The San Francisco call., 1903-09-12
WooDWoRTH SUSPECTS.


eating the affair and in preparing for the
sensational denouement Of yesterday is
Inited States Attorney Marshall b.
WOODWORK He has suspected for some
time past that the old game OF substitu-
tiOn was being played on a large scale.
He had observed that during the past
few weeks attorneys for the Chinese had
been very assiduoUs in applying for writs
Of habeas corpus. the petitions alleging
that Chinese born in the United States
and returning 70 this country after visit
ing China were illegally deprived Of their
liberty by the agents Of the steamship
companies. These cases on behalf OF the
Government were handled by Second As
sistant United States Attorney Duncan
T. 1TcKinlay and Third Assistant Ben L
Mckinley with so much success that
seven out of every ten applicants were
ordered remanded 20 the custody Of the
b camship company II was thought at
FIRST that the u-rits were gotten out for
the purpose Of having the immigrants
taken from the ship 10 the County Jail
for the purpose OF coaching them as TO
the story 10 be afterward told in court
10y them and their witnesses.
JUDGES BLOCK THE GAME.
This game was blocked. however. a few
weeks ago through the efforts Of Wood
worth, who obtained q ruling from Unit
cd States Circuit Judge Morrow and
the effect that they would refuse TO issue
writs Of habeas corpus unless il appeared
on the record that the applicants claim
10 land had been investigated by the Chi
nese Bureau and that larding had been
denied the applicant
Contrary 10 all expectation, this ruling
seemed 70 have but little result While
II effected the object sought, that Of al
loving the officers Of the bureau an op-
portunity Of taking the statement of the,
applicant before he could be coached by
his friends on shore. IL did not dam the
stream Of applications for habeas corpus
writs Although United States Court
Commissioner Heacock. whose duty II is
10 take evidence in these cases, remanded
seven out Of every ten who came before
him, the appetite for writs seemed un-
abated. Then il was that the suspicion
Of substitution arose.
CHINESE BRIBERY.
Persons well acquainted with the Mon
golisn element reported to Mr.. Wood
worth recently that IL was common talk
IN Chinatown that 500 and $500 per head
we're being paid certain unnamed per-
sons for substituting for deported and re-
uanded Chinese other Chinese who wish
ed 20 return 10 their native country with
out being obliged TO pay steamer fare.
II was said that in some instances the
substitution was made at the jail, and
on other occasions at some point between
the fail and the steamer.
At the request Of the United States At
torney, Charles Mehan, chief inspector of
the chinese bureau, detailed several Of
his men yesterday morning to keep watch
st the steamer and elsewhere for the ar
rival Of the Deputy United States Mar
shall whoever he might be. and the six
young Chinese men who had been re-
manded by United States Court Commits
sioner Heacock TO the custody of the
steamship company, Judge Heacock hav-
ing decided that they were not natives
of the United States and therefore not
entfsIed TO be landed. Deputy United
States Marshal Peter Gamble came down
10 the Mail dock at 9 o'clock yesterday
morning in a hack with six Chinese whom
he delivered to the custody OF Steerage
Steward Leslie on board the Gaelic. Al
half past y o'clock, in response TO a tel
ephone message from the Chinese bureau
he went down to the dock and was shown
six Chinese men,