CHINESE IMMIGRATION,
tn
ITS SOCIAL AND ECONOMICAL ASPECTS.
BY
GEORGE F. SEWARD,
Late United States Minister to China
NEW YORK
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS
743 and 745 Broadway
1881
15 14
Copyright, i88i, by
CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS.
/ 7j~'/O
Whereas, The right of expatriation is a natural and
inhereîit right of all people, indispensable to the enjoyment
of the rights of life, liberty and the purstdt of happiness;
and whereas in the recognition of this principle this Gov¬
ernment has freely received emigraittsfrom all nations and
invested them with the rights of citizenship; and whereas
it is claimed that such American citizens, with their des¬
cendants, are subjects of foreign states, owing allegiance to
the Governments thereof; aiid whereas it is necessary to
the maintenaitce of public peace that this claim of foreign
allegiance shoidd be promptly and finally disavowed. There¬
fore, any declaration, instruction, opinion, order, or decision
of any ofßcer of the United States which defiies, restricts,
impairs or questions the right of expatriatio7t, is declared
inconsiste7it with the fundamental principles of the Re-
publich
Revised Statutes of the United States, (Act of fuly
2jth, 1868.)
The United States of Ameidca and the Emperor of
China cordially recognize the inherent and inalienable right
of ma7t to cha7tge his home a7id allegia7rce, a7id also the
7nutual advantage of the free migratio7^ a7id emigratio7t of
their citize7is aíid subjects respectively, from the 07ie cou7i-
try to the other, for the purposes of curiosity, of trade, or as
per7nanent reside77tsr
Treaty with China, (Proclahned f idy 28, 1868.)
PREFACE.
The following pages will exhibit to the reader the
results of a careful study of the social and economical
aspects of the questions involved in Chinese immigration.
I approached the examination of these questions with
a strong feeling that the United States ought not to in¬
terfere unnecessarily with immigration, because in doing
so we would depart from principles well established in
our national life, and because arbitrary interferences
with natural processes prove, as a rule, unavailing and
injurious.
As I proceeded I became satisfied that no necessity
exists for such action. I found, in brief, that the Chinese
have been of great service to the people of the Pacific
coast ; that they are still needed there, but in a less im¬
portant measure ; that the objections which have been
advanced against them are in the main unwarranted ;
and that the minor evils incident to their presence may
be readily abated under existing treaties and within the
lines of ordinary legislation.
I found, also, that the fears of a large immigration
which have been entertained, are unnecessary and ground¬
less.
The facts afid considerations upon which I have based
these conclusions are stated with reasonable fullness, and;
vi
PREFACE,
as the subject is important, I may hope that my treat¬
ment of it will receive the candid examination of my
countrymen.
To the recommendations made by me, showing in
what way existing abuses may be abated, while leav¬
ing untouched the broad principle of the right of man
to change his home and allegiance, I invite especial
attention.
I have made no attempt to deal herein with any other
than the social and economical aspects of Chinese immi¬
gration. I have supposed that the action of the country
will be determined in view of these, but certainly the
political and commercial issues involved are not devoid
of interest.
If the course of events shall appear to make it desira¬
ble, I shall offer to the public hereafter a statement
regarding this part of the case.
CONTENTS.
PART I.
THE NUMBER OF CHINESE IN THE UNITED STATES.
A. spirit of exaggeration characterizes the statements of anti-Chinese
partisans. Statements of mass meeting held in San Francisco
in 1876. Statements of counsel before the Congressional joint
committee. Statements in Congress, and by Congressional com¬
mittees. The facts as revealed by the census and by customs'
statistics of arrivals and departures. Probable number of Chi¬
nees in the United States in 1876-80, not more than 100,000;
in California, 75,000. Distribution of Chinese population.
The misstatements made in this connection discredit the state¬
ments of anti-Chinese partisans in other directions. The ques¬
tion of importance in connection with the general problems
involved in Chinese immigration I-I3
PART IL
THE MATERIAU RESULTS OF CHINESE I,ABOR IN
CALIFORNIA.
CHAPTER I.
RAILROAD BUILDING.
This part of the book exhibits the material advantages which have
resulted to California from the labors of Chinamen. The facts
recited taken mainly from the evidence before the joint com¬
mission. The importance of railroads to California, because of
the isolated position of the State and the extent of its territory.
Evidence of Gov. Low, Mr. Charles Crocker, Mr. Strobridge,
Mr. Colton, and Mr. Evans, showing that the trans-continental
and other railroads could not have been built so cheaply and so
quickly without Chinese labor, and that the result has been such
as to serve the i:onvenience, comfort and opportunities for enter¬
prise of the people of the State, and to promote immigration ;
from the Eastern States and the prosperity of the State 14-29
CONTENTS,
CHAPTER II.
RECLAMATION OF SWAMP LANDS.
Description of the swamp and overflowed lands of California. Their
area, 5,000,000 acres. Their fertility and value. The wheat
production of the State. The climate favorable to wheat pro¬
duction. Evidence of Judge Heydenfeldt and Mr. Roberts
regarding the labors of Chinese in reclamation works. Laws of
the State providing for such enterprises. Legislation to protect
farming lands from results of hydraulic mining 30-36
CHAPTER III.
MINING.
The Chinese have met many difficulties in mining. Discrimination
against them. The foreign-miners tax. Abuse of the law
by tax-collectors. Hostility of the mining class at large. Out¬
rages perpetrated upon them. Report of a committee of the
Legislature of California in 1862. Evidence of Mr. Colton, Mr.
Speer, Mr. Clarke and Mr. Degroot regarding the work done
by the Chinese in the mines, and their efficiency as miners.
Aggregate production of precious metals by the Chinese, and
advantages to the State and country 37-50
CHAPTER IV.
FARMING.
Mining interests declining and agricultural advancing. Physical
features and climate of the State. Agricultural capacity of the
State not understood at first. Seasons peculiarly convenient
for the farmer. Normal expenses of the farmer less than else¬
where. Land cultivated in large tracts. Certain disadvantages
of the farmer ; lack of rain, high wages. Annual production.
Land-killing system, due to extent of lands available, dear
capital and dear labor. The kind of work done by the Chinese.
Evidence of Mr. Roberts, Colonel Hollister, Mr. Horner, Mr.
Brier, Judge Dwinelle, Mr. Easterby and Mr. Sneath as to the
nature and value of their labor. Future of the agricultural
interests of the State
CHAPTER v.
FRUIT CULTURE.
The views of the joint committee of the Legislature of 1862 regarding
wine production. Cheap labor needed. Culture of tea, fruits,
etc. Wine production of 1876. Mr. Nordhoff's statement of
the area suitable for the vine, and favorable nature of climate.
Chi^-cse labor in vineyards. Testimony of Mr. Hill. Employ¬
ment of Chinese by Buena Vista Vinicultural Society and Ana¬
heim Vine Growers'Association. Mr. Curtis's evidence. Fruits
of California. Superior opportunities of fruit growers. Fruit
CONTENTS,
ix
wasted because of lack of labor to save it. Testimony of Mr.
Gibson, Mr. Beals, Mr. Peckham, Mr. Badlam, and Mr. Castle
regarding the part taken by the Chinese in the growth and
preservation of fruit 69-79
CHAPTER VI.
MANUFACTURING.
The State has made no great progress in manufacturing. Kinds of
manufacturing in which Chinese have taken part. Woolen
goods. Testimony of Mr. Heynemann and Mr. Peckham re¬
garding the Chinese as operatives in woolen mills. Jute bags.
Testimony of Mr. Morganthau. Cordage. Testimony of Mr.
Beals. By employing white persons for superior work and
Chinese for inferior, an average of wages reached not much higher
than Eastern rates. Cabinet makers. Cigar-boxes, &c.
Candles and soap. Mr. Morganthau again. Labor uncertain
in California, because laborers are scarce and wages high.
Match factories. Testimony of Mr. Jessup. Brooms and
broom brushes. Testimony of Mr. Pixley, Mr. Gillespie and
Mr. Cortage. Other industries So-ioi
CHAPTER VII.
SPECIAL INDUSTRIES.
The manufacture of boots and shoes. Testimony of Mr. Badlam,
Mr. Rogers, and Mr. Lessler, as to the number of Chinese em¬
ployed. Wages paid to journeymen shoemakers in 1871-1875.
Prices of shoes reduced. Testimony of Mr. Gibson and Mr.
Beals. California a leather producing State. Hats and caps.
Manufacture of cigars, &c. Testimony of Mr. Beals. Two-
thirds of the cigars used made in the State. Testimony of Mr.
Morganthau. Number of Chinese engaged. Testimony of Mr.
Rogers, Mr. Badlam, Mr. Lessler, Mr. Brooksand Mr. Muther.
Wages of Chinese and Americans. Wages in California and
the East compared. California tobacco. Advantage of home
manufacture. Industries of the needle. Relative»employment
of the Chinese. Relative rates of wages. Woolen manufac¬
tures. Testimony of Mr. Morganthau. Shirt-making. Laun¬
dries. Testimony regarding number of Chinese employed.
Lower rates for laundry-work have inured chiefly to advantage of
poorer classes. Testimony of Mr. Babcock. Glass and glue
works. Powder mills, &c 102-116
CHAPTER VIII.
DOMESTIC SERVANTS.
The Chinese are good servants. Testimony of Mrs. Swift, Judge
Heydenfeldt, ]¡}^Irs. Avery, Mrs. Smith, Judge Lake. Personal
testimony of author. Difficulty of procuring-servants in Califor¬
nia. Testimony of Judge Hastings. His views challenged.
The scarcity of servants due to lack of supply and not to their
X
CONTENTS,
unsatisfactory treatment by employers. Wrong ideas about the
Chinese taught by some persons of intelligence and high position.
Judge Hastings' ethnological disquisition. His views about the
six companies. Mr. McLennan's testimony. High praise of Chi¬
nese as servants. White girls will not go into the country.
Testimony of Mr. Brier, Mr. Hollister, and Mr. Morganthau.
No surplus of working women in California. Number of Chi¬
nese servants in city and State. Housekeepers would deplore
the removal of the Chinese 117-31S
PART III.
OBJECTIONS WHICH HAVE BEEN ADVANCED AGAINST
CHINESE IMMIGRANTS.
CHAPTER I.
THAT THEIR LABOR IS SERVILE.
This objection, or charge, of fundamental importance. Statements
of anti-Chinese partisans. Distinction between a contract to
labor, and a contract to repay money advanced, out of wages.
How the Chinese were employed by the Central Pacific railroad.
Evidence of Mr. Crocker. General employment of the Chinese.
Evidence of Mr. Roberts, Judge Heydenfeldt, Mr. Heynemann,
Mr. Brier, Judge Campbell, Mr. Easterby, Col. Hollister, Mr.
Macondray, Mr. Peçkham and Mr. Shearer, indicating that Chi¬
nese labor is free. Evidence of the presidents of the six com¬
panies to the same effect. How the Chinese come to Califor¬
nia. Statements of Mr. Gibson, Mr. Speer, Dr. Williams and
Mr. Cleveland. Opinion of the committee of 1862. Slavery
in China. Mr. Speer's and Dr. Eitel's views. Labor by a class.
The tendency in California to degrade labor by denouncing the
Chinese 136-158
CPIAPTER II.
THAT THEY DISPLACE OTHER LABORERS.
The question treated from the stand-point of the laborer. The in¬
terest of the laboring class is not antagonistic to that of the
capitalist. The laboring class slow to appreciate the fact.
Trades-unions, strikes, &c. Antagonism to laborers who do
not join in coercive measures. Antagonism of this kind to the
Chinese in California. Its use as a party cry. Its success.
Two doors for labor opened for one shut. Examination of facts
regarding railway construction and its results. Facts regarding
recj^amation of swamp lands. Facts regarding employment of
Chinese in mines. Report of committee of 1862. The contri¬
bution of the Chinese to the agricultural achievements of Cali¬
fornia. Chinese labor does not displace but supplements white
CONTENTS.
xi
labor. Fruit-raising. Testimony of Col. Hollister, Mr. Hey-
neymann, Mr. ' Colton, Mr. Crocker, Mr. Estee. Chinese as
operatives. Testimony of Mr. McLennan, Mr. Peckham, Mr.
Wheeler. Chinese in special industries. Tendency of white
to displace Chinese laboi. Testimony of Mr. Buchanan.
Shoes, cigars and clothing still imported into the State. Laun¬
dry work. Advantage to families of Chinese laundries. Prices
of the necessaries of life reduced. List of sixty industries in
which the Chinese are not employed. Domestic service. The
employer entitled to support as well as the employed 159-185
CHAPTER III.
THAT THEY SEND MONEY OUT OP THE COUNTEY.
The statement that the Chinese send considerable sums out of the
country unfounded. The views of the committee of 1862.
When earnings are large expenses are large. Laborers seldom
make any savings. The Chinese not an exception to the rule.
The lower scale of wages in China does not imply that the
Chinese, in a large sense, are thrifty. Their needs in Califor¬
nia different from those at home. Cost of their clothing com¬
pared. The Chinamen are epicures. Testimony of witnesses.
Chinese restaurants in San Francisco. Absence of domestic
and other restraints. Employment not continuous. The gross
earnings of the Chinese in California. The amount expended
by them. Productive nature of their labor. When not pro¬
ductive it is still of value to the vState in an economical point of
view. General outflow of American wealth for the products of
other regions. Unnecessary sensitiveness in regard to the remit•^
tances of the Chinese 186-194
CHAPTER IV.
THAT THEY AEE A VICIOÜS PEOPLE.
The disposition to be censorious criticised. Men are actuated by
good motives. Experience among different nationalities.
Race prej unices. Tendency of the laws. Political considera¬
tions. The Chinese system of ethics. Charts of the ethics of
the Chinese. Confucian morals. The moral faculties. The
cardinal virtues. Self-examination among the Chinese. The
influence of the Confucian morals upon the nation. How it is
exhibited among the Chinese in California. Charity for the
failures of the Chinese. Habits of Chinese immigrants. Tes¬
timony of Mr. Babcock, Mr. Brier, Mr, Colton, Judge Heyden-
feldt, Mr. Loomis, Mr. Sneath, Mr. Brd^n, Judge Campbell,
and Mr. Cooledge. Christiantiy among immigrants. Testi¬
mony of Mr. Deal, Mr. Francis, and Mr. Shearer. The wit¬
nesses beibre the Congressional committee favorable to the
Chinese were men of a high grade of intelligence and respecta¬
bility. The Chinese a peaceable and easily governed people.
Their vices lesi dangerous than those of white men. Statistics
of Californian penal institutions, and hospitals. The results
shown favorable to the Chinese 195-222
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER V.
THAT THEY HAVE SET UP A GOVEENMENT IN CALIFOENIA.
Statement of Mr. Pixley. Improbable nature of his declaration.
The subject of importance. Statement of Mr. King that the
death penalty is enforced by secret tribunals. Statement of the
Congressional commission. No sustaining evidence in that
taken by the commission. Certain testimony taken by the Sen¬
ate committee of 1876. The six companies. Mr. Gibson's
description of their character and objects. Mr. Pixley's state¬
ments regarding the companies. Courts of arbitration among
the Chinese. Evidence of the presidents of the six companies.
Conclusion of the Senate committee of 1876. Mr. Rogers' tes¬
timony examined. It is hearsay and uncertain. The Hip Ye
Tung society. An organization of ruffians for unlawful pur¬
poses. Failures of the city and State in dealing with the
Chinese. Control of the foreign settlements at Shanghae and
Hong Kong 223-242
CHAPTER VI.
THAT THEY WILL NOT ASSIMILATE WITH CUE PEOPLE.
The views of the Chinese on this matter. The doctrine of Confucius
that all on earth are of one family. The teachings of Christ.
Virtue the right basis of government. Treatment of foreigners
in China compared with that of the Chinese in America. The
"root" of the ill-treatment of the Chinese. Native Americans
responsible. American race intolerance. Mr. Swift's views.
" Better dissolve treaty relations." What is meant by assimila¬
tion. The Chinese intelligent, frugal, industrious and peace¬
able. Their treatment different from that accorded to other
immigrants. The object is to deal justly with them and to
leave assimilation to work itself out. The alleged failure should
gratify anti-Chinese partisans. What is justice ? The real
danger lies in the departure from sound rules. The social ques¬
tion outside of legislation. Efforts of the Chinese to adopt
Western methods. The educational mission. Views of Prince
Kung 243-260
CHAPTER VII.
PEOSTITUTION, GAMBLING, CEIMINALS, DISEASED PEESONS.
Prostitution a natural result of the circumstances. It should be sup¬
pressed. The attempt to hold prostitutes in a condition of
semi-slavery. The supply comes from Hong Kong and can be
completely cut off. Statement of the means which may be
adopted. What has been done already in this connection.
Disposition of the Chinese government. How prostitutes come
to America. The nature of their control. The Hip Ye Tung
baijd. An attempt to break up the band and the cause of fail¬
ure. The efforts of the six companies to suppress prostitution.
Police officers share in the profits. The local police system.
Officeis directly dependent upon the support of gamblers, &c.
CONTENTS.
xiii
Evidence of the six companies. Money payment to police.
Testimony of Mr. Rogers, Mr. McKenzie, Wong Ben, Ah
Chung. The police system has been improved of late. Diffi¬
culties attending government in California. Fugitive criminals.
Diseased persons. Contract-laborers. Evils may be grappled
with under existing treaties 261-291
PART IV.
FEARS OF AN OVERFLOWING IMMIGRATION OF THE
CHINESE.
CHAPTER I.
THE VIEWS OF ANTI-CHINESE PAETISANS.
There is no danger of a large influx of the Chinese. Examination
of the declarations which have been made on this subject. The
report of the Congressional commission. Its declarations not
sustained by the evidence. The report of the cotnmittee on
education* and labor. Its exaggerated tone. The population
of China. Wâges in China. Fares to California, &c. The
debate in the House of representatives on the fifteen-passenger
bill. Remarks of Mr. Willis, Mr. Page, Mr. Haskell, Mr.
