Imperial Valley press., 1914-06-30

tention, Japan stands firmly on her
protest that the law is a treaty vio-
lation, discriminatory and obnoxious
to the japanese nation and people and
puts the remedy squarely up to the
/ United States.
This situation, revealed in the cor
respordence between the United
States and Japan, given out by the
State Department, is apparently more
grave than the public has been led
/ to believe from recent statements Of
administration officials
+ That makes it clear that all at
tempts to solve the problem through
diplomatic negotiations have failed
and Japan makes it emphatieally plain
that the next move is up to the Unit
ed States.
/ The gravamen of Japan's complaint
against the California alien law is
contained in the note of August, 1913
Ills HOIe was dilSWCI CN uIIbii liliO
week, when Secretary Bryan respond
ed.
Referring to the California alien
land act the note says:
"That act by depriving the Japanese
subjects of the right of land owner
ship while freely continuing the right
not only in favor of the subjects and
citizens of all the other powers with
which the United States maintains
reciprocal treaty relations, but in fav-
CT Of many non-treaty aliens has es-
tablished discrimination of the most
marked and invidious character
against Japan.
"The measure is moreover, in the
opinion of the imperial government,
unjust and inequitable and contrary
to the letter and spirit of the Jap
anese-American treaty, as well as at
variance with the accepted precepts
governing and regulating the inter
course of good neighborhood, and be-
ing admittedly ex-industria discrimin-
atory against this empire as COM
pared with other states, it is also NOR
tifying to the nation, regardless of
the national susceptibilities of the
Japanese people.
This is the gravamen of Japan's
complaint. The notes of the Honor
able w. j. Bryan contain remarks in
explanation and extenuation of the
action of California, but nothing in
the estimation of the imperial gov
ernmentNnhich answers Fundamentally
to that complaint OF which tends to
shake their conviction regarding the
main question.
"If, as is confidently believed, the
existing treaty between Japan and the
United States has been violated, there
is bus one remedy; and the imperial
government is unable to escape the
conclusion that the duty of applying
that remedy devolves solely upon the
government of the United States, as
the measure complained of has, de-
spite the protest lodged by you, been
permitted to so into operation"
Japan's first protest was filed with
the State Department May 8, 1913.
1t was urgent and explicit" declar-
ing that the California law was unfair
and Discriminatory
On May 10 Secretary Bryan answer
ed the Japanese note setting forth the
steps taken by the Federal Govern
mcnt to avoid the Objectionable legis-
lation in California and explaining
that "under the constitutional an
rangements of the United States we
could do no more than that"
The answer urged that the object
OF the California legislation was not
political, that it was the act of bat
one State, that the object was wholly
economic, based upon the particular
condition existing in California, and
suggesting that any aggrieved sub