JAPAN WONDERS WHY A Challenging Chapter in American Japanese Relations By William Axling Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2017 with funding from Columbia University Libraries https://archive.org/details/japanwonderswhyOOaxli JAPAN WONDERS WHY? By William Axling Author of “Japan on the Upward Trail” and “On the Trail of the Truth About Japan” Commission on International Justice and Goodwill of the Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America 105 East 22nd Street New York CONTENTS Introductory Note Foreword Eight Basic Facts From Places of Power ICey Men Among Many The Courts of Culture The World of Commerce Christian Circles Lay Leaders of the Church An Interpretation Facing the Future 2 INTRODUCTORY NOTE T he author, Dr. Axling, has for more than a score of years heen a distinguished member of the Mis- sion in Japan of the Baptist Churches of America. His exceptional command of the language, his unusual per- sonal contacts through his “social center” in the Misaki Tabernacle in the heart of Tokyo, his friendly relations with men of all classes, — ^students, traders, teachers, offi- cials, financiers and statesmen, — ^his sympathetic knowl- edge of Japan’s problems and his insight into the better life and nobler aspirations of that virile, old-new Yamato race, render him an invaluable interpreter to America of that remarkable people of the Far East. The writer of this note bespeaks thoughtful atten- tion to this testimony from Japan. John H. Finley, Chairman, Commission on International Justice and Goodwill, Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America. July, 1924, New York, N. Y. 3 FOREWORD F kiendship can flourish only in an atmosphere of frank interchange of thought. In this brochure Japan lays bare her heart on a momentous issue. The passion of the partisan and the purpose of the propagan- dist are absent from these utterances. Those whose thoughts are made vocal through these pages, in the quiet of their homes, or in an inner chamber, were speak- ing as friend to friend. Every question has two angles. This pamphlet does not pretend to be a comprehensive treatment of the prob- lem of Japanese Exclusion. The views of the exclusion- ists have been broadcast over sea and land. They are well known. Few, however, have had an opportunity to listen in when Japan has spoken. The writer believes that multitudes of loyal Ameri- cans are big enough and broad enough to want to look at this question from Japan’s point of view as well as from America’s angle. Here, in concise form, Japan’s view- point is presented. It is a cross-section of the troubled thought of the Japanese people on a question that has stirred them as nothing has since the day when Commo- dore Perry forced them to abandon their policy of exclu- sion. It is a strange and sad paradox that the nation which seventy-one years ago forced open Japan’s closed door should now so rigidly close its own door against her. To Aonericans who are internationally minded and jealous of America’s fame and fair name among the na- tions, this material does not make pleasant reading. The writer releases it, however, for men and women of understanding hearts and in the interest of fair play. 4 EIGHT BASIC FACTS T his whole issue has been befogged and its consid- eration prejudiced by faneies, half-facts, and false- hoods. No one eneumbered with this mental rubbish can get Japan’s viewpoint. Right here, therefore, eight fundamental facts must be fairly faced. 1. Japan has no immigration exclusion law, American exclusion agitators to the contrary notwithstanding. She does not exclude any race or any people. She does not exclude the Chinese or the Koreans. In 1899 the trea- ties between Japan and the world powers were revised. On the one hand the restrictions as to travel and resi- dence in Japan for citizens of the signatory powers were abolished. On the other hand nationals of these powers and also of all other nations came under the jurisdietion of the Japanese courts. Inasmuch as all nations still insisted on extra-terri- toriality in China, this nation did not come in under the general treaty revision of 1899. The Chinese in Japan were thus left under the old system, and their residence and travel in Japan were restricted to designated treaty ports. To alleviate this situation Japan went beyond the requirements of her treaty obligations with China and issued an Imperial Ordinance granting the Chinese, also, unrestricted residence and travel privileges within the Japanese Empire. This is not discrimination. It is voluntary elimination of discrimination. In doing this, however, she stipulated that certain labor classes should 5 apply for permission before entering. The gi-anting or refusal of such permission is left to local authorities. This is not exclusion, it is limitation. Korea is now a part of the Japanese Empire. The Koreans in their travel and residence are subject only to rules and regulations common to all citizens of J apan. As a matter of fact, tens of thousands of Korean work- ing folk are scattered throughout different sections of Japan proper. Their number has increased very greatly within recent years. 2. An American or any other national may become a naturalized citizen of the Japanese Empire. Natu- rally, like every other nation, Japan reserves the right to accept or reject an applicant for naturalization if he fails to come up to certain stipulated tests. These tests are personal, not racial ; they are not discriminatory. The writer knows of both Occidentals and Orientals who are naturalized Japanese subjects. 3 . Japan is not asking for the open door for her emi- grants. Seventeen years ago, when she signed the “Gen- tlemen’s Agreement,” she accepted the principle of self- imposed limitation, a limitation that was next neighbor to exclusion and has been drastically applied. So high and well-informed an authority as the State Department of the American Government vouches for Japan’s faith- ful adherence to this “Agreement” during the past seven- teen years. The “Gentlemen’s Agreement” was instituted for the purpose of stopping the immigration of Japanese male labor. The following figures indicate that it functioned with signal success. During sixteen years ( 1908 - 1923 ), the net increase through immigration into Continental 6 United States of foreign-born Japanese was only 8,681. In seven of those years more Japanese left America than entered. The net results of the working of the “Agree- ment” were the departure from America (including Ha- waii) of 22,737 Japanese men. The Prime Minister, the Foreign Minister, a large group of the nation’s outstanding leaders, and men of humble estate have assured the writer that they recognize that the inflow of any large number of their nationals to this land will only breed problems and create difficult situations. 