Los Angeles daily herald., 1886-03-23
CHEAP LABOR EAST.
The Land That Wants
Chinese so Bad,
BUT CAN'T STAND ITALIANS.
Tho Boot on Another's Foot and
How He Bears the
Squeeze.

tion of Chinese laDOr Oh tho ooiho
coast. Railroad. street, sewer and IKE
contracts are let to men who underbid
ali Others, and who go to New York,
get hold Of an Italian boss" and offer
him 81 day for laborers. The boss"
tbereupon gathers together all the ltal-
ians he wants at Soc to 65c day and
transports them to this State, to the ex-
clusion Of men who had previously de-
handed on this kind OF work at u 90
dav for a living. Those who read the
sio,s Of the times declare that this sort
III thing will ultimately bring trouble.
There has. indeed, been no little grum-
hing In many of the cities, but it mas
remained for Waterbury to take the
Rrst organized action. And 1t comes all
the mere forcibly, as this is known as
the plaoe where there are never any
strikes. The step, which Is the resui,
of tbe conference of the Amaigamatea
Labor and Trade Unions, was taken
quietly and without any intention OF
Violence. Reviewing the present status
of the laboring man In sn's oo"'
munity, and basing their argument
nnor the fact that the town Is now sup
nprting nearly 100 able.bopied men who
are ont of employment. this conference
has nresented TO the Common Council
set az resolutions providing that all pub
lic work for the city shall be done by
davis work, not by contract; that men
40 employed shall be paid $l.65 per day
az nine hours Overtime in proporton),
which shall be legal days work in the
departmeuts, and that only taxpaying
residents shall be employed. or persons
who have acquired residence by being
In the eity three months. The resolu-
tion also stipulates that any contractor,
foreman or overseer who snail vioiate
any of the provisions Of the ordinance
shall pay fine to the City treasurer OF
81 for each day such men are employee
or until he has complied with the oral
nance in full. Councilmen and Alder
men alike sqirmed under the resolution,
and proposed all sorts OF schemes ior
getting rid Of it without offending tnsir
Constituents. 1t was finally referred 70
the Law Committee by both Boards.
It was brought out in the argu'
ments that there we're many iapor-
ers who had scrsped together enough
to buy little piece Of land somewhere.
with the expectation that, when the
great sewers were built, they could get
work. rid themselves of encumbrances,
and live a fairly comfortable life. Work
was begun on the sewers, and thousands
of dollars were paid out for the work on
them, but hardly one cent of it to these
old. time laborers. The contractor mao
brought in the Italians, and the natives
had to 90 to the wall. Their iittie ali
was invested under the promise held out
by the city's improvements, and tne
taxes have long since eaten that up. on
the other hand, the Italians, while they
ware here. pecessitated the enlargement
of the police force, as they were contin-
ually in fight, lived on maccaroni, and
after the work was done went no one
knows where. The citizens rubbed Their
hands in glee at the time, because they
had got their sewers so cheaply, tut TO-
day the case presents an entirely differ
snt aspect. the consideration OF which Is
the most important which has come be-
fore the local Statesmen in many days.
All the cities in Connecticut will be in
terested in the outcome.
The East has been utterly unable to
comprehend the objections OF the Pacihc
States to the cheap labor Of the Mon
gols. Every Money-bags among them
who finds his way here and learns that
John is to be had for 81, he finding
himself, goes into spssms Of surprise
when he learns that business men, farm
ers, and even millionaires favor the
exclusion of Cinnamon from coming into
the Union, and would be glad to lind
peaceable method to get rid OF them
here by some process not violent nor
too sudden. He is amazed that any
but the poorest class Of laborers should
object. Yet see above how all classes
of cheap labor effect things even
among themselves. These Italians are
much less questionable than the Mon
eol. They will in time assmiltae with
the population of the country. They
will get into American schools, and
American ideas will inevitably get
into them. They will imbibs
free ideas in spite Of fate. They will
rise absve their bosses, and above work
ing for starving wages. Then again
what they do get they spend as last as
they get it and il remains here to fruc-
tify in the channels of trade. Better
extra police should get the shekels than
that they should go to China never TO
find their way back here to help develop
the country. The Chinese never rise
above the ten cents a day principle.
Thsy are fostering sore in the body
politic for all time. In nearly forty
wears there has not one OF them been
won from hisl habits in either physical,
social, economic, or neral sense. In All
.enses their presence has been an
evil. They are rotten with the worst
sort of vices. They have converted
thousands Of white boys and hundreds
of white girls, too, to the destructive
habit of smoking opium, and to other
,amelsss vices. Who can show one
Chipaman in Los Angeles who believes
in who has moral perception to COM
prehend the mysteries OF Christian doc-
trine? They are absolutely lacking in
fbe moral sense necessary to such com
prehension. The hardest subjects reiig-
ION linds among ourselves to handle are
Darwinian Agnostics. The Chinese, by
the teachings of Confucius, have been
Agnostics Of the most positive type Tor
thousands Of years. :.
All they get in daily wages IS sent d.
rectly out OF the country to the extent
Of 90 cents cut OF every dollar. The
odd dime goes back to the Celestial
shores to pay for the rice which they al
most subslst on.
The best thing that could be done for
Los Angeles would be to send the Mon
eols East. Every large city should have
10000 to $4,000 of them quartered in
it. Two excellent purposes would
be thereby subserved. First, the Pacific
States would be In peaceable way de-
liyered from thus incubus to labor, this
greatest obstacle to the development OF
the country. Secondly, the Eastern
Chinaphilists would certainly get dose
of the Mongol which would cure them OF
their love for the institution. So sure as
John ever gets into any city in force he
will cause a cry louder than the Jere-
uiads for deliveranoe. His grasp on
tbs industries OF community are as
fatal as the arms Of the octopus to the
swimmer in the deep, blue sea.
Yesterday two carloads of Chinese are
reported "a having passed Lathrop en-
route to the east. 1t is well. By al
means let the good work go on. The
coast will be rid OF them and will be
happy. The eastern philanthropists
will have them and will be just as happy
for while, but not so abidingly SO as
we shall be.
\ Captains Fortunate Dis
cOvery.
Captain Coleman, schr. Weymouth
plying between Atlantic City and New