LEGAL FACTS REGARDING TREATMENT OF RESIDENT ALIENS IN PACIFIC COUNTRIES.-Continued. roes State law determines. (See No. Naturalization according to U.S.A. are Nat Citizenship to all by birth. 10. STANDARDS OF LIVING IN PACIFIC COUNTRIES ROUND TABLE (TWO MEETINGS): MR. CONDLIFFE, CHAIRMAN This Round Table arose from an endeavor to clarify the issues raised concerning the differences between the standards of living in Eastern and Western countries and the effect of these differences in providing an economic basis for racial feeling as demonstrated in immigration restriction. laws and the prevailing fear of the lowering of standards as the industrialization of the Orient proceeds. The Round Table opened with a statement by Mr. Batchelder regarding the economic background. (See R 18 of paper distributed to Members.) Though some of his statements were challenged, and objection was taken by the Japanese members to the sweeping generalization which included such diverse countries as India, China and Japan under the general title of the Orient, on three main points there was general agreement: 1. There is a tendency to over-population in Eastern countries; 2. there is in India and China, though to a less degree in Japan, a degree of underproduction; 3. the countries which have higher standards of living are determined to defend them tenaciously. It was made clear in discussion that "real" as distinguished from "money" standards were being considered, that there is probably as much range in the standards of living in Asiatic countries as in European countries; that generally speaking since wages lag behind, the cheap labor is temporarily cheap in the strict economic sense relative to production, and that the chief cause of the low standards within the countries concerned is to be found in poor organization and little development of natural resources, including human labor power. As economic development proceeds however there is a constant tendency for standards of living to rise not only in the town industries but also in the rural districts which are sympathetically affected by the withdrawal of labor to the town industries. Any doubt as to the effects of the transition period were however met by illustrations given of the effects of immigration. An effort was made to bring the strict economic definition of the standard of living into some harmony with the view that the fullest life demands more than mere material satisfaction. The materialist philosophy of the West was challenged by several Oriental speakers; but it was replied that the higher standard of living defended so tenaciously by Occidental countries was not merely a higher degree of material comfort, but rather a margin in the production of wealth over and above bare subsistence level, and that that margin gave opportunity for adequate provision for education and child welfare, leisure and freedom from incessant toil and insecurity of livelihood, and a freer oldage. It was admitted that the margin might be spent is ostentatious living and the mere heaping up of material things; but on the other hand such a margin is indispensable if the mass of the people are to have the opportunity of the better things of life. The life of poverty however admirable in individual cases when practised voluntarily and deliberately, means when applied to the mass of the people, stunted childhood, hard incessant labor in adult life and a miserable old age. The assumption upon which the economist works is that any means which will increase the production of wealth, distribute wealth more equitably, other things being equal, or make its distribution more certain, will in general increase not only economic but general social welfare. The use made of extra wealth is a matter of education, moral and social standards. The question of "exploitation" was discussed and several points were raised. In so far as laborers in countries like China were paid in real wages less in proportion to their product than laborers who are protected by higher standards of labor legislation, the danger is to the latter. Industrialization in China at present, while presenting very serious dangers and evils in the creation of town slum areas, in the abuse of child labor, in long hours, and similar effects of industrialism in its early stages, still does give in most cases a higher material reward than the older established industries such as agriculture. At the general forum Mr. Rawlinson said that this question of higher wages "is decidedly open to question, as it fails to take into consideration that there are other things to consider besides wages"-loss of personal touch with employer, etc. Miss Dingman quoted from the report of the Child Labor Commission in Shanghai to prove that the statement regarding higher wages is misleading, Mr. Condliffe in replying pointed out that "there was a substantial agreement on the part of the members of the round table, the Chinese economists and several others, that wages in the factories were higher, considering the goods you could buy for the wages, etc:"-this raises the question of "standard of living" again and shows the need for clear definition. If industrialization were to proceed under normal control by legislation