Milford High School - Oak Lily and Ivy Yearbook (Milford, MA)

Page 28 text:

24 THE OAK, LILY AND IVY. conditions and reasons which induced this action of Congress, and to a belief that it was inspired by a dislike for Japan, and a desire to insult and discrimi¬ nate against her. These beliefs are groundless, for the immigration act applies to half the globe, of which Japan constitutes only about seven per cent. If con¬ sistent, Japan should offer no opposition to the United States, as Japan her¬ self to protect the economic welfare of her people has excluded the Chinese, people of the same color, also the people of Malay, Java and Hindustan. Why then should Japan feel offended with the United States for adopting a policy towards her, which she herself had already put into effect against other nations? What just grounds has she for protesting this action of the United States when no other English speaking country has permitted them to gain such a foothold in its territory? South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand have always exclud¬ ed Japanese immigration, and Canada, having had unsatisfactory results from a Gentlemen’s Agreement allowing a small number to enter each year, is preparing an act to exclude them absolutely. As no serious complications ever arose with those countries over exclusion, is it not reasonable to suppose that the controversy between the United States and Japan will be settled amicably and without grave consequences ? Another circumstance which has been lost sight of by those who fear that exclusion may lead to war is the fact that Japan at the present time and for many years to come will be physically and financially unfit to consider war. It is but a little more than a year and a half since she was visited by an earth¬ quake, the most terrible and destructive on record, and from the effect of this awful disaster Japan is devoting her every energy to recover. In her great dis¬ tress American aid was prompt and generous and Japan was deeply touched and appreciative of our quick response to her need. Under those conditions is it not inconceivable to suppose that she has any warlike intentions towards the United States, her greatest benefactor and the most powerful nation in the world? The recent passage of the Manhood Suffrage Bill by the Japanese Parlia¬ ment is another hopeful sign of peaceful relations between that country and the United States, and shows that Japan is fast developing into a political democ¬ racy. This act raises the electorate from three million to fourteen million voters, gives the middle class control of national policy and has already forced the re¬ actionary element to give up their belligerent military plans. This policy is already evident in their attitude toward China, where the bullying and boycotting of years has been discontinued and trade and commercial relations encouraged. With those conditions now existing in Japan we can look forward hopefully to the future, with the assurance that a friendship established by Commodore Perry over seventy years ago and maintained continuously since will not be broken by a misunderstanding over the Exclusion Act. Although there are Jingoes over there as well as in this country, there are also shrewd, clever busi¬ ness men, who realize that it is for their interest as well as ours that there shall be no break in our relations. With the aid of such men, Japan in her own interest and in the interest of her people will accept the Exclusion Act in a proper spirit and will join with the people of the United States in a manly, courteous and final understanding. Wallace Larkin, 1925.

Page 27 text:

