The San Francisco call., 1899-04-29

~ O1Alellld anu Among the COi1CGSSiOnS
was one of the Nee Lee Village Asso-
clation, Chinese company, which re-
produced a Chinese village on the
grounds and gave theatrical and aero
patio entertainments. About five hun
dred men and women of more or less
generally less-virtue were imported
from China to take part in the village
show, and they were admitted under
special privilege granted by the United
States, under the terms of which the
actors, acrobats shOpkeepers and at
tendants were to return to China at
the expiration of three months after
the close Of the exposition 1t was
found that before the exposition closed
about 200 women, mostly of the boat
mems class, had left Omaha and had
gone to reside in different cities in the
Union, San Francisco getting the most
of them. This becoming known, the
Government ordered Major Moore to or
ganize a raid upon the Chinatown
bagnios in this city for the purpose of
arresting and depOrting the runaways-
Collector Jackson detailed a large force
OF customs inspectors to assist in the
raid, but for some reason never made
public the police were informed of the
contemplated movement and were sta
toned in the houses to be raided where
they were found a half-hOur later by
the Federal posse in full possession
and the whole of Chinatown advised of
what was going on. The Federal posse
were detained at the Custom-house
awaiting the order of jackson to start
Notwithstanding the publicity given to
the affair 2 hOlIf
without certificates were captured.
Among the number taken to the Pres
byterian Chinese Mission on Sacra-
mento street was a middle-aged woman
named Fong Suey Wan, a notorious
procuress of considerable wealth and
the wife of the partner of Little Pete,
a noted Chinese boss and slave dealer,
lately deceased by the grace of a high
binders bullet in Chinatown barber
shop.
When the women were being ques-
toned at the mission Miss Cameron,
the matron, recognized the procuress
and informed Meredith of her identity.
Meredith ordered her to be detained
Notwithstanding that her certificate in
due form was then being presented for
inspection. Nothing further was done
by Meredith to hold the woman. He
filed no complaint against her, he did
not even inform the United States Mar
shall, the District Attorney or any one
else in authority that he proposed to
place any charge against her. On the
next day after her arrest Arthur Lotto,
a reporter, warned Meredith that the
woman would be discharged on pre-
sentation of her certificate before Court
Commissioner Heacock If Meredith did
not file a complaint charging her with
being procuress. Meredith replied
that it was 'all right, he was getting
up "a great case" against her. On the
next morning the woman was taken
before Commissioner HeaCOck, on the
same floor as the Chinese Bureau and
about seventy-fve feet distant, and her
certificate being produced, the court
stated that he would recommend her
discharge, there being no complaint ac-
cusing her of any offense. She was then
taken to the office of the United States
Marshal, directly underneath the office
of the Chinese Bureau, and kept there
until 2 o'clock in the afternoon, when
she was brought before United States
District Judge de Haven and dis
charged Then she disappeared
Meredith could offer no reasonable
explanation as to why he had allowed
the woman to escape, and public
clamor was raised, the episode SAVIOR
ing too strongly of corruption to be
passed by in silence. Special Agent
Moore, in pursuance of instructions
from Washington, made an investiga-
ton, examining witnesses and taking
affldaVits of all parties concerned. He
sent his report to Washington and
about the time that the department
was looking into the report eX-COllectOr
Wise appeared in Washington and told
the Treasury people and the newspaper
correspondents a fairy story to the
effect that the woman was allowed to
ge because Major Moore and Miss
Cameron had asked that Fong Suey be
allowed to return to China.
AS a matter of justice to Mr.. Wise it
must be said that he knew nothing of
the case of his own knowledge, as all
his information had been derived from
Meredith and his friends. Then charges
were filed against Special Agent Moore
for making an assault upon a woman
employed in his Office as typewriter,
and the Secretary of the Treasury, in
view of MOOre's disgrace, sent Moore's
report back to this city to be verified
by Special Agents Linck and Smith.
The witnesses were re-eXamined and
the Fong Suey Wan report was sent
on to Washington once more. 1t was
upon this report, which dealt with the
Fong Suey Wan incident alone, that
Meredith was dismissed.
Subsequently the special agents sent
a supplemental report to Washington
in connection with the matter of Mere
dith having used abusive language to
DR.. Gardiner and a reporter of The
Call, but before it had reached the Sec
retary of the Treasury Meredith had
been dismissed from the service.
That is why Meredith's application
for reinstatement was found to have
no force, for he utterly failed to show
that he was innocent of the charge OF
having allowed the noted procuress to
walk out Of his hands
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. u Q EQE