Davis, Mr. Corbett and Mr. Money. Remarks of Governor
Booth, Mr. Jones, Mr. Matthews, Mr. Blaine. The " hordes
**of China." Fares to California again. The differences be¬
tween the Caucasian and the Chinaman. The difference over¬
looked by anti-Chinese partisans. It will be time enough to
legislate to exclude the Chinese when their tendency to cgme
among us is established A .292-310
CHAPTER ÎI.
THE DEMAND FOE CHINESE LABOE FAILING.
The failure of public men to examine into the prospects of immigra-
tioh censured. The demand of the past exceptional. The
demand failing. The facts in regard to the demand for rail¬
road building. Testimony of Mr. Crocker, Mr. Strobridge,
Mr. Colton, and Mr. Evans. Disabilities of the Chinese.
They are not acquainted with our language and methods.
Their inferior physical force. Testimony of Governor Low,
Dr. Meares, and Mr. Bigelow. Swamp land reclamations.
White men will not work in this direction. The advantages of
reclamatiorts to farmers and the State. Mining. The numbers
involved inconsiderable. Wheat culture. The important work
is done by white men. The aptitude of the Chinese for higher
grades of labor examined, ^hey are beweis of wood, and
drawers of water. Testimony of Mr. Easterby, Mr. Roberts,
Mr. Smith, Mr. Olmsted, and Mr. Mellon. The demand for
xiv
CONTENTS,
the Chinese illustrated by the census enumeration of laborers in
the different States. Disproportion of agricultural laborers to
the whole population of California. The average size of farms
in different States. California farms large, and laboring class
small. Farm productions in different States. Why so few
Chinese have come to California.
CHAPTER III.
THE FAILING DEMAND FOE THEIR LABOR CONTINUED.
The demand in fruit raising. As the population increases and the
younger generation comes forward, the Chinese in less demand.
Fruit raising will become less special. The demand likely to
fall off in manufacturing enterprises. Testimony of Governor
Low, Mr. Heynemann, Mr. McLennan and Mr. Gallego. In¬
dustries in which the Chinese do not take part. Testimony of
Mr. Scott. The manufacture of shoes and cigars. Tendency
to employ whites instead of Chinese and the reasons. Testi¬
mony of Mr. Buchanan and Mr. Muther. The Chinese as do¬
mestic servants. Testimony of Mrs. Swift. The demand for
Chinese labor not continuous throughout the year. Testimony
of Mr. Bryant. The ebb and flow of migration 332*347"
CHAPTER IV.
THE SUPPLY OF OTHER LABOR.
The supply of labor in California tending to increase. The in¬
crease of population. Comparison of the increase in different
States. The Noithwest has outstripped California. The rela¬
tive numbers of the Chinese in the State at different periods.
The proportion of Chinese diminishing. The tendency of
Eastern immigration. The .tide a rising one. The per cent-
age of births in California. Conditions of life in California
attractive. Rates of wages for farm laborers in different parts of
the country. The ordinary laborer paid nearly twice as much as
the Eastern laborer. Comparison with European rates. Rates
in different countries of Europe? Cost of living in Europe, in
the Eastern States and in California. A large immigration from
Europe pray be expected. Farm laborers in Europe. Employ¬
ment of Chinese in .Australia 34^-3^7
CHAPTER V.
THEY ARE NOT A MIGRATORY PEOPLE.
The question of the disposition of the Chinese to move out from
their own territories considered. Their habits in this respect
unchanged. No change can occur without a warning. Their
occupations of otEer territories has been the result of slow growth
and not of migrations. They are not migratory nor aggressive.
Theiiistory of their conquests. The surrounding petty states.
Nature of the relations between them and China. Corea, Lew
Chew, Annam, Siam, Burmah. All of these might have been
overrun by the Chinese, but nothing of the kind has occurred.
CONTENTS.
XV
The outlying districts belonging to China have not been settled
up. The facts regarding Formosa. Unsubdued aboriginal
tribes in the heart of the empire. The Miau-tsz. Manchuria.
The south of Manchuria long ago settled by the gradual move¬
ment of the Chinese. The central and northern parts scarcely
touched by the hands of men. The vast region of Inner Mon¬
golia. It is still unoccupied although suitable for cultivation
and adjacent to China proper. The Chinese have made no
military conquests in the last hundred years. The indifference
of the Chinese in the recent famine 368-386
CHAPTER VI.
THE QUESTION OP THEIK DISPOSITION TO EMIGEATE CONTINUED.
The facts in regard to the more distant emigrations of the Chinese.
The southern Chinese more active than those of the north.
Their more distant emigrations have been to countries under
European domination. A new element brought into play. The
inducements held out by the more enterprising races. History
gives no instance of a spontaneous movement of an inferior race
into districts occupied by a superior. The native races in the
Asiatic colonial possessions of Europe, inferior to the Chinese.
The Chinese in the Spanish Philippine possessions. Those in
the Netherlands possessions. Those in the British possessions
near the straits of Malacca. Active assistance given to the
Chinese immigration into those districts. Control of the Chi¬
nese at Singapore. Secret societies. Chinese members of the
colonirl government. T*he Chinese in Labuan. The French
possessions in Cochin China 387-400
CHAPTER VII.
THE QUESTION OP THEIE DISPOSITION TO EMIGEATE CONTINUED.
Emigration to Australia, Peru and Cuba. The emigration to the
first of these deserves especial attention, because the conditions
there are similar to those in California. The population of Aus¬
tralia. The number of Chinese in Australia. Australian im¬
migration tainted by the contract system. Proposed regula¬
tions for contract emigration. Contract emigration to Singa¬
pore. Contract emigration to Australia. Share system among
the Chinese. The contract system promotes emigration. Diffi¬
culties of Chinese miners in Australia. Protection of miners.
Earnings in mines. Other occupations. Exclusion from gen¬
eral industries and the causes. Opportunities in California and
Australia compared. Remittances to China. The mercantile
class. Sanitary regulations. Women. Arbitration of disputes.
Legislation againsl the Chinese. Agitation. Peru and Cuba.
No volunteer movement to these districts. Commerce in labor¬
ers. Attrocities attending this commerce. Numbers in Peru
and Cuba. The future of Chinese emigration to all parts of the
world. They wil4 find their most appropriate theatre in their
own hemisphere 401-420
CHINESE IMMIGRATION.
PART I.
THE NUMBER OF THE CHINESE IN THE UNITED STATES.
Spirit of exaggeration characterizes the statements of anti-Chinese partisans.
Statements of mass meeting held in San Francisco in 1876. State¬
ments of counsel before the congressional joint committee. Statements
in Congress, and by congressional committees. The facts as revealed
by the census and by customs' statistics of arrivals and departures.
Probable number of Chinese in the United States in 1876-80, not more
than 100,000; in California, 75>00'^* Distribution of Chinese popula¬
tion. The misstatements made in this connection discredit the state¬
ments of anti-Chinese partisans in other directions. The question of
importance in connection with the general problems involved in Chi¬
nese immigration.
A spirit of exaggeration has characterized the utter¬
ances of many persons whose views are hostile to the
immigration of Chinese into the United States, both when
they have spoken of the objections which may be urged
against such immigration, and when they have estimated
the number of those who have already reached our shores.
The latter is a question of statistics, yet statements of the
most .random nature have been put forward and have
gained currency. A mass meeting was held in Union
Hall, San Francisco, on the 5th of April, 1876, at which
«
f
Note.—This chapter was written as it was written in order to indi-
before the results of the recent census cate not only that the extravagant
were declared. In appendix A will statements referred to in it were
be found an abstract of the census unfounded, but, also, that the data
so far as it affects the questions in- necessary to reach an accurate con¬
volved which sustaiîis the conclusions elusion were perfectly available,
reached by me. I leave the chapter
2
CHINESE IMMIGRATION
resolutions adverse to Chinese immigration and an address
to Congress were adopted. The meeting was promoted
by the mayor of the city, and its president was the gov¬
ernor of the State. Three distinguished citizens were
appointed to present its action to Congress. A degree
of accuracy might have been looked for under such cir¬
cumstances, yet the address set forth in a positive way,
that there were, at that moment, 200,000 Chinese in the
State and 75,000 in the city.^ I shall be able to show,
as I believe, that there were not more than 100,000
Chinese in all the United States at that time, and that
not more, perhaps, than 75,000 of these were resident in
California, the city of San Francisco included.
I desire to dwell a moment upon these exaggerated
statements before proceeding to set forth my reasons for
believing that the actual population was not greater than
I have indicated above.
When the joint committee of the two Houses of Con¬
gress on Chinese immigration met in San Francisco on
the 2ist of October, 1876, there appeared before it the
" Honorable Frank McCoppin, representing the Senate
" of the State of California; Frank M. Pixley, Esquire,
" representing the municipality of San Francisco; and
" Cameron H. King, Esquire, who appeared on behalf of
" the anti-coolie clubs of the city."^
The first of these said in his opening address ;—" Our
"present Chinese population is estimated at 116.000, of
" which number about 30,000 are domiciled in the city." ^
Mr. Pixley said ;—" I should therefore fix in my own
" opinion, and think we will be able to show to you by
" testimony, that the Chinese in this country, embracing
" the State and coast, number from 150,000 to 175,000."^
^ Gibson's Ch. in Am., p. 15. tleman, when upon the witness stand,
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 9. said;—"Wehave 250,030Chinamen
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 10. here"! Rep.Ch. Im., p. 371.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 12. This gen-
EXAGGERATED STATEMENTS.
3
Mr. King said ;—" We shall prove that over* 148,000
Chinese reside in our State; that the yearly excess of
arrivals over departures, has been, for the last year,
" certainly 18,000, and that the ratio of this number is
annually increasing." '
Such utterances have not been confined to special
pleaders, but have been heard in Congress, coming from
representatives of districts where the facts should be
accurately known.
Mr. Page, a distinguished member of the Californiar
delegation, said, in the House, on the 29th of January,
1879;—"These people have come in hundreds and thou-
" sands, until their number has been increased in the
" State of California to 150,000."
Mr. Luttrell, another well-known member from Cali¬
fornia, in the course of the same debate used the fol¬
lowing language;—"Not one of these one hundred and
" fifty or two hundred thousand Chinamen who reside
" on the Pacific slope, owns a homestead, or contributes
" to the good morals of society or to good government."
Mr. Sargent, the able and esteemed senator, speaking
on the 14th of February, 1879, said;—"We want this legis-
" latign because the burden is intolerable. There are
" now in California more Chinese than there are voters.
" Do senators weigh that fact ? There are now in Cali-
" fornia, at the time I speak, more Chinamen than there
" are voters, and they are increasing enormously year by
" year and month by month, restricted somewhat by the
" tone of feeling toward them, restricted somewhat by the
" chance that Congress may take action in the matter, re-
" stricted somewhat by the fact that a large class of our
" people, who feel this oppression the most, and who are
" most restless under it, have, in spite of the cooler coun-
" sels of those'who are philanthropic, of those who desire
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 12.
4
CHINESE IMMIGRAIION
" to prevent scandal, to prevent injustice, sometimes
stíown their teeth and threatened, seeing that Congress
" would apparently do nothing for them, to take the
" redress into their own hands, and do the way the old
" Germanic nations did, when they were threatened with
an irruption of barbarians, force back the tide by every
means with which God has endowed themC
Mr. Grover, of Oregon, in the same debate, said;—" If
" it becomes understood that the Chinese shall come and
" stay in peace, it will not be half a century before the
Asiatics will outnumber the Americans on this conti-
nent.''
And not only have special advocates, and members of
Congress and senators, spoken in this way, but com¬
mittees of Congress, which have considered the subject,
^have given currency to extravagant declarations. The
-report of the joint committee upon Chinese immigration,
was submitted to the Senate on the 27th of February,
1877. The following language will be found in it;—^
" Their number in California at the present time is so
" great that they could control any election if the ballot
" was put into their hands. The number of adult Chi-
" nese at the present time, is as great as that of all the
" voters in>the State, or nearly reaching that number, and
they increase more rapidly than the other adult popu-
. "dation of the State. ^ ^ This problem is too import-
" ant to be treated with indifference. * It must be
" solved, in the judgment of the committee, unless our
" Pacific possessions are to be ultimately given over to a
' " race alien in all its tendencies, which will make of them
" practically provinces of China, rather than States of the
" Union."
On the 25th of February, 1878, Mr. Willis, from the
comniittee on education and labor, submitted to the
^ Rep.^Ch. Im., p. vii.
POPULATION IN 1870.
5
House of Representatives á report from which I quote
the following language;—"The lowest estimate of the
" Chinese in the Pacific States is 150,000. Accepting this
" as correct, it will be seen that at the above rate of in-
" crease, and after deducting the large number who
" yearly return, the Chinese population will, in the near
" future, exceed the male adult population of Americans
" in those States, and all other races combined. Even
" at present it closely approximates the voting popula-
" tion."
These statements, taken at random from the mass of
such statements, indicate the habitual declarations of
anti-Chinese partisans ; and what are the facts}
I find in the first place, that in 1870, after more than
twenty years' experience of the migration of different
races into California there were in the State, according
to the census taken by the government of the Unked
States, a total population of 560,247, of which 48,823
(including 32 Japanese) were classed as Chinese.^
I find in the next place, that in the same year (1870)
the total number of males in the State of California of
the age of 21 years and upwards was 227,256, and that
the total number of Chinese males 21 years old and up¬
wards, was 36,890.^
I find again, that in the same year the total number of
male citizens, 21 years and upwards, was 145,802.^
I find still again, that the total number of Chinese in
the United States in 1870, including 54 Japanese, was
62,736.'
It will be said at once that the Chinese population
must have increased greatly after 1870 and before the
dates of the various utterances to which I have called at-
^ Census 1870, vol. Pop. and So. ^ Census 1870, vol. Pop. and So,
Stat., p. 336. Stat., p. 619.
^Census 1870, Pop. and So. "^Census 1870, Pop. and So.
Stat., p. 619. Stat., p. 336.
(í POPULA T/OAT IN 1876,
tention, that is to say, 1876, '77, and '78. Let us see
what there is to be said on this head.
We have as a basis for an estimate the census enumer¬
ation just given, that is to say for 1870, a Chinese popu¬
lation of 62,736.
We have in the next place a tabular statement pre¬
sented to the Congressional commission by Mr. Alfred
Wheeler, one of the witnesses who testified before it,
giving the number of Chinese who arrived at and de¬
parted from San Francisco during the years 1852-76,^
This table was made up by him from the records of
the custom house. The particulars for the yeai's 1870-6
are as follows ; —
Year. Arrivals. Departures. Gain.
1870 . . 10,869 4)232 6,637
1871 5,542 3,264 2,278
1872 9,773 4,887 4,886
1873 i7)075 6,805 10,270
1874 16,085 7.710 8,375
1875 18,021 6,305 11,716
1876 to Oct. 1st 13,914 3,481 10,433
. 91.279 36,684 54.595
• The Chinese population at the end of 1876 would
have been, then 62,736
and 54.595
say 117,331
less the natural decrease by by death.
If we estimate the number of deaths at two per cent,
annually on an average population of about 90,000, we
shall need to deduct—
from 117,331
say..., 12,600
' Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1196.
104,731
POPULATION IN 1876,
7
In making this computation, however, we have twice
counted the Chinese who entered the United States in
the year 1870, before the census was taken, and we have
not allowed for the excess of departures over arrivals in
the last three months of 1876 these months being those
when the outward movement usually exceeds the inward.
Taking these two items into the calculation, there seems
very good reason to believe that the number of Chinese
in our country on the last day of 1876 did not exceed
100,000.
Questions may be raised, of course, whether the census
and the tabular statement may be relied upon. In this
connection a comparison of results for the preceding ten
years will be of interest
According to the census the Chinese population of
1870, was 62,736
and that of i860 34j933
The increase, therefore, was 27,803
The tabular statement for these years is as follows ;—
Year.
Arrivals.
Departures.
Gain.
Loss.
i860....
7,343
2,088
5,255
1861 . .
8,424
3,594
4,830
1862 ....
8,188
2,795
5,393
1863....
6,435
2,947
3,488
1864....
2,696
3,9"
1,215
1865 —
3,097
2,298
799
1866
i
2,242
3,"3
871
1867....
4,794
4,999
«
205
1868....
11,085
4,209
6,876
1869 ,,.
14,994
4,896
10,098
, 69,298
34,850
36,739
2,291
Gain
34,448
8
POPULA T/OAT IN 1880,
Taking away from this gain. 34^44^
an estimated number of deaths, say two
per cent, a year for six years on an aver-
age population of 50,000 10,000
the increase for this period as derived
from the table, would be 24,448
This falls short of the increase as shown by the census
something over three thousand, a divergence which is
not excessive when it is remembered that a certain num¬
ber of arrivals for 1870 are counted into the census esti¬
mate of that year, while none at all are embraced in the
tabular statement. It would appear therefore that the
results arrived at by an examination of the census and of
the records of the custom house mutually sustain one
another and confirm the accuracy of my estimate of the
population at the end of 1876.
The course of immigration since 1876, is shown in the
following statement published in the Alta Califoríiia
newspaper, of San Francisco;—
Year. Arrivals. Departures. Gain. Lose.
1877 9,906 7,852 2.054
•1878 7,418 6,512 906
1879 6,544. 6,906 362
o
23,868 21,270 2,960 362
Gain 2,598
The number of deaths in these years, at the ratio of
two in a hundred, on an estimated population of 100,000,
would be 6,000
Taking from this, the increase, according the 2,598
table, jYe find that since 1876 there has been
an actual falling off in our Chinese population—
amounting to . . 3,402
DISTRIBUTION, 9
and that we entered upon the year 1880, with no more,
probably, than 96,000 or 97,000 Chinamen within our
borders.
I shall not pretend to decide with particularity where
the 100,000 Chinese, more or less, so enumerated, are res¬
ident. According to a table given in the census of 1870,
they were then distributed as follows ;—
California 48,790
Nevada 3d 43
Oregon 3,326
Idaho 4,267
Montana i,943
Utah 445
Washington... 234
Wyoming 143
Other States and Territories 383
62,674
Something less, then, than four fifths of all the Chinese
in the United States, were resident in California in 1870.
