Year: 1878




Morton on the Chinese question, so ia


as they were written by him, which wa


submitted to the Senate to-day, is incon


plete, and to a considerable extent fral


mentary, but the character of the conclu


sions reached by him as an individua
{, member land minority OF one) Of tn


Joint Congressional Committee on CHI


nese immigration are clearly shown b.


the following extracts. He says:


"a discussion Of the effect of Chimes
? immigration upon the country involve
! many considerations, and any proposition
l looking to its prohibition or Limitation


would require us to consider some OF the


fundamental principles of the theory anC


practice of our Government. 1t is oul
( proudest boast that American institu
tions are not arbitrary in their character
are not the simple creations Of force and


circumstances, but based upon great and


eternal doctrines of the equality and


natural rights Of man


A cardinal principle in our Government


proclaimed in tho Declaration Of Inde
d. pendence, in the Articles Of Confedera


ton, and recognized by our Constitution


is that our country is open to immigrants


from all parts of the world; that il was


TO be the asylum for the oppressed and


unfortunate. 1t is true that when the


Government was formed, and for nearly


three quarters of a century afterward no


immigration was contemplated, except


from nations composed Of white people /;


but the principles upon which we pro-
fessed TO act and the invitation we ex-


tended to the world cannot, and ought


not to, be limited or controlled by race or
color, nor by the character of the civili-
zation of the countries from which immi-
1 M ch
the operation of these principles be linn
tied on account OF the religious faith Of
nations"


He calls attention to the fact that
China and japan have abandoned their
policy Of excluding foreigners, and pro
ceeds as follows: "At time when those
countries have adopted a liberal policy,
and in that respect have yielded to Wes-
tern civilization, and have especially re.
cognized the force of the example and
policy OF the United States, it is proposed
that we should take a step backward by
the adoption of their castof policy of
exclusiveness. The argument set up here
in favor Of this is precisely that which
was so long used to exclude, or justify
the same policy, in China and Japan.
namely, that the admission of foreigners
tended to interfere with their trade and





morals and degrade their religion.
Our greatest, our only absolute security,
consists in the devotion of the masses of
the people to the doctrines upon which
the Government was founded, and the
profound conviction in the minds Of the
people that the rights of men are not
conferred by constitutions or written
enactments which may be altered or
abolished, but are d.given to every hu-
man being born into the world, and can
not be violated by constitutions, enact
ments, or Governments without tramp
ling upon natural and inalienable rights
The institution of slavery had
its long maintenance in the doctrines
that colored men had no natural rights,
and that slavery was a mere question of
political economy or expenditure. IL il
is believed that men have no natural
rights, arguments and inducements will |
be found from time to time to deprive |
communities or classes of their equality /
and participation in government Close /
ly allied to these great doctrines, and in /
fact a necessary outgrowth Of them, is 4
that policy which throws open the doors /
of our nation to the people OF other l
who come to escape oppression 4
or the hard conditions by which they are
surrounded, and to make our country
their home. In permitting the people OF
other countries to come here and live
and become citizens we have the right to
prescribe such conditions and create such /
as may protect US from pau
perism, crime, and disease; to fix the pc
riod of probation and the reasonable
terms upon which they may become citi-
zens and entitled to participate in the
To regulate immigration
- II - IL. .
will admit men of foreign birth to the
exercise Of civil and political rights is one
thing, and their prohibition or exclusion,
in whole or in part, is quite another. To
make such regulations as will protect the
interests, morals. and safety Of our peo-
pie against foreigners, is both our right
and duty, and in the exercise of a sound
discretion, i do not say that we may not dis
criminate among the nations and exact
terms and conditions from the people of
one country that we do not deem necess
sary as to others. We have always made
this discrimination with regard to the
right to become citizens by permitting
none but white persons to be naturalized;
as to all other rights of foreigners COM
ing to our shores to work, to trade, or to
live and acquire property, we have never
made any distinction. To do that now
would be a great innovation upon the
policy and traditions of the Government,
and would be long step in the denial OF
the brotherhood OF man, and Of the broad
policy inaugurated by our
fathers The Limitation OF the right to
become naturalized to white persons was
placed in the law when slavery was a
influence in our Government;
was maintained by the power Of thatin
stitution, and is now restrained by the
lingering prejudices growing out of it.
After having abolished slavery, and by
to our Constitution and the
of various statutes establish
ing the equal, civil, and political rights
OF all men, without regard to race or
color and at a time when we are endeay-
oring to overcome the prejudices Of edu-
cation and of race, and to secure to col
ored men the equal enjoyment of their
rights, il would be inconsistent and uns
sound policy TO renew and reassert the
prejudices against race and another form
of civilization by excluding the copper
colored people OF Asia from our shores.
1t would beagain to recognize distinctions
of race and to establish a new govern
mental policy upon the basis of color and
a different form of civilization and relig-
ion. In California the antipathy to the
Mongolian race is equal to that which |
was formerly entertained in the older
States against the negro, and although 1
the reasons given for this antipathy are 1
not the same. and the circumstances of |
its exhibition are different, still il belongs /
to the family antipathies springing from |
race and religion. AS Americans, stand /
upon the great doctrines to which | have |
referred, seeking to educate the masses |
into their belief and charged with the |
administration of the laws by which
equal rights and protection shall be ex-
tended TO all races and conditions we