The Indianapolis journal., 1899-08-25
THE CHINESE AND THE PHILIPPINES.

If II should prove true, as stated, that
General Otis has applied the Chinese exclu-
sion laws to the Philippines, thus raising
an International question prematurely and
without authority, it may be construed as
cause or used as a pretext for his removal
from command. The report is not confirmed,
though 1T Is quite likely TO be true, as the
Chinese minister at Washington has taken
official action upon 1t. The fact that neither
the State nor the War Department had
any information on the subject shows that
IL General Otis has issued such an order
II was done without express authority or
taking advice on the subject. As it has
been decided that the Chinese exclusion
laws are not part of the general immigra-
ton laws. and therefore not applicable to
Hawaii and Porto Rico, the same rule
would doubtless apply to the Philippines.
If we want to exclude the Chinese from the
Islands it will have to be done by special
legislation. and i'm the absence of such leg
islation the government authorities would
probably hold that General Otis had no au-
thority to issue such an order. except for
purely military reasons. As an army officer
accustomed 10 strict obedience and strict
construction OF orders, General Otis should
have known that 1t was a great stretch Of
authority on his part to- issue an order re-
garding matter that has been the occasion
irritation and upon which the Chinese gov
ernment is so sensitive.
The incident illustrates the changed rela-
tions Of the United States to Eastern pow-
ers and shows that our policy on the Chi
nese immigration question will probably
have to be materially modified. Our Chi
nese exclusion laws are, if not a relic of
barbarism, at least relic of a period of
prescription and intolerance. They are an
outgrowth of the period of Denis Kearney-
ism. when each of the great political parties
of the country was trying to outdo the other
In bidding for the anti-Chinese vote. The
demand for the exclusion laws came orig
inally from California, yet 1t is freely ad-
mitted now that California could scarcely
get along without Chinese labor. Chinese
immigration is no longer tho bugaboo that
it was ten or dozen years ago. The scare
has passed and nobody whose opinion Is
worth anything believes the country would
suffer any harm If the exclusion laws were
repealed. Probably they will not be re-
pealed. though that remains to be seen.
They are an accomplished fact, and though
they represent proscriptive and intolerant
spirit, they have been accepted by the Chi
nese government as a fixed feature of our
national policy and will probably remain in
force for some time to come, though they
will never cease to be a cause of irritation.
and probably, if opportunity arises, Of re-
taliation on the part Of China.
As applied to the Philippines the Chinese
immigration question assumes an entirely
new phase. In fact, 1t is essentially a new
question and may prove to be a very i'm
portant one. The whole commercial world
is now discussing the "oren door, policy of
trade In the East. All Western nations rec
ognize the value of the Chinese trade and
are preparing to compete for it. 1t Is uni
versally conceded that the United States,
by reason of location and other causes,
has some advantages, in such a competition,
above all other nations. Our relations with
China are friendly, and that nation does
outcome
the war with Spain we have just entered the
arena of world powers and have come in
possession of the Philippines, lying at the
very doors of China. There is not another
nation in the world that would not regard
the islands of immense value in their re-
lation to Chinese trade or that, possessing
them, would not seek to establish friendly
NnrII6 bo mise
then, on the part of the United States to
signalize it's entrance into world politics
by adopting in the Philippines a policy of
prescription and exclusion towards our
nearest Asiatic neighbor? How can we ex-
pect to secure Chinese trade with one hand
while with the other we are excluding them
from the Philippines? How can We advo-
cate the open door policy in trade while we
are practicing the closed door in immigra-
ton? The argument in favor of Chinese
exclusion from the United States was that
II was necessary for the protection of Amer
lean labor and wages. If this was true as
to the United States, which probably it was
not, it has no application to the Philippines
The Chinese are at least as good as the
Filipinos, and will be as easily assimilated
and Americanized. Admitted TO the islands
they will become our stanch friends and
help preserve the peace and prevent insur-
rections. To exclude them would be worse
than tearing open an old sore; 1t would
create new one and give new and needless
offense to a sensitive people whose trade
We are seeking and whose friendship we
should cultivate. This is an important ques-
ton. and 1t will have to be met before long,
Meanwhile. General Otis's order, unless is
sued for distinctly military reasons, will
doubtless be revoked.
ENCROACHMENTS UPON THE RIGHTS