The Portland daily press., 1870-07-11
Misrepresentation Respecting the chi.


Mr. Julius A. Palmer, Jr., in the following
note to the Boston Advertiser, corrects pop
ular misrepresentation as to the position of the
great Chinese Companies" of the Pacific
Coast:
Having been acquainted with the Chinese
in San Francisco for the greater part of the
past four years, L may be able to throw little
light upon the beginning of a controvers which
which is destined to introduce new political
question to the Republic. First, as to the social
position of the majority of the Chinese emil
grants. They are the poor of that great ma
ton; they are not slaves-no, not even cool
les. This has been often explained by the
intelligent and educated Chinese, and by 9TH
ers of their American friends; but yet it is
constantly brought up against them that they
are cody slaves, " imported" by cruel task
masters, who receive the greater part of their
wages, and that they leave families in pawn as
security for their fidelity. A leading Repub-
lican newspaper, whose views upon the ques-
ton are sound, recently fell into the mistake
of acknowledging this latter as lamentable
fact. Such allegations have their only foun-
dation in the minds of INSCRIPTIONS dema-
gogues appealing to the prejudices of the igno-
rant and narrcw-minded portion of the COM
munity. The Chinaman is not like the Yam
kee. or indeed like any of the Crcassian race
his love of country, of his domestic ties, and the
interest his family retain in him, prevent him
from throwing himself upon the world, out
side the Middle Kingdom, with no guarantee
for his support while living, or his return to
the shades of his ancestors if death interposes.
The American will start tomorrow for any
new quarter of the globe, if there may be found
sufficient bait for his acquisitiveness upon ar
rival; he never asks how he shall get home
again, he does not even pause to inquire what
will be his fate if the spoil is all divided ere he
reach the golden shore; the world is wide,
and in certain sense it is all alike to him.
Not so the Chinaman; he wants to know
where he is going, how many of his national
lty are there, how long he must stay, what
will be his wages when there, and what pro-
vision will be made for him in case of sick
ness, death, OF desire to return. This has led
to the richer class of Chinese the merchants
and capitalists, forming sort of mutual insur-
ance societies for the benefit of the poor /:
knowing their countrymen so well, they know
now to assist them TO come here, and aid them
when in strange land. A very commenda-
bic system it would appear to dsinterested
mind. But these companies do not do this for
nolhIng, says some one ironically. No; and
40 our insurance companies? Do the capital
lsts VINO guarantee us against the loss by fire,
OF by accident, who protect our families from
n"iib anu Jul suipS from the consequences of
disaster, do they do it all from motives of pure
benevolence?
The same writer goes on TO say:
II can wish your merchants no better for
ture than the privilege of dealing some day in
person with the mercantile class of China, as
have found them to be in San Francisco. |
have done business with them constantly
when in that city, have stored their cargoes,
have shipped for them wheat and oats, have
sold them for shipment many hundreds of
tons of flour, and never knew one of them
to violate his engagements in any way; such
is the universal testimony of every one doing
business with them. 1t is common saying
among their American friends that they
would rather have as security the word of a
chinese merchant than the pledge, written,
sworn to, and witnessed, of many of Crcas-
sian blood. Certainly their answering in
tegrity and strict honesty, to SAY nothing of
Their moral virtues, may put to the blush our
boosted civilization, in these days of frequent
irregularities" fraudulent and shameless
failures" and alarming "defalcations."