Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1884-05-04
CONGRESsIONAl.


The House then went INTO Commute
OF the Who'll, Cox of New York Ia th
cnair. on the bill amending the Chimes
Immigration Act.
Cox left the chair and spoke in sur
port Of the bill. which he said was ia
Joint product Of the delegations fror
California, Oregon. Nevada. Arizon
and Washington Territory. Never ha
measure received An indorsemen, NOR
nearly unanimous or more earnest tha
mad TINS bill received from the people q
the Pacific Coast, while II might be a.
sailed on the ground that in 500 va
II was hostile 10 the doctrine of univer
sal fatherhood and good brotherhood
Meauwhlle it nigh, be criticised b
( those Who had not studied its sQbjec
matter. There WAS this fact counecte,
WITH 1t, that while the people inhabltlu
tract Of country sufficient FOX All Ell,
pure came With pr .ctlctl unanlmite aul
deman led the e.artment of this meas
ure, iis opponents could not be ac
q1Ainted with tee civilization whicI
was 1is subject. l. vas a civilization
which presented the strange paradox O
CIVILIZATION without the slightest aneli
Grafton of humanity. The mlnorIl
report intlmtted that the enactment o
this lay might break our friendly rela
tons with England. This 7upp1sitior
hs con sldered utterly bas-l4ss. EuglanC
herself IN Australia had enacted meas
ores infinitely more restrictive IN tbei
provisions than any that can be founC
III the pending bill. England was no
going 20 quarrel with Us for doing VIVA
she had done herself, but If the appre
nensIon We're we'll founded, so momen
tons was this question, 50 far reacuinl
IN its results, that he would still say. le
this measure pass. If amitv with Grea
Britain was only to be purchased at the
price Of the degradation of tue laborin-
people, 1t was too large a price for II
and Congress could do nothing noble!
than To answer No
George said he would not enter into A
discussion Of the necessity for the pass
age of this measure. When the original
act was before the House he had lie
clared hls views on tLe subject, and
only wished nov - reiterate III deciar-
atiuns In ALL their force. Iue people OF
the Pacific coast came before the 4sth
Congress and po,nted out some defects
which time aid experience had shown
to exist In the original act. They ask
ed for remedial legislation. He believ-
ed that the provisions of the pending
bill were absolutely necessary for the
enforcement of the original act. That
act did not provide for punishment in
cases of Its violation. If Congress mad
the right to say that certain persons
should not enter this country, 1t had nc
right, and it AS Absolutely ne ,essary
that 1t shodld be exercised, to provide
punishment for them If they did come.
This pending bill, If that were the
only provision In 1t. would merit the
careful attention and favorable consid-
GRAFTON Of this House. He appealed to
his side of the House to stand by the
interests of the Pacific coast. 1t Was
not party measure with the people of
that region. The people there were
united: they looked on this measure as a
matter of the very greatest Importance
to their advancement. prosperity and
happiness in the future.
Rice opposed the bill.
Referring to some remark of Henley 8
relative TO the religion of the Chinese.
hs quoted from letter written him by
a Chinese merchant, enclosing sub
scrlption of $500 for the Garfield Me-
mortal Hospital friend. He prayed his
California friends to amend the act by
providing that, instead of passports,
the men who had subscribed to the Gar
field Memorial fund should present
their re ceIpts for not less than $500 be-
fore they were permitted to come to
this country to view the hospital they
had helped to build. Who showed the
best spirit, the disciples of COnfucius,
who, $50 years before the Christian era,
had declared DO not to others that
which you would not wish them to do
to you, or those who wear the sign of
Jesus of NaZ .reth, Though he feared
they did not always exhibit the spirit of
the Master III their acts.
Budd inquired wheth the gentl. man
did not know that the Chinese had no
regard for their daughters, did not even
give them names. and sold them into
prostitution that they sold their wives
and killed their children.
Rice replied he had not known more
than half of that before but he did
know that there were many bad places
Ill the world. some In China, some In
San francisco, some i'll New York and
some, in :, very slight degree, in Wash
ington. Returning to the consideration
of the bill, he said that its heart and
kernai was contained i'll the fift-euth
which applied provisions
of law to Chinese who re- subjects of
China or any other foreign power. That
was all there WAS In the bill that was
not purile and frivolous !; it was the " he
all aud end all of the bill. 1t was in
tended to exclude English Chinese from
h.
treaty right to do that How long
would England keep her ironclads from
oar cities If the United
States should refuse her subject CHI
nese though they were, II right 10 set
foot on our 81 ore Did the gentlemen
think the English governor of Hong
kong would sit down and grant Chinese
sailors on Engl sh vessels the ridiculous
oertinc tie which the bill required !!
" ere the gentlemen ready here and now
To enact law when its only provision
would either be ignored as foolish bonn
bast by the English or lead to war with
that country D.? The bill vas petty one
III it'd details. presumptuous III Its at
tempts and impossible AZ TO execution.
The country ought to cultivate friendly
relations with China i'll order to cnlti-
yate advantages IN trade and commerce..
He adiured the House not to do that
which woald cover the broad Pacific
with the red flags of w: and conquest,
but rather that which would cover II
with the white sails and iron kee'ed
ships of commerce, aud would weave
iudissolube bonds of friendship and
amity across the ocean. Let not Con
cress buiid upon the Pacific Coast a
Chinese wall. with gates opening only
within and cannon frowning without,
but rather lei from the high turrets of
Christian civilization the electric light
o! science and philanthropy shine
across the Pacific To illuminate the dark
places of the old lands where the race
was born.
Glasscc ok. in brief speech, defended
this bill from Rice's criticisms, and ex
pressed amaZement at the mlsappre-
heusion which existed IN the Eastern
States az 10 the Chinese character. Not
wlthstanding the assertions OF the gen
,i.u,n from Massachusetts,. there was
not an amendment proposed to tue law
that was not based on some sound. sub
stantlal reasons.
Sumner. of California, said the pur-
nose of the bill was to perfect the law
enacted two wears ago. asd remedy the
del. cts foand To exist IN II. He defend
ed the paopriety of that legislation on