St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1873-02-07
California.
THE HEATHEN CHISEE.

California
THE HEATHER CHISEE.
The one striking popularity of Cali
furnia of which have as Vet said moth
ing. is the numerous and ever-prcSent
Chinaman. You see him blowing i'll
the field. working on the railroad. ear
rying burdens like Il packmulc. cook
ing beef->teak in the kitchen. washing
down the front stairs before breakfast,
intending shoes on the side walk, sew
img cros>-lcggcd like Il Turk, selling
>aUSageS in the market. washing and
ironing fine linen, keeping accounts Ill
the Bank of California, and Ill fact do
ing almost every kind of service u>u-
ally done h! both sexes i'll II civilized
and christian community.
THEIR BARBARoU> TREATMENT.
Your readers know that there has
heretofore been Il very great prejudice
against Cinnamon 10y the lower GLASSES
of people ~ this coastal prejudice
which resulted in their most harhar-
Gus treatment. For many years the
Chinaman in California. like the slave
in the South. has had no rights which Il
white man WAS hound to respect. A.
Cinnamon could not testify in III,
courts against Americans. there hat,
been no WAY for them to escape tn,
malice or cupiditl of their Christian
brother. Hence it has been no uncnm-
mon thing for Chnamau to bc rob
bed of all his worldly goods 10y some
lazy lout of Il white man, and if John
objected t" this proceeding he was
cody knorkrd over OF murdered. and
there was II" penalty mrted ont I" the
rutlian. and too often no one to raise Il
cry of shame against such villainy.
\ CHANGE IN SENTIMENT.
The mccknc>s with which the China
man received such indignity, and the
patient submission with which he
turned the other cheek, finally con
. ''ll'' tll'hSll VI lllt VI 'hiF
coast to turn the current of sentiment
in his favor. The better classes AWAY :
dctcSted this treatment. and now the
lower CLASSES are forced To treat him
>nncw hat more like human being.
There is still however IL great pre- jul
dice against the race by the more ig-
l.. -, 1 4
measure bN some whose intelligence
would seem to Indicate better things.
we'll rs for lis credit. that there be- this
change for the better. The Chinaman :
Labor is becoming more and more in
di>pcnSihlc. Without it the Pacific
railroads would hardly have been built,
and Il large part of California agrIcult
/ IRE would cease to exist.
WHERE THEY ARE, AND HOW MANY.
One sees Cinnamon before he reaches
the halfway house between the Mis-
souri, river and the Golden Gate.
/ They are to-day the guardians of the
Central railroads track, there being an
average of three CclestialS to every two
miles ofthat road. They grow more nu-
merouS is one goes west. BY the last cen
>IS there appeared to he some ten thou
sand in San Francisco. am told that
they are increasing rapidly and that
to-day there are not less than fifteen
/ thousand here. They are clannish by
nature and made doubly so by their
/ treatment here. There is Chinese
quarter III San Francisco, and i'll this
part OF the city one will hardly see any
thing but Cinnamon. But AS they are
used largely as house servants, cooks,
/ walters. washers. and also in the manu-
/ factories, they are seen all over the city
and country.
THEIR LOOKS AND DRESS.
/ Cinnamon all look and dress alike,
and unlike other nationalities. One
may see some other nationality in the
street or horSe-car, and not he certain
whether he he American, English,
French, German, Spanish or Mexican ;
/ but he is never in doubt about the Chi
naman. They all Wear the que" which
is made by braiding the hair in one
long strand, which frequently hangs
nearly to their heels. Considering the
/ present custom among American
ladies have thought it impertinent to
ask if it is all their OUn hair.) Nine
out of ten wear Il low-crowned black
hat the tenth one wears IA close fitting
black silk cap, like smoking cap.
/ They all wear Il loose coat of dark cloth
loose trousers also dark cOlored, white
stockings and wooden peaked toed
shoes with white soles. No matter how
muddy the streets, if you see China
man you will see his white stockings
and the white edge of his shoe soles. |
have seen thousands of them as they