Misty Skeena River: the Stories of a Japanese Canadian Before the Second World War by Tom Sando
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Misty Skeena River: The Stories of a Japanese Canadian Before the Second World War by Tom Sando The histories go back more than lived in Canada for almost 27 years. he was a small boy. It was a custom one hundred years since Japanese But for the rest of the five young among the Japanese immigrants had immigrated to Canadian soil. The boys, including Tamio, Canada was living in North America to send their Japanese Canadians settled on the B. a very strange and foreign country. children to Japan for their education C. coast before the First World War Although they were all born in in those days. Tamotsu’s father, had gone through extreme hardship, Canada, the boys had been brought Seiichi Mayeda, had sent all of his as the discrimination toward the up in Japan with their relatives since children to Japan to educate them. oriental had been highest in the they had been very small. Therefore, Those nisei who were brought up country. This is the untold story of they hardly remembered anything at in Japan and came back to Canada a young Japanese Canadian nisei all about Canada. were called ‘kika-nisei (returned (Canadian born second generation) The youngest of the five boys nisei) among the Japanese settlers and his father who worked as a was 14-year old Tamio’s brother, to distinguish them from nisei who fisherman in the northern British Shig. Twin brothers, Yoshi and had been brought up in Canada. The Columbia before the war. Kazu Tani, were 15 years old. kika-nisei who had been brought up Tamotsu Mayeda was 18-years old. in the militarism Japan were hard To the Native Place Tamio’s mother had died in a fishing workers, but their lack of English On the sunny morning of May village in northern British Columbia was their greatest disadvantage. 2nd, 1938, a 22,000-ton ocean-liner when he was four years old and his In comparison, the nisei who were S.S. ASIA sailed into beautiful younger brother was two years old. brought up in Canada had more Vancouver harbour. From its sundeck, Soon after their mother’s death, advantage over the kika-nisei a slim 16-year-old Tamio Kuwabara their father Tatsu had taken the two because they were more proficient in watched the superb scenery of the boys to Japan and had left them with English. However, there were many harbour tirelessly. The cobalt sky and their grandparents’ in north central young nisei who were fluent in both the snow-capped mountains behind, Japan, Niigata Prefecture. Tamio Japanese and English, for many good the picturesque Vancouver city-line neither remembered anything about Japanese language schools existed in appeared in front of his eyes, as Canada or even his parent’s face, Vancouver, Steveston and the other the liner approached Burrard Inlet. except for a faint memory of his large Japanese settlements. Eleven days had past since Tamio red tricycle, which he was riding After their ship had docked and his five companions left turbid on the pier. The Tani brothers also at the Canadian Pacific wharf, all and crowded Yokohama harbour in had similar kind of circumstance the passengers were escorted to Japan, and the long voyage crossing as Kuwabara brothers. They lost the Immigration building about the rough Pacific Ocean finally came their mother when they were small, two blocks away for their custom to an end. He was about to step and had been brought up by their formalities. Almost two hours on a foreign land, his native soil, grandparents in south-central Japan, of standing and waiting in the and his father’s beloved country, Wakayama Prefecture. Their father, Immigration building, Tamio and Canada! His young heart pounced Shuichi Tani, was a good friend of his companions finally finished their wildly with excitement, as the liner Tamio’s father, Tatsu, and Tani had custom procedure. approached the Canadian Pacific been fishing together on the Skeena It was almost four o’clock in dock in the harbour. He glanced at River in northern B.C. for a very the afternoon when they checked his companions from Japan. They long time. into Sakuma boarding house on were all excited too. Tamotsu Mayeda’s circum- Powell Street. The two stories high Vancouver was a very familiar stances were different than that of Sakuma boarding house was located place for their party leader, 53-year- the Kuwabara brothers. He had been on the south side of Powell Street, old, Tatsu Kuwabara, as he had sent to Japan for his education when and about a half block from Main 1 Street. Landlady Mrs. Sakuma, stirring coffee or tea, and to not make in Vancouver and was staying at the in her fifties, must’ve came from any sipping noise while drinking same house, to