If the same proportion held in 1876-80, the number
would 'be about 80,000. I judge, however, that a larger
number of Chinese have gone out from California to
other portions of our country in recent years, than in
those prior to 1870. I have no statistics on the subject,
but may mention that Mr. Gibson, from whose book,
"The Chinese in America," I have already quoted, writ¬
ing in 1876, appears to have believed that nearly one-half
were resident outside of California\ and that Mr. Wheeler
at about the same date, said:—"The departures inland to
" Oregon, Washington Territory, Nevada, Utah, Montana,
" Idaho, and the States east of the Rocky Mountains can-
" not be less, ir|,my opinion, than 20,000."^ The latter opin¬
ion is sustained perfectly by the census of 1870, but that
^ Ch. in Am., p. 17. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1196
10
MISSTATEMENTS CENSURED,
of Mr. Gibson, while less likely to be accurate, is not to be
dismissed as devoid of significance. He has been more
intimately associated with the Chinese in California than
any other person of our own stock, and must be well ac¬
quainted with the avenues of employment sought by
them. It is natural, too, that as years pass, and the im¬
migrants become acquainted with other districts than
California, they should go out into these districts. We
have seen some of them already in 1870 crossing the Si¬
erra Nevada in their progress, and swelling the popula¬
tion of Idaho, Montana and Utah. We have heard of
them more lately in the great cities and manufacturing
towns of the Eastern States. In estimating the number
who have left California for other fields in which to labor,
at not less than 25,000, I think I am not far wrong.
We reach, then, the conclusion that in 1876 the whole
number of Chinese in the United States was about 100,-
00b, that this number has not increased since, and that
the whole number of Chinese in California has never ex¬
ceeded probably 75,000.
Reverting now to the excessive estimates of the special
' pleaders against the Chinese, who appeared before the
Congressional commission of 1876, of representatives
and senators in Congress and of the committees of Con¬
gress, I desire to point out with much emphasis that
such misstatements are not to be defended as mere
mistakes. We are not dealing with a subject of an
indefinite kind in which misconceptions are natural
mnd pardonable. The statistics to which I have appealed
are as open to those who spoke in an extravagant way as
they have been to me. A grave question was under ex¬
amination, and it was the duty of each one of the persons
whose declarations I have quoted to make no misleading
statements. Yet one and all they have been willing to
have the country believe that the number of Chinese in
MISSTATEMENTS CENSURED.
11
our country is from fifty to one hundred and fifty per
cent, greater than the actual number.
We may admit, and I most certainly do admit, that
the opposition to the Chinese in California and in Con¬
gress is more or less perfectly sincere. With some of the
gentlemen whose statements I have quoted I am person¬
ally acquainted, and I speak with candor only when I
say that the earnestness of their convictions has been
thoroughly impressed upon my mind. Yet in a public
matter of a grave kind we have a right to expect accu¬
racy as well as honesty from the leaders of public opinion,
and we cannot but speak in terms of grave condemnation
when we do not find it.
It is true also that when we fine a lack of carefulness
characterizing the utterances of the men who have mad'e
themselves prominent in the anti-Chinese crusade, when
dealing with a very important feature of the whole busi¬
ness, we very naturally and very positively distrust their
utterances upon other parts of the subject, more particu¬
larly those in which divergent opinions are to be expected.
It is not to be wondered at that certain members of the
Pacific.coast communities entertain honest convictions
that the presence of the Chinese among them is danger¬
ous to their well being and peace. The region of discus¬
sion involved in the question is largely speculative, and
facts enough can be readily arrived at which will seem to
sustain in a most positive way such convictions. But the
advocates of this view are none the less representative
men and citizens, and their first duty is to be accurate.
When we find that they are not accurate in a material
matter, and one in which it is easy to reach the truth,
they must not be surprised if those who hold to different
opinions upon the general subject are ready to charge
them with having allowed the earnestness of their views
to overbalance their judgment.
12
IMPORTANCE OF ACCURACY.
The condemnation to be meted out against them must
be considered stronger when we learn that counsel against
the Chinese, before the Congressional commission, made
no serious effort to prove their statements, that these
statements were, denied from the outset, by counsel who
appeared for the Chinese, and that the evidence adduced
more than sustained the latter. On page 119 of Mr. B.
S. Brooks' appendix to his " Opening Statement and
" Brief on the Chinese Question," will be found a recapitu¬
lation of the census enumerations of 1860 and 1870, show¬
ing the total population of Chinese in those years. As
I have already referred to these enumerations, I have no
occasion to repeat their tenor and significance here. On
page 118 of the same document, an estimate, by Mr.
Brooks, of the increase after 1870, is printed. He judged
then that there might be 120,000 Chinese in all the United
States. Mr. Wheeler's table showed that the aggregate
in 1876 could not be more than 114,000. The Rev. Mr.
Shearer, another witness, submitted a carefully prepared
statement of the immigration of Chinese, demonstrating
that their whole population in the United States, at the
moment, was not more than 100,000.^
It may be said that it does not matter greatly whether
the Chinese in the United States number 100,000, or
150,000, or 200,000, but I think that it does matter.
Three quarters of all of these are probably in California,
and we may feel much greater sympathy with the people
of California, whether as regards their present disquiet
or their anxiety for the future, if the number of Chinese
in their State amounts to the higher estimates which have
been given to the world. It is a somewhat startling
statement that the number of adult Chinese in California
" is as great as that of all the voters in the State." The
fact is far different, and it should be known to the world.
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 513.
IMPORTANCE OF ACCURACY,
13
I have already shown that the number of citizens in Cali¬
fornia, in 1870, twenty-one years old and upwards, was
145,802; while the number of Chinese males, twenty-
one years old and upwards, was 36,890. In the ten
years which have since elapsed, the Chinese in California
have increased about fifty per cent., but on the other
hand, it is likely that the po^pulation at large of the State
has increased in an equal measure. Mr. Brooks estimates
the actual vote of 1876 at 155,728.^ If we add fifty per
cent, to the Chinese adult population of 1870, we shall
have as their whole number in 1876-80 about 55,000,
which is very considerably less than " the number of all
" the voters in the State."
It will be surprising, as I believe, to the people of the
United States, that misstatements so gravely serious in
their nature have passed unchallenged in the halls of
Congress, and in the country at large. It shows how far
a very simple matter can be misunderstood, when on
the one side there is concerned a vigorous party repre¬
senting an active political cry, and on the other a disfran¬
chised class incapable of fighting its own battles. But
while it must be admitted that the sentiment of Califor¬
nia is very strongly against the Chinese, we have a right
to expect that the Eastern States, remembering the tra¬
ditional policy of the country, will come sooner or later
to inquire into all the questions involved in the so-called
Chinese problem, and that the misstatements which have
been put afloat will receive their just condemnation.
^ Br. Ap., p. 131.
PART IL—CHAPTER L
THE MATERIAL RESULTS OF CHINESE LABOR IN CALI¬
FORNIA. RAILROAD BUILDING.
This part of the book exhibits the material advantages which have resulted
to California from the labors of Chinamen. The facts recited
taken mainly from the evidence before the joint commssion. The
importance of railroads to California, because of the isolated position
of the State and the extent of her territory. Evidence of Gov. Low,
Mr. Charles Crocker, Mr. Strobridge, Mr. Colton, and Mr. Evans,
showing that the trans-continental and other railroads could not have
been built so cheaply and so quickly without Chinese labor, and that
the result has been such as to serve the convenience, iPamfort and
opportunities for enterprise of the people of the State, and to promote
immigration from the Eastern States and the prosperity of the State.
I propose to indicate in this and the next following
chapters what the Chinese in California have done to
advance the material interests of the State. I shall
adduce first the evidence given by witnesses who tes¬
tified before the Congressional committee in regard
to. the assistance rendered by them more partic¬
ularly in the construction of. railroads. Later chapters
will show the evidence given before the commission in
relation to other departments of their labor ; in the recla¬
mation of swamp lands, often called tule-lands from the
tall, rush-like, growth by which they are covered ; in min¬
ing ; in agriculture ; in fruit growing ; in manufacturing
enterprises. I shall devote a chapter also to the Chinese
as servants.
It would be easy to recite the facts in an ordinary-
narrative form. My object is not, however, to write out
the story in an entertaining way. I wish to carry the
conviction to the minds of my readers that my con-
RAILROAD CONSTRUCTION.
15
elusions are just, and I believe that I can do this best by
allowing sworn witnesses, citizens of the State of Cali¬
fornia, interested in the welfare of the commonwealth,
and themselves the observers of what they relate, to tell
the story.
In this part of my work I shall not even feel called
upon to make many comments upon the subject matter
of my writing. The witnesses will speak for themselves
and I shall reserve argument for the later chapters, in
which I shall deal with the merits of objections raised in
California against Chinese immigration and with the
Californian view generally of the so-called Chinese
problem.
It is appropriate to adduce first the evidence offered
before the commission in regard to the labors of the
Chinese upon the railroads of California, including the
great trans-continental line known as the Central Pacific
railroad, because these roads form the only great public
works which have been constructed in the State, and
because their establishment has affected the prosperit}-
of the State and the development of its material inter¬
ests in a marked degree.
We have to remember in this connection two great
considerations, first, the isolated and remote position of
California; and second, the extent of her territory and its
physical features.
California rests upon the Pacific ocean, but the sea which
laves her shores has no connecting strait with the At¬
lantic until we have traversed the whole extent of the
two continents to the southward. The deep sea voyage
is a particularly long and difficult one. It is as far by
sea from New York to San Francisco as from the for¬
mer to Hong Kong. It is true that a railway was long
since construdled at Panama, and that lines of steamers
on the two oceans have enabled passengers to reach Cal-
16
IMPORTANCE OF RAILROADS.
ifornia by a quick and easy transit comparatively. Yet
this route has been an expensive one and the process of
building up a great commonwealth could go forward but
slowly so long as immigrants were obliged in great part
to traverse it.
California occupies the western side of our continent,
but the statement conveys to the mind, when taken by
itself, no adequate ideas of the difficulties which meet, or
rather did meet, the traveler seeking the land of gold by
the overland way. Our settlements still remain few and
inconsiderable when the vast tract west of the Missouri
is entered open. It was an unknown region thirty years
ago. And so soon as the wayfarer leaves the fertile val¬
leys of the Platte and begins the ascent of the Rocky
mountains, how uninviting and inhospitable is the coun¬
try. The plains, as they are called, sweep away in inter¬
minable distances, covered by scanty vegetation, until at
the summit we enter upon a vast district which is arid
always, which in winter is swept over by arctic winds,
and further west becomes almost a desert. The crown¬
ing danger however in the olden time as it is the centre
of interest now, was the great snow capped line of the
Sierra Nevada, a boundary within sight of the happy
land beyond, which frequently proved impassable to the
weary and foot worn adventurer.
From the outset the enterprising population of Cali¬
fornia looked forward to the time when the iron horse
should surmount those mountain ranges, afford them the
opportunity to return quickly to their eastern homes, and
afford others the opportunity to seek the pleasant places
of which so much was related, in an easier way than those
who had preceded. These opportunities came sooner
than they could have expected and the Chinese, so con¬
temned and despised in that whole region, were largely
instrumental in bringing about the result.
mANSCONTINETAL LINE.
17
A transcontinental railway was necessary then for the
comfort of Californians and for the progress of the State.
Their land was too isolated, too remote, and too difficult
of access to receive any great increase of population in
its absence. State after state has been admitted into
the union of states since the annexation of California.
Many of these have outstripped her in growth. With all
her wonderful resources she was too heavily handicapped
to make great progress, and we see her to-day with barely
a million of population.
And while a transcontinental line was needed prima¬
rily for her development, having this she must still con¬
struct local railroads or leave a large part of her territory
practically inaccessible. California lacks water commu¬
nication, and her physical features are such that trans¬
portation is difficult by any other means than railways.
It is 600 miles from her southern boundary to the State
of Oregon. Mountain range after mountain range is
piled up along the Pacific coast. A great arid valley
intervenes between it and the Sierra Nevada. But one
considerable stream breaks through from the great val¬
ley to the sea. Branches of this stream fall in, one
from the northern part of the valley and one from the
the southern, but neither is of magnitude and both are
affected by the alternate seasons of rain and drouth which
prevail, so as to be less satisfactory for purposes of trans¬
portation. From the valleys which lie between the par¬
allel ranges of the coast mountains, and from the great
valley, access to the sea is difficult, and in the absence of
railways, Californian agriculture would remain only a
great possibility of the future.
Into such a region an enterprising population would,
of course, introduce railways, but how soon and how rap^
idly would depend upon a variety of considerations, and
among these the supply of labor would be one of much
B
18
CHINESE LABOE.
concern. It remains now for the witnesses before the
Congressional committee to tell of the solution of many
difficulties afforded by the presence of large numbers of
Chinese ready and able to do such work.
Frederick F. Low, former member of Congress, gov¬
ernor, and minister to China, was the first of all the wit¬
nesses examined before the committee. He was an
early settler in California, and represents in a high degree,
its best enterprise and intelligence. At page 75 of the
evidence he is represented as testifying;—
" I should say that up to the present time, Chinese
" labor has been of material advantage to the State, look-
" ing at it in dollars and cents, by reason of our isolation.
" The laboring classes of the Eastern States, and of Eu-
" rope could not get here ; they had not the means ; the
" inconvenience and expense of getting here were so great
" that they could not come ; but with the completion of
" the railroad, and with the surging of the tide westward,
" coming by easy steps, from this time forward, there
" would probably be sufficient labor to replace Chinese
" that will go "
Again, in response to questions by the chairman of
the committee, senator Morton
" Q, I will ask the governor what proportion of labor
" in constructing these railroads has been performed by
" Chinese.^ A. I should think on the Central Pacific
" railroad, from my knowledge of it, four-fifths of the
" labor for the grading was performed by the Chinese ;
" that is, from here to Ogden.
"Q. In regard to public works in the State, of every
" description, what proportion of them have been con-
" structed by Chinese labor A. We have very few
" public works.
" I suppose railroads include most of them. A.
" Railroads include most of them.
GOVERNOR LOW'S EVIDENCE,
19
"Q. You have irrigating canals, ditches, etc? A. We
" have, but I have not been on the ground, and it is
" very difficult to judge from hearsay testimony.
" Q. I am, of course, asking your general opinion ?
" A. For making levees, and digging ditches, and that
" sort of work I think much the larger proportion of it is
performed by Chinese, because it is useful labor, and
" can be commanded in any quantity easily at any time.
" Q. In the reclaiming of swamp-lands, the tule-
" lands? A. In the building of levees, much the larger
" proportion is done by the Chinese, for two reasons ;
" first, the labor is cheaper, and secondly, it is an un-
" healthy sort of work, because it is in malarious districts,
" and the Chinese seem to be constituted something like
" the negro; they are not affected by malaria as anglo-
saxons are.
" Q. If Chinese had not come here could white labor
have been readily procured to construct these works
you speak of ? A. It would have taken a much
" longer time. It would have been delayed. They
" could not have got the labor.
" Q. Would it have increased the expense ? A. Very
" much. If it will not be irrelevant I will state that I
" was one of the commissioners when the Pacific rail-
" road was in the course of construction on this side of
" the Sierra. I had occasion to go upon the road to
" examine and report upon its construction, prior to put-
" ting on the superstructure and while they v/ere grading.
" I was on the road when they introduced Chinese labor.
" They first started with white labor and they came to a
" stand-still. They could not get enough to prosecute
" the work. They had a foreman named Strobridge, a
" smart, pushing Irishman. Mr. Crocker told me, not
once, but half* a dozen times, that he suggested to this
" foreman that they must come to Chinese, He said, ^ I
20
CENTRAL PACIFIC RAILROAD.
^will not boss Chinese. I will not be responsible for the
" ^ work done on the road by Chinese labor, because you
" ' compute a certain number of men, and there is a re-
" ^ sponsibility in producing a certain amount of work with
" ' them.^ They were offering then, if I recollect rightly,
" $45 a month and board for white labor. That would
" be more than a dollar and a half a day, twenty-six
" working days in the month. The thing came practic-
" ally to a stand-still, and finally Strobridge consented
" that they should put on Chinese enough to fill the
dump-carts, and that Chinamen should hold the drills,
while white men should drive the horses and strike the
" drills. He would not permit a Chinaman to strike.
He said they did not know how. They started
in that way, I made frequent visits upon the road.
" I saw the progress that was being made in the em-
" ployment of Chinese, and talked with Strobridge about
" it. In less than six months, I think, they had the
" Chinese doing everything ; not only filling the carts
" but driving the horses, and Strobridge told me that,
" taken altogether, the Chinese did 80 per cent, as much
" as the whites. They paid the Chinese $31 a month,
" and they boarded themselves. To the white laborers
" they professed to pay, and did pay, $45 a month and
" board, which amounted, they considered, to two dollars
" a day.
" By senator Sargent. Q. Suppose that instead of
" paying $45 they paid $50 I myself was paying $65
" at that time. A. Crocker said there was not sufficient
" labor in the country ; that he could not get it."
Mr. Charles Crocker, well known throughout the
country as one of the five proprietors of the Central Pa¬
cific railroad gave the following evidence
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 606.
MR. CROCKER'S EVIDENCE.
21
" Q. How long have you been in the State ? A. I
have been here twenty-six years.
" Q. What has been your business } A. For the
last fifteen or sixteen years I have been building rail¬
roads.
" Q. Did you commence the construction of the Cen¬
tral Pacific Vv^ith white or Chinese labor } A. We
commenced with white labor.
" Q. How long did you continue it ? A. We never
discontinued it ; we have always employed white labor.
Q. I mean how long did you continue with that kind
of labor extensively} A. We continued about a year
and a half, when we found we could not get sufficient
labor to progress with the road as fast as was necessary,
and felt driven to the experiment of trying Chinese
labor. I believe that all our people were prejudiced
against Chinese labor, and that there was a disposition
not to employ them.