4. The granting to Japan of a two percent, quota, placing her on a par with other nations, would have satis- fied 55,000,000 Japanese. This would have meant prac- tical exclusion, since only 146 immigrants could have en- tered each year under this limit. It is the sting and the shame of being discriminated against on racial grounds that has cut a slashing wound down deep into the heart of this sensitive, forward-looking people. Japan feels that this exclusion measure, based on racial discrimination, challenges her civilization. It chal- lenges the splendid progress which she has made during the past seventy years. It challenges her place as a world power. It challenges the inherent worth of her people, brands them before the world as a race of unde- sirables, and stigmatizes them as unworthy to stand side by side with the peoples of the West. The Japanese people feel that, in this sort of a solution of a wholly domestic problem, America has undermined their na- tion’s prestige both in the Orient and in the inter- national arena. 5. Japan recognizes that the question of immigra- 7 tion is entirely a domestic problem for the United States. She readily acknowledges that America has the right to pass any kind of legislation which she may deem neces- sary, covering this field. She puts the whole question on the high ground of courtesy, consideration and inter- national comity. She rests her case on the American’s fine sense of justice and fair play. 6. Americans in Japan and any other nationals may, in case of corporations, buy, and, in case of individuals, lease for a long term of years, even 999 years if desired, any amount of land, for any purpose, that they may desire. Much valuable land is at present held in this way by foreigners in Japan. Moreover, the government has drawn up a bill, which it is introducing into the next session of the Diet, giving nationals from such nations as grant the right of land ownership to Japanese, the reciprocal privilege in Japan. 7. The much discussed Dual Citizenship law of Ja- pan, by which Japanese born in foreign lands are held as Japanese subjects until they apply for and are grant- ed release by the Japanese Government, is not a law peculiar to Japan. Every nation has a similar law, in- cluding the United States. Children of American par- ents born in Japan are American citizens and must be registered in an American Consulate. 'The peculiarity of the situation creating this dual citizenship is the fact that the Constitution of the United States confers citi- zenship on all children born in the United States, regard- less of the nationality of their parents. Japanese chil- dren born in the United States are therefore American citizens by American law and at the same time Japa- nese citizens by Japanese law. 8 Here again, however, the Japanese Government is not facing backward. It has a bill ready for the Diet, revising this law so as to do away with the evils of dual citizenship. In this Japan is proposing to go further than any European Government has gone.* 8. There has been a close succession of Japan-wound- ing acts on this side of the Pacific, which have been acid tests of that nation’s friendship for America. The first was the decision of the Supreme Court declaring the Japanese people ineligible to American citizenship (November, 1922). The second was the pronounce- ment by this same body declaring the Anti- Alien Land Laws of the Pacific Coast States constitutional (No- vember, 1923). Through this latter decision thousands of Japanese residents on the Pacific Coast suffered serious hardships, and many were compelled either to return to Japan or to seek a new location in the United States. Probably as many as 50,000 out of the 111,000 Japanese living in the United States were directly or in- directly affected by this Supreme Court decision. Then came the Exclusion Law (June, 1924), as a climactic crucifixion of Japan’s national pride and sus- ceptibility. The disillusionment and disappointment have been accumulative. Many a thoughtful Japanese has been driven to wonder if there is a conspiracy in America to crush Japan while she is down and to enforce America’s will upon her before she can recover from the earthquake’s knockout blow. * Just as this pamphlet goes to press a cable report from Tokyo an- nounces the passage by both houses of the Japanese Diet of the new ex- patriation law, which provides that Japanese bom in foreign countries where birth gives nationality shall lose their Japanese nationality from birth unless formal action be taken to preserve their rights to Japanese citizenship. 9 FROM PLACES OF POWER IS Excellency Viscount Kiyoura^ at that time n Prime Minister of the Japanese Empire, in dis- cussing the situation created by America’s Exclusion Legislation, said to the writer: “The Japanese emigrants are often ignorant, they lack material resources and do not assimilate easily, and thus doubtless they furnish some reason for the desire to shut them out. At all events, Japan has no desire to enter a large number of her emigrants into the United States. All that she asks is treatment, for her nationals already residents on American soil, on a par with that granted to aliens from other lands. “I cannot but feel that America has gone astray in the matter of this exclusion legislation. The sense of self-respect bulks large in the make-up of the Japa- nese people, and this makes discrimination hurt. If it came from a second rate nation the sting would not be so strong, but coming from America, the land of justice and idealism, the blow is staggering. “The government will do all in its power to pre- vent a