Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1879-02-19
1.-The Heathen Chince. ,,

AhC htntuCu NhtaNNN
The United States Senate passed last
week the bill restricting Chinese immi-
grafton aad if President Hayes signs The
Gill hereafter no vessel can land more than
Fifteen Cinnamon on our coast unless they
como to be educated and have n certificate
from the Chinese government to that
effect. Er. Edmunds denounced the bill
rs contrary to the spirit if not also the
letter OF our constitution and il was OPP
posed strenucusly by both Mr.. Edmunds
and Mr.. Morrill,. Senator Blaine advocat-
ed its passage.
A bad feature of it is tho fact that it
contravenes a treaty now existing between
this country and China and there is little
waraat for the belief that any such way
of a6rogating obnoxious provisions of Il
treaty with any powerful nation would BE-
adopted by US. 1t is therefore of n piece
with the hoodlum abuse of Cinnamon
which prevails in California and stamps
the lower forms of American citizenship
with a heathenism worse than that of the
Celestial himself.
There is nothing really logical to be
said against tho position taken by Mr..
Edmunds that the spirit of the act is
opposed to all Tie traditions Of our coun-
try and to the spirit of our institutions MS
embodied in the constitution. But true as
fhs is and true as it is that the metive for
its passage is low fear of offending the
ruling Caucasian vote there are things in
the subject matter worthy of most serious
thought. If the object to be attained had
been pursued in the civilized method of
amending the treaty as originally proposed
so rs to keep our word good with the
heather our missionaries are trying to
convert, there would have been an alto
gelher different aspect to the case. The
thing sought would have been as contrary
TO our traditions and former policy but i,
would have been obtained in Il legitimate
manner.
But the obtaining it in decent manner,
or in the indecent manner proposed, will
mark a new departure that may be follow
ed out to results that will overturn the old
theory that this country is i" free to all, :"
aud "a refuge for the oppressed of all ma
uons." And it is y serious question
whether this new departure would not be-
Of advantage to us in the long run.
For years Americans have looked on the
swelling of census returns rs n mark OF
progress; we were getting every time we
counted to be such big country. and size
has come to overshadow quality. Through.
out the north in the large cities we have
come more and more to government bv
the unfit. And reconstruction in the south
has unloaded hundreds of thousands of
votes into the ballot boxes that do not rep
resent any proper degree of intelligence.
This gives no excuse for Withholding
rights already granted whether by bull.
doing. intimidation of laborers or by tbs.
sue ballots and whether exercised north
or south. But there is little wonder that
when new supply of possible voters,
whose aid neither great party is sure of
securing, is likely to be put upon the
country there should be pause in the race
we have been running.
The discussion of the Chinese question
therefore may lead to radical change in
the theory on which our government,
works. 1t opens up the question whether
we shall longer offer inducements for i'm.
migration; whether our present citizens
are better off or worse off because of the
incoming of people from other countries :;
whether we have the moral and political
right to bar out from coming here at all
folks who compete with laborers amono
us who now work in an overstocked labor
market; and whether having the right it
is good business policy in the long run to
exercise that right. 1t always brings ont
sharply the fact that we, while bound TO
keep our naturalization laws uniform
have the right to so order them that sub.
stantially they shall prohibit nuturaliza.
ton.
And 1t will be seen tina: there is much
to be said on both sides of the hitherto
unagitated questions. While we do rs we
do with others the present bill is nm in.
consistency and an outrage, that inconsist-
ency and outrage are snch merely hecause
we nave run in rut heretofore and they
are such comparatively only. For with a
change in our theory and practice MS to
other Immigrants the inconsistency would
disappear and the outrage side would he
an open question dependent on what should
be determined to be the interests ,f o,,.
present population and our rights, consi,4-
erlng our duties to humanity at large, in
protecting those interests when determin.
ed.
Whllc therefore rs nation we have
reason to be ashamed of the ,passoge of
this Chinese restriction bill it is we'll
enough for the American citizen to con.
slider whether it is not an opening, nm.
promising and dirty TO be sure, towards u
new avenue of travel for our government
in its whole foreign policy. The logic of
events will make things uniform one way
or the other in the end and it is we'll for
people to be thinking what sort of uni
iormity will DO in the end the best for the
country.
1t looks to the Tribune more like Tilden
and Thurman than any other combination.
Among the proposed appropriations by