" Q. You mean that the railroad people were preju¬
diced A. Yes, sir; especially Mr. Strobridge and
myself, who had charge of the construction, more par¬
ticularly. I had charge of the construction, and Mr. Stro¬
bridge was under me as superintendent. He thought
that the Chinese would not answer, considering what
they eat, and other things, and from what he had seen
of them ; he did not think they were fit laborers ; he
did not think they would build a railroad. We adver¬
tised very thoroughly, and sent circulars to every post-
office in the State, inviting white labor, and offering large
prices for that class of labor, but we failed to get over
800 men. Our force never went much above 800 white
laborers, with the shovel and pick, and after pay day it
would run down to ooo or 700 ; then before the next
pay day it wcTiild get up to 800 men again, but we could
not increase beyond that amount. Then we were com-
22
CENTRAL PACIFIC RAILROAD.
pelled to try Chinese labor, and we tried them on the
light work, thinking they would not do for heavy work.
Gradually we found that they worked well there, and as
our forces spread out and we began to occupy more
ground, and felt more in a hurry, we put them into the
softer cuts, and finally into the rock cuts. Wherever we
put them we found them good, and they worked them¬
selves into our favor to such an extent that if we found
we were in a hurry for a job of work, it was better to
put on Chinese at once. Previous to that we had
always put on white men ; and to-day, if I had a big
job of work that I wanted to get through quickly, and
had a limited time to do it in, I should take Chinese
labor to do it with, because of its greater reliability and
steadiness, and their aptitude and capacity for hard
work.
" Q. What are their powers of endurance } A. They
are equal to the best white men. We tested that in the
summit tunnel, which is in the very hardest granite.
We had a shaft down in the centre. We were cutting
both ways from the bottom of that shaft. The com¬
pany were in a very great hurry for that tunnel, as it
was the key to the position across the mountains, and
they urged me to get the very best Cornish miners and
put them into the tunnel so as to hurry it, and we did
so. We went to Virginia City and got some Cornish
miners out of those mines, and paid them extra wages.
We put them into one side of the shaft, the heading
leading from one side, and we had Chinamen on the
other side. We measured the work every Sunday
morning, and the Chinamen, without fail, always out-
measured the Cornish miners ; that is to say they would
cut more rock in a week than the Cornish miners, and
it was hard work, steady pounding on the rock, bone-
labor. The Chinese were skilled in using the hammer
MR. STROBRIDGE'S EVIDENCE.
23
" and drill, and they proved themselves equal to the very
" best Cornish miners in that work. They are very trusty,
" they are very intelligent, and they live up to their con-
" tracts."
Mr. James Strobridge, the superintendent of construc¬
tion mentioned in the testimony of Mr. Low and Mr.
Crocker, gave the following evidence ;—^
" Q. You had charge of the work, did you not, pretty
" much, of the whole Central Pacific railroad.^ A. I
" was superintendent of construction.
" Q. That gave you the supervision of all the labor
"on the road.? A. Yes, sir.
" Q. How did you commence that road.? A. We
" commenced it with white labor.
" Q. Did you change to any other.? A. Yes, we
" changed to Chinamen. I advertised extensively for men,
" wanted several thousand, and was never able to get over
" 700 or 800 men at one time. We increased finally to
" 10,000. A large number of men would go on the work
" under these advertisements, but they were unsteady
" men, unreliable; some of them would stay a few days,
" and some would not go to work at all. Some would
" stay until pay day, get a little money, get drunk and
" clear ouf. Finally we resorted to Chinamen. I was
" very much prejudiced against Chinese labor. I did not
" believe we could make a success of it. I believe Chi-
" nese labor in this country on that kind of work, never
" had been made a success until we put them on there;
" but we did make a success of them. We worked a
" great many of them, and built the road virtually with
" Chinamen, though the white labor increased very much
" after introducing Chinese labor. We made foremen of
" the most intelligent of the white men, teamsters and
"hostlers. W^increased, I suppose, to 2,000 or 2,500
^ Rep. Ch. Im. pp. 723.
24
CHINESE IN ROCK CUTTING.
" white men. At that time we were working fully 10,000
" Chinamen.
" Q. Then you changed your views as to the Chinese
" as laborers} A. very much.
" Q. How did you find them to compare in that
" heavy work on the Sierra Nevada, tunnels, deep cuts
" and rock-works, with the white labor you had} A.
" They were equal to the white men.
" Q. They were equal to them ? A. Y es.
" Q. You had tests occasionally made there, as I read
" at the time in the newspapers, between v/hite labor and
" Chinese. A. Yes.
" Q. Who generally came out ahead ? A. When
" they were working on a drift, as they sometimes did,
" if there was any difference it was with the white men ;
"but the key of the situation was the summit tunnel,
" which was very hard rock, and we undertook to stock
" that with the best of white men. We considered them
" to be at that time superior to Chinamen, but we were
"unable to keep the work filled with white men, al-
" though we only worked eight hours. We worked in eight
" hour shifts, and as we could not keep the work favorable
"we put in a gang of Chinamen. Finally, before the
"work was half done, perhaps, I do not recollect at what
" stage, the Chinamen had possession of the whole work.
" At last the white men swore they would not work with
" Chinamen anyhow.
" Q. In that particular tunnel, or all along ? A. In
"that particular tunnel, not on the other work. We al-
" ways had gangs of white men. We employed all the
"white men v/e could get so long as they would work.
" Q. Would you,always give white men labor when
" asked for it ? a| I do not think there was ever a
"white man turned away for want of a place, to my
" knowledge."
MR. COLTON'S EVIDENCE.
25
Mr. David D. Colton testified as follows;—
" Q. You are acquainted with the Southern Pacific
railroad ? A. I am.
" Q. Are you the vice-president or the president of the
company} A. At this time I am the vice-president.
" Q. You have constructed it by Chinese labor I be-
" lieve ? A. Not altogether.
" Q. I mean principally.^ A. A portion of it ; the heads
" of the construction departments were white laborers.
" Q. The construction of this road gave employment
" to a great many white men } A. Yes, sir.
" Q. You had no government subsidy I believe, in aid
" of the constrnction t A. No, sir ; excepting the land
" subsidy.
\
" Q. What is the length of the road from Lathrop
"A. From Lathrop, or rather from Goshen, between
" four and five hundred miles of the Southern Pacific
" line proper has been constructed.
" Q' A good part of it through a farming country ?
" A. A great portion of it.
Q. It has opened up that vast country for settle-
" ment ? A. It has.
" Q. What class of people are and have been settling
" there since the road was built ? A. What you might
" term an average class of the immigrants who settle up
" all our new Territories and States.
" Q. White immigrants ? A. Pretty much all white.
There are very few of any other kind. They are mostly
" from the Western States ; some are Europeans.
" Q. Could you have constructed that road without
" Chinese labor ? A. I do not think it could have been
constructed so quickly, and with anything like the same
" amount of certainty as to what we were going to accom-
" plish in the s-atne length of time.
^ Rep. Cb. Im. p. 599-
26
BENEFIT OF RAILROADS.
"Q. You had several thousand laborers on the road ?
A. Yes, sir.
" Q. Could you have obtained that number of white
" laborers ^ A. I think not.
" Q. Has it not been your experience since your con-
" nection with the Central and Southern Pacific railroads
" that you could not obtain white labor ? A. We cer-
tainly could not in that number.
" Q. What has been the effect of the construction of
" these railroads upon the settlement and building up of
" the country ? A. From my standpoint I think it has
" done a great deal for this State and coast. It has been
"the means of opening up thousands of acres of land
" that would otherwise have lain vacant for a long time
" to come.
" Q. Have the settlements followed the railroads ? A.
" Yes, sir ; and constantly increasing. Our railroad con-
" struction is the reverse in this country from what it is
" in any other. They are built in other countries to take
" people out. Here we build a railroad so that people
" may go into the wilderness and settle it up.
"Q. The railroad is the pioneer.? A. Yes, sir.
" Many districts where there were 25 and 30 miles be-
" tween each settlement, or farm house, are now being
" settled up. Take the San Joaquin Valley railroad com-
" pared with three or four years ago. One car would
" then go up the valley. I have been on the train when
" there would be but two or three passengers for the last
"25 or 30 miles of the road. Now it takes four cars to
" do that business.
" Q. What has been the effect upon the prosperity of
" the State of the construction of lateral roads ? A. I
" think most favorable in every way. Lateral roads by
" themselves, would not be profitable to railroad propri-
" etors, but they would be of great advantage to the
SCARCITY OF LABORERS.
27
" country they would open up. I think as a rule they
" have advanced the value of lands from 200 to 1000 per
" cent. Much of the land in the Salinas valley, for in-
stance, was offered to us at $2 an acre, for which they
" are charging now $25 and $35 an acre since the road
" was built through that country.
" Q. What is the capacity of Chinese and their in-
" clination to do hard work } A. I have never placed
them in a position where they did not, to use a com-
mon expression, fill the bill.
" Q. Did you see the work done on the Southern Pa-
" cific railroad after it was completed 1 A. Yes, sir.
" Q. Do you know what kind of men were employed
" there ^ A. I have stated that 75 or 80 per cent, of
" our construction force were Chinamen. I think it is
" proper for me to say here, that so far as my knowledge
goes there was never a white laborer who wanted work
" who was refused.
" Q. What wages did you pay them ; the same as you
paid the Chinamen } A. No, sir ; we paid them as a
" rule twice what we paid the Chinamen.
" Q. You paid them twice as much 1 Did they do
twice as much work} A. No, sir ; but they did
" teaming and certain classes of work. I have never
" seen a Chinaman who could drive a team much.
" Teamsters and all that department we give to white
men. When we are building a bridge, or trestle work,
" it is in the hands of white laborers, and all the labor
" done about it, outside of carpenter work, is given to
" white laborers."
Mr. West Evans gave the following evidence ;—^
" Q. Have you been extensively engaged in building
" railroads ? A. Somewhat extensively.
" Q. What labor have you used on your works gen-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 720.
28
SCARCITY OF LABORERS.
" erally ? A. In the manufacture of railroad-ties I have
" used white labor ; in building railroads I use mostly
" Chinese labor.
" Q. What kind of labor is most satisfactory to you ?
" A. Chinamen give us better satisfaction generally.
" Q. In railroading A. Yes, sir; in railroad build-
" ing.
" Q. How extensively have you been engaged in get-
" ting out railroad-ties ? A. I have been in the busi-
" ness ever since the Pacific railroad was started. I
" think that was in 1863.
" Q. Supplying that company and others A. Yes,
" sir.
Q. How many white men do you employ in your
" busiest time ? A. Probably from 400 to 500.
" Q. Are you the West Evans who advertised exten-
sively in a newspaper a year or two ago, for white
"laborers.? A. Yes, sir.
" Q. What success did you meet with. A. I got
" very few.
" Q. How many did you advertise for.? A. I
" wanted a hundred.
" Q. How many did you get.? A. Twenty or thirty,
" I guess. I sent more than a hundred up to the work,
" but they would not work when they got there.
" Q. For what reason ? A. They thought it was too
" hard work.
Q. How many did you retain ? A. From 20 to
" 30 ; possibly 30.
" Q. Did they work by contract or stated wages ?
" A. They worked in building the railroad by the
" month, and in making ties they worked by the piece.
" O. Which road was that.? A. The Mendocino
road.
" Q. Do you think there is a surplus of white labor-
NO SURPLUS OF LABORERS,
29
ers in the State ? A. I have not been able to employ
it. I want men now and cannot get them.
" Q. What wages do you pay men for labor} A, In
" building the road we started men in on $40 a month
" and board. If a man was found to be worth more, we
" paid it to him.
" Q. Do you think the Chinese have been a benefit
" to the State} A. I think so.
" Q. Greatly so 1 A. I do not see how we could do
" the work we have done, here, without them ; at least I
" have done work that would not have been done if it had
" not been for Chinamen, work that could not have been
" done without them.
" Q. White men can do any work that the Chinamen
" could do ? A. Oh, yes ; but, understand me, I tried
" to get white men to do this work and failed."
PART IL—CHAPTER IL
THE MATERIAL RESULTS OF CHINESE LABOR IN CALI¬
FORNIA. RECLAMATION OF SWAMP LANDS.
Description of the swamp and overflowed lands of California. Their area,
5,000,000 acres. Their fertility and value. The wheat production of
the State. The climate favorable to wheat production. Evidence of
Judge Heydenfeldt and Mr. Roberts regarding labors of Chinese in
reclamation works. Laws of the State providing for such enterprises.
Legislation to protect farming lands against results of hydraulic mining.
The swamp lands of California are of two kinds, those
which are over-flowed by the tide, and those which are
subject to inundation by the winter freshets. The for¬
mer are situated near the bay of San Francisco and upon
the lower course of the Sacramento and San Joaquin
rivers. The latter are found higher up on those streams,
and upon their affluents and near the Tulare lake.
These lands are very extensive, and they lie often in
bodies of hundreds of thousand of acres. A competent
authority estimates their area at not less than 5,000,000
of acres.^ Those situated nearer to the bay of San Fran¬
cisco have a darker soil, are more swampy, and appear to
be more suitable for the culture of potatoes, sweet pota-
atoes, onions and root crops generally. Those higher up
are dry for six months in the year, and have a firm rich
soil, which is eminently suitable for the growing of wheat
and other cereals. All of them are rich as alluvial soils
only can be, and practically inexhaustible. Forty bushels
of v/heat to the acre is said to be an ordinary yield on
these lands. When reclaimed they prove by far the best
agricultural. Jands in the State for the reason that they
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 55.
WHEAT CULTURE.
31
do not suffer from the drouth so much as the uplands,
and because they are more fertile. Irrigation can be in¬
troduced with ease, as the lower stretches are always
below the levels of the streams higher up.
The world is familiar with the wonderful cultivation of
wheat in California. The State already ranks among the
leading wheat producing States of the Union. In 1876,
however, but 5,500,000 acres of land had been brought
into cultivation of all kinds. Much of this acreage is sub¬
ject to droughts, and to total failures of the crops. No such
disaster can happen to reclaimed swamp lands, or to speak
more accurately, lands subject to overflow. It is entirely
certain that California vAll hereafter produce far more
wheat than any other State in the Union, and that the
expense of production, by reason of the fertility of the
soil, and favorable conditions of the climate, will be much
less than elsewhere. No rain falls during the harvesting
season, and grain may be stacked in the open field or
left in great piles uncovered, without danger. The ad¬
vantages to the farmer of this security, and of similar
security in the shipment of his produce, must count for a
great deal. The very features of the climate of California,
the alternate seasons of rain and drought, which occasion
inundations in the winter, and leave the streams to choke
up with the sands rolled down from the mountains in
summer, are particularly favorable to the growth of wheat
and to many other branches of agriculture. The problem
for California is, largely, to work out the means by which
higher lands may be irrigated and lower lands protected
from overflow. There is no reason to doubt that the
necessary measures will be taken, and that the result will
be to make California, whose territory is nearly as exten¬
sive as that of France, one of the wealthiest of the com¬
monwealth of States.
The witnesses before the Congressional commisson
32
RECLAMATION WORKS.
who spoke more particularly of the reclamation of swamp
lands were Solomon Heydenfeldt and George D. Roberts.
The former had been associate justice of the Supreme
Court of California, and for some time counsel for a re¬
clamation association, called the Tide Land Reclamation
Company. The latter was a large owner of such lands,
and had been actively engaged in reclamations.
Mr. Heydenfeldt testified as folllows ;—^
"Q. It was considered a very hazardous thing to
" undertake the reclamation of these lands } A. Very.
" Q. Capital was diffident about taking hold of it}
" A. Very ; and is yet.
" Q. There has been a large area of these land re-
" claimed and brought into market} A. Yes, sir.
" Q. What labor has been used to do that} A. Chinese
" labor.
" Q. Could they get white labor to do that work}
" A. I imagine not. I do not see where it could have
" been obtained. I do not think our white laborers
" would care to undertake it. They are generally in
" favor of undertaking something a good (deal easier than
" that, and something that pays better.
" Q. There are contractors among them } A. There
" are contractors among them for large works such as re-
" clamation, &c. That I am familiar with. They show
" a great deal of executive ability. A contractor will
" undertake, for instance, to build a levee, and furnish so
" many hands, keep them employed, &c., and engage to
" do work in a certain time. In the management and
" conduct of business Chinamen show a great deal of
" executive ability."
Mr. Roberts' testimony was as follows ;—
" Q. You are the president, manager, or main officer of
" the Tide Land Reclamation Company.? A. Yes, sir.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 504- ^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 436.
CHINESE LABOE.
33
" Q. How long have you been a resident of this State?
" A. I arrived here in 1850.
" Q. You have been engaged in business enterprises
" since that time to develop the interests of this coast, I
" believe ? A. Always.
" Q. How much tule land has your company re-
" claimed ? A. The tide land company proper started
" in with 120,000 acres. They have been reclaiming por-
" tions of it, but not on a large scale until recently. I sup-
" pose we have partially reclaimed 30,000 or 40,000 acres.
" Q. Will you explain to the commission what you
" mean by tule lands ? A. We call the overflowed
" lands forming the delta of the Sacramento and San
" Joaquin rivers, tule lands, and also lands on the margins
" of the rivers farther up,
" Q. What do you mean by the reclamation of tule
" lands, what kind of work is it ? A. Building dikes,
" gates and ditches, preventing the overflow.
" Q. What species of labor have you been employ-
ing? A. Generally Chinamen.
" Q. How do you employ these Chinamen? A.
" Generally by contract. In building the dikes, we con-
" tract by the yard, so much a yard. We go to some of
" the Chinese merchants or business men, and tell them
we want to give a contract for a certain number of
miles of levee. They will contract, then, sometimes in
large, sometimes in small bodies of land. Sometimes
" the contracts are for five, six, seven, eight hundred or
a thousand yards, and sometimes less, with one individ-
" ual, as the case may be. We pay so much a yard, and
" measure the work after it is done, and they receive
" their pay.
