THE DAILY PROVINCE JUNE 20, 1914 p.1&4 IS ANOTHER SHIP WITH HINDUS ON WAY OVER? ------------------- Story Reaches Ottawa of a Second Expedition Coming to America. ------------------- Mr. Bird’s Move Toward Court Is Causing Officials Some Anxiety. ------------Is It Better to Wait or Throw Hindus Out in Quick Time? Is Question. ------------------- Japanese Owners Cable for the Ship to Start, but She Needs Help. ------------------- Ottawa, June 19.—It is understood here that intimation has been received by an empress liner which arrived at Victoria this week that another ship’s party of Hindus is being organized to cross the Pacific. It is said that the new enterprise was organized by a wealthy woman of Calcutta, who was guaranteeing the proposed immigrants a dollar a day for two years after they arrived in America. The Komagata Maru party was organized definitely to go to Vancouver, but it is said that the second party is to go to “some port in Canada or the United States.” The second party is sailing direct from Calcutta, but was said to be due to call today at Shanghai on the way. The department thinks that the arrangements may have fallen through when the difficulties of the Komagata Maru in Vancouver became known in the Orient, but there is no definite information on this point. THE DAILY PROVINCE JUNE 20, 1914 ------------------- p.1&4 Fearful of the Courts. Upon the developments of the next day or two will depend whether the 355 Hindus no aboard the Komagata Maru will be sent back to Hongkong or will be landed and take up at least temporary residence in British Columbia. It is idle to deny that the move of Mr. J. E. Bird is issuing a mandamus to bring the immigration officials into court on Monday morning is not viewed with some official apprehension. This is strengthened by the recollecton(Sic) that in the previous cases disposed of by Chief Justice Hunter the regulations were knocked higher than a kite. There is a feeling that once the Hindus get properly into court some flaw will be found in the regulations which will allow the present party to enter. If this is so, and the men of the Komagata Maru are official admitted, the officials think that the battle will all have to be fought over again when other ships with other parties of Hindus come from the other side of the Pacific. The Alternative. Against this tendency of allowing the matter to take its course in the courts, there is the alternative of taking the bull by the horns and forcing the departure of the ship. It is no secret that Chief Immigration Inspector Reid believes in the latter course as the best one. “All that I know,” said the inspector this morning, “is that once those Hindus get their cases well before the courts no man can tell how the matter will end. One thing is certain, it will mean an interminable fight in the courts with the issue in doubt for a long time, and there is always the chance that the Hindus will beat the regulations and get in. The best we can expect if the cases get before the court is that after the people have spent a deal of money in upholding the regulations the Hindus will be ordered back, and then we shall have just as difficult a problem in getting rid of them as we have today.” THE DAILY PROVINCE JUNE 20, 1914 p.1&4 Mr. Reid intimated that he had given no authority to the Legion of Frontiersmen to hold themselves in readiness for service aboard the ship. Delay in Decisions. The mandamus writ issued last evening by Mr. Bird calls on the immigration officials composing the court of enquiry to come to court to show cause why they do not give decisions. Since the arrival in port of the Komagata Maru cases have come before the board nearly every day, (Continued on Page 4.) IS ANOTHER SHIP WITH HINDUS ON WAY OVER? (Continued from Page 1.) But the aggregate number disposed of has not been large. First there were taken the twenty-two men who had previously been residents of British Columbia and all these were admitted. Then of the remainder aboard ninety were alleged by the immigration medical inspector to be suffering from diseases. Half a dozen of these have been examined, but the board has decided to reserve judgment. Mr. Bird has been clamoring for decisions, for with a judgment against his clients he would be in a position to appeal to the courts on habeas corpus proceedings to test the regulations which he is not slow in saying he can easily break as being unconstitutional or otherwise illegal. It is quite apparent that one reason why decisions have not been given by the board is to deprive Mr. Bird of the opportunity of appealing. Now Mr. Bird will on Monday ask the courts to compel the official to announce a judgment which, if in favorable, he would at once carry higher and probably with the right to have the affected Hindu brought into court personally to assist his counsel regarding his case. Must Have Assistance. THE DAILY PROVINCE JUNE 20, 1914 p.1&4 To avert all chance of Mr. Bird succeeding in the project, which the officials, of course, regard as quite nefarious, there is open the plan to immediately force the departure of the vessel. Captain Yamamoto went out this morning when the Japanese cruisers arrived to consult with his rearadmiral and apply to him for assistance, in taking his vessel across the Pacific. The master of the Komagata Maru has been waiting for a week to get help from his countrymen on the warships and the Hindus ashore gave some very frowning looks when the two big vessels steamed into port this morning. Yesterday a cable was received form the owners of the Komagata Maru ordering her to leave immediately for Hongkong. It is easy enough for them to send orders, but it is certain that the Komagata Maru can not(Sic) go without help and the departure of the vessel depends very much on whether or not arrangement can be made for a convoy. Getting the Ship Away. Even if the