The Portland daily press., 1882-03-08
XLVIIth Congress-1st Session.
SENATE.


Mr. Sherman reported from the finance COM
mittee the following original bill which went
to the calendar.
Bill. TO PROVIDE FOR THE CONVERSION OR
REDEMPTION OF $40 REFUNDING CERTIFICATE
Be it enacted that all certificates OF deposit issued
under the provisions of the Act of February 10th,
1879 entitled San Act to authorize the the issue OF
certificates of deposit in aid of refunding OF the
public debt" not presented for CONVERSION ao INTO
january 20th 1871, on or before the hrst DAY OF
July next shall be convertible only into registered
| bonds of said loan; provided however that the
| Treasurer of the United States may redeem at
market rates at any time under such regulations as
the Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe, any
such outstanding certificates with accrued interest
| to date Of presentation, the amount OF such re-
| demptions to be credited to the sinking fund.
| Mr. McDill presented the memorials of Iowa
| legislature for the appropriation OF not less
souri, river between Sioux city, Ia, and St.
| Charles Mo-, and relating to title OF Des
| Moines river lands.
| Mr.. Beck from the finance committee re-
| ported favorably with an amendment
| bill to PUNISH unlawful certifcation of checks
! by officers of National banks. Amendment
| extends the provisions making the wilful VIC
| lation of the act of 1869 misdemeanor, pun
| ishable by fine and imprisonment so as to COW
er specifically a case in which any one 'shall re-
sort to any devise receive iand fictitious obi
CATION or pretended collateral in order to evade
| the provisions thereof"
| Mr.. Beck gave notice of an amendment to
| the committee amendment striking out words
Fictitious and pretended"
On motion of Mr.. Morrill, the finance COM
| mittee was discharged from consideration OF
| the bill to cheaper transportation on railroads.
| Mr. George introduced joint resolution au-
| thorizing the Secretary OF War in his dlscre-
ton to use hospital tents now possessed by the
| War Department to furnish temporary shell
| ter to the distressed people driven from home
| by the Mississippi overflow. Passed.
| AT 1.30 the Chinese bill was again taken up.
| Miller, Fair and Farley presented dispatc hes
| from mass meetings held in California and
| Nevada, reciting their proceedings and resolu-
| tions they adopted in advocacy of the bill.
| Mr.. Dawes then took the floor in opposition
| to the measure The dispatches just read he
said furnished ample proof of the blind, furi-
GUS and darkening passion which threatened to
| swallow up every effort to deliberately consider
| the economical and what might be called the
| sentimental objections to the bill. He depre-
| Gated the impolicy of moulding legislation for
| the whole country upon the dictates OF To-
| cality, and contended that the restrictions up
| on the permitted classes as we'll as the practi-
| cal prohibition against Chinese laborers for
| twenty years contravened not only the late but
| the former treaty.
Mr.. Slater here remarked that the Burling-
1 anne treaty gave Chinese subjects privileges
| only which pertained to residents from other
| countries, and that those restrictive words
| were not included in any other treaty.
Mr.. Dawes said thosea privileges protected a
4 new com er in his residence in going to and fro
| whenever he was located in the United States,
but that a. bill drawn in the spirit OF hate. and
| supported by the same sediment which actuat-
ed the Sand Letters of San Francisco, made q
| distinction in the Chinese already here as
/ against the poor laborers and in favor of the
I-aristocrat. He charged that the measure was
based upon this discrimination. While it as
sume6 not to prohibit .laborers, it threatened
| with penitentiary those of them who might be
found without passportslwhich it required.