"Q. Do they generally perform their part of the work
" faithfully? A. We have had very little difficulty with
them. The work is generally very satisfactory.
c
34
CONTRACT SYSTEM.
" Q. Could you reclaim these lands with white labor?
" A. Not successfully at this time. I do not think
that we could get the white men to do the work. It
is a class of work that white men do not like. We
have tried them to a certain extent. The special ad-
vantage of Chinese labor in work of that kind is owing
" to the contract system. They form little communities
" among themselves, forty or fifty or a hundred, and they
" are jointly interested in the contract. We could not
" get white men to do that. They would not be harmo-
" nious and agree among themselves, but the Chinese form
" little families among themselves, do their own cooking,
live in little camps together, and the work is staked off
'Tor them separately. We first give a large contract to
"one or two Chinamen, and they sublet it in smaller
"contracts; that is the general system. White labor
" could not be worked in that way at all.
" Q. Are those lands entirely waste? A. Entirely
" waste ; worth nothing at all ; overflowed by high tides,
" and grown up with weeds and useless ; entirely useless.
" Q. What do these lands cost you in that condition ?
" A. Originally they cost very little; that is to the orig-
" inal locators they cost nothing. The State gave them
" to the settlers, or people who wished to locäte them,
" which is about the same thing. We paid nominally a
" dollar an acre to the State, and when it is reclaimed
" that dollar is credited to us and we get it back. Of
" course the lands changed hands before they came into
" the hands of the parties who reclaimed them.
" Q. Before you did anything toward reclaiming
" them, what did they probably cost your company? A.
" I bought a large amount of these lands myself. I at
" one time owned a quarter of a million of acres, and
" then fprmed a tide-land company or association. I
" paid all the way from two to three dollars an acre.
PROFITS OF RFCLAMA T/OJV.
35
" although in some cases I got it for half a dollar an acre.
" I had to pay a dollar to the State besides.
" Q. What is the average cost of reclamation an
" acre ? A. We are reclaiming about forty thousand
" acres at six or seven dollars an acre, it being a large
" tract, but we have some on Grand Island upon which
" I suppose that we have spent $25 an acre. It depends
" on the size of the piece used and the difficulties to be
" overcome.
Q. What is the land worth per acre after its recla-
" mation ? A. That depends on its locality. There is
" a difference in value. It is worth from $2o an acre up
" to $100 probably. We paid for four or five thousand
acres a day or two ago, $25 an acre.
" Q. Then perhaps there is an average of $75 an
" acre ? A. After it is thoroughly reclaimed. There
" have been a great many failures in reclamation, from
" faults in the construction of the levees ; that they were
" too small.
" Q. They (the Chinese) have added then, materially
" to the wealth of California, in your opinion ? A. In
" my opinion the aggregate product of the wealth pro-
duced by Chinamen in this State is equal to our mines,
" including the mines of Nevada and Dakota. Probably
" they produce, sixty, eighty or ninety millions a year in
" wealth."
The evidence thus adduced touches this great subject
in the most imperfect way. In fact the reclamation of
swamp lands was in its earliest stages when the commis¬
sion sat. A great deal of work of the sort has been done
since. Writing at a distance from California and without
access to statistical or other detailed information, I am
not able to state what has been done. I know, however,
that this branch of enterprise is enlisting the attention of
farmers and capitalists in a marked degree, and that the
36
MINING.
Legislature of California has passed laws intended to
make reclamation of large bodies of land owned by many
proprietors, more easy. These laws provide for the crea¬
tion of reclamation districts, for the choice of trustees,
for the issue of bonds and for the distribution of charges
among the proprietors. Such enterprises have been
made more difficult by the washing down of the moun¬
tain sides for gold, the debris being precipitated upon
the lower country, choking the streams, and preventing
them from carrying off in some instances even the nor¬
mal flow of water. The Legislature has at the moment
under consideration the measures necessary to check this
evil. It is well known that the owners of lands subject
to overflow have been active in urging legislation,'and
this fact shows how earnest they are and how highly they
esteem the property in question.
I cannot do better than close this chapter by quoting
from the opening argument of Mr. Brooks before the
Congressional commission, the following paragraph ;—
I asked a former Surveyor General of this State to
" estimate the increase in the value of the property of
" this State created by Chinese labor in the building of
" railroads, and in reclaiming tule-lands alone, and
" the amount he gave me is $289,700,000. That is the
" wealth which a hundred thousand Chinese have added
" to California. It is wealth owned, held and enjoyed by
" white men, and not Chinamen. The Chinamen do not
" carry it away with them ; they could not even if they
" wished to do so.''
PART IL—CHAPTER III.
THE MATERIAL RESULTS OF CHINESE LABOR IN
CALIFORNIA. MINING.
The Chinese have met many difficulties in mining. The foreign-miners tax.
Discrimination against them. Abuse of the law by tax-collectors.
Hostility of the mining class at large. Outrages perpetrated upon them.
Report of a committee of the Legislature of California in I862. Evi¬
dence of Mr. Colton, Mr. Speer, Mr. Clarke and Mr. Degroot regard¬
ing the work done by the Chinese in the mines, and their efficiency as
miners. Aggregate production of precious metals by the Chinese, and
advantages to the State and country.
It is to be said at the outset that the Chinese who
have been disposed to work as miners in California have
been subjected to many disabilities. These have been
enforced in part by legislation of a persistently hostile
character, and in part have resulted from the hostility and
lawlessness of the mining class at large.
An Act passed May 4th, 1852, provided that a license
tax of $3 a month should be levied upon foreigners work¬
ing ill placer and quartz mining, " inasmuch as they are
" not liable to the same duties as American citizens
" whilst they enjoy the same privileges."^ It also pro¬
vided that companies employing foreigners should pay
the tax and that foreigners not paying the license could
not sue or defend in the courts.
This tax was raised by the Act of March 30th, 1853, to
$4 a month, and by an amendatory Act of May 13th,
1854, it was made applicable ^To persons not being citi-
" zens of the United States, or who shall not have de-
dared their intention to become such."
^ Br. of Leg., etc., p. 10, et seq.
38
DISABILITIES OF CHINESE MINERS,
As the Chinese alone of all foreigners v/ere not permit¬
ted to declare their intention to become citizens the bur¬
dens imposed by these laws were thrown upon them.
On the 30th of April, 1855, an Act was passed fixing
the rate of the foreign-miners tax at $4 a month, as to
all foreigners '^eligible to become citizens of the United
States," and as to all foreigners "ineligible to become
" citizens of the United States," it was further provided
that for each successive year it should be augmented at
the rate of $2 a month.
Mr. Brooks well remarks that "as in a few years no
" human industry could pay the tax imposed by this law,
" it is manifest that the object was not to impose a tax,
" but, under the pretense of taxation, to drive the objects
" of it—the Chinese—from the State."
This Act was repealed in 1856, but the tax appears to
have been continued at the rate of $4 a month, probably
by re-enactment of the law of 1853/
On the 17th of May, 1861, another law was passed
which is quoted in Mr. Loomis' testimony before the
Congressional commission, as follows;—^^"No person,
" unless he is a citizen of the United States, or shall
" have declared his intention to become such, (Califor-
" nia Indians excepted,) shall be allowed to take or ex-
" tract gold, silver or other metals from the mines of
" this State, or hold a mining claim therein, unless he
" shall have a license therefor of $4 a month."
It is stated in Mr. Loomis' testimony that this Act was
declared unconstitutional, but that it was enforced for a
series of years, until 1871 or 1872.
Such laws honestly administered would be sufficiently
burdensome, but it would appear that grave abuses at¬
tended the collection of the tax. Mr. Gibson quotes from
^ Ch. in Am., p. 239. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 477.
FOREIGN-MINERS TAX.
39
the Nevada Journal as follows ;—^ " There is a species of
" semi-legalized robbery perpetrated upon the Chinese.
" Many of the collectors are gentlemen in every sense of
" the word, but there are others who take advantage of
their position to extort the last dollar from the poverty-
stricken Chinese. They date licenses back, exact pay in
some instances for extra trouble in hunting up the terri-
" fied and flying Chinamen, and, by various devices, fatten
" themselves upon the spoils thus obtained. The com-
" plaints of the injured and oppressed find no open ear, for
" is it not declared by the Supreme Court, the highest
" tribunal in the land, that their oaths are not to be re-
" garded } Of what avail are their complaints, uttered
with the solemnity of an oath} Under this state of
things the life of a Chinaman in California is one of
" hardship and oppression."
Mr. Gibson gives another newspaper item, but does not
state from what journal ;—^ "A foreign-miners tax col-
lector may be a good man, and be honest and lenient,
" but his commission does not hinder him from being
the opposite ; it really tends to make him so. He may
" exercise fiendish cruelty, and plead the necessity of
doing his duty. * I was sorry to have to stab the poor
" ' fellow ; but the law makes it necessary to collect the
" Hax; and that's where I get my profit.' ^ He was run-
" ' ning away and I shot to stop him. I didn't think it
" 'would hit.' 'I took all the dust he had. There were
" ' seven of them besides and they didn't pay me last
" ' month.' "
It was a matter of certainty that abuses such as those
indicated would take place and would press hardly upon
Chinese miners. It cannot be denied that there was
much lawlessness in the early days of California in the
mining districts, and a very lax administration of regula-
'Ch. in Am., p. 236. ^ Ch. in Am., p. 235.
40
ITS ABUSE.
tions intended to secure order and to defend the rights of
individuals. Officers to collect the tax would be chosen
often from the very class disposed to oppress them, and
the facility with which such a purpose could be carried
out, would lead unscrupulous persons to seek the posi¬
tions. The Chinamen strange to the country, unac¬
quainted with its laws, not familiar even with its lan¬
guage, timid by nature,, would submit to extortion with¬
out an attempt to secure redress.
While I am writing, some remarks of Mr. Speer, the
author of "China and the United States," fall under my
notice. He says ;—^ " It was the saddest feature of the
terrible trials of the Chinese that so many of them were
" inflicted in the name of the law. The license law of the
" State subjected all foreigners not eligible to citizenship,
to a monthly tax of four dollars. This was applied by
" the tax collectors solely to the case of the Chinese, and
" many of them ranged continually over the mining dis-
" districts equipped with blank licenses. They often
" obliged the Chinese in camp to pay the mining tax,
" though they might not be engaged in mining, and were
" traders in goods, or engaged in other work, or transient
visitors, or even sometimes though they were invalids,
" who were disabled by fever or rheumatism or accidents.
" They frequently came back before the month was out,
" or one would follow another giving fictitious receipts.
" If the men refused to pay, they struck, stabbed or shot
" them; perhaps tied them to a tree and whipped them;
" perhaps drove them on foot with a horsewhip, the col-
" lector riding behind, lashing them as they ran, to some
" town where they could exercise other compulsory meas-
" ures. A tax collector in the mountains once related to
"a company of persons in my hearing, in great glee, how
" he had so run some Chinamen on a dark night, when
^ Ch. and the U. S., p. 575«
OUTRAGES BY INDIVIDUALS,
41
" the ground was covered with snow, in which they often
"fell down, he yelling and lashing them from his horse.
"The collectors were often followed by cormorants to
"whom they sold for a trifle, the property of Chinamen
" which they had forfeited for non-payment, and when
"there were none so to purchase, these officials some-
" times, in mere wantonness, destroyed bedding, boots and
" other articles."
The grievous wrongs to which the Chinese in the
mines were subjected by individuals not officers of the
law, will be indicated by the following further extract
from the same chapter of Mr. Speer's book.
" A company of Chinese had purchased at a large sum
" some claims covering the bed of a river, and undertaken
" to turn the stream, in order to reach the gold deposited
" there, as is often done by Americans. A quiet little
" settlement was formed on the bank, and two firms of
" Chinese merchants set up stores there. A large amount
" of money was expended for lumber and other necessary
" articles. The work was successful, the Chinese began
" to reap the reward of their toil and outlay.
" One dark night a band of seven armed white men
" suddenly appeared in the camp. Attacking the unsus-
"pecting Chinese with unearthly yells and firing their
" pistols among them, they put them to flight and chased
" them to some distance from the spot. They proceeded
" to seize the gold that could be found. They then en-
" tered the stores and plundered them of money and such
" articles as were of any use to them, to the value of two
"thousand dollars. To end the work they set fire to the
" buildings, and by the light thus made, carried their
"plunder to the opposite side of the river, where they
" composedly sat themselves down as proprietors of the
" the whole claim^ by right of possession.
"Some friends of the Chinese brought suit against
42
DENIALS OF JUSTICE.
"these scoundrels before a neighboring justice for the
"restoration of the property. In defence the men setup
"a remarkable plea. It was simply this, that they
" thought the Chinese could not work the claim to so
" good avantage as they could ; and what is still more
"remarkable, their friend, the justice, gave a decision in
" their favor on the ground of this plea ! The friends of
" the Chinese next tried to bring an action against these
" men at the county-seat for larceny and incendiarism.
" But though some Americans in the vicinity of the place
" had seen the fire, and the carrying of the goods across
" the river, none were found willing or able to identify
"the robbers. The Chinesse who knew them were not
"permitted, according to law, to bear witness against
"white men. The result was that the perpetrators of
"these crimes went free and remained in possession of
" the property which they had so summarily made their
" own. The industrious Chinamen beggared and in debt
"were forced to leave the place,"
The recitals thus given are, no doubt, of an extreme
character. I should be the last person to forget that
among the Americans who worked in the placer mines
of California, in earlier and later times, were men of
excellent origin, and that they took measures, as a
rule, which served the interests of justice. I do not
doubt that Chinamen found often chivalric defenders
stepping forward for their protection. I would not for a
moment suppose that all, or even a considerable portion
of the tax collectors were inhuman or dishonest. Yet,
men are largely what their surroundings tend to make
them, and the evidence of the injustice and outrages to
which the Chinese were subjected, is too strong to be
doubted. Such testimony, in the form of contempor¬
aneous. newspaper statements, have been gathered to¬
gether for the period from 1855 to 1876, by Mr. B. S.
COMMITTEE OF 1862.
43
Brooks/ The measure of the wrongs perpetrated upon
them in early days will be indicated sufficiently for my pre¬
sent purpose, by the following extract from the report of a
committee of the two Houses of the California Legisla¬
ture, dated March nth, 1862/ It bears the signature of
R. F. Perkins, chairman of the Senate committee, O.
Harvey and G. K. Porter, senators; John E. Benton,
chairman Assembly committee, and G. W. Seaton and
W. W. Battles, members of the Assembly ;—
Your committee were fiurnished with a list of eighty-
" eight Chinameit, who are known to have been murdered
by white people y eleven of which number are known to have
" been murdered by collectors of the foreign-miners liceîtse
tax^ sworn officers of the law, Bitt tzvo of the murderers
" have been co7tvicted and hanged. Generally they have
been allovued to escape zvithout the slightest pmtishment.
" The above number of Chinese who have bee7z robbed
and murdered^ coinprise probably a very small proportion
of those who have been murdered ; but they are all which
the records of the different companies or societies in this
city show. It is a zvell known fact that there has beeit
a wholesale syste^n of zorong and outrage practiced ttpon
" the Chinese population of this State, which woidd dis-
" grace the most barbarous nation tipon earth!
I know nothing of the persons who formed this com¬
mittee ; I suppose that they were fair representatives of
the earlier legislators of the State, men who had been
more or less trained in the Eastern States, and had not
learned the abject ways of later California politicians.
At any rate, their report seems to have been signed by
all the members of the committee, and it stands uncon¬
tradicted to this day. The men of California must prove
it false before they claim to appear before the world with
clean hands in this matter of Chinese immigration.
^ Op. St. and Br., p. 1-72. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1192.
44
CHINESE AS MINERS.
I shall have more to say about outrages upon the
Chinese, in later chapters. For the moment, I have gone
far enough to indicate that they met many discourage¬
ments in mining enterprises, and that it is almost a matter
for surprise that they shouid have made any efforts in this
direction.
The apitude of the Chinese as miners is shown in the
following evidence.
Mr. D. D. Colton, from whose testimony I have already
quoted in the chapter regarding the assistance given by
them in railway building, said ;—^
" Q. What is the capacity of these men, and their
" inclination to do hard work The question has been
" raised as to their selection of light work, and about their
" being unwilling to do hard work ; how is thatA. I
" never have placed them in any position where they did
" not, to use a common expression, fill the bill. I have
" seen them in rhining. I had some mining interests in
" Wyoming, coal mining. We had all sorts of trouble and
" finally put in Chinamen, and there are no better coal
miners in the world now than these Chinamen.
" O. What kind of work do they perform there } A.
" All kinds of work. Mining the coal and hoisting.
" Q. Do they work under ground 1 A. Yes ; they
do everything about the mine."
Mr. Speer says ;—
" The Chinese upon our Pacific coast have proved
" themselves admirable miners. When the hostility of
" white foreigners has driven them out of the better
" mining regions, or compelled them to remain satisfied
" with diggings which have already been washed over
" two or three times, they have still toiled patiently and
" diligently. During the dry season, while most others
" were dying idle, they might be seen making repairs,
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 604. ^ Ch. and U. S., p. 524..
MR. CLAKE'S EVIDENCE.
45
digging and collecting the dirt into the best situations
to take advantage of the coming rise of water, or at
other work. In the employment of our people they
have proved of great value at quartz mining. Rock
which could not be worked by white labor, with wages
at three to seven dollars a day, can be made profitable
when Chinese can be got to extract the ore and deliver
it at the mill at two dollars or less. Then districts
which had been almost abandoned have revived and all
classes of the population have been benefited. For
" although the laboring class of whites objected to the
" low wages paid to the Chinese, yet the possibility of
' carrying on mining operations furnished them with
" other and better employments, and so sustained life in
" the community. And the mining licenses, of $4 a
" month, which have been exacted with scrupulous pune-
" tuality—nay sometimes, that the collector might be
" sure that he was on the safe side, two or three times in
the same month—have in some counties paid the entire
" ordinary expenses of the county, whose treasury other-
" wise would have been bankrupt."
