The Pacific commercial advertiser., 1897-05-20
MORE 1A1n1IGR lTIoN TROUBLE.
Commissioner stradIey Enforces the
Regulation.

Commissioner >tradley EnforceS the
RrguIatfou-.
SAN FRANCISCO. May 9.-The re-
strictions regarding the landing of ia
panese immigrants have caused more
trouble between immigration Commis-
sioner Stradley and the steamship
companies. There were fifty-one ia
panese on the Umatilla that arrived
day before yesterday and the Pacific
Coast Steamship Company through
Custom-house Broker w. II. Thornley,,
it's attroney, notified the Commissioner
that the Japanese would be put ashore
as soon as possible and if he wished
to examine them he would have to do
so afterward Commissioner Stradley
promptly served a written notice on
Broker Thornley, and warned him not
to be guilty of any violation of the
law.
When Commissioner Stradley at
tempted 10 prove that the Japanese
were practically coming to this city
under contract and detained thirty of
them on the Victoria steamer three
weeks ago, Senator Perkins, a member
of the steamship company. pressed the
matter before CommissioneT-Gener
Stump and got a reply from him that
if the Japanese had certificates is
sued by the Commissioner at Victoria
they were sufficient to show the ia
panese had a right TO land.
Commissioner Stradley did not con-
slider this as covering every point, so
he telegraphed to the department ask
ing if it was not necessary TO have a
medical examination of all immigrants
even those who passed the Commits
sioner at Victoria. He received an an
swer that as there was no marine hos
pital surgeon at Victoria all immi
grants must be examined here before
they could land.
Commissioner Stradley also took the
stand that while certificate was suf-
ficient to land Japanese it was his
duty to see if the certificate was valid.
He so notified the steamship company,
as the purser of the Umatilla handed
immigration Inspector Geffeney fifty
one certificates and claimed that was
sufficient to let the Japanese go ashore
without examination. Geffeney re
fused to let them do so, and upon eX-
animation claimed that five of the ia
panese had false certificates that had
been issued to other Japanese and sold
These five were specially examined,
but as they were entitled to land any
way they were allowed to do so.
The reason for the five Japanese
using false certificates is not known,
as they could have got their
own certificates at Victoria without
trouble. 1t is believed the ignorant
laborers were duped by some persons
engaged in making money out of GER
tificates. The matter is being investi-
gated.
The steamship people contend that
they exercise every possible care at
Victoria, and do not allow any Japa-
nese to come aboard their vessels with
out showing a certificate. They are
not able to pass upon the question of
the certificate being good or bogus.
They claim that when they turn the
Japanese over to the Federal authOri-
ties here their responsibilities cease.
The fifty-one Japanese that came on
the Umatilla were taken to the quaran-
tine station, there examined by Inspec-
tor Geffereney and brought back to
this city on the quarantine boat Stern
berg. Less trouble is expected in the
future, as the regulations are pretty
well understood now.