File No. 894.4054/16½
The Japanese Ambassador to the Secretary of State
Washington , May 18, 1917 .
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge with thanks the receipt of your note No. 25 of the 7th of this month regarding an arrangement made by the Department of Labor for the exemption from the literacy test of the “picture brides” now en route to this country on the condition that a certified copy of their marriage notification will later be sent in.
The tenor of your note has forthwith been communicated to Viscount Motono who now instructs me to ask you whether it would not be possible to have that arrangement extended also to those “picture brides” who will leave Japan before the end of this month, inasmuch as it takes a certain length of time before all registrars throughout the Empire shall have duly been notified about the matter.
I am moreover authorized to state that, if your Government deems it necessary, an instruction will be issued to our Consuls to expedite the presentation by the parties concerned of the prescribed documents and in cases, which will in fact be very rare, where they fail to fulfill the requirement, to exercise their endeavors as far as possible within the limits of their competency to effect the reappearance of such “picture brides” before the immigration officers.
Accept [etc.]