The Seward gateway daily edition, and the Alaska weekly post., 1920-11-27
OLD HISTORY

TOXIC, Nov.,27- An historical parallel to the trouble that has arisen out of the anti-Japanese movement in
 California is found by the Japanese l weekly "The Herald of Asia" in the so-called Shimonseki incident.
 The journal points out that sixty years ago Japanese sentiment was vio- lently hostile to all foreigners as Cali fornia sentiment appears hostile to Japanese. It continues:
 "In 1862 the powerful clan of Chos- hu led the way in anti-foreign out breaks by ordering it's forts at Shim- onoseki to fire at foreign ships includ- ing an American steamer. In those days, however, the central government at Tokio, which had definitely com- mitted itself to progressive and lib- eral international policy, was power less to enforce its will upon the clan- government of Choshu, just as the Federal Government of Washington is incapable of compelling the State of California to conform its action and policy to the obligations the na- tional authorities have entered into with foreign country. The parallel is almost exact.
 "Now how did the American gov ernment of that time solve the dilem- ma inJapan? Did it sympathize with the Shogun,s Government for the pc culiarly difficult position in which the latter found itself, confronted as it was then with countrywide convul- sion aiming at it's downfall? Did the American representatives in Japan ev- CT think of studying the complicated political and constitutional problems which lay at the bottom of the Sho- gunate's inability effectively to con- trol the actions of the various clan governments? Nothing of the sort.
 ''The American representatives, in cooperation with their colleagues of england, France>and Holland, organiz- ed a joint international fleet, bom- barded and levelled the forts at Shim-
 ,noseki, and extolled a heavy indem-
 lity from the bewildered government tt Tokio. In fairness to the United States, it must be stated that her share of the indemnity was returned co Japan some thirty years after, an act of magnanimity which is widely remembered among us with due grati- sude. We do not mean, however, that we should not endeavor to procure an opportunity of returning the compli- l 4nent in kind. Our interest in this pe- culiar episode in our early intercourse
 with America is maily academic; it may also possibly serve to illustrate a certain phase of the American psycho- .ogy."
 Continuing it's discussion of the California question the journal critic 4zed the tendency which it thought was observable among Americans general ly to belittle the trouble between their country and apan. From their point of view it was not unnatural that they should regard the matter as only of local importance, but the newspaper believed that Americans had no right to assume that it is also necessarily of comparatively small Importance to Ja- Pan. It added: Americans should re- alixe that to us the problem is one of national magnitude and importance The American reluctance to approach the matter from this point of view, is : constant source of exasperation to the Japanese. Evidently the Ameri- cans will have to learn 2 thing or two before: . fair start eaa U made on the | rosd b mutual understanding"
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