Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1906-01-24
Bishop Bashford
Among the Chinese
Instructive Views on Existing Conditions
H.13&&:-4D3-I x

q
sentatives of BOrneo and the people
Of every other country, while exclud-
ing the Chinese by name Doctor
Hsih, confidential adviser to Viceroy
Yuan Shi Kai, the most progressive
viceroy in China, said to me: Your
exclusion treaty places the Chinese
distinctly below the Malay races,
whereas you must admit that in civil
ization and in economic efficiency we
are distinctly their superiors. | ad-
mitted his statements in regard to
the superiority of the Chinese over
the Malay peoples. But he added,
you exclude us by name from Amer
lea and do not exclude the Malays by
name / assured him, and also WI
Ting Facg, that practically the Malays
and the head hunters of Borneo were
excluded from the United States by
existing immigration laws. Both
added we have not the slightest
objection. nor has the Chinese govern
ment the slightest objection, to the
exclusion of Chinese la5orels. In
deed the Chinese government does
not want Chinese lahorers, brought
up in this empire, to go to America,
but rather 10 stay here and pay their
taxes for the support OF the Chinese
government But We want you to
exclude them in some other way than
ny mentioning us by name Inasmuch
as the Chinese and ourselves are
t1 g. M ~ hA brH
suyely we can formulate some method
which will not so offend their pride
as does their exclusion b. name.
Four methods Of settlement have been
suggested.
Il. WI Ting Fang thinks that the
Chinese government will ratify the
Hay treaty if we permit the Chinese
to enter the Philippines and Hawaii.
Yuan Shi kai, who Is the ablest pro
vincial governor IN China and one of
the leading and mot progressive
statesmen in the empire, assures
Doctor Hsih that the chinese people
will not be satisfied with exclusion
by name, even though we admit them
to the Philippines and Hawaii Be
sides, do not think that we need 70
admit the Chinese laborers to the
Philippines and Hawaii.
-. Mr. Rockhili tells me that he
was assured by quite a number OF the
immigration officers in New York and
the east that a strict enforcement of
existing immigration laws would ex-
clude the great bllk of the Chinese la
boring classes without any exclusion
treaty. If this statement is correct.
then by all means let us exclude them
by that method rather than by men
tioning them by name
g. If the present saws are not sui
fciently stringent, cannot the govern
ment amend the existing immigration
laws by the addition of d clause, de-
handing the ability to read and write
ones own language inteligently as a
prerequisite Of entrance to the United
States? Surely it would save us from
much undesirable European immi-
grafton. At the same time. such a
law would practically exclude the en-
tire laboring population Of China.
have asked some fifty missionaries
men who are graduates q American
and English universities and who have
been in China rom ten TO thirty years
each, what proportion of The laborius
classes they think can read and write
Most of Them have asked me what
mean by laboring classes, and tell me
nh ,I,,y
large numbers Of men as well as
manufacturers OF goods and me--
chants, often engage in manual labor
with their men / told them to in
clude all men engaging in manual la
Dor, including business men. Even
with such an Interpretation OF manual
laborers. The responses varied from
one-tenth OF Daa per cent to four per
cent, with the exception of one Eng
lish missionary IN Canton who told
me that with a broad Interpretation Of
laboring men which would include
everybody who engages in any phys.
ical labor whatever, thus probably in,
.cluine III his judgment all business
men he would fix the per cent in Can
ton at ten Al Of them. however, ex-
plain 30 me that by reading and writ
ing they mean simply ability 10 read
ana write The words pertaining 10
their business. They assure me that
.almoat ali Cinnamon. engaging in
business, learn 10 recognize a sutli-
Client number Of characters. and many
If them To write =ufHc}en+ mum hpr