Pyrrhic Victory?

Dates in the past most Congressmen are content to leave to historians, but they insist in having their say concerning future dates. A controversy came to a head over a date which the House had set.

A provision had been written into the Immigration Bill excluding all alien immigrants not eligible to become citizens from entrance into the U. S. after July 1 of this year. The bill was in joint conference after having passed both Houses. Minor differences were being compromised before final approval.

The President called the conference leaders to the White House. He pointed out that for the sake of amicable relations with Japan, the State Department would need some time in which to abrogate the "Gentleman's Agreement" (under which Japanese immigration has been regulated) and to smooth matters over diplomatically with Japan. He induced them to insert in the conference report of the bill, a provision that the exclusion feature should not become operative until March 1, 1925.

The conferees agreed. They reported the bill in this form. The House took it up. The Administration Republicans stood behind it. But the Democrats and west-coast Republicans were unalterably opposed. Republican Leader Longworth turned to the California delegation: "You have won your long fight for Japanese exclusion. Why imperil your victory by rejecting this report or sending it back for conference? The people of the U. S. are in favor of restricting immigration. A vote against this report is a vote against restrictive immigration as proposed."

His appeal was vain. The conference report was rejected, 191-171. In the Senate it probably would have met the same fate.

The Joint Conference took the bill up once more. The date "March 1, 1925," was changed to "July 1, 1924." in which form it was deemed likely of acceptance. But there was truth in Mr. Longworth's remarks. President Coolidge may feel obliged to veto the entire bill in the interest of international amity