Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-12-29
CHINESE SOCIETIES.
DISSERTATION ON THEIR HARMFUL
NESS BY ONE WHO KNOWS.
They Are Menace to ANY Community
The Trouble That They
Cause Abroad.

! udlS, 10 CDTlS. OO4, tne veteran OI the IOrCe.
Detective Cox was in Sacramento day
or two ago, looking up evidence against q
Mongolian murderer, who will shortly be
tried in the Courts of the metropolis. A
evening, and had a long chat with the
modern Vidocq, obtaining much valuable
information.
1.-THE more l become acquainted with
the ways and customs of the Chinese"
said Mr.. Cox, "the more thoroughly be-
come impressed with the consistency with
which they violate the laws of morality and
right. The average Chlnaman-the class
which generally emigrates from the Flowery
Kingdom, and settles in this and other
| countries-does not value a human life
more than he does q rat when that life
stands in his way for anything. Half of
the murders that occur in Chinatown in
San Francisco are over trivial money
matters. For instance, one becomes in
| debted to another, and does not like
to be dunned by his creditor. Neither
does he like to lIquidate the debt. If he
is too cowardly to murder his creditor him
| self he hires one of the professional MUIR
derers or highbinders to do the job for him
for small consideration. Then when the
police are searching for the murderer, the
latters friends will point out some member
of an opposition company or society, and
swear that they saw him commit the
crime. We arrest the man, and they will
come to Court and convict him if they can
| and have no doubt but that some poor
devils have been hanged on Just such evil
dence.
THE Chinese society or company system
is what makes them such a menace to the
countries in which they settle. The pro-
pensity of the Chinese is to unite in secret
societies of a semi-religious semi-political
nature. In China these associations are
condemned. They are source of terror TO
the officials, who never know what mo-
ment city or province will be thrown
into the direst disorder and rebellion by
the Vaccinations of these bodies. The
penalty on all connected with them is
death yet in spite of the vigilance of the
| Government and the fact that no quarter
is given, these societies exist and flourish.
| "These societies are organized and -four
| ish to an alarming extent in San, francisco,
and you have them right here in Sacra-
mento, as well as every other place of any
size where the Chinese form part of the
population. Each of these societies is a
| veritable government in itself 1t has its
penal lsws-such as they are-their courts
| judges, detectives and avengers. Each
maintains, too, miniature standing army
| Now, when member Of one of these socie-
ties gets into trouble with a member of
another society, the fight is taken up by
| both bodies, and much blood flows If a
member is killed by one of the opposition,
| their detectives are put on the scent, and it
is not long before they learn who the muir
| derer is. The avengers are then sent out,
and it is only a question of time, if the
| slayer remains in town, before he is killed
| "If an officer happens to be near the
scene of the crime when it is committed
and is fortunate enough to capture one or
more of the ood-thirsty highbinders, this
is considered a misfortune by the Chinese
as they have to go to considerable expense
and needless trouble in carrying on the
matter in the American Courts. They will
| produce as many witnesses as is necessary,
and more, too, to swear to anything that is
desired. If had my way about the trying
of Chinese cases in Court | would throw
| every case out in which the witnesses were
all Chinese. They will bring their society
| fights into the Courts, and it's an impossi-
| bility to get at anything like the truth. The
| only cases in which there is any chance of
getting at the facts are those in which some
witnesses who are not Chinese can be Sc
| cured.
But to return to the societies. AS I said
before, they have their own Courts, Judges
| and the like. When member commits a
wrong against another member of the same
society, such as robbing him or assaulting
| him, he is brought before the company's
| tribunal Chat is. of course, in those cases
where the police have net apprehended the
miscreant), and he is there tried. If the
| Court finds him guilty, the company holds
/ q ~
punishment to be melted out If it is a
trivial offense he has to pay fine, but if it
| is an offense of any magnitude he is either
| tortured or whipped or expelled. l have
heard of cases where the defen dant was put
to death by the avengers, by order of the
| society, and"
"And the police don't arrest them ?" in
| terrupted the sstonished reporter.
| "Why, bless you," said the detective
'they don't know anything about it. How
are we going to arrest anybody when we
can't even locate these Courts. Every
member of these societies is bound by the
| most terrible of oaths never to diyulge any
| of the proceedings, and you can rest as
| sured that they never violate their oaths-
| it would mean death 10 them if they did.
| By the way, our speaking of these societies
reminds me of an article cut out of an
| old English paper some time ago. | have
| it here somewhere among my letters. 1t
will show you how general this practice is
among the Chinese all over the world.
America, as yet, apparently suffers the
least. Read it."
The newspaper man took the crumpled
and soiled clipping which the detective
| dug out of the depths of his inside pocket
and perus=d it. 1t was in reference to
the troubles these Chinese societies caused
in the British Eastern colonies as
well as those of the Dutch in Siam, the Phil
| ippines and elsewhere, and where it became
necessary to take special measures against
this danger. Not only has it been found"
read the article, that the power given by
the rules of these societies to their head
men are inconsistent with public order
not only has it given the societies at criti-
cal periods an almost overwhelming
| weight-but great cruelties have been per-
petrated on those who have refused to join
| them. Assassinations and riots are fire.
quent, and in all the countries above men,
toned to belong to Chinese secret society
is in itself a crime. Next to the secrecy
which is maintained by the members, the
most prominent feature of these associa-
tons is their violent hostility TO each other,
which frequently breaks out in desperate
riots, like that recently in Bangkok, where
the disturbance was not put down until
after a pitched battle with the troops, in
which large number of the rioters were
shot dead. In every annual report from
the straits settlements special section is
devoted to the misdeeds of these societies.
For years past law has been in force
there compelling registration of all Chinese
friendly societies, and declaring illegal all
that are not registered; although this is
administered with great vigilance and
stringency, it has been found unequal to
the task of restraining illicit combination,
and recently bill was laid before the
Legislative Council at Singapore for the
suppression Of all Chinese secret societies.
This would have passed unanimously, were
it not that Lord Knutsford thought it desir-
able to give this drastic policy more consid
Grafton before finally agreeing 10 it. One
recent official report from the Straits says
that the state of the Chinese secret soci-
cites is such as to seriously engage the at
tention of the Government The MEM
bers of registered secret societies in Singa-
pore number about 10000, and in Penang
100, COO. 1t will be remembered that these
are wealthy colonies, with powerful police
forces: that a large body of troops is always
stationed there, and that squadron of
war vessels is always within easy reach.
The alarm which these bodies excite in
other places, where the guardians of pub