The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1883-10-04

important Decision BY Judges Field
and Sawyer, Sitting Ut San
Francisco.
Chinese Laborcrs, Even Though British
Subjects, Arc Excluded by the
Law.
ls,an irtnnclscu rcicrtain.I

kAh Francisco ToIcpfntnI
Justice Field and Judge Sawyer have rem
acfcd their decision In tho habcns corpus
tnse or All Lung, who, IN his petition, nd
n,its being Chinese by race language and
rolon also laborer, huh having beun bofn
N Hong Kong, he claimed to BIO British
subject and that m such no did not come
under the provisions Of the exclusion act Of
May q, 1854
Judge Field and Sawyer, In reviewing the
case, find that the answer TO- the question
depends upon the meaning OK the act, ma
petitioner owes allcpiancc; that II was
not TO BIO presumed that Congress
Intended to disregard the requirements
Of the treaty, ur to abrogate any of Its
clnnsra Whether the treaty hns been vio-
lated by one Government IN ITO Legislative
casion OF complaint by the foreign Govern
ment II not = judicial question to tho courts
IL In simply the case OF conflicting laws be-
tween the act OF May, lss. modifying or
kuperseding prior ,reaty. The couit then
proceeds, reviewing at length causes which
the appeals from white lHborcrs Of all classes
10 tho Government which resulted In the
supplementary treaty OF $50, and the SUBJ
fcuacnt restrictive at OF May, 1874 The
decision concludes ms follows.
The act Ut Congress had double pur-
pose II was 10 carry out certain treaty
stipu'ations with China, and also to exclude
Chinese laborers coming from any part ot
the wurld Its trainers knew, rs we ait
know, that the island OF Hong Kong would
pour Chinese laborers into our country
every year In nnnumbcfel thousands un-
net NJ the act declares IN Its first section
that during the period Of ten years the COM
ing 81 Chinese lahorers to the United states,
without any limit alton OF the country from
which they night have come, IL suspended,
and during such suspension il shall not
be lawful fer any Chinese lahorsr 70
come, or, having come, after expiration OF
ninety days 10 remain within the nitcd
states Tho second 50 ton makes II mis-
icmcanor punishable ny fine or imprison-
ment ar hot for the master Of vessel 70
knowingly bring into tho United states on
any Chinese lahorcrs from any foreign port
or place The language IN these sec ions 10
sufficiently Iroad and comprehensive 70
embrace all Chinese laborcrs without regard
to the country OF which they may DO SUD
iects and the twelfth section declares that
any Chinese person found unlawfnllv within
the United States shall he removed there
from by direction Of the President to the
country from whence he came
sOur attention has been called TO recent
decision Of Judges Lowell and Nelson, oil the
Circuit Court oil the United States for the
District of Massachusetts,, in which dlfter-
cnt conclusion was reached by them. Those
Judges considered that the act Of Congress
was simply intended to give effect TO the
sttrulatiens Of the supplementary treaty.
Undoubtedly that was one OF its objects, but
Il il very evident. 10th from the circum-
stances under which it was passed and from
it, language, that il had . still further OBJ
icct The construction which we give rem
aers all Its provisions consistent with each
other. The whole purpose Of the law to OK.
clu,te Chinese lahorcrs from the State would
be- defeated by any other construction
"1he release of the pris 1ner must be de-
MED, and he must he returned to the ship
from which he was taken, and 1t 10 SO or
,icrria