The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1909-08-22
JAPAN DOES NOT
WANT A WAR
Yellow Statesmen Trapped In
Bod Game of Bluff
SECRETS OF JAP LABOR
Joker Hidden in Old Treaty Gives ia.
pan Same Power Over Foreign
Labor as She Protests
Against In California.

Behind the so-called "gentleman's
country in bridging over the recent
labor crisis on the Pacific coast are dis
closures, made by DIR. Thomas e. Green
in Hampton's Magazine for September,
that have startled and for some time
secretly amused the diplomatic world
Plainly the nearest approach to war
was battle of diplomatic wits in
which Yankee shrewdness plus luck
discounted and routed japanese hypoc-
risy and craftsmanship. Revealing the
inside history of the agreement, Dr.
Green, writing from Japan, where, he
reports, the emigration of laborers to
the United States has absolutely
stopped, despite It's admissibility by
terms of our treaty, says:
"On July 81, 1899, 15 days before the
treaty went into force, imperial ordi-
nance No. $50 was issued by the EN-
peror in the presence of, and under the
signatures of, four members of the
privy council. Japan In her earlier his
tory had suffered much from her
treaties, in that many of the contract
ing nations seemed to have the fault
of the Dutch; that of giving too little
and taking too much. This time she
wanted to be sure that she was well
protected. 1t was recess time with
the diet, but the constitution provides
that, an emergency arising during the
recess, an imperial ordnance stands In
the place place of law Article Tx,
however. makes the signature of a min
lister of state necessary for the validity
even of an imperial ordinance.
Following is the text of the ordi-
nance in question, that nine years
thereafter was to strangely intervene
between two nations and bring forth "a
gentleman's agreement
We, by the advice OF our privy council
hereby give our sanction to matters re-
lating to the residence and occupation,
ETC., of foreigners, who either by virtue
of treaty or of custom have no freedom
OF residence; and order the same to be
promulgated.
THE articles of this imperial ordinance
follow:
Article 1. Foreigners who either by vir-
tue Of treaty or of custom have not free
dom may hereafter reside, remove, carry
on trade and do other acts inside the
former settlements and mixed residential
districts Provided that in the case of
laborers, they cannot reside or carry on
their business outside of the former set
Elements, or mixed residential districts
unless under the special permission of
the administrative authorities. The class
Of iaborers referred to IN the preceding
clause and the details for the operation
of this ordinance shall be determined by
the minister for home affairs.
Article 2. Persons infringing the pro-
viso of clause In the foregoing article
shall be sentenced to a fine not exceeding
100 yen.
Article 3. This law shall be put into
operation on and after August 4, 1899.
Just a week. mark you. before the
treaty with the United States went Into
effect.
Now, in obedience to this ordinance
the minister for home affairs speaks In
home office notification No. AZ:
Details relating to the operation OF i'm
perial ordinance No. 1852, concerning the
residence and occupation of foreigners
who have no freedom of residence either
by virtue of treaty or of custom, are de-
cided as follows:
Article l. The administrative author
tiles mentioned In article Of the I'M
periai ordinance 1852, July 81, 1899, shall
be the head of each prefecture and of
Hokkaido.
Article g. The laborers mentioned In
article 1 Of the same law shall be men
engaged In labor (now mark what is
considered foreign ''laborer'' In Japan
In agriculture, fishing, mining civil en-
.
transporting. carting, stevedoring and
other miscellaneous work. Provided that
this rule is not applicable to those who
are employed In household service such
as cooking and waiting. CThat let's in
Chinese servants.)
Article 8. Permission given to laborers
may be Cancelled by local governor,
when he deems 1t necessary to do so for
the public welfare,
"All of which, signed, sealed and de-
livered, was published In the Official
Gozette lin the vernacular, of course; not
IN English or any foreign tongue) and
passed into the archives-a protection
against any foreign laborer.' such as
a civil engineer, architect, manufacturer
or railroad builder whose operations
might become obstrusive enough to justl-
fy his removal or whose residence 1t
might seem best to any local governor
to terminate.
zone week afterward the 12-year treaty
with the United States went into force,
agreeing, however, In its terms not to
interfere with or affect any existing law
then in force
Coming down to the recent crisis with
President, cabinet officers, governors, leg
islators, newspapers and the public tan
gled In the mazes of Japanese immigra
ton. the writer In Hamptons says:
'At Washington was the Japanese am
basador. viscount Aolxi. silent, dgnified,
but unmovable. standing on his treaty
rights. relying especially on that article
of the agreement with the United States
which reads:
Subjects or citizens OF. either of the
two high contracting parties shall have
full liberty to enter, travel or reside
in any part of the territories of the
other contracting party, ana shall en-