The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1893-05-23
a LACK OF MONEY
prevents the Execution OF tie Geary 81
clusion Law.


elusiOn Law.
WAsHNGToN, May %. = Fridays
cabinet meeting determined the policy
of the administration on the Chinese
question. The session lasted for two
hours and a half, and all the possibili.
ties were discussed. It was finally de.
cided that the president could not exc
cute the Geary law. This conclusion
was reached after the consideration OF
a statement presented by the secretary
of the treasury as to the resources fur.
nished by congress.
The lack of resources was made most
painfully evident by the attorney gen.
eral and Mr.. Carlisle, and the result will
be that the Geary law viii not be put
into operation until congress provides
the means therefor. The president il
faced with the law of 1884, which di.
reefs him to put out of this country all
Chinese who are here illegally. He il
also directed by the law of 1892 to de.
port Chinese who are here legally. but
who fail to register. The first duty of
the president is therefore to dispose of
those Chinese who are in the United
States in violation of past laws. and
this viii take up all of the time of the
department of Justice.
In considering the Chinese question
those who are not fully informed have
made the mistake of regarding the
Geary act as the only one to be en-
forced. The cabinet meeting ended
with the full knowledge that a prior
law had to be executed although there
was perfect Willingness to carry every
direction of congress into effect. In
short, and to sum up the whole situa-
ton. the president viii have to send out
of the country those Chinese who are
here illegally under the law of 1894 be-
fore he can begin upon those who come
under the ban of the Geary act.
Deportation is Expensive.
AS already stated in these dispatches
the amount of money on hand TO pro-
vide for the deportation of Chinese is
out of all proportion to the sum needed.
There is about so, 900 available for the
present fiscal year and $780, 900 in sight
after July 1.
To show how expensive the deporta-
ton of a Chinese is, it is only necessary
to examine the records of the treasury
department for the past two weeks.
Two Chinese, who were decided by the
New York courts to be illegally in this
country, were ordered for deportation.
1t required two special employees to take
the two Chinese to San Francisco and
thence to China. The vouchers for de-
porting these two amounted to 1924. AT
this rate, under the old law, the S2j.-
600 on hand and the Sj0. 900 in sight will
deport not more than $50 Chinese from
New York. and cutting off the expense
of trip across the continent. it is pos
sible that tw:2e that many can be got
ten rid of.
No palmer illustration of the utter
inpossibility of carrying into effect the
Chinese exclusion act under present
circumstances could be given. The
Geary law Is impossible of execution
and can not be enforced, owing to the
lack of funds, until congress provides
the means or orders its repeal. With
regard to this sentiment and Christian
aspect of the Chinese question there is
only this to say: The administration
does not need to go beyond the lines
laid down by a distinct understanding
of the business part of the Proposition.