THE OAK, LILY AND IVY. 23 With such conditions existing it was apparent to students of such matters that exclusion of Asiatic immigrants had to come sooner or later and that the only sure and effective method of checking the invasion was by a stringent act of Congress which was adopted May 26, 1924, prohibiting further admission to this country as permanent residents of any Japanese laborers, male or female, or of any professional men seeking to locate here, and the provisions of the law to be enforced by our own government. In regard to the Exclusion Act President Coolidge, who throughout the con¬ troversy has shown great friendship for Japan, correctly described the situation when he said, “The Exclusion Act is not an offensive but a purely defensive action. It is not adopted in criticism of others but solely for the purpose of pro¬ tecting ourselves. We cast no aspersions on any race or creed, but we must re¬ member that every object of our institutions of society, and government will fail unless America be kept American.” There are some w ho think that the Exclusion clause of the immigration act will so offend the Japanese that it will create a breech that will lead to war; not immediate war perhaps, but that friendly relations will be lacking, that prepara¬ tions for war must be made, and that vigilance will have to be maintained. On the contrary, clear headed, far seeing statesmen of the United States and Japan believe that the Exclusion Act instead of causing war will serve as an actual preventative of war. For years there has been a growing friction between the white and the Japanese which was fast developing into a class hatred that would inevitably bring on a clash between the two nations. It is to the interest of both nations that this clash shall not come. We have close commercial interests with the Orient, especially Japan. We want their commerce, they want ours, but this cannot be continued where there is friction between the two nations. The way to prevent this trouble is to remove the cause, and the one cause that was hasten¬ ing the trouble, and which has been removed, was the unwelcome hordes of Japan¬ ese flooding the Pacific Coast. No affront to the Japanese honor has been intended in the new law, and none has been given. It is far better that any differences of opinion should develop now over the provisions of the law than to have other and far more serious differences arise later from the development of an aggra¬ vated race situation on the Pacific Coast. A dispute over the justice and wisdom of a law may be adjusted amicably when both sides wish to be reasonable, but it would not be so easy to meet the crisis which would be created in time by the extensive Japanese colonization of American territory. Another reason why exclusion will ensure future peace with Japan is that by its passage the United States will be able to maintain control of the Hawaiian Islands which were fast becoming Orientalized, and coming under Japanese in¬ fluence. These Islands, strategically the key to the Pacific Coast, were annexed by the United States in 1898 as an outpost to preserve the peace of the Pacific. In Hawaii to-day the Japanese comprise forty-three per cent of the population, and furnish more than fifty per cent of the school children. They control trades and industries, warn white workmen to keep away, and even use their influence to defeat candidates for Congress who are unpopular with them. In a few years, if exclusion was not adopted, these islands would be lost to the white race, and by passing the act we have prevented this, and assured peace between the two countries for generations. While sensational newspapers and excitable statesmen in both countries pre¬ tend to see “grave consequences” arising from the Exclusion Act, in reality Japan has no legitimate cause to be aggrieved at the passing of this measure. Her animosity towards the United States is due solely to a lack of knowledge of the

Page 29 text:

THE OAK, LILY AND IVY. 25 PERSEVERANCE. “Who, not content that former worth stands fast, Looks forward, persevering to the last J —W ORDS WORTH. To accomplish anything worth while in this world one must develop per¬ sistence. The power of being able to persevere is one of the greatest assets one may have. We can never aspire to reach the top of the ladder of success unless we do so. There are some who perhaps have half gained the goal of their am¬ bition, but who, lacking the necessary spur of perseverance, fall, only to struggle weakly again and again in vain. Thus it is with the youth of to-day. His ambitions are too lofty to be realized with the amount of perseverance he has. He desires to gain much knowledge with little or no study whatsoever. No one can hope to attain success and good fortune except at the cost of great mental and physical effort; but such a sacrifice is always rewarded, either politically, socially, or spiritually, according to the character of the aim. Men at the head of large corporations must have a great deal of persever¬ ance to keep their business on a firm basis, and to maintain the harmony neces¬ sary in a large corporation in order that success may be assured on all sides. We of the younger generation, who have as yet had no difficult trials to face, do not realize the perseverance necessary to our parents, friends and all others who endeavor to smooth our paths and make our life a success. Instead, we take too much for granted, thinking that this must be done for us and that must be done for us; otherwise our happiness is not complete. There is no one who can make our lives a success for us. That task lies with each one of us. We get out of life exactly as much as we put into it, and no one else can share with us his perseverance, as it was never destined that man should wholly form anyone’s character but his own. That is expecting too much from Life. If we try to lead a good moral life, we shall be rewarded as surely as those who lead an immoral life will receive their just deserts on Judgment Day. The poor man who lives in a modest cottage envies the rich man’s mansion but that is often an injustice to the latter, because many times the moneyed man, especially in America, started on a meagre stipend in his youth and won his fortune by a capacity for sacrifice and perseverance which perhaps the poor man does not possess. And thus it will always continue to be. Only those who persevere through all the trials of life will ever attain success. Florence Boucier, 1925. A FRIENDSHIP IN OLD ROME. The Roman Emperor Augustus was far famed for his extensive flower gardens. Acres and acres of beautiful roses, graceful lilies and rainbows of other flowers filled the air with their exquisite and heavy fragrance. This garden was the Emperor’s delight. A high stone wall completely surrounded it and a score of slaves worked busily each season caring for the flowers. Hitherto people had been allowed to drink in the beauty of the flowers, but crushed forget-me-nots and stolen roses resulted in the making of strict rules.