popular outburst. The people however are deeply moved. Their sentiments on this matter cannot be controlled by Governmental authority. It is this undermining of the feeling of friendship and goodwill on the part of the people which will result in the crea- tion of a difficult situation between the two nations. “While I recognize that the question of immigration 10 in itself is entirely domestic in its nature and can in no sense be considered an international problem, yet I ven- ture to suggest that a Joint High Coimmission composed of outstanding representatives from both nations could render an incalculable service in paving the way for a happy solution of all questions pending between our re- spective nations. “The time is past for war and the sword to settle questions between nations. The Washington Confer- ence and the World Court of Justice indicate that a new day has dawned in the international arena. The time has come for conference and mutual concession, for rea- son and right to rule between nations as well as between individuals. If America and Japan can see things eye to eye, the waves of the Pacific will remain peaceful, and these two nations will be able to outlaw war from this vast stretch of the world’s area. “Material civilization has weakened the fine sense of justice and right in every land. Religion is the world’s only hope. At such times as this only the Chris- tian Church can awaken the Christian conscience and win the nation back. I still believe that the American people will make this thing right. The nation which produced Washington cannot go irrevocably astray. Sooner or later its sense of justice and fair play will prevail and the right thing will be done.” Baron K. Matsui, Minister of Foreign Affairs, opened his heart in the following manner: “The effect of this Exclusion Law will be an ever- growing and deepening resentment, all along the way of the future. Petty incidents will keep irritating the relationship of the two nations. Small matters will take 11 on large proportions in the thinking and feeling of the people. Harmony and goodwill will be handicapped. Friction and misunderstanding will be made easy. “Personally, I believe it wise and desirable to con- tinue the policy of the retrenchment of armament and to extend the scope and the time of the treaties of the Washington Conference. If, however, American- Jap- anese relations are not harmonious, this is going to be exceedingly difficult. Already Japanese are saying, ‘We signed the Washington Conference Treaties, drawn up largely under America’s leadership, in the hope that anti-Japanese agitation would cease. What was the use ? Look at the result ! The agitation went on apace and issued in an Exclusion Law.’ “There is no East and there is no West today. Com- merce and communication have broken down the bar- riers. The world is coming together. It is not growing apart. The world is one. The Occident and the Orient must stand or fall together. The White Man and the Yellow Man must join hands and march out together into a greater and more glorious future, or else go down to doom together. There is no other choice. “I can only express my sincere hope that what your great Lincoln said is true, ‘Nothing is settled until it is settled right,’ and that America will do the right thing in regard to this immigration question and the treatment of our people resident within her borders. “Unfortunately the great Christian principles are not often observed by all the people or by a nation as a whole. Why is it that the Christian nations so often fall down on these great Christian principles when it comes to a crisis?” 12 Prince I. Tokugawa^ President of the House of Peers and one of the foremost leaders in all phases of Japan’s life, expressed himself in the following re- strained manner : “I can only hope that the good relations between America and our country, which have been so friendly, may continue, and that the immigration question may be happily solved. In this I trust that the great effort of your President may be successful.” Viscount K. EIaneko, Member of the Privy Coun- cil land therefore one of the immediate advisers of the Throne, who spent the years of his youth in America, a graduate of Harvard University and a friend of Roosevelt, said: “I feel more pained than you ever can over the ac- tion of your Congress. We can bear an attack by an enemy, but it is hard to endure when betrayed by one whom we have always thought of as our sincere friend. “However, I know that the America of today is not what it used to be when I spent many happy hours with Longfellow, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Speaker Win- throp, John Fiske, Edward Everett Hale, Bishop Pot- ter and many others. I am sorry that the principle of Christian Brotherhood no longer sways the minds of American politicians. “Should the discriminatory clause in the present Im- migration Bill be enacted, it will do great damage to the peaceful relations between Japan and America. “Equal treatment is the mother of friendship. If we Japanese are discriminated against as an undesirable race, how can we cultivate and maintain a sincere friend- ship for America?” 13 KEY MEN AMONG MANY V ISCOUNT E. ShibusawAj often called the J. Pier- pont Morgan of Ja,pan, as often affectionately designated the Grand Old Man of the Empire, a man who has poured the richest and the reddest blood of his long life into the task of building a bond of brotherhood around America and Japan, in a heart to heart conver- sation said: “In my early years I was a fiery foe of the foreigner. When the American, Commodore Perry, in 1853 knocked at Japan’s bolted doors, causing consternation all up and down our land, although but a lad of 16 years, I shouldered a musket and marched out to fight off the foreign invader. “I went out to conquer, but returned conquered. The fine idealism which America exhibited in all those early relationships with Japan soon won me. I was gripped with a conviction that here was a nation which was essen- tially just and right, and which could be trusted. I turned from being an active foe and became an ardent friend, and for seventy-two long years I have stood strong as a champion of friendly relations with America. Early