Mr. Henry K. W. Clarke, a lawyer and farmer, testi¬
fied before the commission as follows ;—^
" Q. How were the Chinese treated in the mines } A.
" Of that I cannot speak, only from hearsay rather than
" from observation. I have seen them frequently work-
" ing in the mines, and they have been working in
" general what are called worn-out mines. There they
" have been compelled to work for amounts for which
" white men would not work.
" Q. When they find any diggings which are worth a
" white man's working, do you know what happens } A.
I understand that frequently they are driven from them;
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. *59'i.
46
MR. DEGROOT'S EVIDENCE.
" that when they will pay above a certain amount the
" Chinamen must not work them.
" Q. Is that light labor, working up those old diggings}
"A. It is very heavy labor.
O. It has been said here that the Chinamen shy
" hard work. How is that ? A. That has not been
" my experience. A Chinaman will do any work that
" you will pay him for doing. We all know that they
'^are not a large-boned or large-muscled people, but an
" exceedingly active people and very patient to toil.
" Q. State to the committee what is the nature of
"working up these placer diggings, what kind of work
" they have to do ? A. It is done with a pick and
" spade, and consists in the turning over of large bowld-
" ers, running tunnels in different directions, throwing out
" the dirt and bowlders and saving the fine dirt. If it is
" in the proper season they wash the dirt as they go
" along ; if not, they keep it until the rainy season com-
" menees, when they take this dirt, throw it into the
"rockers and wash it. It is work in which there is a
"great deal of exposure, they being compelled, in the
"washing season, to be constantly in the water, and in
" the warm season the weather is exceedingly hot. It is
"very severe work."
Henry Degroot, a witness with a strong anti-Chinese
predilection, testified as follows ;—^
" Q. I wish you to state to the commission your views
"in reference to Chinese immigration and its bearing
" upon the mines, the labor of the mines, and such other
" reflections as may occur to you upon this question. A.
" In regard to its effect upon the miners, and the mining
"interests, I am better qualified to speak than as to its
"effect upon any other industry in California, because
" that has. been my business. I think that the effect of
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1103.
MR, DEGROOT'S EVIDENCE,
47
the presence of these people here has been very detri¬
mental to the labor interests and to the mining industry
also. My attention was first called to this fact as long
ago as 1853-54 when I was acting as collector of the
foreign-miners tax. At that day we had a great deal
of river-bar mining, and placer mining of every charac¬
ter, that would pay from three to six dollars ; it would
average four or five dollars a day to each man ; but that
was hardly considered white wages then, and the com¬
munity generally was indifferent as to the presence of
the Chinese, and thought it was well enough to let these
people come in and work that character of mines, be¬
lieving that it would not pay white labor then and pro¬
bably never would. The Chinese went on and by their
method of mining they covered up a great deal of good
ground. They prevented white men from coming in
because they did not like to mine near them, and in
that way a good deal of mining-ground was lost which
we will never be able to work out. Subsequently they
began to increase and to be employed as laborers in the
mines,—that is to be hired. This went on increasing.
We thought at first they could not be employed to ad¬
vantage in certain classes of mining, or in any class, but
it was found that they could. They were hired first in
placer mines, and then in drift digging to some extent,
and finally in hydraulic mining to very good advantage,
except for moving stones and working in the pit ; and
as they became educated to the business they greatly
displaced white labor, and now we have them employed
in every kind of mining as laborers at good wages.
This operation is constantly going on and displacing
white men. The result is that the country all through
from Kern river to Shasta, a distance of five hundred
miles is full of villages in a state of decadence. It is true
these villages were partially depopulated along about
48
ECONOMICAL CONSIDERATIONS.
1857, when the surface placers were considerably ex¬
hausted and a great many miners left and went to Fox
river and elsewhere. Many of them returned afterwards,
but in the mean time Chinese labor was substituted and
when they came back they found that their claims were
occupied. They found their position as laborers occupied,
and they drifted away again ; left the mines instead of
working them, staying and building up homes. In that
way the Chinese have come in and do nearly all of what
is now called river-bed washing, turning the channels of
rivers and washing them. There is a class of white
men, residing in the mines from the first, who have
made it a business to take up claims and sell them to
the Chinese, which is in contravention of course of the
laws of the country, and also of the local laws of the
miners ; but the miners leaving, these local laws have
not been enforced, and these white men who do not like
generally to work very well, have made it a business to
take up claims and sell them to the Chinese. When
they are once inducted into these claims, these men who
sell them remain and exercise a sort of protection over
them. In some places there are very large numbers of
them. In the vicinity of Oro ville there are between
three and four thousand Chinamen mining upon the
public domain who have obtained their claims in that
manner."
This witness seems to have been an intelligent and
humane person. He says of himself, in another part of
his evidence ;—" In my neighborhood I am regarded as
" a friend of the Chinese, for the reason that I so often
"protect them. That is to say, I believe that as long
" as they are here they should be protected from brutal
" treatment, and a long as they are here they must be
" employed. That is the way I view the matter."
But intelligent and humane as he was according to the
ECONOMICAL CONSIDERATIONS.
49
measure of his education and enlightenment, he has failed
to grasp the question in its broadest sense. I shall not
stop here to argue the economical considerations which
are involved. "They have taken possession," not by
force, not by fraud, but because they are patient, steady,
skillful workers, " and do nearly all of what is now called
"the river bed washing, turning the channels of rivers
"and washing them." Does any one envy them the
results of such labors, or does any one of enlightened
views, doubt that they have contributed to the wealth of
the country, just in the measure of their ability and dis¬
position to stand by their claims and to develop them}
Before passing from this part of my inquiry, I desire
to point out the pertinency of the statement of Mr. De-
groot, that the Chinese "were hired first, in placer min-
" ing, then in drift digging to some extent, and finally in
" hydraulic mining, to very great advantage, ^ ^ and
"now we have them employed in every kind of mining,
"as laborers, at good wages." I take it that the em¬
ployers in thesé cases were our own countrymen mainly,
and that the success of their enterprises depended largely
upon their ability to command labor at reasonable rates.
The testimony of Mr. Colton, regarding his coal mining
operations in Wyoming, would indicate this. But in
point of fact, we need no evidence upon this point.
Mining of all kinds in California has been hazardous,
and men with capital enough to embark in it upon the
scale of the enterprises of more recent years, would take
into careful account the price of labor. If this should be
high and uncertain, they would be deterred more or less
from undertaking it.
I cannot pretend to offer any statement of the wealth
which the Chinese have created in their mining oper¬
ations, because T-have not at the moment access to
information which would enable me to work out the
D
50
ECONOMICAL CONSIDERATIONS.
calculation. I find, however, that the committee of the
California Legisiature, from the report of which I have
already quoted, estimated that 30,000 Chinese were en¬
gaged in mining in the year 1862. If we suppose that
there were 20,000, and that they earned an average of $2
a day, the aggregate is the considerable sum of $1,200,000
a month, or 14,400,000 a year. And they would have
paid to the State and county treasuries, at the rate of $4
a month for each man, $80,000 a month, or $960,000 a
year. A note added to the report of the committee states
that " 20,000 miners buy water at 30 cents a man a day,"
which would make $2,160,000 a year, and that "15,000
"buy claims at 25 cents a man a day," which would
'amount to $1,350,000 a year.
Doubtless some portion of all this wealth, or whatever
might be the wealth created by the Chinese in mining,
would be removed from the country, and sent to China.
Yet how small a proportion of it would be carried or
sent away. It would be as necessary for the Chinese
miner to supply his daily wants as for the American,
and in the midst of prevailing high prices these would
consume a very large portion of his earnings. When
working where the American declared he could not
afford to work, surely his savings could not be very
great. It is doubtful, I think, whether the Chinamen
would send away from the country in gross as much in
any year or series of years, as American miners or other
foreign miners, would dissipate in carousing and irregular
living.
PART IL—CHAPTER IV.
THE MATERIAL RESULTS OF CHINESE LABOR IN
CALIFORNIA. FARMING.
Mining interests declining and agricultural advancing. Physical features
and climate of the State. Agricultural capacity of the State not
understood at 6rst. Seasons peculiarly convenient for the farmer.
Normal expenses of the farmei less than elsewhere. Land cultivated
in large tracts. Certain disadvantages of the farmer ; lack of rain,
high wages. Annual production. Land-killing system, due to
extent of lands available, dear capital and dear labor. The kind of
work done by the Chinese. Evidence of Mr. Roberts, Colonel Hol-
lister, Mr. Horner, Mr. Brier, Judge Dwinelle, Mr. Easterby and Mr.
Sneath as to the nature and value of their labor. Future of the
agricultural interests of the State.
It is well known that for a considerable period the
mining interests of California have been falling off and
that great advances have been made in agriculture. The
boundless prospects of the latter may not be so well
understood.
The State is favorably situated as respects climate.
Its southern boundary touches the 32nd. degree of lati¬
tude, its northern the 42nd. degree. The Pacific ocean
laves its coast line. The Sierra Nevada traverse its east¬
ern portion. There is no part of it which does not receive
for more or less of each day, invigorating breezes borne
in from the sea. The days are usually warm enough,
even in midwinter, to make vegetation grow. The nights
are almost always cool. It is a region in which man
and beast can put forth all their normal energies. It
produces the plants of the temperate zone and many of
those which belong properly to the tropics.
The physical features of the State exhibit a singular
52
PHYSICAL FLA TUPES.
variety. The valleys, interspersed among the mountains
which border the coast, are well sheltered in winter, and
in summer are made cool by the continually recurring
breezes from the sea. They abound in running streams
and lakelets. The mountain sides are often smooth
enough for cultivation. They are covered in places by
heavy growths of timber, in others by wild grasses,
notably the wild oat. They nowhere attain a great
altitude. Back of these lies the great valley of California,
divided generally into two parts—the Sacramento, or
northern valley, and the San Joaquin, or southern valley.
The whole is nearly five hundred miles in length, and
averages from thirty to forty in breath. The soil through¬
out is alluvial, and in certain districts it is of great depth
and richness. Still back of these the Sierra Nevada,
rising to an altitude of from 6,000 to 12,000 feet, offer all
varieties of climate. The lower parts of this great range
rise by easy undulations from the plain, and have already
been brought under cultivation to a considerable extent.
The earlier voyagers to California believed that agri¬
cultural lands were almost entirely wanting, and even
after the discovery of gold and the influx of population,
few persons dreamed of the capacity of the soil. The
great plains were treeless, and, for a large part of the
year, parched by drought. The seasons did not corre¬
spond with those of the Eastern States. Earlier essays
made in agriculture were not well directed in consequence,
and tended to confirm prevailing ideas. The absorbing
interest was that of mining.
It has been discovered more lately, however, that the
soil and climate are peculiarly favorable for the culture
of wheat, and the other small grains, and maize, and that
cotton, the sugar cane, hemp, and a great variety of fruits
and berries, may be grown.
The rains begin late in October. From this time until
CLIMATE.
May the country is every where green. South of Sacra¬
mento frost is seldom seen ; flowers bloom in the gardens ;
many trees retain their foliage. Even in the Sacramento
valley, the appearance of the country in midwinter is
like that of the Eastern States in the spring time. It is
believed that oranges may be successfully grown as far
north as Marysville.
So soon as the rains moisten the soil, ploughing is
begun, and from that time until after the first of March,
wheat, oats, barley, &c., may be sown. Corn is planted
from March to May. After the middle of April the rains
cease, and in the latter part of May the harvesting season
begins, and lasts until the crops are completely saved.
Corn is harvested in October and November, and even
in December.
It will be seen that the planting season for wheat ex¬
tends over nearly five months, and the harvesting season
over nearly as many more. The planting may be inter¬
rupted by rains, which fall gently, as a rule, during
the winter months, but no drop of moisture descends
during the summer. The standing grain ripens in due
time, hardening in the clear dry atmosphere and un¬
touched by mildew. No storms sweep over it, no blight
attacks it, and it stands ready to be gathered in until the
convenience of the farmer allows him to complete his
work. It is cut generally by a machine called the
Header," which removes only the ears and some small
portion of the stalk, and is threshed in the fields. Put
into bags it is left there, or at the railway station, in the
open air until carried to market. Hay is baled and left
in the field in the same way, and root crops remain in
the dry earth until a convenient moment to dig them out
arrives.
It is evident that the normal expense of growing
wheat must be much lower than in less favored regions,
54
CULTIVATION.
but the whole measure of the farmers' ^ advantage has
not been told. The soil as a rule is light and friable,
and does not sod over as heavily as the wheat growing
lands east of the Rocky Mountains. It can be broken
up with ease by gang plows, one team doing the work of
two or perhaps three teams in the East and with less
fatigue to the plowman. On fertile lands a volunteer
crop usually follows the first seeding. The animals used
for plowing and other work need but little grain or pre¬
pared forage at any season of the year, the fresh grasses
affording them nourishment in the winter, and the nat¬
urally cured hay, the seeds of clover, and the wild oat, in
the suiiimer.
The tendency in California under these circumstances,
and because of the abundance of cheap lands on the one
hand and the scarcity of labor on the other, has been
toward the cultivation of large tracts by individual farmers.
They have avoided, in this way, the expense of fencing
their fields. For farm buildings they need only rude
structures to protect their hands, their animals and im¬
plements, from the sun in summer and from the rain in
winter. A few hundred dollars might cover the whole
expense of buildings for a farm of a thousand acres.
Against the advantages of the Californian wheat grower,
as thus set forth, are to be placed certain disadvantages
under which he labors. His soil, excepting upon the
alluvial bottom lands, is likely to fail sooner than the
stiffer soils of the northwest. It may be that the absence
of rain for many months in the year detracts from their
capacity to produce a series of crops without deteriora¬
tion. The winter rains may be excessive for the lower
lands or insufficient for the higher. It is understood
that wheat is sometimes a complete failure, more partic¬
ularly iriThe southern districts of the State. Transpor¬
tation to the coast has been expensive in the past, and
PRODUCT OF STATE.
55
the distance from the grain markets of the world is very
great.
One of the most serious drawbacks, has been the high
cost of labor. The farmer of Illinois, of Indiana or Min¬
nesota in recent years, has paid his hands engaged for
the busy season not more perhaps than $20 a month
besides board. His competitor in California at the same
time has paid not less than fifty per cent. more. By the
day the Illinois farmer has paid about $1.25, without
board ; the Californian about $2.
It would be idle to attempt to solve the question
whether the western farmer or the Californian has the
balance of advantage under the circumstances stated, by
any process of reasoning upon the facts. The actual re¬
sults show however that the Californian farmer has been
able to compete in the production of wheat and that the
tendency is toward an increment of the annual produc¬
tion. The export from San Francisco in i860 amounted
to 58,926 barrels of flour, and 381,768 centals ; in 1870
to 352,962 barrels, and 4,863,890 centals, and in 1879 it
was 234,381 barrels and 7,069,933 centals.
It is to be remembered, however, that the Californian
farmer has not been obliged to rely wholly upon white
labor, that he has received a great deal of assistance from
the Chinese, both directly and because of the average
cheapening of the labor market by their competition.
How far wages have been lowered by the presence of
Chinese we cannot tell. Their competition would un¬
doubtedly have a great effect upon the market, but on
the other hand high wages might have induced other
labor to come into the state more freely. Whether it
would have been possible at higher wages to cultivate
wheat for exportation may be doubted. It may be
doubted, even, whether, with the market supplied only by
whites, it would have been possible to secure enough to
56
LAND-KILLING SYSTEM,
bring the average of wages down to a point when pro¬
duction would have begun.
Col. Hollister, one of the largest farmers in the State,
and one of the most intelligent and thoughtful witnesses
examined before the Congressional commitee, takes a
very gloomy view of the prospects of wheat culture. In
his opinion the cultivation of the past has been of a sort
to rob the soil, and cannot be permanently successful at
the prevailing high rates of wages. He says ;—^ " My
"own conviction is from what I have seen and know,
"from my own experiments, and what I have seen of
"my neighbors, that there is not a farm in the State
" scientifically handled, handled well with a view to its
" permanency, without exhaustion, restoring as we take
" away, that will survive at $25 a month for labor. A
" farmer cannot survive on a payment of a minimum of
"$25 a month and board. The farm will not pay the
" labor. ^ ^ It is very apparent that we are simply
" leaving a desert behind us. That is the history of Cal-
" ifornia farming. We are taking every pound of bread
" out of the soil and sending it to Europe. There are
" only so many pounds of bread in an acre of land, and
" when you take it out there is no more ; you have got to
"restore the elements. This requires labor and an ex-
"penditure of money. To-day it is a simple drain all
"the time. It is a draught upon the bank to pay this ex-
"orbitant labor. The farmer will not stand it, and no
"man in the world can stand it. I have seen myself
" twenty crops of wheat taken off, and that is a fact with-
"out parallel anywhere else on the face of the earth, I
"think. Yet this land is all young. I have seen here,
"almost in sight of this town, eighty bushels of wheat
" produced to the acre. I have seen the same land af-
"terward when you could run a dog through it without
^ »1 —
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 768.
EXTENT OF LANDS,
57
"striking a stalk. That is poverty; that is failure; and
"when the soil is bankrupt your farming is bankrupt;
" and when your farming is bankrupt commerce is gone."
There is other evidence scattered through the report of
the committee that the progress of wheat eulture in Cal¬
ifornia has been of the "land-killing" kind. The reasons
for this are not difficult to divine. In the first place, the
lands of California are very extensive. Mr. Brooks es¬
timates the whole area of the State at 102,000,000 of
acres, and classes it as follows;—
Acres.
