The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1859-01-06
The Califor.i. An.s-C.ine.c Ac..

Several months ago We called public attention to
this act, passed by the California Legislature at its
last session, pointing out its injustice and maintain
ing that it was impolitic for q great and Christian
State to exclude the Chinese from entrance within
her ports, Mt the same moment that the United States,
England, France, and Russia were compelling China,
at the point of the bayonet, to abrogate this very same
law of exclusion of barbarians.
In order that our readers may see what the law is
we give below the two most important sections:
SEC. lon and after the frs, day of October, A II. one thou
chine sso or Man1oiian n raees shall not : Se Pe1TD ted to entsr G' , hi
State, or land therein, at any part or port thereof; and it shall
der, or other person in charge of or interested in, or employed on
or description whatsoever. to knowingly allow or permit any
Chinese or Monaghan, on and after such time, to enter any Of
the ports of this State, to land therein, or at any place or places
within the borders of this State.
The penalties incurred by a violation of this Act
are very severe, being,
A fine in any sum not less than four hundred dollars
nor more than six hundred dollars, for each and every offence, or
imprisonment in the country Jail OF the country in which the
said offence was committed, for a period of not less than three
sonment.
The object of the law was to check the immigration
of the hordes of Chinese and Lascars which have been
pouring into San Francisco for several years.
There is no question that in many parts of the State
of California, the Chinese are very Troublesome; but
are they any more so than immigrants from South
America or portions of Europe?
The law, however, excludes not merely Coolies or
Chinese migrants but also respectable Chinese
merchants. We have here on these islands, perhaps
a hundred Chinese merchants of good standing, and
it is n well-known fact that at least one fourth of the
trade between this port and San Francisco, and rice
rersa is transacted on account of Chinese. Now the
question arises, can these Chinese merchants visit
San Francisco to purchase their stocks: The law
most emphatically says no, and imposes a fine of
$500 on the Captain who takes such passengers.
Here is the manifest injustice of the law. Some six
or eight resident Chinese merchants most OF whom
are naturalized Hawaiian subjects, have applied for
passage to San Francisco in the bark Yankee, for the
purpose of purchasing goods there, intending to re-
turn in the same vessel. They are all respectable
men, some of them doing a business of fifty to a hum
dred thousand dollars per annum. Capt. Smith AYERS
that the law forbids his taking them over, and we
think he is correct.
The Chinese Act is a manifest imposition on COM
merce and trade, and a disgrace to the State of Cali
fornia. While attempting to check an evil, it over
shoots the mark it was intended to hit and binders
legitimate travel and trade. We trust that some
steps will be taken ty our authorities to call the at
tention Of the California state officers to the injustice
of the law as it now stands, and if possible open some
way By which our Chinese merchants can visit Cali
fnrn,o