and late I have toiled to strengthen the bond between that nation and mine. “I never dreamt that America, the land of Wash- ington and Lincoln, the land that through all its history has stood for justice, equality and fair play, I never dreamt that that nation would ever pass legislation with 14 the sting of racial discrimination in it. How could such a measure have been passed? It is the bitterest disap- pointment of my life. When I contemplate what the American Congress has done I am tempted to return to my first anti-American feeling of seventy-two years ago, yet I cannot yield to such unseemly sentiments. “I still believe in the American people. The sense of justice and fair play runs in their blood. Whatever your Congress may have done, sooner or later the con- science of the American people will assert itself, an awakening will come and the people of that great nation will make this thing right. “The present legislation takes no account of Japan’s point of view. The cry of the Japanese people is that it is a national disgrace. Certainly Japan cannot remain silent or suffer this undermining of her prestige without a protest. On Japan’s part she must rectify the evil of the Dual Citizenship problem and also open the way for private and outright ownership of land by foreigners within her domain. In fact the Japanese government has already taken steps to solve these two questions at an early date. “Personally I want to urge anew the appointment of a Joint High Commission, made up of men from both nations so representative that they shall command the confidence of everyone, to make a full-orbed study of this and all questions now pending and report its find- ings and recommendations to the proper authorities in each nation. This I believe is the shortest and safest road to a happy and permanent solution of all the ques- tions which are disturbing these two nations. “Such a Joint High Commission should have a per- is sonnel representative of every group and shade of thought, and its investigation should cover the whole field of American-Japanese relations in the fullest and frankest way. “I do not believe that the East can remain East or the West remain West. The world must stand or fall together. As the rays of the Spring sun which shine upon the vegetable world produce some flowers that are red and others that are White and the two grow up to- gether, so the White Man and the Yellow Man, both sons of a common Father, must face the world’s future together.” Baron Y. Sakatani, Ex-Minister of Finance and an influential member of the House of Peers, in an inti- mate conversation said, regarding the exclusion move: “Japan in her long history has suffered but one na- tional disgrace. That was in 1895, at the close of the China-Japan war, when Russia, France and Germany — backed by their fleets — forced Japan to return to China the Port Ajrthur Peninsula which had been ceded to her in the treaty of Shimonoseki. “In the discriminatory legislation passed by the American Congress, Japan has come under the shadow of another national disgrace. That early blow was ad- ministered by nations that often entertain low interna- tional ideals. This blow however comes from America, the land of idealism, the land of justice, a nation great and good, our long-time friend, and it cuts us to the quick. “To the lover of peace this legislation has deplorable possibilities. It will add fuel to the fires of the mili- tarists. In the years yet unborn, ‘remember the exclu- 16 sion law’ may easily become their rallying cry. Gen- eration may pass the word on to generation and poison the will to outlaw war. “Of course this is a question of American domestic politics, but its influence will reach far out into the high- ways of international intercourse. “It will make the holding of another World Con- ference for the limitation of armament next to impos- sible. It makes the extension of the treaties of the Washington Conference beyond the ten-year period most problematic. It will impair the working relation of America and Japan regarding China. On the Paciflc it opens the way for friction and misunderstanding, in- asmuch as a healthy accord and whole-hearted friend- ship are essential to the smooth working out of any treaty or group of treaties. It can easily become the breeder of all sorts of problems in American and Japanese relations to Mexico, Brazil and other South American nations. “If this thing is left to take its own course, the world may be divided into two big camps, the ‘White’ and the ‘Colored,’ or the ‘Asiatics’ and the ‘Westerners,’ and all that we had hoped for perpetual peace and world broth- erhood will be gone forever. “Personally, I still have faith in America. I cannot understand the attitude of the Aunerican Congress. All the Americans whom I know are of a different type and are true to that nation’s past ideals. I cannot but be- lieve that eventually the American people will do the right thing in this important matter. I cannot bring myself to believe that Aonerica will cut the wires, smash 17 the lights and shroud the Pacific in darkness. America has inflicted the wound. She alone can heal it. “Our loss as peace workers is immeasurable but not irrevocable. Let us fight on with courage and with wisdom.” This is not the ranting of a Japanese jingoist. It is the sober expression of one of Japan’s most thought- ful leaders, an ardent friend of America, president of the Japan Peace Society and for many years a passion- ate advocate of peace. Dr. J. Soyeda, the holder of high positions in Ja- pan’s public life, publicist and lecturer, expressed him- self in the following way: “The action of the American Congress is a bitter disappointment. It is my earnest desire that fairness and justice will prevail in the end. We must not, however, yield to discouragement. In the spirit of our Japanese proverb, which says ‘The ground is made firm by the beating of the rain,’ we must turn this blow into a blessing.” Mr. M. Zumoto, Ex-Member of Parliament, publi- cist, editor of the “Herald of Asia,” and one of the best versed men in Japan regarding things American, said: “No single event in the long history of our inter- course with America has shocked and pained us so deep- ly as this unnecessary affront hurled upon us by the National Congress of the United States. There have indeed been states, notably California, that have chosen to wound our pride of nationality. The sting has been comparatively endurable because we were assured by our American friends that the action of these states did not in any way represent the sentiment of the nation. 