MISSION OF THE FLEET.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 204, 18 August 1908, Page 4

MISSION OF THE FLEET.

■ MAY' STAY IN THE PACIFIC. THE JAPANESE QUESTION. AS IMPORTANT STATEMENT. '.Mr, Lee Clotworthy, the distinguished journalist, who is travelling with the fleet, aim representing the United Press Associations of America, gave a representative of the Auckland Herald some interesting details concerning the political side of the cruise of America's armada. ,

"Americans throughout the length and breadth of the Union," he said, " have been looking forward with the keenest possible •interest to the visit of the' llect to new Zealand, and they will, I know, be gratified at the truly magnilicent reception il has received in Auckland. We feed.that Australia and New Zealand are in a very similar position to ourselves with regard to the Asiatic immigration question, while their isolated position resembles very much that of our insular possessions, Hawaii anil the Philippines. To understand the motives, which underlie the present cruise it is necessary to call to mind tie l various aspects of the yellow peril problem as it exists in America. "Yellow labour, in the form of Chinese coolies, was lirst introduced into America to help in the building of railroads. After this work was completed the Chinamen were left oil the labour market, and came in competition with our own white labour, and with their ever-increasing numbers became so great a menace that Congress passed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which shuts out Chinamen from America. Unfortunately, when dealing with the. Asiatic question Congress left an open door for the admission of Japanese.. There was no great influx of Japanese, however, until after the close of the RussoJapanese war. They began by flooding our Hawaiian possessions, and in Hawaii to-day there arc 74,000 Japanese out of a total population of 154,000, the balance of. population outside Japanese being composed of Chinese, natives, Portuguese, mixed Asiatics, and 4000 Englishspeaking people. "The problem did Jiot become acute, however, until tlie Japanese horde reached the Pacific slope. They came m thousands, aud actually began, broad is the statement may seem, to colonise in the Western States. It was a case of the exploiter being exploited. America commercially discovered Japan, opening u]) her markets and generally introducing her to Western civilisation; now, fifty years later, Japan has commeieially discovered America, and to-daj she absolutely controls the ocean-carry, ing trade between America and tlie East. Last year Japan offered to buy every American steamer engaged in the Trans-Pacific trade, and unless the United States Government awakens to the necessity of subsidising our steamers on that route Japan will control every one of them within the next twelve months.

"The Japanese, as I have said, actually began to colonise America. First I hey sent their laborers, then came their merchants, their tradesmen,■their bunkers, and their storekeepers. Japanese settlements sprang up iu all our const towns 'Little 'i'okios' we call them. Under the direction of men in the cities, Japanese were put to work on the land. They succeeded in even driving tlie few remaining Chinamen out of the orchards, and in Southern California aud in large funning areas throughout the Pacific Coast, they now control the labor situation. They did not take long to prove that they were a people without integrity, and Americans discovered that they had to deal with the most undesirable foreign element that ever invaded their shores. As soon as they got control in the labor market they became unite intolerable in their demands, and many of tlie smaller farmers and fruitgrowers were actually compelled io sell their land to them. The money was always forthcoming; they could always go to their banks and get the money to buy American soil with. 11l some of tha fruit-raising districts they became the owners of most of the acreage, and formed selling associations, through which to market their products. Working on their power in tlie labor field, they threatened and coerced the white fruitgrowers into marketing' their produce through these Asiatic associations. "You can imagine how all this appealed to the white men. it was but natural that an intense racial hatred should immedinitely follow. This racial feeling found its culmination in the San.Francisco school troubles. Those riots did one good thing—they awakened the whole of the country to the extreme danger of .the situation. The Japanese wanted to outer our public schools—tha pupils whom they sent along not being children but adults, whose only object was to learn the English language, so that it would help them commercially. The San Francisco schools refused to allow these adult Japanese to sit. side by side ivith their girl pupils in the mixed schools. The city had provided an Oriental school, but the Japanese inMfU'd on obtaining the same privilege which was extended to the peoples of all other civilised Powers in the use of the schools, although they conveniently forgot that no adult oupils of any kind are allowed in the schools.

•'Japan ]>uslied her case over the school question in such an ugly way that the whole of America was stirred to its depths ami brought to a realisation of the actual sentiment of Japan towards tlio United- States. America felt tile-situation the more keenly in view of the fact that she was practically powerless to repel attack from an Asiatifi source on tho Pacific Coast it the time, for the lleet which she liad was concentrated, as it had always been, in the Atlantic. America, awakened to the fact that the Philippines were absolutely defenceless, while Hawaii was in an exactly similar position. In case of a clash with an Asiatic Power, the Philippines and Hawaii would immediately fall, provided there was no lleet to defend them. Tn the ovent >f war with Japan, Manila, it was seen, would fall into t.lie hands of the enemy, and, strongly fortified, would make an ideal naval base. The American fleet would then have to operate 8000 miles from headquarters in order to attempt re-ea.plure. in the case of Hawaii Japan had an army waiting ready for her use in that territory, most of tliem being men who have been in the army, and only requiring arms. Against .Hawaii once captured we would have to operate 1300 miles from our base. "While \ve are not looking for trouble with Japan we realise that preparations for defence are necessary. Weakness begets fear, and fear leads to hatred. itli a lleet off our Pacific coast the questions that are now troubling, us would be more likely to find a natural solution, and there would be fewer diplomatic crises and war clouds. The cruise ot the present lleet has aroused such wonderful interest in the strong navy idea iu the United States that : f it served no other purpose it Would not be in vain. r l lio ambition of naval men is to sec a strong lleet in the Pacilie, and another in the Atlantic, and the connecting link, the Panama. Canal, completed..The Japanese question will tome up for consideration again in Congress iu December next, and f may say that a great many people, and those good judges, believe that the white fleet' will never return through the Suez Canal lo the Atlantic, but will remain in the 'Pacilie waters."