The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-06-02

! Canadian SOIL lies tributary TO the Pa
cific rather than to the Atlantic. A
new country with only 100000 people
on 100000 square miles Of land, what
| wonder is it that the japanese, the
| Chinese, and the Hindus should desire
| to leave their crowded lands where
bare living is the most laborer can
| hope for, and go to a land of so much
promise.
For years there had been a small
stream of immigration from Asia to
| Canada, but it was not enough to dis
| turb the people Of the western half of
that country into fears for their final
supremacy. A few years ago England
made treaty with japan whereby the
japanese laborer was as free to go to
the United Kingdom as the British
workingman is to come to America.
But this treaty did not include Canada
and the other self governing colonies.
| Immigration of Japanese was restrict
! ed to about 500 coolies a 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
CT those opportunities So they en-
tered into diplomatic cores pondence
with Japan, offering, in return for GER
tain trade advantages, to become a
third party to that English-Japanese
agreement.
Japan, seeing that she would have
everything to gain and nothing to 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
l.. l.
as many more coming from there.
Then the Chinese were coming in at a
rapid rate, and to make matters worse,
Hindus from India began to come in
herds The people of British Columbia
began to have a close-range view Of
the yellow peril Long before the out
break at Vancouver the Ottawa min
istry had repented of its bargain. AL
though far more out of sympathy with
British Columbia than Washington was
with the Pacific Coast in its trouble,
the Canadian government realized that
there Were dangers ahead of the new
immigration Yet it dared not say
anything. Then the British Columbia
legislature passed an exclusion act of
it's own, which was vetoed by the OF
tawa authorities. Shortly after came
the outbreak caused by the tangible
danger of being swamped by an alien
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 aspirations. To the native Cana
dian they are not one whit better than
the coolies of Japan and China. They
are described as the coolies of CAL
cutta.' They are the lowest class of
Hindus, and friction results wherever
they come in contact with the Cana
dams.
When the outbreak was over, al
though the Hindus and the Chinese
suffered as much as the Japanese, it
was to the Japanese government that
regrets were sent, and not much ado
was made over the misfortunes that
had befallen the Chinese 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 Van
couver riots such a happy solution
could not have been brought about.
The japanese government criticized
the Washington authorities for not
holding the western anti-Asiatic feel |
ing in check, but when the Canadian
authorities declared that they could |
not be responsible for future out |
breaks unless immigration was check |
ed, 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 ex-
clusion. 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 Van
couver riots are not to be compared |
with those of San Francisco. They say
that whereas the authorities in Califor
mia were, if not in the letter then in
the spirit, parties to the anti-Asiatie
demonstrations, on the other hand it
was nothing but laborers and hood
lums that were responsible in Van
couver. Baron Ishii, the Japanese
representative who inves-
tigated the troubles, in a recent Japan
csc magazine article, declares that
American laborers are benighted, ignOr
ant, and intolerant. and at the same
time are a great political factor He
puts the blame for the Pacific Coast
riots on them, and especially on the
Irish Americans. His views in this
particular are shared by some of the
Ottawa authorities, who want to see
Canadian labor cut entirely loose from
that of the United States, declaring
that almost without exception any
trouble that Canadian labor has got
ten into comes from the labor organi-
cations of the United States.
The trouble at Vancouver is the
same old story of race antipathy that
has been known from the time that the
Canaanitcs hated the people of Israel
have ever insisted on
supremacy. And today
is having trouble With the
not only in Canada, but in
New Zealand. Australasia and in