18 In the present instance, however, the offensive action has been dteliberately taken by the nation’s chosen legis- lators, at the country’s Capitol. “We all feel grateful to the Americans who regret this action on the part of their legislative body as keenly as we do, and who are not afraid to say so. Nor are we less appreciative of the courageous attitude taken many of your leading newspapers, and by your leaders of thought and commerce, in denouncing the Congres- sional action. “Yet the great fact stands out, that behind Congress are the great masses of American people, who doubtless approve what their Congress has done. The men of Congress are keen politicians. They would not have acted in the way they have unless they were assured that their constituency would approve. “We are in fact up against a great wall of race prej- udice, which for obvious reasons is most acutely devel- oped among the American people. Recognizing this basic fact of the situation, we must be prepared for a long and arduous fight in getting our claims finally and rightly acknowledged. “But fight we must and fight we will, only the fight will not be with arms but, let us hope, always with reason and calm persuasion. Whether or not this fight shall degenerate into a passionate outburst, threatening peaceful and friendly relations, must largely depend upon the attitude taken by the American people.” Hon. T. Miyaoka, Ex-Diplomat, International lawyer and the special correspondent for Japan of the Carnegie Peace Foundation, said: 19 “That the situation is pregnant with serious conse- quences there can be no doubt. The enactment of this law heralds the entry of a long period of chilled rela- tions between two peoples who should he bound together by the closest ties of friendship, not in the interest of themselves alone but in the interest of the smooth con- tact of the East and the West. “Fortunately the Senate of the United States is not the final tribunal in the determination of public opinion in America. Behind the government of the United States stands the sovereign people. I have no doubt that the present Congress, which has passed the objec- tionable clauses in the Immigration Bill, will not be sus- tained by the sovereign people of America. “There will surely arise strong anti-American senti- ment among the Japanese people when this Exclusion Clause becomes a law. Rest assured, however, that there will be a large number of influential Japanese who will refuse to lose faith in the sense of justice or of ethical standard of the American people. Such Japanese will be determined ‘to see this thing through’ no matter how long it may take, and I am sure that in our determina- tion to have the wrong righted we may count upon the support of the leaders of thought on the other side of the Pacific.” 20 THE COURTS OF CULTURE ROFESSOR M. Anesaki^ Dean of the College of Lit- JT erature of the Imperial University, Tokyo, moulder of public opinion, an internationalist of the best type, expressed himself in words that burn : “Let us pray to- gether for a coming resurrection of crucified justice. You will, I hope, convince your people that the ‘grave consequences’ will be much worse than war — ^killing the cause of Democracy and peace in Japan and dealing a severe blow to all that the two nations might by joining hands do for humanity.” Dr. M. Yamada^ Dean of the College of Law of the Imperial University, Tokyo, said: “For seventy years Japan has been the meeting place for the East and the West. She has stood as the inter- preter of the Occident to the Orient and of the Orient to the Occident. Upon her shores two streams of civi- lization, one from the East and the other from the West, have converged and been assimilated. In a peculiar way Japan stands as the link between the Orient and the Occident. Standing at the crossroads of the nations, as she does, J apan has had a world outlook rather than an Oriental one. “This discriminatory legislation will break up the solidarity of the East and the West. It will force Japan to abandon her world outlook and to carve out her des- tiny in the Orient. It will set the East against the West and the West against the East. It carries in its hand 21 the seed of a great race struggle. We regret exceed- ingly that our friend across the Pacific should give occa- sion through such legislation for agitators to create ill will and strife between the races.” Professor M. Hori^ of the Tokyo Commei'cial Uni- versity, delivered his soul in the following manner: “Seventy years ago Commodore Perry gave Japan a political shock, but that shock was only a necessary prelude to the introduction of our country to the outside world, and we are today most grateful to America for her kindness and patronage in those early days. The shock which America has given us through her anti- Japanese Immigration Law, however, is of a very dif- ferent nature. For America, which stands as the fore- most torch-bearer of civilization, champion of justice, equality and humanity, to pass an act of this character threatens in a serious way our prestige and international position, since it establishes a precedent for the rest of the world to follow. The result will be that Japan, find- ing no elbow room in the international arena, will have to return to her former policy of exclusiveism, which America herself forced her to abandon. “However, we like to believe that the action of the American Congress is only a temporary deviation from the noble ideals expressed in the Declaration of Inde- pendence. We are convinced that America is too honor- able to discard the international code of ethics and cour- tesy. We pray that the affair may vanish like a bad dream, leaving no trace behind. We believe that when the light of justice which is reflected in the public opin- ion of America shines forth, we shall find revealed the real America, the America that we have always hon- ored and admired.” 