Los Angeles herald., 1908-05-26

problems involved. The trades unions
are against the Japanese in San Fran
cisco for the two sufficient reasons that
the Japanese will work for lower
wages, and they will not be bound by
the rules of organized labor. Even in
San francisco everybody does not
agree with the trades unions, but 1t Is
very difficult to find anyone who does
not agres with them on the Japanese
question. Housekeepers who employ
Japanese servants because they are
easy to get are among the loudest In
their denunciation of the Japanese
faults. Only one class of San Fran
ciscans are heard to say a good word
for the Japanese coolie, and that class
is made up of railroad contractors and
others who employ laborers on large
scale. Even some of those want a
white man or a Chinese for foreman of
a gang of Japanese workers.
In San Francisco the Japanese are
found in practically every trade and
calling. A large majority still prefer
personal service and are to be found
employed as servants in private homes,
hotels and apartment houses. The tele-
phone book discloses the fact that
there are sixty-seven professional
housekeeping establishments among
the Japanese. Investigation shows that
practically every one of these establish
ments is conducted in connection with
a tailor shop. cigar store or some
other business. The proprietor OF such
Japanese. often of the student class,
and they live on the premises. When
there is a telephone call for the house.
cleaner one of the students is sent out.
Many San Francisco people live In
apartments, more than in any other
city except New York, 1t Is said. Serv-
ants are expensive and troublesome so
milady does the lighter part of her
homework and telephones to q jap
anese house-cleaner to come in for an
hour and do the rest. The trades
unions declare that this system of '.as-
sisted light housekeeping" has thrown
5000 servant girls out of employment
and has not saved the employers any
thing, as housewives who have no cook
are apt to take the family out to res
taurants frequently and spend more on
one meal than the difference in cost
between a white maid servant of all
work and the Japanese housecleaner.
"Nogi in the kitchen" is an estab-
lished institution, of course. and many
housekeepers are proud of their Jap
anese cooks who stay on the job and
do good work. But even these house,
keepers say they would prefer Chinese.
Many San Francisco housekeepers have
been accustomed to men cooks and
men servants always. first the Chinese
and now the Japanese. The Chinese
population is steadily decreasing and
many of those still here are getting too
old for satisfactory service. When they
leave a home the mistress, who knows
nothing but orientals for servants, re-
places mem with Japanese boys. It re-
quires a readjustment of domestic af-
fairs, for the Chinese always ordered
things to suit the convenience Of his
mistress; now the mistress must order
things to suit the convenience of the
servant. Despite the loud cries of dis
satisfaction with the Japanese they
are still able to find employment as
servants.
If the Japanese servants remained
servants there wouldn't be half so much
opposition to them. A Chinese cook
once is a Chinese cook always. But q
Japanese cook today is a shopkeeper
tomorrow and banker next week, with
aspirations for still higher honors. His
ambition carries him above a mental
position OF its own force. Thus he is
disliked while he Is a servant and hated
| when he branches out into skilled
trades by the cut-price route.
This is the reason why all San Fran
cisco rises up and says 1t would rather
have a dozen Chinese than one Japan
ese. The Chinese send money to Asia
| to q greater extent per capita than dc
| the Japanese they buy fewer American
products and are in some other ways