Mr.. Edmunds defended the principle upon
which the bill was based. He said the funda-
mental prosperity of the republic consists in the
homogenety of its people, that the Cinnamon
here did not sssimulate socially or politically,
| and were not homogeneous with our popula.
ton, and it did not now appear they could as.
simulate. He favored limitation OF period OF
L suspension to ten years as conforming the bill
| more directly to the spirit of the treaty. As
thus modified this legislation would be equiva-
lent to saying not that we deny assimilation tc
Cinnamon if he is capable of that, but only
that we shall suspend immigration of hun
| dreds of thousands of his race until we have
tried an experiment as to compatibility with
| the Chinese who are already here. Many ma
tives he said, hold the right of repatriation il
| merely conventional. The people Of Vermont
had always held that that right was one which
| their own constitution should recognize, but
| always with the provision that it was depend
emit upon the willingness of the people to hon
! the immigrants proposed to come to receive
them. Abiding to the humanitarian senti
| ment expressed by the Senators from Massa
| chusetts, he expressed doubt whether the
people Of Massachusetts would desire, for in
stance, to encourage immigration of Africans
| In his opinion they would not hunger for an
| Eruption of a million inhabitants of Africa
not because they had any hostility to the Afr
| can or did not desire his education, growth Oh
development, but because they did not be-
lieve it was good TO two races to be brought
together Unfortunately in the same place
unless their race tendencies were such that
| being together, they assimilate and become
| homogeneous Perhaps, he added, Massachu
setts Senators will say their people are hunger
ing for African immigration. He could moi
speak for them, but thought he could reply
negatively for the people OF Vermont Ht
emphatically affirmed his belief in tie right O.
the people to determine upon consideration
pertaining only to its own welfare what othel
| peoples it would receive into its own society
He shared in the opinion of the promoters O.
| the bill that it was not useful to the people OF
the United States, or of the Chinese Empire
that the increasing immigration from thai
| country to this should now continue.
Mr.. Platt then obtained the floor, but gave
way for motion for an extended session.
Pending action, California Senators urged
the bill should be disposed of to-day and, after
statement that Mr.. Platt, owing to the condi
ton of his health, preferred to proceed to-xnor
| row, endeavored to secure special limitation O.
the debate but unanimous consent was moi
obtained.
The following business was transacted.
Mr.. Frye introduced bill for the relief O
American shipping and urging special import
ance of the subject on the committee OF
commerce spoke of the discrimination made
by our laws in favor of foreign ocean lines ani
| against our coastwise vessels
He enumerated a list of fees now charge
/ able to coasters under our laws and showed
that they had been increased 10 times within
the last 20 years while the profits of the bust
ness had been decreased; that if one of oul
I coasters wanted to go mile or two further OF
trips to Canadian ports fees chargeable there
for amounted to $50 and $50; that admeasure
ment formerly costing about one $150 now
cost on small schooners SIS; under the presen
law hospital fees for an ordinary schooner
handled by five men amounted to 1874 pei
year, notwithstanding that sailors in the
coastiDg trade being Americans and having
homes of their own had no Deed for hospital
He denounced the tonnage tax of so cents pei
ton On American shipping as an outrage anG
one which as a purely war tax should bt
abolished While laxes upon all coasters go
ing to Canadian ports amounted to $50 or $6(
| year those upon Canadian vessels making
like number OF trips to our ports were only
about 1925 year. The Intercolonial railroad
from Bangor TO st. John, he said, completes
with coastlng vessels and yet we require Of
that company no papers, fees nor taxes.
These Determinations were onerous alike
upon the commercial community and yesse
| owners
In reply to suggestion of Mr. Beck, Mr.
Frye characterized the pilotage demands un
der the laws of New York as simply legalized
piracy.
Mr.. Hawley raised the question of state and
national taxation on vessels.
Mr.. Frye responded he had no question
about the authority of the United States to
exempt all ships engaged in foreign trade from
state or local taxes. He did doubt its authori-
ty to do this as to coastwise vessels, and there
was not the same reason for taking it off the
latter as these were largely taxed at home,
were registered where owned, and that if the
general government had power to relieve them
from taxation it would not be wise to do so al
this might impose an additional burden upon
| the owners
Mr.. Mcmillan reported favorably with
amendments bill to regulate licenses of vessels
engaged in coasting trade and fisheries.
Mr.. Frye introduced bill for fast ocean
steamship mail service, etc.
Adjourned.
HOUSE.
On motion of Mr.. Bingham of Pennsylvania
joint resolution was passed granting the
use of arms, tents, &C., at the encampment oil
the Grand Army of the Republic on the battle
field OF Gettysburg next July.