22 THE WORLD OF COMMERCE D r. T. Dan^ President of the Mitsui Corporation, the largest corporation in the Orient, scholar and captain of industry, opened his heart, saying: “I cannot too strongly express the disappointment I feel over this legislation. Inasmuch as this comes from the nation which we have hitherto regarded with im- plicit confidence and trusted as our friend and teacher, our disappointment is naturally more than ordinary. There may be political reasons in America back of this action, but I feel it particularly unfortunate that your legislative body in Washington chose this time to take this drastic measure — a time when this country, after the unprecedented national calamity for which your people showed such spontaneous and overwhelming sym- pathy, seemed to deserve special friendly consideration on the part of your legislators. Such practice we had understood to be wholly contradictory to the true Amer- ican spirit, as well as to the sentiment of our Bushido. “I cannot attribute the present law to any other cause than misunderstanding on the part of the American legislators of the aspiration and motive which underlie our modest and just request. “With the enforcement of the bill I fear that the present friendly and ever growing commercial relations between the two countries will be seriously impaired. Under all circumstances I am convinced that our people, though not without great pain, will calmly and with for- 23 bearance face the situation, because we believe that it cannot be a final settlement. I shall never cease to en- tertain the hope that when your legislators come to see the situation in a truer light they will reconsider the matter and will arrive at a more fair and satisfaetory solution.” Mr. M. Kushida, head of the great Mitsui Bishi Banking Corporation — one of the greatest concerns in Japan — and one of Japan’s outstanding industrial lead- ers, spoke in the following terms: “The present attitude of your Federal legislators is extremely perplexing to us. We utterly fail to recon- cile the purpose of the immigration bill with the sense of justice and fairness of the American people in which we most confidently believe. “Heretofore we have been told and we have believed that the anti- Japanese sentiment was limited to some of the Pacific Coast states, and that the United States as a whole was not concerned with the problem. Your Con- gress now has assumed a definite attitude contrary not only to our expectations but apparently also to the ex- pectations of your administration. It has come to be a national problem with you, as it has been with us for some years past. “I sincerely hope that you will avail yourself of every opportunity to tell the American people how deeply we deplore the fact that the problem has come to assume such an acute shape, and to say that the just pride of our nation is being tried to the extreme. “Unless the question is settled and settled right, our belief in the fundamental principles of Christianity will be badly shaken, and the patient and worthy work of 24 those who have spent their lives in this country for the propagation of those principles will be completely undone. “I trust that my own belief in the American sense of justice and fairness is still sufficiently strong to assure me that whatever the politicians may do the people will finally assert their will and settle the question justly and fairly, thus restoring the happy state of mutual confidence and permanent friendship.” 25 CHRISTIAN CIRCLES B ishop K. Uzaki^ forward looking Christian Leader and head of the United Methodist Church of Ja- pan, said: “Japanese Christians deeply regret and are sorely pained by the recent anti-Japanese legislation. This law will vitally affect the present happy relations be- tween Japan and America. From our point of view the restriction of immigration should be void of racial discrimination, have serious regard for international interests and good will, and be in harmony with the great Christian principles.” Dr. K. Ibuka, Dean of one of the oldest Christian colleges in Japan, Moderator of the Japanese Pres- byterian Church and recognized as a leader of the Christian movement, spoke in the folloAving manner: “The work of the recent Washington Conference, especially the fair and generous attitude taken by the American Government, produced a profound impres- sion on the Japanese mind. Jingoists who had talked about a coming war between Japan and America have been compelled to stop their harangues, because they found no listeners. This happy impression was greatly deepened by the wonderfully prompt and spontaneous sympathy and assistance given by the American Gov- ernment and people at the time of the earthquake, but all these happy impressions are in danger of being 26 greatly diminished, if not wholly blotted out, by this discriminatory immigration bill. “It may create anew the old anti-racial feeling of the Asiatic people against America, which country has been generally believed to be eminently just and friend- ly toward these people. It is well known how powerful and uncontrollable race feeling is when once aroused. Distant murmurings are already audible from Peking, Canton and Calcutta. There is a possibility that this low muttering may grow into a desperate cry. “American missionaries in the Far East, not only in Japan, but in China and India as well, will experience a serious handicap in their work, especially when they attempt to present such great truths as the Brother- hood of Man, Principles of Humanity, International Justice and World Friendship.” Dk. H. Kozaki, the father of Japanese Preachers and one of the great leaders in the Congregational Com- munion, expressed himself thus: “The action of the American Congress is greatly hindering the peaceful relations of the two nations. It is blocking the progress of Christian work in our land. Our people are greatly disturbed. I pray that Christ may lead Christian America to find a solution for this problem which is fair and void of race prej- udice.” 