Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1880-03-25
DOMESTIC NEWS.
The Chinese Ministry and Commission
Views of the Pacific Coast Delegation.

Especial to the REcoRD-UNIoN.l
WASHINGTON, March 24th.-About 3
o'clock this afternoon the President sent to
the Senate three nominations, as follows
James B. Angel, of Michigan, to be Envoy
Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
to China, vice George f. Seward, recalled
THAT is to say, remoyed), and John T. Swift,
of California, and William H. Wescott, OF
South Carolina, to be Commissioners to Chi
ma, to negotiate treaty.
Mr.. Angel, as heretofore stated in these
dispatches, is now President of the Michigan
State University, a is native of New England,
and was formerly editor of Senator Anthony's
paper, the Providence Journal
Mr.. Wescott was Assistant Secretary Of
State under President Buchanan, and previ-
ously occupied the position of Secretary OF
the United States Legation at London. He
remained in private life on his South Caro-
lima plantation during the war, and of late
years has been employed by Secretaries Fish
and Evarts in several matters of Importance
connected with the work of the State Depart
ment. Thus he prepared the case of the
United States and acted as our attorney be-
fore the Halifax Fishery Commission, and it
is understood that he wrote for Secretary
Evarts the long report on the interoceanic
canal question, which was recently sent To
Congress. He is a learned and accomplished
man, Oh DISTINGUISHED lLd0U6TS anu
and appears to be about 80 years of age
Your correspondent, by conversation with
the members of the Pacific coast delegation,
has obtained their views with regard to this
new and anomalous movement on the part of
President Hayes administration, and here
with presents them:
Senator Booth and Representative Horace
Davis agree in saying that although this plan
is contrary to their advice and wishes, and
that while they would have vastly preferred
the appointment of Mr. Swift as Minister,
or, failing in that, would have desired to have
the negotiations intrusted to him as sole
Commissioner, they nevertheless consider it
substantial gain to have the work placed in
his charge in conjunction with another Com
missioner, but would rather have it intrusted
to an Eastern Minister or to an Eastern
Commissioner alone. They also understand,
from what Secretary Evarts has said, that
these Commissioners are to be sent out with
positive instructions to accomplish the object
of restricting Chinese immigration to this
country, and they are very hopeful that the
Chinese Government will not make much
objection to prompt negotiations for a recipro-
cal treaty on this subject that will be eff
cacious and satisfactory. At the same time
they propose continuing their efforts to pro-
cure the enactment of the fifteen passenger
bill by Congress, regardless of the pending of
the negotiations. just as it was pressed to
passage in the last Congress while negotiations
were still declared to be in progress.
Representative Page is unequivocally OPP
posed to the Commission as constituted by
President Hayes. He remarked that of
course nothing can be accomplished through
negotiations unless the diplomatic representa-
tives of our Government and the Pekin au-
thorities arrive at an agreement, and this, he
says, cannot possibly be expected, for the
Chinese Government and the Eastern Minis
ter and Eastern Commissioner will be certain
to range themselves on one side, while Swift
will stand alone on the other. "If," gays
Mr.. Page, "the President and Secretary
Evarts are acting in good faith, they should
appoint Minister who represents princi-
pie opposite to that represented by the Chi
nese Government, and send him to Pekin
with instructions to insist upon a modifca-
ton of the treaty to restrict Mongolian emf
grafton. If positive instructions of this sort
are to be given, one Commissioner is as good
as two or a dozen Commissioners. and one
Minister may be as effectively instructed as
any Commission, and more so. Fair play
would have dictated the appointment of
Swift as Minister, with instructions to nego-
tate a treaty; but the present movement
looks like trifiing with Pacific sentiments,
and / believe the people of California and the
Pacific coast will repudiate this attempt to
stock the jury that are to decide this i'm
portant question"
Congressman Pacheco says that as direct
proposition he has been opposed to it, but as
it has been done, it must be accepted as some
thing much better for the Administration to
do than to do nothing. He regards it as a
step forward which will result in advantage
to the anti-Chinese movement, by attracting
Eastern attention to the Importance of the
subject, If in no other way, and he is also
sanguine that what the Eastern Minister and
Commission will see in California, and learn
from Swift's able presentation of the subject,
will enlighten their Eastern prejudices on the
Chinese question, and lead to harmonious ae-
ton and good results.
Congressman Berry does not believe that
the new plan will amount to anything. The
Eastern commercial and so-called humani-
tartan influences will be sufficient to produce
a division of opinion in the Commission in
regard to the question of immigration, and
China, being unwilling to yield the advsn-
taces she now enjoys under the one-sided
Bnrlingame treaty, will readily take advan-
tage of this division to prevent anything
being accomplished. Moreover, he believes
the Eastern Minister will exert his influence
against US on this question, and thus make
our chances of success still smaller.
Representative OdSrCiS ASS nus tiio uio'S
ment simply as an effort to take the Chinese
question out of politics. and favors passing
the fifteen passenger bill as soon as possible.
and sending it to President Hayes to veto If
he dare. Dacgett also believes that under
this proposed Commissioner plan the Chinese
could and would consume three or four years
of time in cunningly protracted negotiations,
in which they are proverbiaily adroit
Congressman Whitaker also regards this
Commissioner idea as a device TO remove the
Chinese question from politics and allay its
agitation for the time being. and at first
glance he does not believe it will amount to
anything.
Senator Farley says the proposition is a
departure from all usage and custom. A
Minister appointed from the Pacific coast
might have accomplished something, but
California Commissioner. who IN all prooa-
bility will find himself handicapped at every
turn, cannot be expected under such cIrcum-
stances to accomplish anything. Mr. Farley
adds that unless he shall become convinced