Evening star., 1926-05-18
OREGON RACE RIOT
| T0F|GURE IN TRIAL
Damage Suit of Japanese
Victims Significant to u. s.
Nippon Relations.
Ry FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE.

In the United States District Court
at Portland, Greg, July y, a tflal OIL
important significance to japanese
American relations will be heid. II Is
q suit for damages Instituted by nFe
japanese subjects, four men ana d
woman, in coipectlon with a race
riot at Toledo, Greg, July IL, 1879.
The men seek damages in the sum OF
$4,000 each, while the woman asks
sac. 600 The defendants are George
r. Schenck city marshal of Toledo;
his wife and seven citizens of the town
Charles A. Buck, IL. Germer, w. ;.
Colvin, K. \. Pritchard. Frank Sturte-
want, Owen Hart and l.. ID. Emerson.
The Japanese plaintiffs will be rep
resented at the trial by Wallace NC.
Camant of Portland, whom the United
States Senate recently declined to con-
firm as President Coolidge's nominee
for the judgship of the Ninth Federal
Circuit Court.
Governments Watchful.
Both the American and Japanese
governments are watching the forth
coming proceedings with the deepest
interest At the time of the Toledo
riot the Japanese Ambassador at
Washington made informal repre-
sentations at the State Department.
They were not what is technically
known as protest, but took the form
OF a request that Secretary Kellogg
supply detailed account of exactly
what happened. This was done, on
the basis of information supplied by
Walter NJ. Pierce. Governor Of Oregon.
There was an implied understanding
that the State Department would do
its utmost to see that the guilty par
ties at Toledo were eventually brought
Fn i,Icf nd
fained by them would be Unidentified.
The five Japanese seek compensation
not only for physical violence alleged
10 have been done. them. but for the
, loss of employment consequent upon
the riot.
Some 80 or 40 Japanese were taken
10 the Toledo sawmill and lumber
camp of the Pacific Spruce Corpora
1ion in Midsummer of last year. They
were hired by an employment agent.
who engaged them for a certain kind
of unusually rough work for which, at
the time. no white labor was available.
1t was claimed by the Spruce company
and by the employment agent that be-
fore sending the Japanese to Toledo,
they took the precaution of assuring
themselves that, under the circum-
stances. no objection to their presence
would be offered. Anti-Oriental feel
ing runs high in that particular sec
tion Of Oregon.
The Japanese had been on their jobs
only a little while when they We're or
dered to leave Toledo without notice.
They claim they were expelled in the
most ruthless fashion, in some cases
despoiled of their personal effects and
driven to the adjoining CountN line,
with imperiouS orders to shift for
themselves. During this process, ac-
cording to Japanese statements. the
labOrerS also were subjected to phys
ical maltreatment and more or less Sc
rious injuries. The woman in the
party, named Kawamoto, was the
camp cook.
Marshal Schenck Blamed.
The Japanese will try to prove in
the July trial that the city marshal
OF Toledo, Schenck. instead of put
ting police protection at the dis
posal of the Japanese sawmill hands,
actually participated in the events of
which they were the victims. Mrs.
Schenck is charged with similar
completely. Accounts of the riot pub
nshed at the time indicated that
Toledo women were as active as To-
ledo men in the disturbances.
There have been several legal sflir-
mishes in the lower courts i'll con-
nection with the riot, and all pro-
ceedings to date have been decided
in favor Of the Japanese plaintiffs.
This writer was in the far North
west at the time of the incident,
which caused a widespread Sensa-
ton throughout the Pacific Coast
region and, for a time, induced the
fear that serious international con-
sequences with Japan might ensue.
The State officials of Oregon and
most of the responsible newspapers
of Oregon, Washington and Cali
formal frankly deplored the affair and
criticized the townspeople of Toledo
for the commission of eXcesses that
might easily have provoked ugly re-
suits. Editorial comment was to the
effect that out of such little acorns
tall diplomatic oaks sometimes
grow. Some commentators divided
their rebukes between the Toledo and
anti-Japanese rioters and the lumber
corporation, which thought it safe
to bring Nipponese labor into a COM
munity well known to be hostile to
such importations.
Copyright. 1920
DR.. Su Ian Yang, a noted Chinese
woman physician, who has returned to
America for SnaciaI most .uradrlate