I. Now under cultivation 5,500,000
II. Capable of cultivation for grain 8,000,000
III. Swamp and tule lands which may be
reclaimed 4,500,000
IV. Dry lands ; rich but useless without irri¬
gation 25,000,000
V. Outside of these and between them and
the forest belt, suitable for vines, the
mulberry, fruit, berries, tea, coffee,
etc 8,000,000
VI. Land now covered with forest 20,000,000
VII. Denuded land, and other land that may
be replanted and reforested 14,000,000
VIII. Mountain tops, worthless for agriculture. 15,000,000
IX. Covered with water 2,000,000
It will be noticed that Mr. Brooks believes that in ad¬
dition to the 5,500,000 acres now under cultivation, there
are 8,000,000 more available. I understand from his clas¬
sification and from his comments upon the classification,
that these 8,000,000 of acres are immediately available ;
that they do not need reclamation, clearing or irrigation,
but may be put at once under the plow.
In the second place, capital is very dear. Mr. Bryant,
mayor of San Francisco, testified before the commission
58
CAPITAL DEAR.
that the bank rate in San Francisco, the money centre of
California, was one per cent, per month at that time, and,
that for permanent loans, it was worth about ten per cent..^
In the third place, population is sparse. California,
with an area nearly equal to that of France, had, or is
supposed to have had, in 1876, a population of no more
than 750,000 persons.
It is simply a matter of course that, under these con¬
ditions, lands in California are cheap and labor dear, and
that the farmer's efforts are directed to get the most from
the soil with the least possible effort. Careful husband¬
ing of the resources of the soil comes only in older com¬
munities, where land is dear, money cheap, and labor
abundant.
Circumstances indicate then that the wheat grower of
California has been obliged to take advantage of all the
opportunities of his situation to be able to compete with
growers elsewhere.
Irrespective of the general effect produced by the
presence of Chinese in the labor market, and the break¬
ing down of the high wages which would naturally be
demanded by white men if in undisputed control of it,
the fact remains that the Californian farmer has been able,
of late years, to employ Chinamen at about $20 a month,
besides his board, when he has been obliged to pay the
native American, or the foreigner of other nationality,
not less than $30 a month, besides his board.
It seems to be true that the Chinaman is not qualified
usually for all kinds of agricultural work. He is not
handy as a teamster, nor in the management of machinery.
He does not displace the whites, therefore, but supple¬
ments their labor. He can bind up the cut wheat in
sheaves, feed the thresher, or sack the threshed out grain
as well as the white. Taking them, however, just as they
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 186.
CHINESE AS LABOEEES.
59
are, the following testimony indicates how great a place
they have filled in wheat culture.
Mr. George D. Roberts testified ;—^
" I will state an instance in which we gave white labor
"a very fair test a few years ago. We had a very large
" wheat field. It was harvest time, and the superintend-
" ent wrote down to send him up a couple hundred of
"white men. I went to all the labor institutions here,
"and employed men of all kinds, of all nations. We
"gave them the usual country wages, whatever it was,
"$35 or $40 dollars a month, I think. We had to aban-
" don it after trying a couple of weeks, and losing a great
" deal of wheat by the experiment. Those men would
" not work more than two or three days or a week, and
" then they would quit. I kept the steamer almost loaded
" sending up white men, but they would leave as fast as
" I sent them. I then went to a Chinaman and told him
"that I wanted to contract for binding and shocking
"wheat. We did the reaping by machines. I made the
" contract at so much per acre. ^ The weather was warm.
" They went up there ; several hundred of them came.
"We had one to two hundred'acres that had been reaped,
" and needed putting up very badly ; and the next morn-
" ing it was all in shock. The Chinamen did the work
" that night. They did the work well and faithfully, and,
"of course, we abandoned white labor. Since then we
"have done all machine work with white men, but field
"work of that kind we would contract with Chinamen
" to do."
In answer to a question as to the relative merits of
Chinese and others as agricultural hands, the same wit¬
ness testified ;—
" Better than the Swede, and the Swede is the best
" worker we hayç^had. They are better field hands than
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 440.
60
CHINESE AS LABORERS,
"the Swede. You can depend upon them longer; that
" is, if you can get them this year you can get them next
" year and the year after, if you treat them well and pay
" them. They become attached to your place and they
" stay with you. So far as the labor question is con-
" cerned there is no doubt but that the Chinaman is the
" best laborer we have in this country for certain classes
" of work, and he does a class of work generally that
" white men scorn to do, and which the white man will
" not do if he can possibly avoid it. We employ a great
" many white men. We have two or three hundred white
"men employed all the time. Immigrants, men coming
" to this country, will hire by the month, and stay with you
" two months, or three months at the outside. They are
"not satisfied with $30 or $35 a month. They did not
" come to this country, they say, to work, they came to
" make money, and they are not satisfied. As soon as
" they get a few months wages they want to go to the
" mines, or to rent a piece of land of you, and hire China-
" men to do the work. They want to speculate. A very
" intelligent class of white men generally come to this
" country, and very few of them come to do cheap labor;
" that must be done or it will stop the progress of the
" country. We could not afford to pay three or four dol-
" lars a day to white men to do our work. We could not
" get them to do it, scarcely ; and the labor that the Chi-
" namen do is producing wealth for the country and pro-
" ducing labor for the white man."
In answer to a question whether the Chinese purchase
or rent lands, the same witness said ;—
" Not to any very great extent, but more so recently
" than formerly. There is a disposition among them no^
" to turn their attention to farming. They think it is a
" more quiet life ; they get out of the excitement of the
" city. Many of them have rented patches and are pay-
" ing $25 and $30 a year per acre for lands.
RATE OF WAGES.
61
"Q. Twenty-five and thirty dollars a year? A. Yes,
" sir ; pretty nearly all the sweet potatoes you get here
" are raised by Chinamen, on Grand Island, and in that
" neighborhood."
Mr. Hollister testified as follows ;—^
Q. You told the commission that when a white man
" applied to you to contract, you said ; ' I do not want to
" ' contract with you ; there is work, you can go and do
"'it; but I will not contract with you?' A. I know
" there are as good white men as anybody else in the
" world. I would hire them quicker than anybody else
" in the world, because I know the American is the best
" man out, if he is good.
" Q. Would you give them the preference over China¬
-men? A. Yes; I hire Chinamen for $15 a month,
" and I pay $30 a month to Americans ; and the China¬
-men are doing just as much as the Americans.
" Q. Is it your interest to do that ? A. I cannot help
" myself ; I must either stop farming or hire the others.
" Q. Or hire the Chinamen ? A. Certainly.
" Q. Then your necessities compel you to employ
" white men, and your inclinations compel you to employ
"Chinamen ? A. Not a bit of it. I have not said that. I
" say that I would hire an American quicker than any
" other man in the world, because he is the best man, if
"he is a good man. If he is a bummer I do not want
" to have him at all.
" Q. Can you make a profit out of him by paying
"these wages? A. Nota bit; I am losing money all
" the time.
" Q. Do you make any money out of the labor of
" Chinamen ? A. When I can get them at prices low
" enough, I do. I do not think men make much out of
" Chinamen at $i5'a month. I do not think a farmer in
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 781.
62
CHINESE INDISPENSABLE,
California who does his duty by his land can make
" money if he pays more than ten or fifteen dollars a
" month/'
Mr. John M. Horner, a farmer of Alameda county, an
especially rich and favorably located district, testified as
follows ;—^
"Q. Have you employed Chinese labor, or do you
"employ it now ? A. Yes, sir ; I have employed almost
" all nationalities, and a great portion of them are Chinese.
"Q. You employ any labor that you can ? A. Yes,
" sir ; any labor that I can get hold of.
"Q. Could you successfully carry on your farming
"operations without Chinese laborA. Yes, sir; I
" could do so. I find them a very convenient class of
" laborers, yet the whole success of farming does not de-
"pend upon them.
"Q. To what extent,does it depend upon the Chi-
" nese ? A. When we have abundant crops there has
" not been help enough aside from the Chinese, available
" to harvest the crops, and without them much of the
"crop would go to waste.
" Q. Do your neighbors employ Chinamen ? A.
" They do. The Portuguese, Frenchmen and Americans
" employ them. All who own property employ them.
" Q. Then they look upon them as a necessity in your
" neighborhood ? A. That is the general impression.
" Q. What is the common opinion of people in your
" neighborhood on the question of Chinese labor ? A.
" They are for it as a general thing ; that arises, how-
"ever, more on account of its reliability than on account
" of its cheapness."
Speaking of the price of labor, Mr. R. F. Peckham
said '
" Q. - "What is the difference in the prices of labor for
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 799. ® Rep. Ch. Im., p. 557.
WAGES IN EASTERN STATES.
63
" farms here and corresponding labor in the Eastern and
"Middle States? A. White labor on farms now is
"worth, that is it commands, from $30 to $40 a month,
" and board. I think that the value of such labor in the
" East, when I was last there, would range, in different
"localities, from $18 to $25.
" Q. And board ? A. And board.
" Q. What is the difference between the average price
" of white labor upon farms here, and Chinese labor ? A.
" I think that you can get Chinese labor, when you have
" a large amount of work, for about $30 a month and
" they will board themselves."
The Reverend William W. Brier, speaking upon the
" same point, said ;—^
" While I was traveling in the east this spring I made
" diligent inquiry in various States, and I found that the
"price of labor on farms ranged from $12 to $15 a
" month, for that class of laborers who receive here from
"$25 to $30.
"'Q. For how many years has the present rate for
" white labor prevailed in this State ? A. I think that
"it has remained very much the same smce 1857. It has
" advanced a little, perhaps, for certain kinds of laborers
"over what it was then, that is to say, labor that the
"Chinese perform."
The same witness testified further ;—
" The Chinese population so far as it has come here is
"a necessity for the farming interests of the country.
"To interfere with it would be a serious mistake. This
" is the universal opinion of both republicans and demo-
" crats, so far as I know them in Alameda county, with-
"out an exception. I can bring every man who carries
" on business in my neighborhood and he will testify to
"the same thing."'-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 572.
64
CHINESE SYSTEM OF LABOR,
Again ;—
" All the contracts for Chinese labor so far as I know,
are made with what is called a boss Chinaman, and he
"hunts up other Chinamen and brings them in. The
" consequence of that is a great advantage to labor, be-
" cause when a man has any large amount of labor to
" perform that must be done in a limited time, he can get
"men in this way. You cannot do it with white men,
" because they have their places and continue in them for
" a long time. There are a great many Chinamen going
"from one point to another, and from one job to another,
" and if a man has a crop exposed, and there is great
" haste, he can get a large number of Chinamen to work
" for him."
And again ;—
" The Chinese are a cleanly people ; they keep them-
" selves neat and clean and nice ; there is nothing offen-
" sive about them. I have never seen but one drunken
" Chinaman during my stay in California. I did see one
" man with a bottle of whisky tied to each end of his pole,
"and he was reeling from one side to the other, and I
" said to myself, that Chinaman is becoming American-
" ized. I have had but one Chinaman come to my house
" and ask for anything to eat, or ask if I had anything to
"give him ; just one individual case, and I suppose there
" are more than a hundred fed there of white men every
" year."
Mr. Samuel H. Dwindle, for twelve years judge of the
Fifteenth District Court, comprising the counties of San
Francisco and Contra Costa, testified ;—^
"Q. Is there a strong prejudice among the people of
" this State against Chinese immigration} A. I think
" there is among the laboring classes. Outside of these
" I do not" think it is very strong.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 748.
OPPOSITION TO CHINESE,
65
" Q. Do yoii mean to say that this opposition is con-
" fined to the laboring classes ? A. I think so, pretty
"much, as far as my observation goes. I think that
" farmers are always ready to employ Chinese, and in
" many instances they tell me that they prefer them to
"white laborers. I have heard some of them say that
" they could not move their crops without the assistance
"of the Chinese; that if the Chinese were driven from
" the country their crops could not be moved."
Mr. Anthony Easterby, a farmer, and president of the
Fresno Irrigation Company, testified as follows;—'
" Q. What is the opinion of farmers on this question,
" so far as you are acquainted with them } A. All of
" the farmers that I have ever spoken with are in favor of
"having Chinese for servants, decidedly. In some cases
"they use them as laborers on the farm, for doing light
"work, and where horses are not used. The Chinese do
"not seem to understand the use of horses as whites do.
" Q. What is the case at harvest time ? A. They
" use them for receiving the wheat into the header
" wagons, where there is a scarcity of white labor.
" Sometimes, where there are white men only employed,
" if one or two knock off, it stops the whole gang. The
" Chinese when employed, will stay as long as you keep
" them.
" Q. What is their character, generally, as laborers ?
" A. They are faithful, and you can depend upon them
"attending to their work without watching them. For
"instance, when I was president of the Napa Valley rail-
" road, I had them in the section gangs, keeping up the
" roads, without any foreman. When 3^ou set them upon
" doing a piece of work, you can depend upon its being
"done.
" Q. In harvest time would there be any difficulty iii
^ Rep. Ch, Im., p. 745- e
66
CHARACTER OF CHINESE LABOR.
" getting sufficient white labor to save the harvest ?
" A. There is, sometimes, because all the farmers require
" labor at the same time.
Farmers then require a large number of laborers
" that they could not employ the rest of the year ?
"A. Yes, that they could not employ the rest of the
"year. After the harvest is over there is no more use
"for the hands until the rain comes, when it is necessary
"to plow, and then only a much smaller number is
" needed than during the harvest season."
Mr. Richard G. Sneath, vice-president and manager of
the Merchant's Bank, a former president of the Chamber
of Commerce and manager of the Merchants Exchange
gave the following evidence ;—^
" Q. What are the general habits of industry of the
" Chinese ? A. I have employed a good many common
" Chinese, and find them a very industrious people and
" in general very reliable. In fact, in a great many in-
" stances, I greatly prefer the Chinese to white labor.
" But, again, I am now employing a considerable number
" of persons farming pretty extensively, nearly all of
iSvhom are white men, for the reason that Chinese do
" not understand farming. It is impossible to understand
" them or to direct them properly on account of not being
" familiar with the language. They can only be worked
" in gangs, where they have their headmen ; but still,
" after awhile, as they soon take up with our language,
" and pick up a great many mechanical ideas some of
" them became very useful.
Q. What effect has Chinese labor had upon the
"growth and capacity of the State, in your judgment.^
" A. Without Chinese labor I do not think there would
" have been half the material wealth in this State."
^ s —
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 544.
CHEAP LABOR NEEDED,
67
Again ;—
"Our object is to benefit California and to give em^
" ployment to as many people as we can, and that those
" who have lands shall be able to occupy them and im-
" prove them. It is absolutely necessary to have as cheap
" labor as they have in the Eastern States in order to
" compete with countries abroad, and in order to be a
" self sustaining people and to live in our own State."
It is not necessary, and it would not be profitable per¬
haps, to extend remarks upon the good that the Chinese
in California have done to the agricultural interest.
What has been said here relates chiefly to their assist¬
ance in the wheat fields of the State. It should be re¬
membered only, that wheat culture is but one branch of
the farming interest. Indian corn, oats, and barley are
extensively grown. Potatoes, beets and onions are pro¬
duced in quantities sufficient to meet the demands of
local consumption. The culture of beets for sugar has
been essayed, and will as I judge become hereafter an
important industry. In my opinion California is far more
likely to supply the sugar market of the country, from
the beet, than our Southern States from the cane. A
serious eflbrt to cultivate cotton has also been made with
such results as to demonstrate, as I believe, that with
cheaper labor it may be successfully grown.
In face of all difficulties the people of California have
done a great deal in agriculture. With cheaper money
and more labor, their achievements may be imagined, but
can scarcely be portrayed. The reclamation of low lands,
and the irrigation of those needing water must take place.
Money will become cheaper. Laborers will flow in, and
also that not less important class, men of some means
and experience, as employers, One experience after
another will demo.nstrate.what lands may be reclaimed,
and what advantages result from irrigation. Experiments
68
FUTURE AGRICULTURE.
will be made in the succession of crops, alike with a view
to immediate profit and the preservation and enrichment
of the soil. The peculiar fertilizers needed will be dis¬
covered, and the crops most suitable to the soil and cli¬
mate and which will give the best returns to the culti¬
vator will be determined. It is an immense region,
varying in its different parts, different altogether from any
other part of our country. It has been only so far devel¬
oped as to suggest its possibilities.
At a later moment I shall deal with the question
whether Chinamen are likely to become a permanent por¬
tion of the population of this region. For the present it
is enough to say that there is hardly any branch of agri¬
culture in which they have not been extensively used
and to the great advantage of the farmer and of the
commonwealth. Their labor has been kindly, patient
and faithful, while that of their white competitors has
been in a large measure exacting and uncertain. With
less physical strength, unfamiliar with the kind of work
set for them to do, ignorant even of the language of
their employers, they have made themselves so useful as
to be well nigh indispensable. Whatever else may be
said of them, they have added greatly to the material
wealth of the State in its most important and permanent
interests. It is not less true that they have the capacity
to do more for the State.
PART IL—CHAPTER V.
THE MATERIAL RESULTS OF CHINESE LABOR IN
CALIFORNIA. FRUIT CULTURE.
The views of the joint committee of the Legislature of 1862 regarding wins
production. Cheap labor needed. Culture of tea, fruits, etc. Wine
production of 1876. Mr. Nordhoff's statement of area suitable for the
vine, and favorable nature of the climate. Chinese labor in vineyards.
Testimony of Mr. Hill. Employment of Chinese by Buenavista Vini-
cultural Society, and Anaheim Vine Growers' Association. . Mr. Cur-
tis's evidence. Fruits of California. Superior opportunities of fruit
growers. Fruit wasted because of lack of labor to save it. Testi¬
mony of Mr. Gibson, Mr. Beals, Mr. Beckham, Mr. Badlam, and Mr.
Castle regarding the part taken by the Chinese in the growth and pre¬
servation of fruit.
A joint committee of the Legislature of California
reported as follows in 1862 ;—^
" With cheap labor we could supply all our own wines
^'and liquors, besides sending large quantities abroad.
"The wine crop of France in 1849 was 925,000,000
"gallons, valued at $100,000,000. In 1853 she had in
"vineyards 4,873,934 acres, (giving less than 200 gallons
"to the acre,) making about 8,107 square miles, or an
"area of 250 miles in length by 32 in breadth. Califor-
"nia contains 188,981 square miles, which would give
" 120,947,840 acres, so that if only one twenty-fifth of our
" area should be planted with vineyards, we should have
" an amount equal to France.
