Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-12-13
Los Angeles
Lille Toxic
Bows Out
Freezing Of Funds Gusts
Them From Business q
BY DAMON RUNYON

HtSt IOiOiiy III Aco <Ah"
geles, has its own chamber OF
commerce. 1t is, or was, the
American seat of several great
trading companies. Big import
ers and shipping men operated
there. The freezing Of their
funds put them out of business.
but in peace times the colony
was a busting mart of COM
merce.
Many of the residents of Lit
tie Toxic own automobiles. and
good automobiles, too. The
Japanese truck farmers are
noted for always buying the
best trucks.
OF the 10000 Japanese in the
greater Los Angeles area. the
majority are farmers or fisher
men and in both fields they are
experts. The Jap can get more
out of small parcel of ground
than almost any other human
being with the possible eXcep-
ton of the Chinese
Some years ago the late Col.
Tillinghast rHommedieu Huston,
once part owner of the New
York Yankees, imported bunch
of Japanese to an island he
owned in the Altamaha River
near Brunswick. Ca, with the
idea Of making the land there
blossom like a rose. only with
cabbage instead Of roses.
The Chinese restaurants OF
New York were supposed 10
offer a fine market for that
sort Of stuff. oA
TT WAS probably the first till -
L any considerable number OF
japanese invaded the deep South
for agricultural purposes, and
the experiment failed for two
reasons.
First, the South did not fancy
the japanese and in consequence
the japanese formed prejudice
against the South and took TO
quitting Colonel Illusions en-
ploy between suns.
II is probably just as we'll as
they would be lonesome down
there now. You see few Japs
south of the Mason and Dixon
line.
There are 5000 japanese on
CALIFORNIA; Terminal island,
which is where the federal
prison is located.
They are mainly fishermen
and their fishing represents a
huge industry. They are found
at what is called Fish Harbor.
which fronts on Man o. War
road, SO called because IL faces
the roadstead of San Pedro Har-
Dor, the home port OF the Pa
cific fleet.
There used 10 be quite bit
of anti-Ameriean activity among
the Japanese fishermen but the
FBI finally cracked down on
them. They are now being
closely watched.
THE American born japanese
l. are called Nisei and the ia
pan born are the josef. The
census on them appears to be
vague but the best authorities In
Los Angeles divide the 10000
japanese population Of the area
at 10000 each way. The immi-
grafton Of Japanese has been
highly restricted by the United
States for years. n.
While they have never enteTU
into the community life Of LIZ
Angeles 10 any great extent.
probably because they know
they would be unwelcome, they
have developed their own COM
munity life in Little Toxic TO
a degree that would have been
possible in no other country,
budding closely together in a
small section in the heart OF a
great city. and establishing
separate and distinct existence.
IF YOU had asked the average
i citizen Of Los Angeles a few
DAYS ago what he thought about
the Jap, you would have found
that he had no particular
thought on the subject. The
citizen just paid no attention TO
the Jap.
The Jap was not an openly
disturbing element in the COM
munity-in fact you heard little
of him except when one was ar
rested with the inevitable
camera and the citizen let 1t
go at that.
Right now the citizen Is
plenty sore at the Jap, OF
course. but not wholly unsym-
pathetic with the plight of the
American born, Americ can
raised and schooled Japanese
who wants TO be American but
who is bound TO be handicapped
in the manner once described
by Togo Tanaka. American born
editor of the local japanese
daily:
II have japanese face al
ways with me-"
BY the way, we must tell you
a hot piece Of news about the
customs of the older Japanese
of Little Toxic" who used TO
sleep on the floor with a bam-
boo headrest.
We are informed some VI