Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1888-10-02
THE Chinese BILL.
1t Has Been Signed by President
Cleveland.
A MESSAGE TO CONGRESS.
The Washington ACCOMPLISHMENTS DIS.
. closures VIII Probably Cause Great
Sensation-Congrcss DIsturbed--An
Investigation to Bo Made.

WASHINGTON, Oct 2.-The president has
signed the Chinese bill, and has transmitted
it to congress, accompanied by long message
The message began as follows:
''I have this day approved house bill No.
Ill ,33G, supplementary to an act entitled
AN act to execute certain treaty stipuln-
tions relating to Chinese, approved tho 9th
day of May, 1882. 1t seems TO me that some
suggestions and recommendations may prop
erly accompany my approval of this bin.
sits object is to more effectually accom-.
plish by legislation the exclusion from this
country of Chinese laborers. The experiment
of blending the social habits and mutual race
idiosyncracies of the Chinese laboring classes
with those of the great body of the people oi
the United States has been proved by the
experience of twenty years, and ever
since the Burlingame treaty OF 1868 to
be in every sense unwise, impolitic and IN
furious to both nations. With the lapse OF
time the necessity for its abandonment has
grown in force until those having in charge
the government of the respective countries
have resolved to modify and sufficiently alb
rogate all those features Of prior conventional
arrangements which permitted the coming
of Chinese laborers to the United States"
About tho only matter which will be
brought up in the conference report on the
sundry civil service bill is the proposition to
suspend work on the Washington aqueduct,
and to order an investigation by the two
houses. AS to this there will not be division.
All who have voted for the new aqueduct OF
who have had anything TO do with it feel that
they have been outraged; that it should have
been impossible for two army officers to have
been so incompetent, or to have so neglected
their duty; that the astounding frauds al
ready discovered could have been perpe-
trated. Every congressman feels personal
interest in the NATTER as If he had suffered
an indignity by the disclosures.
These frauds viii greatly injure the reputa,
tion of the engineer corps with congress.
This corps has been justly regarded as the
highest corps of the army Its officers are
men of character, and have always been 70
garded as men of ability. Congress has felt
that the interests Of the government were
safe when the expenditure of the appropria-
tions for the rivers and harbors were in
trusted to them. But there seems TO
be something in the social atmos
phere Of Washington which enervates
some OF the best men Of the service. Men
who have been conspicuous on the frontier
and in the hardships of actual service seem to
be often overcome by the titles and languorn
of the superficial social life of this city, and
prefer, as in this case apparently, to be lions
at the clubs, and in the drawing rooms of the
West End, than to be performing plodding
and irlzsome duty in the noisome darkness Of
the aqueduct tunnel IC is even said that
one Of the army officers responsible for
the construction of this work, whose
signature that the work has been
satisfactorily performed is required for every
voucher upon which payment is made to the
contractors, has himself never set foot IN the
tunnel, except on one occasion when he ac-
companied congressional committee there.
| An investigation is to be made by congress
| into all this, but nothing has been heard that
The war department contemplates any in
| auiry Of its own, or that the officers them
selves have asked for an inquiry.
| The presidents message to congress am
| uouncing his approval Of the Chinese ex-
| :lusion bill, accompanied by communica-
zion submitting certain recommendations on
;he subject, was read, ordered printed, aud
referred to the committee ON foreign affairs.
Mr.. Sherman said that the only legislative
| suggestion made by the president had been
| acted upon, and that an appropriation OF
s276,00 to indemnify Chinese for losses in-
| licted on them in the territories had been
| put in the deficiency bill.
| Mr.. Hale added that the item was now in
con 'erence between the two houses.