The Hartford republican., 1906-01-26
WASHINGTON LETTER.
. Secretary Root Discussed Con-
sular system itsAbuseS Etc.
\ Nonsense TO Send a Commission
TO China to Study Exist
ing Conditions.

Secretary Root while appearing
before the Appropriation Commit
tee of the House this week took oc-
casion to say few timely words on
the consular system. He pointed
out facts that ought to be perfectly
well known to Congress at large but
which considering the way that the
consular bill has been emasculated
in the Senate would seem either to
be unpleasant truths to which Con-
gress would rather shut its eyes or
|. else facts in which they do not be-
lieve.
Here are some of the things that
Secretary Root said.
1.-The American consulates inmany
places are in bad shape. Congress
knows the conditions and the reasons
as well as anyone. The consular
service has been from long custom
made the stronghold of the spoils
system and has been used as berth
into which To shove any eminently
respectable citizen who had outlived
his usefulness elsewhere and who
needed to be taken care of. The
object OF the consular services and
consular salaries seems to have been
to pay political debts and not to put
live Americans abroad to foster
American trade. The important
clerkship in foreign consulates have
too often been held by natives of the
counties to which the consuls were
accredited and not by Americans.
this to the detriment of American
trade. The provisions Of the consul
.lar reform bill for the examination
of young men and promotions based
on seniority and ability have been
stricken out by the Sepate, and
while some provision of Importance
have been left in. it is a question
whether even the amended bill Will
pass.
This is pretty severe arrangement
of Congress. coming as it does from
the Secretary of State who is admit
tedly a good business man and a
LAWYER and one who knows condi-
tions both at home and abroad. The
worst of it is that it is all true. The
Senate regards the consular service
as to good a repository of debt pay
ing patronage to want to see it re-
formed. And that is the secret of
amendments to the consular bill just
when the whole country is clamor-
ing for a reform in the service and
when the State Department is doing
its best to furnish the reform.
4 -.
Secretary Root did not lose the
opportunity to unburden himself of
few thoughts in regard to China
too. He said that it was arrant
nonsense to send a commission to
China to study the existing condi-
tions. Said he; IF you gentlemen
want to come up to the State De-
partment we can bury you so deep
in Chinese reports that you won't
dig out for week. They are re-
ports too made by the consuls in
China and by men who have had al
most lifelong acquaintance with
China and the Chinese language and
customs. What we want is not more
information but more action. The
Chinese exclusion law is wrong in
principle and has been harshly and
unjustly administered. The Presi-
dent has attended to the administra-
ton end of it and there will hence
fourth be much less to complain of
in that line. But the law itself is
wrong. We do not want to let China
coolies into this country, but we
want a law that will keep them out
and will not at the same time work |
as an insult to the respectable Chi
nese merchants, business men and
students who come over here. That
S matter that Congress will have
to deal with. We want the law
justly and humanely administered