The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-10-02
SEATTLE. FRIDAY. ocr. 2.
OUR STUPID CHINESE POLICY.

JOnn husSel 1Ouub, "hos AAO" -
official residence in China and his un-
official visit to that country with Gen.
Grant. knows more about the Celestial
Empire than any American, denounces,
more in the spirit of sorrow than anger,
the injurious consequences of our Chinese
foreign policy in the current number OF
the North american Review. American
influence in China has so steadily dimin-
ished that our flag, which in the days OF
Minister Burlingame had the prestige
almost of protectorate in Peking and at
one time was the dominant flag in Chinese
commerce, has today no authority
beyond certain domestic offices at
the consulate and legation. The
latest news from China includes the
announcement of the failure of the great
American house of Russell & Co., founded
in the early part of the century, when
Astor and Girard were in the China trade.
The commercial genius of this firm placed
the American flag in every port of China;
they saved Chinese prestige when it was
threatened by France, and there was
time when China would no more have
the English money power would have per-
mitted the failure of the Barings, because
pressed then by French invasion in AMMAN,
restless under German aggression, and fear
ing Russian encroachments, China saw in
the United States strong power, isolated
from all enmity to her interests, and
therefore strongly supported this famous
commercial house as q representative of
American ideas.
The great house of Russell & Co. has
fallen through the decay of American in
fluence because Of the indifference or
luminosity of China. China has permitted
what Is for the present the extinction of
American commercial influence in the
East. In 1885 the American flag was on
every coast and in every navigable stream
Of China, covering the largest commercial
fleet in the East, and represented the exist
ence of unbroken good feeling between the
two nations. Today our commercial feet
in the China waters is limited to an occa-
sional petroleum steamer.
The explanation of this situation Is
found In policy of contempt and insult
which Of recent years has been wantonly
and ignorantly enforced to the end of
alternating the commercial friendship of
China Mr.. Young is entirely within the
facts when he says that there has never
been a time when China would not have
gone further to suppress emigration than
our extreme friends in California would
have demanded" Commenting upon the
Washington decree that any person of
presumably Chinese origin who does not
possess certain tokens or papers shall be
returned to China as the country from
whence he came" Mr.. Young says:
1t was at one time within my personal knowl-
edge, and have learned of no official evidence
to the contrary, that there was no record in any
executive department. of Washington of q China
man coming to the United States from China.
From British possessions, like the Straits settle
ments where their kinsmen have lived for a
century or two; from the Dutch colonies in
Java; from Hongkong, much Of q British
possession as Londonderry; but In no instance
from China. Have we any right, then, to send
to China people who have abandoned that
country aud the protection of it's hag3 Would
we return presumable Englishmen to Liverpool
who had come to us from Havana or St. Thomas,
because they were apparently OF the Anglo
Saxon race? Would England permit 1t or allow
to pass without protest an executive order
which. with the knowledge in executive depart
nlents that Englishmen did not come to the
United States, could deport whoever were sup
posed to be Englishmen to Great Britain3
The utter absurdity and stupidity OF this
wanton wounding of the pride of a COM
mercial people whose trade is of vast pros
pective, If not present, consequence to the
United States, was worthy of the dema-
gogue brains of Senator Mitchell, of Ore
gon. and Governor Pennoyer, whose disso-
lutte intellects are now ranged in their re-
spective parties In favor of free silver.
Our government had always secured, with
assent of China, all the restrictions and
limitations it desired to place upon Chinese
emigration. Having done this it was the
part of the highest wisdom on the part OF
the Pacific coast to maintain the closest
political and commercial relations with
China. The Chinese are the nearest peo-
pie of great commercial future to our
Coast. We are nearer China than we are
Europe.
As Mr.. Young puts ii, "The ocean be
tween the United States and China is not
as wide as the ocean to Liverpool twenty
years ago." China Graves as necessities
our cotton goods and our petroleum.
With judicious treatment there is no rea-
son why the entire China trade should
notswell the sum of our growing American
maritime greatness. China could be made
TO see that we have no American interest
In the East outside the Sandwich islands
20 near TO Us as the unity and permanent
solidarity of her empire; that her indie
pendence is essential to our commerc ial
strength In the Pacific.
Instead of this ssgacious policy, which
was In vain urged upon Secretary Freling.
huysen by Gen. Grant in ISs2, we ex-
asperated China by an independent treaty
with Corea, which sas as much part of
the Chinese Empire as Massachusetts, is
part Of the United States. Russia was the
only nation that could be served by an au-
tonomous Corea and the practical effect of
the treaty was to place the United States
in the position of an active instrument for