THE IKRIGATION AGE. 



271 



A recent issue of one of our Idaho 

 California's exchanges contains an editorial on the 

 Fight Japanese question which, to our mind, 



Against shows a woeful lack of information 

 Japanese concerning the true situation in Cali- 

 fornia. The writer says that the spec- 

 tacle of a state one of the many in the union 

 endangering the peace of the whole by its self- 

 inflicted fright over the "yellow peril" has reached 

 the stage of the ridiculous. It is pure selfishness, 

 declares the editorial further, that' is prompting the 

 trouble. The people of California made no objec- 

 tion when they needed it to the cheap labor at her 

 command from the little brown man "living on a 

 handful of rice per day." Many of the great under- 

 takings of the State of California, it alleges, have 

 been accomplished with this labor. THE IRRIGATION 

 AGE suggests that our Idaho friend should spend 

 some time in California, and study the local situa- 

 tion there. The writer has in mind one case which 

 fairly well illustrates what the people of California 

 have to contend with in their contact with the Jap- 

 anese race. It has always been a source of wonder 

 why, when so much criticism of the people of Cali- 

 fornia and its governing bodies was being indulged 

 in, the people did not take advantage of the oppor- 

 tunity for publicity which any of the eastern papers 

 would gladly offer, so that they could present their 

 side of the story. The legislature of California 

 would have been justified in adopting the plan car- 

 ried out by foreign governments of purchasing 

 reading matter space in the leading eastern journals 

 to exploit their position and in that way shape senti- 

 ment in their favor. The particular case which oc- 

 curs to the writer at this time is that of the truck 

 gardeners and fruit growers near Gait, California. 

 Some years ago all of the work of handling the 

 truck farms and the fruit ranches was done by white 

 labor. One day, however, the "king bee" of a 

 Japanese labor organization called on several farm- 

 ers in that vicinity and offered to take over this 

 character of work at about one-half of the price 

 which was being paid to the white laborers. The 

 ranchmen very foolishly accepted his proposition. 

 The result was that within a year or two all of the 

 white laborers had left that section and the work 

 was being performed entirely by Japanese. At the 

 beginning of the third season of this arrangement, 

 the majordomo of the Japanese notified the 

 ranchmen that the price of labor would be in- 

 creased 25 per cent and in the absence of any other 

 class of available labor, they were compelled to 

 stand the raise. Subsequently, another raise was 

 insisted upon, which brought the price higher than 

 what wate being paid the white men before the 

 change was made. The ranchmen were helpless, 



owing to the fact that there was no other available 

 help to be secured. To cap the climax, the follow- 

 ing year when the crops and fruit were ready to 

 be harvested the Japanese made a demand on the 

 ranchmen for the sale to them of their property, 

 and the offer being refused, all of them quit and 

 left the ranchmen with their crops unharvested and 

 fruit unpicked. Some of the weak ones among the 

 ranchmen were inclined to sell, but the publicity 

 given the affair was an aid in securing outside labor, 

 and the people of that section of California will not 

 be likely to let Japanese labor secure an upper hand 

 the second time. 



The object in presenting this situation at this 

 time is to illustrate why the citizens of California 

 are justified in their attitude toward Japanese 

 labor. Never in the history of white labor in this 

 country has any similar offer been put up to a lot 

 of land owners by white labor, and it would be well 

 for all of those in the East who are not familiar with 

 the situation in California to study it before form- 

 ing an adverse opinion on the stand taken by the 

 citizens of California. The people of California are 

 more likely to understand their position and needs 

 than an outsider who is not familiar with conditions. 



The time is at hand for the man 

 Golden who desires to make something 



Future for more than a mere living at farming 

 the Wise to act. The time is fully ripe'; it is 



Farmer propitious. Under the best of condi- 



tions our agricultural population is 

 continually falling behind in its efforts to supply 

 the markets of the world. Daily our available 

 stocks of food supplies become smaller, and prices 

 mount higher. Improved methods of farming, the 

 ability to make two blades of grass grow where 

 one grew before, will help some, but not enough. 

 It will merely mean a betterment, in a small way, 

 of the individual who farms on a scientific system, 

 but the world at large must look elsewhere for 

 relief from the existing conditions. 



Adequate relief can come only in one way. We 

 must cultivate, and cultivate intelligently, more 

 land millions of acres more land. But how? 

 Virtually all the area in this country susceptible 

 to cultivation by ordinary methods is now under 

 the plow. 



Fortunately there is an empire as yet barely 

 touched. In many sections of the West, the North- 

 west and Southwest, are countless acres of highly 

 productive land, provided water is brought to it. 

 But a small part of this enormous area has as yet 

 been cultivated because the necessary moisture is 

 lacking. Wherever irrigation plants have been 

 constructed and honestly administered, and the soil 