Japanese do agree to assist, the Canadian Government will have to see the vessel out of territorial waters, which means somewhere off the shore of Vancouver Island. This policy means that the official will have to arrange for the towing of the vessel and the keeping of order aboard for a run of nearly 100 miles. The chances of a fight between the Hindus aboard and the crew, the possibility of the passengers overpowering the Japanese officers and steering the ship ashore or of setting her afire or of leaping overboard to be rescued by their compatriots from launches will all have to be taken if this course is decided on. The Hindus have be threatening every kind of reprisal and every one in close touch with the situation believes that they will resort to desperate measures before they allow an added crew aboard or the lifting of the anchor. The ship had not yet been provisioned for a return trip, so that not much activity in regard to the matter of an outward trip is expected over the weekend, anyway. No one expects any fireworks on Monday morning, for an adjournment will, it is a safe guess, be asked for. A Little Ancient History. THE DAILY PROVINCE JUNE 20, 1914 p.1&4 In the meantime Mr. Reid is having a fairly busy time considering plans and making arrangements. He He(Sic) is rather interested in the fact that Mr. Bird intends to address a public meeting tomorrow in behalf of the Hindus, and calls attention to the fact that Sohan Lal, chief advisor to Mr. Bird before the enquiry, has been heard from on previous occasions. According to reliable information furnished to Mr. Reid in the form of an affidavit signed by a number of loyal Hindus, Sohan was a speaker at a meeting held on December 27, 1913, in the Sikh Temple, Vancouver, when some very serious threats were made. Here is one of the paragraphs of the affidavit: “Following him (Sohan Lal) --------, who read a poem written by himself, accusing Bela Singh, Baboo Singh, Ganga Ram, Immigration Inspectors Reid and Hopkinson of being enemies to the Hindus here and calling on them to do away with each and all of these men. Further stated that no nation can survive which does not do away with its traitors and he called upon the Hindus present to assist in putting away their traitorous fellow-countrymen as aforesaid. Also referred to the bomb outrage at Delhi on December 23, 1912, and to the fact that the perpetrator was still at liberty. Thus any patriotic Hindu who would lend his assistance against British tyranny could easily escape and be assisted by his loyal fellow-countrymen.” The Three-mile Limit. No armed force of Japanese bluejackets can be placed aboard the Komagata Maru while she is in British waters, is the opinion of men conversant with international law interview by The Province today. While the Komagata Maru remains in British waters the Japanese cruisers can only stand by in case of trouble and place their men on board after the merchantman has passed outside territorial waters or, in other words, the three-mile limit. A Vancouver gentleman, formerly in the royal navy, and who is well posted on the procedure, makes the following statement: “While the Komagata Maru is in British waters she is subject to British laws and British control, and it would be a gross breach of international THE DAILY PROVINCE JUNE 20, 1914 p.1&4 procedure for an armed force of Japanese bluejackets to board her. We must remember that while Hindus may be undesirables, yet they are British subjects under the protection of the British crown, and it would be deplorable for any foreign power to be allowed to overawe British subjects in a British port. “If row does break out in the harbor, the procedure would be to place militia on board to preserve order, as we have no naval force available. The militia would control the situation on the steamer until she reached the threemile limit, and then of course, the cruisers could take a hand. This would enable Canada to emerge with clean hands in any further international arguments which might be raised.” It was reported late this afternoon that the Hindus on shore have paid up the balance of the charter money due and that nor further money is due until June 27. If this is true, the owners could not, of course, send the boat away until that time. It is said also the charter has been transferred to the shore Hindus, but this declaration and the story of the charter money could not be officially confirmed. Dodging Writ Server. Two government officials spent the forenoon in a pleasant game of dodging a writ server. They were Superintendent of Immigration Malcolm R. J. Reid and Assistant Superintendent Howard. The writ, which was to be served was connected with the mandamus proceedings initiated by Mr. J. Edward Bird, lawyer for the Hindus. His writ server wandered down to the waterfront this morning with his papers, looking for Mr. Reid for Mr. Howard, as it is a joint writ. The work of serving this writ, however, was attended with difficulty and up to noon the server met with no success, although he had a very pleasant launch ride around the harbor. After attempting to find Mr. Reid at his office, the writ server brought up at the boat landing west of Pier A. Here he found the immigration launch THE DAILY PROVINCE JUNE 20, 1914 p.1&4 Jessie Ellen and in some way he gathered an impression that Mrssrs. Reid and Howard were aboard the Komagata Maru. He requested to be taken off and the officers in charge of the launch very kindly agreed. So the writ server took a boat ride to the Komagata Maru and was also given a splendid view of the Japanese warships, but he failed to find his victims. At 11 o’clock the Jessie Ellen came in to the landing and it was a curious coincidence that just as the writ server stepped shore, the immigration launch Winamac backed out with Messrs. Reid and Howard aboard, bound for the flagship Asama.