Los Angeles herald., 1908-05-19

Japanese in the United States will be
given. One notable feature of the race
question on the Pacific coast is the way
the people here at once begin to COM
pare the Chinese with the Japanese,
always to the detriment of the latter.
At one time John Chinaman was a
much abused person out this way, but
since he has been excluded and the
Japanese allowed to come into the
country in swarms, the good reputation
of the Chinaman has increased thou
sandfold.
/ called at a leading real estate and
renting office in Seattle to inquire what
kind of tenants the Japanese make. The
head of the firm received me and there
was no mincing of matters in his reply.
''They are no good" he said emphatic
ally. "They are so unreliable and
tricky that they almost worry the life
out of us. It takes twice as many men
to handle their business as 1t ought to.
We used to get along so we'll with the
Chinese that we went after the busi-
ness of the Japanese when they began
to come in, but we soon found to our
sorrow that although they are both ori-
entails, there is a vast difference be-
tween doing business with a Japanese
and a Chinaman."
"What is the difference between
them" I ventured to interrupt Be-
fore he could answer a Chinaman came
in the door and lined up before the
counter where a young lady clerk was
writing receipts for rent. The head OF
the firm touched a button and told
the boy who answered 1t to show the
Chinaman into the private office, where
this conversation took place between
them:
"John. your lease is up on your
house. Do you want to stay there an
other year"'
Eyes, I take him one more year II
you bring new roof and make the rent
no more big" said John.
"How much is 1t you pay?" asked
the agent
IT bring $50 a month plenty quick II
you bring new roof. Can do?"
The anxious tenant was told that the
roof would be drought" right away,
and that settled the matter.
This particular Chinaman had been
tenant nine years and had never
been late with his rent The firm did
not even have a written agreement
with him, a plain understanding of
the terms being all that was needed.
When asked II this might not be an
exceptional case and If some japanese
might not have been just as prompt
the agent replied: 1--WE have had years
of experience with both of them and
we have found that once a Chinaman
enters into an agreement he will gen.
orally keep it, and that as a rule a
Japanese will not keep any contract
that he can break, IL it is to his ad-
vantage to get out of 1t"
One of the principal lines of work
that attract the Japanese is domestic
service, but in this they fall far short
of being as satisfactory as the Chi
nese. One great objection to them Is
that they are unreliable and will sell
dom hesitate to leave their employer
| in the lurch If some more lucrative
position offers itself elsewhere. Impu-
dence is another charge made against
them, many instances having been re-
| ported where housewives have had to
| telephone for their husbands to come
home at once because the Japanese
servant had become insolent. However
| 1t would doubtless be unfair to claim
that this was a general fault of the
| Japanese in domestic service.
The universal complaint about them
seems to be their lack of interest In
their work. They invariably have a
book around somewhere and are study
| ing and working with their lessons al
| every spare moment. OF course, their
| ambition to gain knowledge and i'm
| prove their station in life is commend
able but there can be no doubt that
| it detracts from their value as SER
wants. When they accept employment