Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1886-05-15
i,OuSe.

day Or sented to the Senate were, to-day,
submitted to the House and appropriately
referred. In the morning hour Mr.. Belmont
called up the joint resolution providing in
demnity to certain Chinese subjects for
losses sustained within the jurisdiction of
sidered in Committee OF the Whole. Mr..
Belmont gave history OF the Chinese
massacre at Rock Springs, Wyoming. None
OF the persons engaged in the outrage ap-
peared to be Amer can citizens. Rock
Springs consisted of two settlements, one
Inhabited by Welchmen and Swedes, the
other by Chinese, all receiving the same rate
of pay. For eight years the white and
Chinese miners had lived peacefully. Last
summer a strike was attempted to be
organized by the white miners in which the
Chinese refused to take part. The evidence
was clear and satisfactory that no other
cause of offense was given. On the second
of September the white miners, to the num-
per OF $50, armed themselves with rifles
and made an attack ON the defenseless
Cinnamon, killing twenty eight, wounding
many others, and burning and plunderlng
their quarters. Bv the passage OF this
resolution the United States would express
it's sympathy with the victims OF wrong.
prevent nor foresee it, must be
clear, ard that the results OF mob
violence had only to be made known to the
House to meet with the condemnation
which it merited. All consideration as to
the responsibility of the Federal Govern
ment in it's relations to the States and Ter
ritorial jurisdiction should I've waived IN the
performance Of plain duty.
Mr.. Pelton, of California, thought that II
the Committee on Foreign Affairs had ex-
pended it's time in examining the causes un-
~,
! looked into the history of the past it would
have found that these outrages were the
| natural result of Chineseimmigration. The
committee should have addressed it's at
| tention to remedying this evil rather than
to paliating and paying for scenes like thus.
Mr.. Morrow, of California, said that
standing alone the measure was OF doubtful
| hetween the Chinese and the United States
| and the necessity for further legislation and
for a treaty stipulation absolutely pro-
hibitipg the emigration of Chinese subjects,
he was disposed to think that the benevo-
ience of Congress might be an act Of wis
! dom, The whole affair at Rock Springs
had been disgracsful in the extreme and
| could not be excused nor ignored. The
most that could be said was that no citi-
gen of the United States had been engaged
| in the massacre, but this did not right the
| wrong which had been committed on Amer
ican soil. Our Nationalpower was invoked.
| The question arose why did not the Fed
| eral Government assume the obi-
cations OF the loc Il and territorial COM
munity. The answer was that
no local obligations were assumed:
hut because the local authorities had failed
to enforce the laws of the United States he
would, under the peculiar circumstances OF
the case, and as an act cf beDevoienre,
satisiv the claimant. The people OF the
limited States, and especially the people OF
tie Pacific Coast were deeply concerned in
the relations between the United states
and China, an the Pacific Coast demanded
that the immigration OF Chinese laborers
should absolutely cease. He was in favor
~ the resolution because it would
strenethen the Executive in his attempts
to secure of China, laws to put stop to
immigration.
Mr.. McKenna, OF California, expressed
h;a horror OF the outrage perpes rated at
Rock Syringe, hut thu House, in thiaexcited
svmnathy was apt to consider, aa 'mean''
refnsal to. indemnify the victims,
Int in was not clear to him that
w ou' outbreak OF antipathy, in.which
% American participated, notwithstand'
~. M T. vas made horrible by arson and muir
dr. & had any claim upon the consideration
oSij 81 0onsress. The sreanins calsndars OF the