Evening star., 1902-01-25
Hearing Before the Foreign Affairs
Committee.
CALIFORNIA COUNTING ON ACTION
Assertion of a San Francisco
Newspaper Man.
IN FAVOR OF RE-ENACTMENT

House today resumed its hearings on the
subject of the re-enactment of law pro-
hibiting the coming into this country OF
Chinese. it was informed that II 1t had
not been understood fully by the people OF
the Pacific coast in the last national cam
paign that the Chinese would be excluded
by a republican administration and by re-
publican Congress, California's electoral
vote would have been cast for Bryan.
Statement of r.. j. Livernash.
This statement was made by E. J. Liv-
ernash. q newspaper man of San Francisco.
He appeared before the committee In sup
port of the Kahn bill for the exclusion OF
the Chinese, which, it appeared, In the
course Of his statement, he had part In
preparing In the course of his argument Mr
Livernash particularly supported tne ,t. sec.
ton of the proposed act which prohibits
the coming of Chinese into this country
from the Philippines or other insuiar pos
sessions Of the United States He referred 70
the food Of petitions which has been poured
upon Congress in favor of more liberal
treatment of the Chinese, and declared that
for Congress to listen to such petitions
would be simply to assist the exploitation
OF the Philippine Islands by europeans ana {,
cause us to lose sight of the commercial
future of the islands as an American pos
session.
Mr.. I.ivernash insisted that the people of
California in this matter were pleading not
for a privilege but for right. The peo-
pie Of the Pacific coast were particularly
Interested because they looked toward Chi
ma and toward the Chinese In the Phlhp-
pines with apprehension and suspicion.
In reply to an inquiry as to now any
domiciled resident in the Philippines or IN
Alaska, for instance, could be prevented
from landing in the United States, Mr. LlV-
ernash stated, incidentally. that If there
ever was an English crown colony under
the American flag, it was Alaska There,
he asserted, the rights of American cltlzens
were invaded continually, and protests
against such a condition We're OF no avail.
Opposed to an Entirely New Law.
Mr.. Livernash contended that the meas
ure under consideration was restatement
of the living provisions Of the eHlstlng
law. and he was opposed to the enactment
of an entirely new law. He insisted that no
risks ought to be taken by making changes
in the present law because of the great
mass Of court decisions based upon exist
ing law.
While he was, he said, in favor OF the
extension Of the existing treaty between
the United States and China which Will
expire in 1904, he regarded the effort to
limit the operation Of the proposed exclu-
sion law to the interval between the ex-
piration Of the existing law and the
treaty as a ruse Of the opponents OF
Chinese exclusion He insisted that China
re-enactment Of the exclusion law because
she had not come into the present proceed
ings with clean hands. Among all nations
of the earth China was "the treaty breaker
of treaty breakers" He urged that there
was nothing in the pending measure from
which the most delicate conscience could
finch.
In conclusion Mr.. Livernash asserted that
the breaking down Of the Chinese exclusion
law was urged particularly by the Cana
dian Pacific railroad and the Pacific Mail
Steamship Company. He strongly urged
the committee not to accept as disinterest-
ed the ex parte statements Of these cor
porations, which he said were financially
interested in the immigration of Chinese.
Do Not Want Faith Broken.
Samuel Gompers, the president of the
American Federation Of Labor, in a brief
statement to the committee said that the
| labor interests Of the country did not in
sist upon any action by Congress which
in any way would reflect upon the honor,
good name or dignity OF the United States.
Herman Gutstadt, one of the representa-
tives Of the Pacific Coast anti-Chinese
commission, said that the Chinese did
come into competition with American skill
ed labor, notwithstanding the popular i'm
preston to the contrary. In cigar making,
! in shoe making and in the manufacture of
ladies' furnishing goods. the Chinese seri-
ously had undermined white labor.
The committee adjourned until 1890 a. M
next Tuesday.