Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1913-05-24

son that he Should WITHHOLD sigma
ture from the anti-alien land owner
ship bill is taken by those in Homo
lulu who have seen il as the best ex-
pocition that has yet been made OF
California's attitude. II was sent on
May IA to Secretary Of State Bryan.
The reply discusses the history Of the
agitation in California and emphasizes
the statement that California has
strictly observed the terms of the
treaty of 1911. Gov. Johnson says:
Hon. William J. Bryan. Secretary
of State, Washington, D. c.:
Your very courteous telegram relat-
ing TO the alien land bill reached me
late Sunday night | take it from our
conversations and your request made
to me to withhold executive action
until opportunity was accorded for the
presentation of suggestions from the
Federal Government, that your tele-
gram embodies what il was your wish
and the wish OF the President 10 say
TO us before final action
In this response it is my design
most respectfully to present the situa-
ton from our standpoint and the
views that actuated our Legislature
in passing the bill and that impel me
to sanction it.
East Fails TO Understand.
For many years a very grave prob
lem, little understood in the East, has
confronted California; problem the
seriousness of which has been recog-
nized by statesmen in our Nation.
and has been viewed with apprehen-
sion by the people of this State. When
the present Constitution of Califor-
MIA was adopted, more than thirty
years ago, it contained the following
declaration: "The presence of foreign
ers ineligible to become citizens of
dangerous to the well-being of the
State, and the Legislature shall dis
courage their immigration by all
means within its power"
OF late years our problem from an
other angle has become acute, and
the agitation has been continuous in
the last decade in reference to our
agricultural lands, until finally affirm
alive action in an attempted solution
became imperative. This attempted
solution is found in the action of our
Legislature in the passage of the
alien land bill. In the phraseology of
this bill, in those whom it affects, in
its scope and in its purpose We be-
lieve we are within our legal and our
moral right, and that we are doing
only what is imperatiyely demanded
for the protection and preservation of
our State. In this enactment we have
kept in mind our national good faith,
as evidenced by existing treaties, and
eur desire and anxiety have been to
act only in such fashion as would
commend us to our sister states and
would justify us to our fellow coun-
trymen.
Objections to the Bill.
The objections to our bill are based,
first, upon the treaty obligations OF
the Nation, and secondly, upon the as
sertion that our act is offensive mad
discriminatory The protest to our
measure, as your telegram states,
comes from the representative of ia
pan. The bill that is now before me,
as you know, provides substantially
in its first section that all aliens
eligible to citizenship under the laws
of the United States may acquire real
property in the same manner as cit
liens of the United States, and the
second section provides that all aliens
other than those mentioned in the
first section may acquire real prop
erty in the manner and to the extent
and for the purposes prescribed by
any treaty now existing between the
Government of the United States and
the nation or country of which such
aliens are citizens or subjects, and
may, in addition. lease for period
of three years lands for agricultural
purposes.
Thus, we nave made existing
treaties a part of our law, and thus
have we preserved every right that
any foreign nation, by international
contract, has insisted dpon preserv-
ing with our national government.
The treaty of 1911 with Japan, in
reference to the citizens and subjects
of each country, provides that they
shall have liberty to own or lease or
occupy houses, manufactures. ware
houses and shops; to employ agents
OF their choice; to lease land for
residential and commercial purposes
and generally TO do anything Incl
dent to or necessary for trade upon
the same terms as native citizens Or
subjects, submitting themselves to
the laws and regulations there estab-
lished.
We assume that the right Of Jap
anese to own real property for the
purposes described is absolute in our
state, and we seek TO deal only with
our agricultural lands. We embody
the treaty in cur law and we add to
it permission to lease our agricultural
lands for the period of three years.
Where suen extraordinary care has
heen exercised 20 preserve honor and
good faith. in the very words Of the
contract made by the protesting ma
ton with our own, and to do more by
authorizing leases of agricultural
laads. it would seem that We ought
not 20 be open To any accusation of
violation of treaty rights, or desire to
p0trpOph unOn that n, hiab holop oc