IMMIGRATION PROBLEMS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16452, 14 June 1921, Page 6

IMMIGRATION PROBLEMS.

THE ASIATIC INFLUX. DISCUSSION BY R.S.A. CONFERENCE. An important subject dealt with by the Returned Soldiers’ Association Conference on Saturday was that of immigration, which during the course of the evening was considered in practically all its aspects. It was brought up in the report of the Repatriation Committee, the last section of which was devoted to immigration, and touched first on the problem of Asiatic immigration and then on that of immigration from the Old Land. The conference, says the ** Otago Daily Times,” was heavily against the admission of Asiatics to tho Dominion, but there was wide and effectively expressed difference of opinion on the question of encouraging British immigrants, and eventually the whole matter was passed on to the executive for careful investigation. The report was in the hands of Mr \V. E. Leadley, of Christchurch. The first clause of the report was as follows: —“This annual conference ot the New Zealand Returned Soldiers’ Association is of the opinion that the influx of Asiatics to the Dominion under the present legislation is—and increasingly will be —a serious menaw to the country, and may become highly prejudicial to the moral standard of this Dominion, in view of the fact that their mode of living makes it possible for them to enter into unfair competition with returned soldiers and workers of this country, and we urge that the Government take immediate steps to prohibit absolutely any further influx of these undesirable immichairman <T>r Boxer) suggested havin'* a fixed ratio of immigration, but Mr Leadley said they could not take ul> too firm a stn ml in demanding the absolute prohibition of any further immigration of Indians and Chinese. He went on to speak of the conditions created in South Africa by the presence of 200,000 Indians there. In some centres they outnumbered the whites bv three to two, and now o per cent of the trade of Natal was m their hands. To-day there were Indian farmers in Natal, and all classes _ of the community were up in arms against them. They wore a menace from the economic point of view, and they were also a menace from tho moral point of view. The presence of a large number of Indians near a white community was always a serious menace. The Indians were polygamous. It was said that if wo advocated a wrote Zealand we were embarrassing the Indian and Imperial Governments, but we cnioved complete control over the composition of our one UVtcl 'Ye New Zealand must decide whether she was going to have a white population Wo must remember the heritage given to us by our splendid pioneers, and see that it was handed on unimpaired Mr Duncan said he would second th. motion pro forma. The exmferenc should deal very warily with this ques tion He spoke of the splendidly educated Sikhs they had met on service in Palestine, and said that some exemption should l,e made in their case. He did not hold any brief for the Indians as a whole, but if it had nob been for the Hongkong and Singapore batteries. Imperial troops would have been wiped out oil more than one occasion to his knowledge. To class them with Chinamen was absolutely absurd. A. Member: They’re worse than Chinamen. Mr Duncan said that Indians, as long as they were educated and gentlemen within the true meaning of the word, should be admitted. Some Indians were as good fighters as ever they had seen in their lives.

Members : But not citizens. Sir A. Russell said he was entirely in sympathy with the committee’s proposal. AVo did not want anything like the horrible problem caused by the blacks in the United States. *Ve did not want it ever to be possible for a mixture of races to take place in this country. At the same time it was possible to have a reciprocal arrangement fey which a fixed limited number of aliens might be admitted. He moved that the second half of the clause urging absolute prohibition ’ e deleted. The Rev W. Walker seconded the amendment Mr Long said that thev should be absolutely unrelenting in tneir hostility to allowing any Asiatics into the country, No man there had given the problem more study than he had done, but he had scarcely expected argument on the matter. Educated Indians had proper oportunity now for coming to this country purely as visitors. We had taken over the responsibility for the mandate of Samoa, where the Chinese were being introduced under a system of indentured labour. The Chinese were mingling with the natives and whites there, and before long this mongrel breed would be desiring th© rights of New Zealand citizenship. Experience had taught various portions of our Empire the evils of alien immigration. Mr Seymour said he thought they should make quite clear the reasons for the objection to Asiatic immigration. The real lines of demarcation were not merely physical strength or mental power 9or character. Th© real lines of demarcation wero first of all climatic. The European by an inexorable natural law could not stick it out in tropical climates and the converse held true. The second demarcation was that of blood, and they would all admit that blood mixture of black and white did not give good results. A third line of demarcation was the standard of living. If we excluded the Asiatic, the Asiatic had the right to exclude us; but wo should each keep in ‘‘ our own back yard.” Mr Harley said the question was one of race preservation. History showed that when the white races got into association with the black they began to decline. Once you got a black or coloured race into the country you could not get them out again. That was why we should take a firm stand now before the damage had been done. Mr Inglis spoke of the effect of British rule in India, which he said had been highly beneficial. The British were in India for the good of India, but Indians were not in this country for out good. We did not want any mixture of races.

