The Grangeville globe. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho) 1907-1922, 1913-05-22
CALIFORNIA ACT DEFENDED
In ABLE MANNER BY JOHNSON
State Document Worthy of Perusal and Preservation
Telling Why He Must Sign the Anti
Alien Land Bill.

The final answer of Gov. Hiram
johnson of California, to the request
of the federal government that he
withhold his sigature from the Webb
alien land bill was telegraphed to Sec
rotary Brya at Washington Is as fol-
lows and In substance amounts to
courteous but uneQuivocal mo"
The telegram to Secretary Bryan
sketches the history of the agitation
against ineligible aliens In this state,
discusses the laws of other states that
are similar in purport to the Webb
bill and ends with the statement that
the governor considers 1t his duty to
sign the act. The text of the mes
sage follows:
"Hon. William J. Bryan. secretary
of state, Washington, d. c.
"Your very courteous telegram re-
lating to the allen land bill reached
me late Sunday night. I take 1t from
our conversations and your request,
made to me to withhold executive
action until opportunity was accorded
for the presetation of suggestions
from the federal government, that
your telegram embodies what 1t was
your wish and the wish of the Pres
ident to say to us before final &C
ton.
'Tn this response 1t Is my design
most respectfully to present the sit
uation from our standpoint and the
views that actpated our legislature in
passing the bill and that impel me to
sanction 1t.
Grave Problem for Years.
For many years very grave prob
lem, little understood In the east, has
confronted California: a problem, the
seriousness of which has been recog-
nized by statesmen in our nation and
has bee viewed with apprehension by
the people of this state. When the
present constitution of California was
adopted more than 80 year ago II
contained the following declaration:
The presence of foreigners ineligible
to become citizens Of the United
States Is declared to be dangerous
to the well-being of the state and the
legislature shall discourage their Inn
migration by all means within Its
power
''Of late years our problem from an
other angle has become acute anC
the agitation has been continuous In
the last decade in refernece to oui
agricultural lands until finally affirma
tive action in an attempted solution
became imperative. This attempted
solution is found in the act of oul
legislature in the passage of the alier
land bill.
Legal and Moral Rights.
'"In the phraseology of this bill. IL
those whom 1t effects, In It's scopt
and In it's purpose we believe we are
within our legal and our moral right
and that we are doing only what II
tmperatively demanded for the pro
lection and preservation of our state
In this enactment we have kept eve
in mind our national good faith as ev
denced by existing treaties, and GU
desire ad anxiety have been to &C
only in such fashion as would coci
mend us to our sister states Al;
would justify us to our fellow country
men.
1.-THE objections to our bill Is oased
first, upon the treaty obligations of tn
nation, and, secondly, upon the asser
ton that our act Is offensive and dis
criminatory. The protest of on
measure, as your telegram states
comes from the representative Q
Japan.
Treaty Obligations.
''The bill that is now before me, a
you know, provides substantially /
its first section that all aliens eligibl