The San Francisco call., 1908-07-31
RIVAL RINGS
BRING CHINESE
OVER BORDER
MongOIs and Opium Struggled
From Mexico on Very Ex-
tensive Scale
Government Officials Implicated
in the Most Daring
Operations
Secret Agents Ferret Out Meth
Ods by Which Asiatics Come
in by Wholesale

Hh 'Uy w nOtSSS4lS
The existence of ring of govern
rnent officials extending from Wash
ington to the Mexican border and en-
gagged in the smuggling of Chinese
coolies and opium into this country
has been uncovered by federal inves-
tigators who have been quietly piling
up evidence for more than a year.
When: their findings are made public
by President Roosevelt it is expected
that the country will be appalled, by
the systematized perversion of immi-
grafton regulations which has been
going on.
/ Secret service agents and Chinese de-
Electives have been at work in this city
and along the Mexican border, ferreting
out the methods by which a stream of
Asiatic laborers has been poured into
the western states. The investigation
has mounted steadily from the subor--
dinate officials of the immi grafton bu-
reau to the higher ups in Washington.
with the result that a chain of public
servants has been involved link by link
} in the ugly scandal
TWO SEPARATE RINGS
| The evidence to be made public soon
points to two separate rings which
have been engaged in the smuggling
/ of Chinese-one the ring of officials
charged with keeping coolies out and
/ the other a coterie OF cutrate snug
glers VINO cheapened The price of i'd
mission 10 their customers and in
volved themselves in quarrel with the
more expensive dealers, thereby pre-
cipitating exposure.
The findings of corruption have been
1 so numerous that the running down OF
/ the cuTprits will be undertaken by
federal agents and police officials Of
/ this city working together. To perfect
plans for this joint assault on the two
rings a conference was held yester-
day in this city at which We're present
Prof. Jeremiah W. jerks, the Chinese
consul general, United States Attorney
Robert T. Devlin, Harry G. McKannay,
! secretary to the mayor, and Charles
/ Kee, a Chinese detective
/ Professor Jenks, who is dean Of the
/ department of economics at Cornell
university and a recognized expert
on all matters Chinese. is a member
/ of the special commission appointed by
/ President Roosevelt TO investigate i'm
migration His investigation of the
smuggling operations has been assisted
| by Professor Sanford, head of the de-
partment of physics at Stanford
jerks came to this city few days
ago and with Sanford, who has been
working here quietly for some time
laid the startling facts of the case be-
/ fore William ]. Burns and Francis j.
| Heney. Then followed yesterdays
/ conference al which both government
and municipal officials were present
EVIDENCE Is GATHERED
The investigators have had at their
disposal a corps of secret service agents
who have fine combed for evidence all
the territory from the Mexican border
to this city. Among these agents is
Charles kee, a Chinese detective IN
the federal employ. who has gathered
invaluable evidence among his coun-
4 trymen at great personal risk.
Kee has declared that as a result of
his work a price of $4,000 has been
placed on his head and that he is in
danger of death from the tongmen of
Chinatown. The Chinese consul gem
eral has taken prompt measures to
protect Kee and said after yesterdays
conference that he would aid the in
vestigators by every means in his
power.
The smuggling across the Mexican
| border has not been confined to Chi
neese coolies. Opium and other COM
modities have been brought over the
! line by the two rings. The procedure
in the case of the coolies is elaborate
and calculated to prevent discovery
and conviction by an ingenious dfyi-
sion of guilt. Wagons driven by MEM
berse Of the ring pick up Chinese at
various points on the Mexican side
and carry them toward tie line set
ting them down, where second and
third relays take care of them Ry
the time a coolie has crossed into Amer
ican territory he has passed through so
many hands that to trace the guilty
parties is well nigh impossible.
UNCOVER WHOLE SYSTEM
The investigators, nevertheless. have
uncovered the whole system of fraudu-
/ lent entry and traced 1t TO its source
/ in officials who look the other wav
when wagons carrying coolies enter
American territory. Their work was
simplified by the existence of an nm
official ring, which cut the rate to
COLES and lessened the profits of the
official ring until arrests Of the rivals
for smuggling became necessary as
business precaution.
Neither jerks nor Sanford wonld ais
cuss the conference held yesterday hu+
both admitted that their investiga-
tion had put them on the track of huge
/ frauds.
We have caught 500 smuggIed Chi
nese already this year" said Profess
sor Sanford. Last year, before our
work began, only 49 were reported. As
It is we only detect one in four. The
operations are on big scale. I know
of one steamship company which lands
5000 Chinese yearly in Salina Cruz
My report on the officials at the bor
der has been forwarded to Washing
ton. but so far no action has been
made public
Professor jerks said that he had
consulted with Professor w. C. Mitchell
who had 20 men gathering Immigration
statistics. He added that he wo1ld