27 LAY LEADERS OF THE CHURCH M r. T. Kagawa, the Apostle to the Poor, and the prophet of a new day in Japan, spoke in words that ring with a challenge: “Let not the spirit of Lincoln die out in America. His spirit of liberty and equality, his spirit of love and of Christ, let it flourish in your land. Remember your forefathers! If pride rules you today, tomorrow you may retrace the steps of Babylon and Egypt. Material civilization in itself is valueless. Only love and the spiritual values will endure. Love your Brothers, Oh America! Love your Brothers!” Miss M. Kawai, National Secretary for Japan of the Y. W. C. A., stands in the very forefront of that nation’s aspiring womanhood. Cultured, broad-visioned, international-minded, and endowed with large powers of leadership, she looks at all questions from a big angle. This Vassar graduate and representative of Japan’s women said to the writer: “Every country has a right to determine who shall enter its borders. We do not object to America putting strict limitation on the number of our immigrants if they are not acceptable. The thing that hurts us is that we are discriminated against and rejected even though we possess qualities as acceptable as those of other nations. “Tell us our faults fully and frankly, but do not 28 allow prejudice and untrained instinct to rule your judgment of us. What appears to me most serious is that this issue jeopardizes the very principles of daily Christian living. This universe is founded on love. Love is the keystone of human brotherhood. This is the cry of the missionaries to Japan. Yet it seems that now a strong nation like America, consciously or uncon- sciously, would crush Japan in her hour of weakness, not with physical force but with her material prosperity and her pride of race. “America is loved and feared, respected and envied by every nation. Her material wealth appears to us the cause of her high and mighty attitude toward other nations. “Still I know that the true heart of America is ever vibrating for the good and welfare of the whole, wide world. To this heart I appeal. Place any restriction necessary on immigration, but allow Japanese families within your territory to live peacefully and happily. If they are a detriment to your progress, expel them, but be fair minded and do not discriminate against us be- cause we are Orientals. “I am not thinking of the present alone. I think with fear and trembling of the future possibility of this legislation, forcing an organization of the Oriental World against the nations of the Occident. If bitter- ness exists in any corner of the world, it is our duty as Christians to ‘nip it in the bud.’ Today is the mother of tomorrow. Now is the time to lay the foundation for a peaceful internationalism, to instill a proper respect for the rights of other people, and to equip ourselves for world citizenship.” 29 Mr. S. Saito^ General Secretary for Japan of the Y. M. C. A., a prominent figure among the younger group of Japanese Christian leaders and a man with a world outlook, said: “First of all I wish to express my sincere gratitude for the generosity and friendship of a large number of American friends, who have assisted in the building of Christ’s Kingdom in Japan. Although other lands are represented, the great bulk of the missionaries to Japan come from the land of the Stars and the Stripes. And this is the land that we always think of as the land of liberty, the land of Washington and of Lincoln. “May I call your attention in this present situation to Japanese psychology? Our people are trained in the art of patience. Flowever, there is a point where this patience bursts its bounds and turns to resentment. This resentment will greatly harm not only the relations be- tween America and Japan but the Christian movement in this land. “The Japanese recognize that America is confronted with a great immigration problem, and they would wel- come any check that may seem desirable. This exclu- sion measure, however, with its discrimination on racial grounds, hangs heavy over them as a disgrace. “This Immigration Bill will greatly retard the liberal political movement in our land, and will act as a set- back to the Christian movement. It is difficult to meas- ure the extent of the blow it has dealt to Christian work. “Many of Japan’s young men have looked upon America as the land of liberty and justice, as humanity’s friend, as the land from which they first heard the Gospel of Christ. They will feel that they have been betrayed 30 by their friend. My sympathy goes out to the Ameri- can missionaries in our land, whom we look upon and treat as our brothers and with whom we work most har- moniously. Their embarrassment is great. “Most sincerely do I hope that the public opinion of both countries may be so guided that the relationship between the two nations may not be impaired. For us who are Christians, it offers an opportunity to cement these two countries together in the real spirit of brother- hood in Jesus Christ.” 31 AN INTERPRETATION T his insight into Japan’s heart reveals the sobering fact that her reaction to America’s exclusion move is not so much resentment as it is the dire disappoint- ment and poignant grief that a friend feels when a friend has failed to play fair. Discrimination against her on racial grounds goes like steel to her soul. Moreover, in this baring of Japan’s heart, there echoes and re-echoes a hope that refuses to die, that America will yet sense the serious situation created by this legislation and right the wrong which she has com- mitted against a friend of seventy years. This recital shows that Japan is not thinking of her- self alone. She is thinking of America- Japan relations through the years yet unborn. She is looking out and considering the future of the Pacific. Her vision is scanning the future relationship of the Occident and the Orient and the White and Yellow races. She is thinking of peace among the nations, brotherhood among the races and the building of a better world. Japan is wondering whether brotherhood is going to be broadcast across this world of ours, or whether race shall stand against race and color against color. She is wondering whether Christ or color is going to rule in regulating international relations. This legislation has in tragic fashion put Christianity on trial in Japan. The racial discrimination in that legis- lation has caused