The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-04-05
CALIFORNIA; PROBLEM.
~vruEAsON WHY THE CHINESE CUES
TIoN IL or OyERsHADOWING
IMPORTANCE.
uara morris. the Actress, Relates Her
Exuerience I'm san Francisc0-Why the
eelestials Are Grow ding All other
Labor out Of the Market.
washington Capital


M you know i have the idea that Bret
Harts has done for the Chinese what Harflet
Beeeher Stowe did for the negro and Fenl-
more Cooper did for tho Indian9 The MIND
of tho East Is tenacious aud an idea once
nlanted there will strike It's roots deep. A
ray of Bret Hartes genius reached out and
toched d Chinaman, and straightway ne be
came n TRANSPORTED and In double deed Ce-
lestia thing
Now. II our American heads are accounted
hard. heaven knows that our hearts are soft
enough, SO that when Mr.. Harte shows us a
gentle, grave and patient little fellow, with
soft eyes and low voice, who tolls almost
INCREASINGLY and ID the very personification Of
cleanliness and punctualty, and then des-
cribes In his inimitable manner how bad
street roughs insult and worry this almond
eyed bread-winner how he Ia hustled Off
sidewalks, cheated out 81 bis earnings, robbed
of his precious queue and finally stoned to
death while on his way to o Sunday school,
the pathetic little figure OF this victim OF
brutality finds Its way into our hearts, while
In our minds Is started the idea that the Chi
nese though possessed of many virtues, are
In America a cruelty oppresst race and are
more or less In peril OF their lives. Though
this Ia but an individual case 1t certainly has
created d sentiment In favor OF the Chinese.
But don't you think that II the people on the
other side Of the Rockies knew the suffering,
sorrow and shame that has come TO the white
iaboring class here, because OF these aliens,
TINT their sentiment would change somewhat?
Surely blood Is thicker than water.
There Is poor old woman Just across the
street who came to California years ago Her
husband found plenty Of work to do and did
1t, until one terrible day he came to O pause
In his labor-a pause that has covered many
wretched year; for to him who at thirty Is
crippled and blind, the years are both long
She could not go out to service because of the
three little ones and that living woe, her hus-
band: 80 being young and strong, she took in
washing. She worked, as n woman always
works, with reckless disregard OF self: She
might have fed and sheltered her brood with
haff the labor, but she was ambitious for
them. Her always suffering husband had to
have luxuries. Her little ones were sent to
school in neat and tidy dresses. In the mean.
time Chinese laundries iiourished, increased
In numbers, were everywhere She was COM
PEELED to lower her wages TO keep her labor.
Suddenly the mania for Huted ruflles swept
the town. Everything was rufled. and,
therefore, everything must be fluted. Fluting
irons cost money, With lowered wages she
sat up all night and crimped ru1fles with q
knife blade but that was pronounced old
fashioned; the washing went to the Chinese
laundry. For several years she had lived In
n tinv little frame house Of four rooms; pow
erty now drove her from that into one room,
In which her children, her husband and her
self lived and had their being. At last she
turned to Office sweeping hard work for
small pay, but still keeping bread In their
mouths.
For eighteen months she held that, and
then the China boy asked for the job. He
was told woman had 1t: Said Jim Lee:
"What do you pay h,,rp" SO much, says the
man in charge. well" says Jim Lee. Il
will sweep the office and make fires when
needed for the same money" 'W-e-l-l," de-
INJURED the man; but Jim Lee breaks in
again with the offer to sweep the office, light
fires and clean the windows for the same
money that was paid to the woman for sweep
ING alone Jim Lee got the job. To-day that
poor old woman receives charity for the first
time. The Chinese monopolize most all of
the small trades. There is the trouble. They
do tin work. they run sewing machines;
they make shoes; they are rag-pickers,
graphers assistants oh, well, they do every
thing. A tinsmith had store In one Of the
smaller streets. His business was thriving.
He thought he would indulge In cheap labor.
He took In couple of Cinnamon; they learned
of their friends, who dubbed together and
started small tin shop in the same block,
where they undersold him clean out Of
the business. When they get posses
e e,1n D people. Day ' before 0y yesterday
bought an article OF underwear, and Il ex
pressed some surprise at its small cost 20,
yes" answered the saleswoman; last winter
that would have cost seventy-tive cents more;
but we employ Cinnamon now" "And what
has become Of the girls you formerly en-
ployed?" We'll, few Of them found their
way into the ballet Of some Of the small thea
tres, have been told. and some. am very
sorry to say, did worse gone wrong, in fact"
And so it goes.
The Chinese suffer more or less from ane v
they themselves have created-the hoodlum-
and as the Chinese increase In numbers, even
30 do the hoodlums increase There Is moth
ing for young boys ana girls 70 90; their .
alley and the gutter alone are open to them,
and OF such are the hoodlums. Now and then
come across person who would make one
believe the Chinaman to be mere bundle of
malice and knavery; but that is nonsense
miration are the high and middle classes Of
the Cinnamon They are learned, brave and
refined, but they are the ones who
stay at home. or the mighty host of
Cinnamon that have invaded this State
there are but few that are not the lowest of
the low-the dregs the scum OF their native
land. Why can't there be some relief for the
people of this coast? | don't mean anything
violent and brutal. / suppose treaty is q
very sacred thing; tut j. not ne welfare q
Of international etiquette2 I don't under
stand why labor is not protected. Is there
not law that protects us from the pauper
and criminal classes of Europe? Well, go on
and laugh # have made some wild mistake
you-but il there not? There is no such law
with regard to China. for ! have asked, and
many criminal and many creature nall
devoured by awful disease is said to land
here; and this is the gateway to the whole
country. OF course the Chinaman will come
as long as he is allowed to. Why should he
not Improve his condition if he can? They
are rot to blame for coming; but there should
certainly be some limit put to the number
received by Us. The prisons, the hospitals
arc full-but, good heavens, you know all
about that
lost my temper on this subject the other
day, and you know that is something. | gen
orally hold on to with a strong grip. l heard
q lecture delivered by a certain popular divine
once, in which he remarked that when the
lahorer had learned to eat from table-c cloth,
and felt that it was an improper thing for the
father and mother and their well-grown chill
dren to sleep in the same room, that that la
f bod. Il