a Chinese-owned western Japan, as she spoke with from the cup. In Japan, the sipping snack-bar on Main Street not too far a smooth kansai accent. After she noises mean you are enjoying the from Sakuma’s. George was their showed them their rooms, she took meal, but in the western world, it leader because nobody else could the newcomers to a bathroom and would be bad manners. speak English. The small snack explained to the boys how to use After supper, Tamio’s father, bar was packed with people of all toilet, bathtub and shower, as it was Tatsu, took the five boys out to guide nationalities. A dark-haired, half- very new to these boys from Japan. them around the Japanese town. breed Native girl took their order Mrs. Sakuma must have been used Powell Street was called ‘Little of hotdogs. The hotdogs were ready to the new arrivals from Japan as Tokyo’. The evening-shadowed in no time. Boys then followed she has been operating the rooming sidewalk was fairly busy with all George’s suit to put some ketchup, house in this port city for a long kinds of nationalities, Japanese, radishes and mustard on their hot time. Indeed she knew how to handle Chinese, Whites and Natives. dogs. Tamio thought the mustard those newcomers from Japan. Located next to the Sakuma’s were was a little sour but the ketchup was A grocery store was located a Japanese-owned restaurant, fish tasty. Anyway, the boys enjoyed downstairs of the boarding house on market, grocery store and bookshop. their first day out, and their first the main floor, facing the sidewalk. A noodle-shop, barbershop and feast of a famous North American The store handled Japanese and secondhand store were at the fast food. western foods. Also the store sold opposite side of the street. Farther On the next day, Tamio’s soft drinks and ice cream. As soon down to the east from Powell father, Tatsu, took the boys to the as the boys had settled down in Ground, at Dunlevy and Jackson same snack bar to try out some their room, they took turns buying Avenue, there were more Japanese- cheeseburgers. The beef-burger was ice cream downstairs. When Tamio owned rooming houses. very tasty but the cheese was slimy made two or three trips to buy ice A man sitting quietly on the and stinky. Nobody ate the cheese cream cones and soft drinks at the bench by the Powell Grounds, hardly except for Tamio and Tatsu. More store, he was greatly impressed recognizable as Japanese or Native Chinese-owned restaurants and by how a young girl storekeeper with his dark sunburned face, asked stores were seen alongside Main handled her customers. She was very one of the boys, “Which ship are Street towards Chinatown. A broad polite and pleasant to all customers. you from?” He must have mistaken Hastings Street was two blocks away If she saw elderly Japanese the boys for seamen or cabin boys, from there. The street was wide and customers come in, she would because all the boys except Tamio not crowded, unlike the streets in greet them in cheerful Japanese, were wearing brass-buttoned school Tokyo or Yokohama. Walking along “Konnichiwa, Irasshaimase, Arigato uniforms from Japan. After Tatsu the Main Street and Hastings Street, gozaimashita.” If she saw younger showed the boys most of the Japanese Tamio already noticed the different customers, she would greet them in town, they returned to their rooming atmosphere from Japan. The people fluent English, “Hello, How are you, house by 9 p.m. Before they went up in Canada walked leisurely as if they Thank you very much.” Japanese to their room, they each bought ice had more time. Streetcars had a lot merchandise were sold along cream cones at the store downstairs. more room to move. with western goods and Japanese Unlike the melted chunks of ice-like On the third day in Vancouver, language was spoken with English. cream sold in Japan, the Canadian- they were invited over to visit On the first day in Canada, Tamio made ice cream was very tasty and Tatsu’s long-time friend, Ryuichi already felt keenly that he was in a creamy! Not only Tamio, but the Yoshida. Yoshida was a well- Japanese settlement on foreign soil, other boys must have felt the same, known person among the Japanese far away from his homeland Japan! because they all took turns going communities, and was associated At supper time, Mrs. Sakuma downstairs to buy ice-cream cones with a Japanese language newspaper showed the boys how to use forks, four or five times. ‘MINSHU’ in Vancouver. His knifes and the other table manners The following day, Tamio and modest stucco home was located in such as the teaspoon should always the other boys followed George the Kitsilano district, on the south be placed back on the saucer after Nishimura, who was born and raised side of the city, across from a big 2 schoolyard.