Mr Leadley indicated that he was opposing the amendment because if they left (the door open in the smallest degree—even if they closed it altogether—the Asiatics would still get in. Mr Smith pointed out the necessity of fostering goodwill among the rarioils portions of the Empire. It was decided to put the motion, and Mr Leadley, exercising his right of reply, said that the Indians played a good part in the war, but it did not follow that they had the right to enter every part of the Empire. H e was willing to welcome the Indian as a brother and stretch out the hand to him on one condition—that the hand was stretched across the sea. The amendment was lost, and the clause adopted. Mr Leadley then moved fhat a cable be sent from the New Zealand Returned Soldiers' Association to Mr Massey, attending the Imperial Conference at London, informing him that it was the association’s wish that he should strenuously oppose the representations of the Indian delegate for equal rights to Indians in any part of the Empire. Mr Battei* 'Mid the mover wore np-

pointed to draft such a cablegram and submit it later to the conference. The question of British immigration was raised in the following clause: — “ The committee, whilst believing that the existence of New Zealand in the future depends upon a stream of immigration from the United Kingdom, and whilst- ready to welcome those immigrants at any other time, feels that, 1 until work and accommodation are available, immigration should ‘be limited to the numbers for whom employment and accommodation are available. The committee is aware that all immigrants are supjiosed to be guaranteed accommodation and employment, but is of the opinion that these guarantees aro worth very little in view of the fact that there is unemployment and lack of accommodation already.” Mr Leadley said he found himself in the unfortunate position of having to move an amendment to his own report. and he would ask Mr Long to move the clause. Mr Long said that, with the exception of Mr all the members of the committee were of opinion that there should be some slowing up of the flow of immigrants at this time of slackness of employment. Men should not be encouraged to come in when there was not sufficient work for them. He read the statement of an immigrant who arrived here at the end of last year—an ex-armv man—who found himself and his family absolutely stranded here without a friend. It was not fair to encourage people to come out. He hoped this financial stringency would have passed by next spring. Mr Aldrich seconded the motion, and maintained that we had all the labour required in the countrv at the present time. He did not, think there was anything un-British about tho resolution. He had to deal with about a dozen immigrants a week, who were unable to find a living for themselves. We wanted the immigrants, but we had no provision for them just now. Sir A. Russell supported tho resolution. It was no kindness inviting these people out to share an empty cupboard.

Mr Leadley moved as an amendment: — “That this conference is of th© opinion that the future welfare ©fl New Zealand depends upon a constant stream of immigration from the United Kingdom. It therefore urges that no limitation of the Government’s present immigration policy should be made, but that in view of the acute unemployment at present existing in the Mother Country this association urges the Government to make provision for British immigrants, especially ex-service men who desire to start m this Dominion by immediately putting in hand the many public works that are so urgently needed throughout the country.” He urged members to look at the question from an Imperial point of view. There was the matter of defence, for the Pacific was going to be the storm centre of the world. In regard to the future welfare of the country, what; we most wanted was population settled on the land and producing. If we stopped immigration from Britain, the Asiatic would come in. There was a strong tendency on our part to forget that we were part of the British Empire. We had our unemployment problem, but in comparison with the problem at Home, where there were live millions out of work, it did not exist. Mr Duncan said he heartily supported Mr Leadley’s amendment. More people meant more prosperity. Dr Boxer said he found himself in absolute accord with Mr Leadley. The unemployment question here was a mere flea bite. The Motherland had helped us in the supreme hour of the war, and now’ it was for us to help her. He made an eloquent and impassioned plea that we should do all in our power at this time to relieve the situation at Home.

Mr Fox said he should be very pleased to get the people from Home at all, not from sympathy, but from necessity for our own sakes. He referred to the sinister influence of which they were all aware that sought to hinder men from coming out here on the ground that there was insufficient accommodation. The present unemployed problem was temporary, and we need not he downhearted about it.

Mr Smith said that sentimental reasons were not tho ones that should govern tho question. It was incumbent on Air Leadley to show that an increase of- immigrants from the Old Land would not increase the industrial depression in this country and that returned soldiers would not be displaced by the policy indicated in his amendment.

Mr Glass opposed the amendment, and said he thought Air Leadley had been too much carried away with the Imperialistic idea. He complained that New Zealand was not put in true light to intending immigrants. It was a good enough country without being bolstered up with half-truths. All* Jacobs supported tho committee’s clause, and pointed out that the restriction proposed was only for a very little time.

Tho Rev W. Walker said that sentiment could not be divorced from the question. If ye were to hinder immigration now we would be aggravating tho problem at Home when it was at its worst, and would be restricting ourselves of men when they were most needed. If wc did not have ships bringing immigrants we would not have ships to carry away our produce. Air Seymour said that England was rapidlv reaching the point when she could not maintain any more population. England had suffered a great deal more than we had in the war, and he thought we should take hen immigrants, though it would mean some burden.

Mr Lloyd argued that the immigrants were bound to displace our own men. Mr Perry supported the committee’s clause, and suggested that the immigration. without materially improving conditions at Home, would make conditions considerably worse here. He referred to the large number of tenancy cases being heard twice a week in the courts of the big centres as showing the grave shortage of houses. Mr Macpherson said that bringing out immigrants would accentuate the unemployment here. He thought the terms of the motion were very reasonable indeed. Dr Harrison opposed the amendment, and said that some of the housing accommodation in Dunedin that he could show them would astonish them. He described a house, in the kitchen of which there were two men and two women sleeping in a double and two single beds, while in an adjoining room a woman was confined while a thirteen-year-old girl occupied a bed a couple of feet away. He had twenty or thirty men, returned soldiers, coming to him asking for the price of a bed and breakfast, unable to find ac- . commodation. The closure was applied, and after Mr Long had replied, Mr Leadley’s amendment was lost. Air Smith moved as a further amendment that the resolution be not further proceeded with at present, but be referred to headquarters, with an instruction to set up a special committee, consisting of gentlemen with a special knowledge of this subject, whether members of the Returned Soldiers’ Association or not, such committee to report to _ the executive, which should take special action. He said the statement that Canada and Australia were continuing immigration at full strength was a significant one and deserving of careful investigation. Mr Leadley supported this amendment. which was carried by a narrow margin.