St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-10-14
MR. MORTON, CoACaMAN.

Low L. Morton is the Repu0llcan
nominee for governor of New York by
the grace of Boss platt. Morton was
elected as vice president of the United
States in 1855. and as such presided over
the deliberations of the senate. One of
the acts of that body, which, with the
aid of its Coordinate branch. succeeded
in bringing, as ex-senator ingalls, said,
upon the most magnificent political
organization that ever existed the most
overwhelming defeat" was an act which
prohibited any person from bringing
into this country any alien, or any alien
from coming here under any contract.
expressed or implied, made previous to
the coming here OF such alien, to per-
form labor or service of any kind in the
United States. This act was merely a
sop thrown to the growing Cerberus of
labor. which had begun to recognize
the a%bsurdity of iuhibiting or restricting
the Importation of the products Of labor
and permitting free access to foreign
labor. 1t was not intended to be taken
seriously by anybody, and especially by
those who wished to employ labor to
tuhS "a pioSV VI ptOSSottlS IL II
ing Americans.
Mr.. Morton, as vice president. signed
this act, and il became immediately a
dead letter, galvanized into life only for
partisan or malicious purposes. Mr..
Morton spent his usual season abroad.
and while there employed one Howard
as his coachman, and he served him so
we'll that the eX-vice president thought
it desirable to retain his services after
his return home. Consequently, Mr..
Howard came to this country, and en-
tered the service of the ex-vice president
at Rhinebeck as his family coachman.
or rather as one of them, as it seems he
has several.
The act provided that persons thus
imported mig hit be arrested and deport-
ed. Very much to Mr.. Howard's sur
prise. who doubtless harbored the DEM
ocratic idea thai the right to life, liberty
and the pursuit of happiness involved
the right to labor wherever he could
find work, and for whom he might, he
was arrested the other day by one of
the commissioners of immigration under
a charge of violating this contract labor
act, aud is now held awaiting deporta-
ton. An interview with Mr.. Morton
shows that he, too, is equally surprised
at the application to him of the act
which he, as vice president, officially
certified; and which his party, expert
in its devices for fooling labor, enacted
with the tacit understanding that it
would amount to nothing.
MIR. Morton says nat this man was in
hi> employ in London, and that, when
he went to the continent and had no
use for his services there. he sent him
to New York and has retained him as
his second coachman since. He says
that he was not aware of any infringe.
ment Of the law, believing that he acted
within its provisions, which permit, he
supposes, the bringing into this country
Of persons in the domestic service of
the family. Mr.. Morton. as vice presi-
dent, did not read with sufficient care
the act which he signed, and in this trap
he now finds his fingers. Section 5 of
that act provides that. nothing in it
shall be construed to prevent persons
who are citizens or subjects of a foreign
country. temporarily residing in this
country. from engaging, under contract
OF otherwise, persons not residents Of
the United States to act as household
domestics for such foreigner. But no
where in the act is any provision that
a citizen of this country may employ a
foreigner and import him or her to act
as a domestic servant
The act was q farce in its conception
and purpose, and has not prevented the
Importation of labor into this country
whenever manufacturers found it con-
venient. The law broke down under
its first test, when it was attempted to
prevent the importation of workmen
for the tin plate mills; but we believe
that it did in its early days prevent the
engagement abroad of te acilerS for uni.
versities and colleges in this country;
and we believe d minister of the gospel,
who was imported to preach the brother
hood of man and the fatharlood of
God, was tried and convicted. and de-
ported.
There is a grim com icality in this an.
plication to MIR. Morton of the act which
he officially ratified as vice president,
and whose character as a sop to labor
he so we'll understood that he did not
inform himself of the provisions of
which he now finds himself a surprised
victim. As to Door Howard, the sltua4
ton is not at all comical.
CNIynnr rrnrr