The Athena press. [volume] (Athena, Umatilla County, Or.) 18??-1942, 1895-03-22
TROUBLESOME CHINESE.
A Source Of Great Annoyance to
the Government Officials.
Smuggling Operations of the Sly celes-
tials In the Rio Grande Country
Effects of the Exclusion
Law.

In no section of this country did the
Chinese exclusion act entail such haro-
ships upon the Acknowledged residents of
the United States as it did along the Rio
Grande in Texas. In the revenue dis
trict of the Rio Gran6e there were, pre-
vious to last June, about one thousand
Cinnamon. FL Pasa, the main port of
entry from Mexico, claimed seven hum
dred and fifty of these, and San An
tonic, an inland city, one hundred and
ten The rest are scattered about,
three or four in each little town in the
district. 1t was found by the revenue
officers that not over four hundred of
these were entitled to remain in the
United States, and the other six hun
dred were deported, either to China or
to Mexico, if they came to this country
from that republic, says Harper's
Weekly.
I'll Paso was allotted ten thousand
three hundred and thirty-eight inhabi-
tants by the census of 1890, and the
business interests of the city are nearly
entirely dependent upon the transfer of
goods from or into Mexican territory.
Two wagon bridges and one railroad
bridge connect American with Mexican
soil,and attimes the Rio Grande isso low
that it can be crossed almost dry-shod.
Railroads reach to the north, cast, west
and south, affording quick and easy
transit in any direction, so that it is an
ideal smuggling point. Notwithstand-
ing the sleepless vigilance of the rev
enue officers, the smuggling trade as
sumes formidable proportions, and it is
largely due to this fact that the Chi
nese element forms so large proper
tion of the population.
The Chinaman is an expert smuggler,
and devotes his energies to transferring
opium, tobacco, silks, Mexican en-
broidery and drawn-work, on all of
which articles there is a heavy tariff,
from Mexican to United States soil
without paying duty thereon. The
most profitable article for smuggling
has been in the past the Chinaman him
self, and it was to prevent the whole
sale importation of this class of goods
that congress made the Chinese exclu-
sion law even more severe than it was
under the act of 1882 In 1886 congress
passed a law prohibiting the coming of
Chinese laborers into the United States
for o period of ten years, and provided
o penalty for bringing them in. In
this act provision was made for GER
tifcates of Identification for those al
ready here, which entitled them to
come and go. This act was easily
evaded at I'll Paso, and doubtless else
where, for John would show up one
day in queue, long shirt and wooden
shoes and receive his certificate as
Hong" and the next day the same
mild-loolsing oriental would put in an
appearance dressed "allee samee Mel
ican man" and receive ms certlticaJe as
Hing" One of these certificates was
naturally for sale, and the price they
brought ran at times as high as two
hundred dollars.
Across the river from El Paso is the
Mexican city of FL Juarez. There are
many Cinnamon there as well, who act
as confederates of their countrymen
across the river Chief among them is
doe" Sing, who is rated commercially
at about one hundred thousand dollars.
"Doc" is king among them and with
fertile and cunning brain he has engi-
neered many q scheme whereby the
revenues were none the richer,
or whereby the population of the
United States was increased by one
Mongolian not really entitled to the
protection OF the stars and stripes.
Wong Ming is his chief lieutenant, and
Is a resident of El paso, where he ranks
high as business man. Wong Ming
has lived in the United States about
seventeen years, and is one of the few
Cinnamon who have families to share
the freedom of this country with them,
and he lives retired and domestic life.
These two Cinnamon are the authori-
ties in the Rio Grande country among
their own people, and everything that
comes up for settlement among them
selves or in the relations of the Chinese
to the Americans is referred to them.
In October, 1888, an act Of congress
went into effect abolishing the certifi-
cate of Identification. This cut off
great source of revenue, and the inn
portation OF Cinnamon became simply az
question of out-and-out smuggling. In
1892 the exclusion law was extended to
1909. This new law also provided that
to remain in the United States China
man must obtain certificate showing
that he was here in 1882. On these
certificates are photographs of their
holders, and the certificates cannot be
obtained without the testimony of a
reputable white man to the effect that
the statements made by the Chinaman
are correct.
In the registration there was great
trouble at first in getting the pictures
taken according to law, The regulations
as to size and costume being very strict.
When Wong Ming and his family were
about TO be registered new difficulty
arose, The women, according TO their
custom, had never been seen by white
an,and wore heavy wells when upon the
street. The agent of the government
agreed to private audience, and Wong
Ming and his wife, her two sisters and
his two-year-old child Were duly photo
graphed and registered. The smug-
Cling OF Cinnamon has by this new law
been reduced to a minimum, but the |
traffic in contraband goods still keeps
up, owing to the vast line of thinly- |
guarded territory and the expertness /
of the smugglers.