Los Angeles herald., 1908-05-26
JAPANESE NOT BOUND
BY UNION NOTIONS;
WORK FOR LITTLE

The Japanese steam laundrieS charge
prices lower than the white steam
lauhdries can afford to offer with the
high wages which they must pay. Jap
aneso laundry workers are not bound
by any notions of unionism and will
work for the best price they can get.
If their employer is also Japanese 1t
is probable that the whole working
force will live with the proprietor on
the premises. A half dozen men will In
this way live for what one ordinary
American laborer would spend.
The house cleaners who work out FOR
twenty-five cents an hour--which Is
about the standard price--always have
some other trade. If a cigar store Is
the headquarters of the house cleaners
there probably is a shoe repairing an
mex, and when the student house clean
ers have a little leisure they will fall
to and work at the cobbler's bench.
They will work long hours for cheap
wages, and they can live on what
Americans throw away as waste.
The Japanese restaurants which were
the scenes of riots and disorders when
the anti-Japanese agitation first began
are still in business, and offer lively
competition to the cheap Greek eating
houses and the dairy lunches. The
Japanese possess one virtue which the
modern sons of ancient Greece cannot
Among the cheap restaurants this vir-
tue gives the japanese an advantage,
despite the deep-rooted and probably
we'll founded suspicion that the Japan
csc cleanliness is an outward sign rath-
err than an inward grace; virtue
which parades In the dining room and
is buried In the kitchen.
The japanese themselves have en-
tirely changed In their attitude toward
Americans in the last few months. The
cockiness of the period following the
war with Russia is still In evidence to
some degree, but the aggressive impu-
dence of the young Japanese who ar
fected college clothes and a gentlemanly
occupation is no more. He has given
way to the suave and smiling oriental
who seeks to restore himself to favor
and confidence. This attitude Is re-
f1ected in the editorial columns OF the
four Japanese daily newspapers of San
Francisco. In discussing the welcome
to the fleet. the coming of which every
body In California looked on as a direct
result of the quarrel with the Japanese.
these oriental newspaper men were as
honeyed as diplomatists on the eve OF
a war. Hepe are few extracts exactly
as translated into English by Japanese
editors:
The Japanese THE ar
rival Of the fleet at the coast may act
in some way upon the anti-Japanese
feeling and the Japanese are to do
their best to extinguish these misun-
derstandings in the others minds. For
this purpose, to assimilate among the
| Americans Is the first thing of import
ance and to entertain the coming Meet.
Joining the American, is good oppor-
tunity to express the real intention OF
the Japanese" .,x.
seems that the Americans are too
afraid of the Japanese. and this led the
American to a deep misunderstanding
Of the purpose of Americas sending
her Atlantic battleship feet to the Pa
cific ocean. A matter becomes very
hard to see its real fact when 1t Is met
with some misunderstanding. From
Japanese point of view those rumors
are worth little to pay attention, but so
far as there are many current talkings
of these sorts in this country, 1t should
be afraid that they might anect badly
upon the solution of the Japanese
American questions. Therefore 1t Is
very important for the Japanese to try
to let the others keep out Oh unirlenuiy
feelings"
Tho Soko Shimbun: 1T Is very often
| that an extraordinary plan Is accom-
plished by some, displeasing talking.
| but we Japanese are too broad-minded
| to take Importance OF these current
talkingS. American nternatlonai COM
mercial policy is too above-board TO
doubt and the thoughts Of the Amer
leans for justice and freedom are the
proof against these Observation-Disclosures.
The mingling and harmonization of oc-
cidental and oriental civilization can be
expected when Japan and America fra
ternize together. The first beam OF
universal peace would appear when
the defence along the coast is done
for the purpose of peace-making. being
far off of the means of aggression"
This, then, Is the Japanese situation
| in San Francisco. There is no longer
danger of riots and bloodshed. But the
large majority of the people regard the
Japanese residents with distrust. and
are t,nalterably opposed to further i'm =
migration. The Japanese are fright
ened by the storm they called down up
on themselves by insisting on rights of
equality and are suing for peace.
Meantime, whether with or without any
justification, the average San Francis
can firmly believes it is only a question
of time until we have war with
| Japan.
copyright. 1908, by Frederic ]. Haskin.)
| Tomorrow--The New San Francisco.