Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1897-09-24
THE SPIRIT OF THE PRESS.
CHINESE SLAVERY IN CALIFORNIA.

opponent OF Chinese immigration, put
he presents his statements with such a
show of authority that the people of the
Pacific slope cannot afford to ignore
them.
Mr.. Holder declares that "the slave
dealing class constitutes an important
element in Chinatown and has an organ
lied system so deliberately and cunningly
devised that so far it has been impossi
BILE to stamp out the practice"
Two societies have systematized the
business in such a manner that it is a
very simple process to evade the Amer
lean law. The headquarters are in San
Francisco, agents being stationed at
Canton, Annoy and other large Chinese
cities. These, in turn, have subagents
in the suburban districts, whose duty it
is TO kdnap the victims and forward
them to the agent at the shipping ports,
who usually cOnsigns them to a travel
ing or confidential agent, whose duties
lie not alone in guarding the human
property, but in nstructing the women
so that they will be able to pass the
custom-house authorities. Unfortunate
ly the Chinese law and custom of mar.
riage aids the kidnaper. A wife rarely
sees her husband before marriage, the
affair being a business arrangement. pure
and simple. and the courts of san Fran
cisco are fighting over the case of
slave named Fong, who claims to have
been kidnapped in China, brought to
America and sold to the highest bidder.
She finally escaped to one of the mis-
sions, that has so far successfully defied
her owners. and as result the question
of Chinese slavery will undoubtedly be
thoroughly ventilated,
The Chinese population of San Fran
cisco is estimated at 10000. OF these
5000 are factory hands, 1000 claim to
be merchants. 1000 are domestic ser
wants, 1900 are the criminals referred
to and 5000 are women and children.
OF tie 1900 females it is estimated with
more or less accuracy that 1000 are
legitimate wives. the remaining l,500
being slaves in the fullest sense; girls
iidnaped in their homes in the Orient,
brought to America by fraud and i'm
posture. passed through the custom
house under false oaths, in fear of death
or dire consequences, put up at auction
before professional slave merchants,
knocked down to the highest bidder and
condemned in the majority of instances
to a lite under duress in the Chinese
brothels of an American city.
The girls, he says, are valued at from
$50 to 50. 500, and of course the slave
dealers go to extraordinary lengths to
pass such precious chattels through the
customhouse. But they do not stop at
fraud on the treasury department. Aid
ed by INSCRIPTIONS American lawyers,
they wage incessant warfare on the mis-
sions and rescue societies. Repeated
attempts have been made to kidnap res
cued girls, the managers of the mis-
sions threatened with death and marked
for destruction by the Ratchet boys"
But the work goes on, the only reward
of these good men and women being the
knowledge that now and then they save
a helpless human being from the vilest
and most painful servitude. Mr.. Holder
merely hints at the horrors of the
Chinese slavery when he says:
The life of the slave is chapter tell
ing of total debasement and i'll treat
ment. The mission managers have
found girls who have been burnt with
Ieu-HOl lIOuS. uIdSScu dpOut ny tue
hair and had their eyes prOpped open
with sticks. Slaves that are resold are
sold by contract. document which.
while unfit for publication. Is a most
remarkable paper, showing hat the sale
of women is looked upon i'm the same
light as that of the lowest animals.
In defense of the authorities on the
Pacific slope it may be said that the
secretiveness of the Chinese nature pre-
sents great obstacles to the discovery
and punishment of these crimes. But
San Francisco police and agents of the
treasury department have had long eX
perence with the oriental immigrant,
and it speaks poorly for either their hon
esty or their vigilance that they have
not stamped out the hideOus practice
If Mr.. Holder had not made his charges
so boldly we should never have dreamed
that there was one spot in free America
where slavery-and slavery far more
horrible than the industrial servitude of
the old south-flourished under the eyes
of government officials. The Difficulty of
dealing with the native customs of the
Chinese cannot excuse the failure to
adequately punish the miscreants. If
Mr.. Holders allegations 60 uncontra-
dicted the facts constitute grave in
dictment against the state of California
and a fearful stain on the administration
of the law.-Chicago Times Herald.
QUALIFICATIONS FOR LOCAL OFFICE.
There is much talk about platforms.
1t is said that the Republicans of New
York must adopt a platform reafirming
all party principles on the tariff, the
currency, the Monroe doctrine, the an
nexation of Hawaii, Cuban belligerency,
international arbitration, and what not,
and that they cannot vote for any man
for mayor who does not unequivOcally
accept it. There can, of course, be no
improperly in Republicans, or any other