multitudes of Japanese to question the 32 right of the Christian faith to pose as a world religion, and to doubt the sincerity of Christian brotherhood. It has raised in the minds of many, great question marks against such central Christian truths as a divine F ather- hood, a world brotherhood, justice, fair play and good wiU toward men of every race. It has struck the Chris- tian Movement in the Japanese Empire a staggering blow, and plunged the evangels of the Gospel into a dark Gethsemane. There are eddies in the stream of history which be- come great onrushing tides and change the whole course of the world’s life. In a manner which in the years yet unborn may prove calamitous this legislation is causing thoughtful men and women all over Japan and all up and down the Orient to wonder if the hour has struck when the Yellow race must organize itself under a Yellow flag and fight for its place in the sun. Deep down in their hearts they are asking if this is the White man’s challenge. Through this Exclusion Act the Liberal Movement in Japan has suffered a stunning setback. This move- ment, which stands for the ideals of democracy, the rights of the people in domestic politics, against mili- tarism and for peace and brotherhood in world relations, had gathered such momentum that it was a mighty fac- tor in setting the ideals, moulding the thought and deter- mining the direction of the nation’s life. It looked largely to America for its ideals and for inspiration. Through this legislation America has discredited and disheartened the leaders of this movement, handicapped their progress and added new fuel to the dying fires of the reactionaries, the militarists and the ultra na- tionalists. 33 FACING THE FUTURE A braham Lincoln, with the vision of a seer and k. the voice of a prophet, in one of America’s high hours, declared that “Nothing is settled until it is settled right.” Is America’s immigration policy with Japan settled right? Is exclusion the last word to be spoken on this perplexing problem? Are we satisfied to leave American- Japanese relations in the present troubled and tangled state? There are, one has reason to believe, millions of Americans who demand a genuine rectification of the situation. The main principles are not difficult to out- line. They involve two steps: First: the inclusion of Japan in the general quota law. Even if the quotas for all nations were trebled, the number of admissible Japanese would still be negligible. Second : amendment by Congress of the law of natu- ralization, so as to grant privileges of naturalization to all who personally qualify, regardless of race. With the strict limitation of immigration the number who could become citizens would also be negligible. By these two measures those elements of our laws which discriminate between races would be removed. The “National Committee on American- Japanese Relations,” composed of a large group of outstanding Americans, answers these questions with a ringing nega- tive. It has adopted the following planks as a part of its program: 34 a. To cultivate in regard to Japan an informed and rational public opinion, inspired by a friendly spirit and a sympathetic understanding of her needs, problems and aspirations. b. To advocate a square deal and impartial treat- ment for Japanese in the United States. c. To urge the enactment of adequate F ederal legis- lation for the protection of aliens and for the en- forcement of their treaty rights as urged by Presidents Harrison, McKinley, Roosevelt and Taft. d. To urge that, after July 1, 1927, Japanese be included in the quota provisions of the new Immi- gration Law, thus laying the basis for right rela- tions between the two countries. This last plank looks forward to 1927 when, under the provisions of the new Immigration Law, the perma- nent quotas are to be fixed for each nation. This Com- mittee hopes that an enlightened and awakened Ameri- can conscience will at that time rescind the Exclusion Clause, grant equal treatment to Japan by giving her a quota — 146 would be the number annually admissible — and heal the gaping wound which America has in- flicted in Japan’s heart. The next move belongs to the American people. Congress is their servant, not their sovereign. If its action on this momentous issue does not represent the heart, the highest ideals and the genius of the nation let the people say so. Let Congress receive a clear, compel- ling mandate from its constituency to rescind this action. Raise your individual voice in protest. Communicate 35 with the Congressman from your local district. Influ- ence groups and organizations with which you are con- nected to do the same. Let there be such a concert of action on the part of the sovereign people of this land that its legislative body shall not fail to see the issue from a truer and higher angle and shall hasten to right this grievous wrong. Japan is no longer on the outskirts of civilization. For 300 years the countries washed by the Atlantic Ocean formed the stage on which the world’s drama was played. Gradually there has been a shifting of the scenes, with the result that today the shores swept by the Pacific are beginning to be the area where world- interests and world-activity are focused. At the heart of this new world-center stands Japan, virile, vigorous and forward-moving. She is the key to the situation in the Orient. To a large degree, as goes Japan so goes the Orient. America and this key-nation of the Orient hold the destiny of more than half of the world in their hands. Ambassador Hanihara was soft pedaling when he spoke of “grave consequences” coming out of this Exclusion Legislation. He was not thinking of an American- Japanese war. He was thinking of something a thou- sand times worse than that, terrible and unthinkable as such a war would be. He was thinking of America and Japan, appointed, under God, to link the East with the West and the West with the East, appointed the guard- ians of the Peace of the Pacific, appointed to outlaw war from this vast stretch of the world’s area. He saw these two nations, thus commissioned, occupied with pet- ty politics, tragically failing to understand each other, estranged and utterly unable to fulfill their God-given mission. )