and public opinion then it was agreed that better organization leading to greater production of wealth would raise standards of living and right many of the problems at issue. Exploitation defined in reference to the excessive profits taken out of industry relative to the wages paid raised the broad general question of the responsibility of those who have the control of industry in any country to set for themselves standards which do not stop at profit-making. This was agreed to be a problem of capitalism in general, acute at the present time in China because of the absence of control by legislation and public opinion. The second meeting of the Round Table discussed the effects of industrialization upon the standards of living in the more developed countries. Mr. Lynch contended that immigration had forced up the standard of living in the United States and that the laborers had nothing to fear and a great deal to gain by industrialization and immigration which would cease of their own accord when the danger point was reached. This point of view was combated by Mr. Scharrenberg and by other members of the Round Table who stated that immigration lowered the standard of living in America. A distinction was drawn between the long-period (or ultimate) and the short-period (or immediate) effects of industrialization and it was agreed that while the greater production of wealth in the long run would tend to raise standards all round, the immediate effect would be to cause more or less dislocation of industry in highly developed countries and a good deal of transitional difficulty, depending upon the pace at which industrialization proceeded. Practical ways in which the standard of living in undeveloped countries might be raised were suggested: 1. Assistance along the line of self-help. It was suggested that measures be taken to strengthen stable government in China and to establish selfprotecting organization such as labor unions. 2. Further provision of capital and organizing ability, making for further production, and supplemented by the voluntary action of employers in matters of human engineering. 3. Restriction of population and the progressive improvement of agricultural methods, both of which would probably follow and reinforce the raising of standards of living. 4. Legislation imposed by local or national governments. 5. International labor legislation. 6. Education, missionary example and student training For detailed discussion of standards of living see R 67 of papers distributed to Members. II. THE SOCIOLOGICAL APPROACH TO PACIFIC PROBLEMS ROUND TABLE (ONE MEETING): MR. TAKAYANAGI, CHAIRMAN Mr. Park presented the following points of view: 1. The problems of social life consist of: (a) fundamental policies which should take account of the known facts about human nature; (b) method of administration, ordinarily worked out by experts; (c) machinery of effective administration. 2. In many of our difficulties inquiry is not pushed back of the machinery; we simply try to make the machinery more efficient. 3. Social sciences which have human nature as their subject matter should throw light on such problems as are involved in inter-racial and inter-cultural contacts. a. Ideally, separate communities of immigrants in the United States are undesirable, but we seem to discover that these separate communities work out better than if the immigrants were scattered. b. The people of America normally judge another nation by the resident immigrants of that nation. Immigrant groups, from the point of view of international relations should be composed of people likely to give a proper conception of their homeland. c. Racial segregation tends to breed race-prejudice and race-prejudice in turn tends to pepetuate segregation. d. Every immigrant group goes through the same general processes of accommodation. We can learn the controlling factors by studying the natural history of foreign settlements made by other immigrants. 4. Many laws are formulated with a definite purpose but the real effect is quite different: thus the emancipation of the Negro slave in the United States has not yet been accomplished. Ideals stated in explicit terms are very slowly realized through non-legal, sometimes illegal processes. 5. In breaking down caste distinctions, not legislation, but the growth of great, impersonal and cosmopolitan cities is the dominant factor. 6. The problem of assimilation, the elements of which are largely feelings and attitudes rather than biological traits, is amenable to a large measure of social control. Race mixture tends to form a social and cultural intermediary between the races. Usually the hybrid is a city man. Subsequent questions and discussion developed further opinions and suggestions: 1. All problems in the Pacific are subject to fruitful investigation from the point of view of sociology, for example: armaments are a phase or result of the state of mind of the peoples and is changing with the increase of communications. 2. The "natural history"—the inevitable, orderly growth of social institutions like war-should be studied. 3. Assimilation depends upon the ability to share in a common body of experience and of values. That part of culture embodied in machinery, |