The Washington herald., 1908-05-17

population OF Vancouver itself are Ash
atics. Shall they be allowed to vote when
they are naturallzed? And shall any
more Of them be naturalized? II is the
/ old, old race problem over again, a prob
lem that shows itself wherever alien
races aspire to domination. The anti
Japanese point out that an oath is mean
ingless TO the Japanese worldngman.
They say that Il represents no more to
/ him than the changing OF his costume.
/ the changing from the currency Of Nip
pom to that of Canada, or the changing
] OF the style OF his neektie. They claim
TO have discovered evidence that the Jap
/ anese government keeps a careful rec
ord OF the whereabouts OF every japanese
+ Ia foreign lands, and that whether nat
/ uralization has taken place or not, they
/ viii ever be ready to respond TO the call
OF their native land
/ Vancouver is a composite city. Here
you may be surrounded with every evil
dence Of being in the heart OF an up-tO-
date, notwithstanding city Of 10000
/ Americans. Then walk two or three
blocks and you viii find yourself appar-
entity in the very heart OF Pekin. A few
more blocks viii take you into what
might be part of Tokyo. So far as the
foreign element is concerned it shows the
heaviest proportion Of Chinese and Japqn-
ese OF any city on the American continent.
Located on the southwestern shores OF
British Columbia. at the western terni-
nus or the great Canadian Pacific Trans
continental Railroad and the objective
or the second transcOntinentaI line. Van
eouver Is city Of progress. 1t is the
northern gateway from the Eastern TO
the Western world Tributary TO II is
the vast undevel0ped territory OF Brit
ish Columbia. Canada IS looking for
ward 20 the completion OF the Panama
Canal, when it can load ships at Van
couver and send them TO the food CEN
ters Of the world. Perhaps three-fourtns
OF the wheat grown on Canadian soil
lies tributary to the Pacific rather than
10 the Atlantic. A new country with
only S0o.o00 people or 10000 square miles
Of land, what wonder is II that the jap
anese the Chinese, and the Hindus
should desire 10 leave their crowded
lands where a bare living Is the most q
laborer can hope for and go 20 a land
Of so much promise
For years there had been a small
stream Of immigration from Asia 10 Can
ada, but II was not enough to disturb
the people Of the western half OF that
country into fears for their final supreu-
acy. a few years ago England made a
treaty with Japan whereby the Japanese
laborer was as free to 90 10 the United
Kingdom as the British workingman is
70 come 70 America. But this treaty did
not include Canada and the other self
governing colonies Immigration Of jan
anese was restricted 10 about 600 coolies
year. When the Russian-Japanese war
was over Canada began to see prospects
for great commerce with the Orient.
and her ministry wanted TO make the
most Of those opportunities. So thev
entered into diplomatic correspondence
With Japan offering, in return for certain
trade advantages, TO become. a third
party TO that English-Japanese agree
ment.
japan, seeing that she would have
everything to gain and nothing 10 lose.
promptly accepted the proposition and
at once the japanese began to come in
droves- Not only did Japan itself send
its thousands but owing to the cheap
wages IN Hawaii, the japanese halfway
house 10 America, there were as many
more coming from there Then the Chi
nese were coming in at rapid rate, and
TO make matters worse Hindus from
India began TO come in herds. The peo-
pie OF British Columbia began to have a
elose-range view Of the yellow peril.
Long before the outbreak at Vancouver
the Ottawa ministry had repented cf its
bargain. Although far more out of SYM
pathy with British Columbia than Wash
ington was with the Pacific Coast in
its trouble, the Canadian government
realized that there were dangers ahead
Of the new immigration Yet il dared
not say anything Then the British Co
lumbia legislature passed an exclusion |
act Of its own, which was vetoed by the |
Ottawa authorities. Shortly after came
the outbreak caused by the tangible dam
ger OF being swamped by an allen race
The outbreak at Vancouver first started /
against the Hindus. They are not alien |
IN nationality for they are the Kings |
own subjects. But they are alien in /
ways and manners, hopes and aspira- |
tions. To the native Canadian they are
not one whit better than the coolies OF 1
Japan and China. They are described I
as the coolies of Calcutta" They are /
the lowest class Of Hindus. and friction /
results wherever they come in contact /
with the Canadians.
When the outbreak was over, although |
the Hindus and the Chinese suffered as /
much as the japanese. it was to the Jap /
anese government that regrets were sent. /
and not much ado was made over the /
misfOrtunes that had befailen the Chin |
ese and Hindus The negotiations that /
ended recently have been received with |
JOY by the natives OF British Columbia. |
But it Is realized that except for the |
Vancouver riots such a happy solution /
could not have been brought about. The
Japanese government criticised the
Washington authorities for not holding /
the Western anti-Asiatie feeling in /
check but when the Canadian authorities |
declared that they could not be responsi-
bic for future outbreaks unless immigra- |
ton was checked. no word OF criticism
was to be heard.
The people of British Columbia are
without exception glad that there was /
similar trouble with the United States.
They declare that If it had not been for
the opposition Japan experienced on the
Pacific Coast Of the United States It is
doubtful if they could have been brought
to submit to virtual exclusion And
they say that the best guarantee that
Canada has that Japan will live up to
the agreement is that she has made the
same promises to the United States.
The Ottawa authorities. as well as the
Japanese, declare that the Vancouver
riots are not to be compared with those
Of San Francisco. They say that where