Arizona republican., 1916-03-13

the United States to American con- ditions and American life
 Representative Sapanese predict that the pending bill will be adopted by the diet, though it may meet with opposition in the conservative house of peers. They explain that although the existing Japanese law provides for eXpatriation, one clause of the law renders repatriation practicauy inop- erative because 1t obliges male Jap anese resident abroad to serve their time in the Japanese army. Thus Japan in no way released it's legal hold on male Japanese living in for eign lands. This clause especially af- fected California and Hawaii on ac- count of the large number of Jap anese resident in those places The amendment offered in the diet is be- lieved to be a way out of the diff culty ana is regarded as a compro- mise measure framed in such way as not to excite direct opposition from Japanese army circles The amendment gives the parents of Jap anese children born in the United States the right to expatriate their children, and if this amendment is accepted it means that the clause re- .lating to compulsory military service will not be operative It indicates that the Japanese government er1 dorses the right of American born Japanese to become citizens of the American republic without any legal obligations to their home land The step is regarded here as a contribu- tion of Japan to the settlement of l questions Involving citizenship and | race between the two. countries l The new measure provides that when a Japanese woman by becoming the wife of a foreigner has acquired 1 her husbands nationality she loses her Japanese nationality
 | The bill provides that in case a Jap anese subject, who has acquired for e1gn nationality by reason of birth in a foreign country. has domicile in that country, he may expatriate himself with 1 the permission of the minister of state for home affairs. The application for the permission shall be made by the legal representative in case the person eXpatriating himself is younger than E
 years of age. If the person in question
 is minor above 15 years of age ad judged incompetent, the application car only be made with the consent of 4 legal representative or guardian A
 step father, a step-mother or lega1
 mother or guardian may not make the
 application or give consent without the
 consent of the family council.
 A supplementary provision declares
 that the date of the operation of this
 law shall be determined by imperial or
 dinance.
 The fact that committee of the
 house of representatives has ratified . ? bill which is of the same purport as
 that offered the government has ere
 ated the impression that the house vii
 adopt the governments bill.
 The Japanese press is pointing ou
 the international importance of tn,
 measure and expresses the opinion tha
 it's adoption will have favorable effec
 on the position of Japanese in America
 The objection raised by those Amer
 jeans eXerting themselves in the inter
 est of Japanese in the United State.
 that their efforts were made difficult
 because Japan retained it's nationalt-
 over Japanese there is held by writer
 70 have been reasonable and natural Discussing the bill, the Japan Time
 said: America is finding to her cos
 that dangerous thing is double o dual nationally, IS is seen in the con duct of some German Americans sine
 the outbreak of the war in Europe. h
 the latter instance, the fault may h,
 said to he partly due to the neglect o
 indifference with which the Unite, states has, for years, allowed tn,
 agents of the German government t cultivate among the German -Ameri cans their allegiance and devotion t, the Fatherland None the less tb United States has seen enough of th, evils and dangers of dual nationality America may. therefore be expected t, be only the more sensitive and exact ing in the future with regard to tn question of the nationality of her citi zens of foreign birth The newspaper hopes that the hous
 of peers will speedily pass the bill an, send it to the house where it believe
 there is every prospect of it's beinj quickly ratified Certainly" write |