The morning call., 1892-04-11
AN ABSOLUTE FREE-TRADER.

There appeared at one stage of recent
debate to be at least one honest man in the
lower House of the present Congress.
While the Democratic leaders generally call
themselves tariff-reformers Mr.. Simpson Of
Kansas came squarely out and declared HIM
self for absolute free trade. His conscience
would not permit him 10 compromise with
wrong Up 10 this stage OF his speech Mr..
Simpson has the appearance of being not
only an absolute free-trader. but an abs0-
lutely honest man. But little further on
he admits having voted for bill which, to
use his own language, would disgrace any
civilized nation" Mr. Simpson alluded to
the Chinese exclusion bill. which he AYERS
was passed in the. interest of California.
Mr.. Simpson may be honest in this asser-
ton, but he is in error. The Chinese bill
was passed in the interest Of the American
people. 1t was intended TO secure the
American people in the possession of their
own labor market. Across the Pacific Ocean
there are several hundreds of millions of
people who are glad 10 get work at 10 cents
a day. Without the law which Mr.. Simp-
son considers disgrace to the nation one
of the 10-cent-a-day workers could pass over
to California for the sum of S25 Men with
capital who want the cheapest labor the
to advance the So and take their pay with
interest in labor. There is substantially no
limit TO the number OF laborerS of this
description who would be brought to CAL
ifornia if there was no law to prevent their
landing. From California they would spread
TO the East and the South. Rates of wages
would be reduced in all parts of the coun-
try. They might not come down to the
(nipQca nf &c dau
but they would so underbid the Amer
lean laborer that his whole habit
of life would be necessarily changed.
1t is difficult to preserve respect for the in-
telligence of a man who considers law
protecting the American people from such
competition disgrace. IL Mr.. Simpsons
Kansas constituents should find Chinese
pouring into their State. filling every chan
mel OF industry with half-price labor, st is at
least preSumable that they would find
way to make their honest" representative
in Cong ess change his mind. The asser-
ton is ROW going the rounds of the press in
the East that Chinese labor is not cheap
If not cheap. why not? Simply because
the restriction bill checked immigration in
time. There has never been more than
about 10000 Chinese in the State against
from seven to ten times as many whites.
The Chinese have affected but not controlled
the labor market. The comparatively few
who arrived were absorbed in the several
avenues Of employment, and when they
found that no more could come they raised
Chinese rates 10 the white labor standard.
A man does not need to have lived in Cali
foInia TO know how these things would
work. Without a Chinese exclusion law
there are more than 100000 of people
who could better their condition by cross
ing the Pacific into the United States. One
million Of Chinese in California and TO-
COO, coo in the United States would lower
the American standard of wages nearly to
that existing in China. But the law stopped
the influx when but little more than 100000
had crossed the Pacific. Might not even a
Kansas politician be expected to understand
that an immigration of 100, 600 had not pro-
duced the results predicted from an immi-
grafton of 10000. Geo?