New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1869-08-03
THE COOLIES.

Who and what is cOolie what are his
ideas, his customs, manners, and religionf what
sort of workman is he, and what are to be his
relations to our society and our laws
The central parts of the continent of Asia
are a vast elevated plateau, walled III 10y giant
mountain peaks. From these flowing to the
south and to the east are several great
rivers, longer and wider than the largest of
our streams. In the time of Abraham these
wide, fertile valleys were peOpled, and for ages
! they have swarmed with an immense surplus
population. Nearly a third of the human
race lies packed along these shores. They
cover the rich lands in such swarms as TO
make the little farms look like ant-hills,
or beehivcs So much in excess of
all other life is the race of men in China and
India, that human muscle takes the place of
brute labor, and gang of dozen or twenty
men perform tasks which we accomplish with
horse or an engine. Many centuries ago, two
great thinkers had the genius for stamping
their ideas deep into these races, and forming
millions upon millions of these tawny swarms
after one pattern and with uniform charac-
ter These teachers were Buddha and Con-
fucius and their maxms are scarcely sur
passed by the Mosaic Law, as rules to
make social relations permanent, harmonious,
and orderly. But they have less power to in-
spire the masses with a love for personal
excellence, an ambition to rise in life, or aspi-
ration for dignity, worth, and holiness. In this
respect they differ by the whole heaven from
those thinkers and systems by which the
leading nations of Europe have been inspired
and nodded. For score of ccntu-
lies, the average Chinaman has been
industrious, mild, and respectful. lie is small,
not much taller or heavier than our women.
He will do as he is told, but he is lacking in
ambition and hope. His religion inspires
melancholy, and suicide is q frequent way Of
escape from the chafe and pressure of lifes
burdens. His priesthood teaches him
to respect the rights of property,
to render to parents and magistrates implicit
and unQuestOnirg obedience, to be kind to
animals, to be content with little, TO live
cheaply and waste nothing. On the other hand,
lie has very little of what we call self-respect
he is full of petty deceits and all those vices
of character which make persons despcable,
but not nOxiOus or dangerous. He cares very
little for abusive words hardly knows what
we mean by the word honor; is sly, subtle,
and tricky, but seldom malicious. He knows
how to take care of himself, is initiative and
quick to learn, cooks well, and can get as
much comfort and health out of three yards
of cotton cloth and three pounds Of rice or
meal as any other human being.
1t will not require an argument to show that
beings educated in these notions, descended
from parents who for ages have cherished such
ideas, are thoroughly unlike any of the Euro
pean races. There are now hundred thousand
of these human beings under our flag. In few
years there will be n million, and presently
several millions. Questions respecting their
rights their status, their oath, and their ballot
are now impending, and anon they will be
planks in our platforms and issues in our cam
paigns. great many of the Chinese will be
taken into the valleys of the South to work
upon cotton and sugar estates, where they may
replace the African. The mines of the Pacific
and Rocky Mountain States will absorb others.
They will to some extent do the work OF
the Irishman with mattock and barrow. Just
treatment ought to be secured for them by
special and well considered provisions of law.
They are hereditary and lifelong minors.
Ages of bondage have sapped the founda-
tions of character, and emasculated their man
hood. Brought hither by shp-loads and cast
ashore on remote DL9tatioas Or imwgred IN