thought that his
country could chew the bite he was
referring to he said: we don't have
to tackle the proposition alone, for
England is our ally, and Canada is part
of England" And that let the cat
out of the bag. Well, some day this
fool will surely learn that the thread
that holds Canada to England is so
fraZzled that lt won't stand very hard
strain.
This same Jap is the man who sent
an agent to Vancouver instructed to
ask of the Canadian government the
establishment of a Jap branch post
office in which Jap clerks only were to
be employed. This is a specimen of
insolence bred of the knowledge that
England and Japan are allies. They
have as yet not got that branch post
Office
Jap Hunter Found.
The writer, during his stay in cen
trail Washington last winter, one nice
cold and crisp Sunday morning discov-
cred a strange species of Jap 1t was
nothing more or less than a Jap hunter
In all his years on the Pacific coast he
had never yet found Jap willing to
leave his fireplace unless duty called
him forth. But as the writer rode
forth for a rabbit hunt that Sunday
morning he overlook a party of Japs
who said they were out for the same
purpose. The tale is that later, in the
afternoon, he encountered a party of
about twenty of them busily engaged
in a fine military skirmish drill I'M
der the command of an officer The