"We have a fresher soil than that of PTance, and a
" better climate for grape culture, and we could produce
" larger quantities of wine and of better quality than is
" grown upon wortir out lands.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1189.
70
JOINT COMMITTEE OF 1862,
" This cannot be done without the aid of cheap labor
" from some quarter : but a portion of Chinese with white
^Tabor, would add incalculably to the resources of the
" State in this particular branch. To the wine produced,
" add the cost of pipes and bottles the transportation and
" commission on sales, and this wine and liquor interest
" would become second only to the mining and farming
" interest.
" Turning from the grape, let us dwell a moment upon
"the production of rice, tea, sugar, tobacco and dried
" fruits of every description, such as figs, raisins, &c., all
"of which can be easily grown within this State, and
"soon will be if we encourage cheap labor from abroad
" to come in and cultivate our waste luxuriant soil. It is
" industry which makes a people great, rich and power-
" ful ; and we need only to supplement our enterprise
" and resources by the willing hand of patient labor to
" make our young and giant State the glory of our coun-
" try and the marvel of the world."
The anticipations of the members of the committee
have, been realized in a measure. In the nine months
from January ist to October ist, 1876, 561,033 gal¬
lons of native wines were exported from California by
aea and land. The receipts at San Francisco of such
wines during the same months were 1,266,736 gal¬
lons, and of native brandies 43,050 gallons.^ It would
seem therefore that the State had ' begun already so
long ago as 1876 to supply more or less completely
the wines made for home consumption and was sending
large quantities abroad.
From a statement made in a paper appended to the
report of the Congressional committee it appears, that
the crop of 1875 amounted to about 8,000,000 gallons of
wine and-80,000 gallons of grape brandy, and that there
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1203.
EXPORT OF WINES,
71
were at that time in California nearly 40,000,000 vines
growing, more than three quarters of which were in bear¬
ing condition/
Mr. Nordhoff says ;—
"The area in California on which the grape can be
" successfully grown for wines is so great that this State
" will some day—and that before many years—produce
" wine and brandy for the whole world. In thirty-five out
" of the forty-four counties of the State, the grape for wine
" has been and is now successfully grown. The climate
"it perfect—the grapes ripen fully every year. There
" are no early frosts as in Germany or France to hasten
"the picking. An experienced wine-maker said to me,
" ^ With us every year is a comet year. We have as good
" * a season every year as they have, only once in a dozen
" ^ years in France and Germany.' "
Again ;—
" The business of raising grapes and making them into
" wine is already a very great one, in California, and will
" increase rapidly for years to come. As I have traveled
" through the State and seen the vineyards, I have again
" and again wondered what became of all the wine that
"is made here. Yet it is all consumed; there is very
" little three year old wine in any of the cellars ; and no
" matter how remote or how far from the great centres
"he may be, the wine-maker sells his wine oftenest at
" what is really a high price, as fast as he can make it. J
" All this means that wine-growing in California so far
" from being overdone, as I imagined it might be, is still
" in its infancy, with the demand increasing every year
" faster than the production. The planting of vineyards
" goes on steadily, and every year men learn better where
" and what to plant and how to manage wine."
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1204. ^ Gal. Nordhoff., p. 220.
72
CHINESE LABOE,
Mr. NordhoíT says further ;—
Chinese laborers are employed in all parts of the
" business. They quickly learn to prune and take care of
" the vines, and their labor is indispensable."
Mr. John H. Hill, of Sonoma county, a farmer and
cultivator of fruit, testified as follows ;—^
Q, Do you employ Chinese labor.? A. Yes, sir.
Please state what kind of laborers they have
made as to their honesty, integrity and habits. A. I
''find them from experience, to be temperate, industrious,
" honest, and good laborers, creating no trouble whatever.
" Q. Is it a common practice in Sonoma county to
" employ Chinese in the business of fruit-raising ? A. I
" think in my district there must be, perhaps, some 500
"Chinese employed. It is principally a vine-growing
" district.
" Q. They are engaged there largely in cultivating
"the grape for the farmers ? A. Yes, sir.
" Q. Could you get white labor to do that work .? A.
" I do not think that we could. I think it is one of the
" industrial resources of the country which would have
" to be abandoned if it depended on white labor. There
" are certain seasons of the year when a large accession
" to the ordinary number of hands is required, when the
"crop is ripening, and I do not think white men could
" be got, on the spur of the moment, to do the work.
" Q Sonoma county is noted as a vine-growing county,
" is it not ? A. The immediate district where I live, is
" exclusively vine-growing.
"Q. Is that Sonoma Valley.? A. Sonoma Valley. I
" believe if it was not for the Chinese labor, that busi-
"ness would have to be abandoned, and hundreds of
" people would be entirely ruined.
^ »1 —
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 79Ó.
CHINESE LABOR.
73
"Q. Vine-growing is then a vital interest to these
"people, a permanent interest? A. Exclusively, al-
" most, in that locality."
A paragraph of appendix number 6, of the Congress¬
ional report, states that the Buena Vista Vinicultural Soci¬
ety is the largest association of the kind in the State, pos¬
sessing over 6,000 acres in Sonoma county, and that they
employ more than half Chinese laborers, mostly for
grape picking and working the soil.
Another paragraph states that the United Anaheim
Vine-growers Association employs about half Chinese
and half Mexicans to pick grapes and work generally
in the vineyards. The association, it is further stated,
had, then, from 4,000 to 5,000 acres bearing fruit. The
Chinese first went into the district in 1871-2, and in
1876 "were increasing very much every year."
In another paragraph of the same paper, Mr. James
M. Curtis, wine and commission merchant, of San Fran¬
cisco, is reported as saying ;—" My information, derived
"personally from the growers, is, that the picking of
"grapes is done almost entirely by Chinese. I can safely
" say that nineteen-twentieths is done by them. Some
" Chinese are also employed in working in the fields or
"vinebergs, but then generally in company with whites;
"the overseers are always whites. Our native vv^ines
"appear to be silently but steadily gaining in public
" favor, both at home and abroad."
Still another paragraph sets forth, that California has
" at least eight or ten millions of acres of land fitted for
" grape culture, which can produce more wine than
" France, Germany and Spain together."
In northern and central California, the apple, peach,
plum, apricot, nectarine and cherry, yield abundant crops
of the largest and- most luscious fruit. In southern Cali¬
fornia the semi-tropical fruits abound, the orange, almond.
74
ORANGE CULTURE,
olive, lemon, citron, and lime. Raspberries, strawberries,
currants, melons, etc., grow luxuriantly all over the State.
And owing to the mountain ranges, and differences in the
elevation of fruit-producing lands, the orange and the
apple, the almond and the peach may be found grow¬
ing near one another, and northern fruits in the more
southern parts of the State.
It would be unnecessary to recite here the superior ad¬
vantages of the California fruit grower. As a rule the
northern states of the Union cannot be said to be favora¬
ble for fruit. The apple, the best of all American fruits,
grown in all the colder districts of the Union, and the
peach of some sections, are unsurpassed in the world. The
Eastern States however fall far short of southern Europe
in the production of fruit at large. But California is
simply an unrivaled region in this respect. The fruits
are larger, and, the apple excepted, not less luscious than
the best eastern fruits. The trees bear younger, and with
more certainty than in the East, and many fruits are pro¬
duced which are unknown elsewhere in the Union saving
in the tropical districts of southern Louisiana and in
Florida.
Some of the fruit products of California, as the orange,
the lemon, the almond, etc., can be sent to distant mar¬
kets in their natural state ; others only with difficulty.
But the latter may be subjected to a drying process, or
put up in sealed cannisters, and marketed in this form.
It is believed in California that the cultivation of the
orange is the most profitable business to which a land
owner in the southern part of the State can devote his
attention.
Mr. Nordhoff says;—"I have been in an orchard of
" less than nine acres which has produced for its owner,
"for sever-al years in succession, a clear profit of over
"$8,000. An orchard of forty acres in Los Angeles is
TROPICAL FRUITS,
75
'^reported to me to bring a clear rent of $15,000 per
" annum ; and the lessee is believed to have made a for-
" tune for himself"
To the Eastern horticulturist such statements will seem
extravagant and exceptional. Yet scattered all through
Mr. NordhoiEs book upon California will be found simi¬
lar statements, and statements of success with other
fruits of a not less marvelous nature. single olive
" tree at San Diego, reputed to be seventy years old, bore
" this year over one hundred gallons of oil." " Two Eng-
"lish walnut trees near Santa Barbara, thirty years
" old, have yielded each fifty dollars worth of nuts per
annum for several years past." "Three citron trees
" bore, at four years, without special care, forty-five dol-
" lars worth of fruit." " One lemon tree which I saw at
" Los Angeles yielded six hundred lemons, another older
"one over two thousand."
The cultivation of fruit in California on a considera¬
ble scale, began earlier in the central parts of the State
than in the south, more particularly in the small valleys
of the Coast Range, near San Francisco, and upon the
great plain near Sacramento, Marysville and Stockton,
where the demand for the cities named, and for the min¬
ing and other dependent districts, centered. The indus¬
try fairly outran the demand, and it would surprise one
to relate what proportion of the produce of the orchards
of California has fallen ungathered to the ground and
rotted. More lately with improved appliances for the
drying and canning of fruit, and established markets at
home and abroad for the sale of it, the industry has be¬
come one of great magnitude, and the more or less con¬
siderable dependence of a large body of growers, pre¬
servers and agents. At the present time there is prob¬
ably no maritime, town in the world in which the canned
fruits of California are not offered for sale, and their con-
76
CHINESE INDISPENSABLE,
sumption in our own country, north and south, is taking
large proportions.
How far the Chinese have been useful in the industries
thus created has been indicated in the remarks already
made in regard to the vine-growing interest. One or
two further relations of evidence will not be out of place,
however.
Mr. Gibson says;—^ " Probably not a single strawberry
ranch in the State is carried on, or could be carried on,
" with any profit, without the employment of Chinese la-
" bor. This is a kind of industry in which they excel all
^^competitors. Yet with this industry carried on almost
" exclusively by Chinese cheap labor, our strawberries
"cost more by the pound than in New York, Philadel-
" phia or Chicago. If our producers had to pay white
" laborers two dollars a day for far less efficient service
" than the Chinaman gives for one dollar, or one dollar
" and twenty-five cents a day, who could afford to eat the
" fruit when brought to market. As it is, even employ-
" ing Chinese labor, our producers pay as much a pound
"or basket for picking as is paid by the producers in New
"York, Delaware or Maryland."
Again;—
"In fruit-raising, for which California is wonderfully
" adapted, up to this time Chinese labor is indispensable."
Again ;—
"As has already been stated in a previous chapter, on
"fruit ranches, and farms also, the Chinamen are the suc-
" cessful competitors of the whites. The fact is, our white
" laborers don't like the business of stooping and squat-
"ting on their haunches all day picking berries, grapes
" and currants. The most of them can find employment
" that suits them better and yields them better pay. Only
" a few days since I overheard a company of farmers, or
^ Ch. in Am., p. q8.
CHINESE LARGELY EMPLOYED,
77
"ranchmen, talking together over this matter. One of
" them said ;—' The fact is, I cannot get white labor to do
" ^this kind of work; I must employ Chinamen or give
" ^up.' Another said that he had just the same diffi-
" culty in hoeing and weeding. White men seemed to be
" possessed of the notion that such work was more servile
"than some other, and were reluctant to engage in it, but
" the Chinaman takes kindly and naturally to the stoop-
" ing and squatting position required in this kind of light
" manual labor."
Mr. Henry C. Beals, editor of the San Francisco Com¬
mercial Heraldy testified before the commission as fol¬
lows;—^
" Q. What do you say of Chinese industry in connec-
"tion with fruit culture.? A. Of my own personal knowl-
" edge I could not say anything, but from my intercourse
"with fruit merchants and others, they inform me they
" could not get along without the Chinese ; that they em-
" ploy them mostly to pick their berries. They handle
"them more carefully than white people, I am informed.
Q. Was there at one time a great deal of fruit which
"went to waste.? A. There is now.
" Q. Has it changed in any respect.? A. The quan-
" tity of fruit grown here is immense, and at times the
" waste is very considerable ; but then I think that there
" has been less fruit wasted of late than ever before ; be-
" cause we have a great many drying machines, and labor
" saving machines, and among others I class Chinese as
"one of the labor-saving machines of this country. They
" utilize Chinese in drying fruit.
" Q. They are employed in this business.? A. They
" are to a great extent."
Mr. Robert F. Peckham, president and managing agent
of the San Jose woolen rnills, testified as follows;—
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 620.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 555.
78
FRUIT SAVED BY THE CHINESE,
"Q. Do you employ Chinese? A. We do.
" Q. Are Chinese employed by other parties in your
" neighborhood in San Jose ? A. Yes, sir ; they are very
" generally employed, particularly in fruit raising and hop
raising. The labor portion of business of that kind is
" nearly all done by Chinamen.
"Q. How many Chinamen are employed in your
"county? A. That I could not state.
" Q. In what business, in what occupation are they
"employed? A. In the business of raising fruits, straw-
" berries, blackberries, currants and everything of that
" kind they are very generally employed, and I think per-
" form most of that labor.
" Q. Why are they so employed ? A. I suppose be-
" cause those who employ them think they can do the
"best with them. We employ them because it is neces-
" sary for us to do so in order to compete in the business.
" Q. Is not the fruit business carried on to a great ex-
" tent? A. To a very great extent. Our fruit from San
"Jose goes all over the United States.
" Q. You say that Chinamen are employed a good
"deal in that business? A. Yes, sir.
" Q. Can you tell mc why they are employed in that
"business? A. I cannot state of my own knowledge.
" I can only state what fruit raisers and the men who em-
"ploy Chinese tell me, that it is necessary to employ
" them, in order to compete in the business and to make
" it a success.
" Q. Is there any competition with the East in fruit
" raising? A. Our surplus fruit goes there for a market.
" Q. They send none at all here? A. I think not,
" but our fruit goes there by car-loads, and by train-loads."
Mr. Alexander Badlam, assessor of the city of San
Francisco,"stated in evidence before the committee that
he had made official inquiries regarding the number of
FRUIT SHIPMENTS.
79
Chinese engaged in different employments in the city, and
found that about 2,500 were engaged in vending fruits
and vegetables, and about 2,200 in canning fruits, making
pickles, etc. ^
Frederick L. Castle, of the firm of Messrs. Castle and
Brothers, gave the following in evidence;—
" Q. They raise a great deal of fruit here 1 A. Yes,
" sir.
" Q. In former years did they utilize it, or did a great
" deal of it go to waste ? A. A great deal of it has been
" going to waste.
" Q. What is done with it as a general thing now ?
"A. The Chinese have, this year more particularly,
" engaged themselves in the occupation of buying trees,
paying so much a tree, and collecting the fruit. A very
'Targe amount of fruit that otherwise would have gone
" to waste, I think, the Chinese have managed to utilize.
" Q. How do they utilize it ? A. When a man has an
" orchard of éight or ten acres, a Chinaman will go and
" make him an offer to rent the orchard of him, so much
" a tree, or so much for all.
" Q. What use do they make of the fruit ? A. They
" bring it to the market and sell it. A very large quantity
"of fruit is now being shipped to the different western
" cities.
"Q. East from here ? A. Yes.
" Q. Dried fruit ? A. Yes, sir ; they dry it for sale.
" Q. Do you deal with them for that fruit ? A. Yes,
" sir.
" Q. How much in tons have been your transactions
" this year in that line with the Chinese ? A. I suppose
" that in the last sixty days I have purchased from six to
" eight car-loads of peaches and apples. A car-load con-
" tains ten tons." - ^ -
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 253.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 861.
PART II—CHAPTER VI.
THE MATERIAL RESULTS OF CHINESE LABOR IN
CALIFORNIA. MANUFACTURING.
The State has made no great progress in manufacturing. Kind of manu¬
facturing in which Chinese have taken part. Woolen goods. Testi¬
mony of Mr. Heynemann and Mr. Peckham regarding the Chinese as
operatives in woolen mills. Jute bags. Testimony of Mr. Morgan-
thau. Cordage. Testimony of Mr. Beals. By employing white
persons for superior woik and Chinese for inferior, an average of wages
reached not much higher than Eastern rates. Cabinet nlakers.
Cigar-boxes, &c. Candles and soap. Mr. Morganthau again. Labor
uncertain in California, because laborers are scarce and wages high.
Match factories. Testimony of Mr. Jessup. Brooms and broom
brushes. Testimony of Mr. Pixley, Mr. Gillespie and Mr. Cortage.
Other industries.
The manufacturing industries of California are not
numerous or extensive. The State is still too young,
capital is too dear, and wages too high to admit of com¬
petition with the Eastern States and Europe. Whatever
manufactories exist depend exclusively, with one or two
peculiar exceptions, upon the local demand. With the
same exceptions, local demands are only in part met by
them. Is it not discreditable to the State that such is
the condition of things. In point of fact, it is a matter
of surprise that local industries have accomplished so
much.
While this is true, the facts indicate further that
Chinese have become operatives in certain directions
only. I shall not stop at the moment to state why this
has been the case, as it is my purpose to make an in¬
quiry latêr into the question of the competition between
our own people and those of European origin, on the
CHINESE AS OPERATIVES.
81
one side, and the Chinese upon the other, and the
effect which it has had upon the employment of the for¬
mer. I shall go no further at the moment, than to ex¬
hibit the nature of the large manufacturing enterprises
in which the Chinese have been employed ; the extent
to which their assistance has been availed of, and the
reasons why it has been selected instead of the assistance
of others. In the next chapter I shall speak of other
special avocations, requiring less capital, upon which they
have entered, not as employes exclusively, but also for
their own account.
The more prominent of the larger industries in which
they have taken part as operatives are manufactures of
woolen goods, of jute bags, of cordage, of boxes and
furniture, of candles, matches and brooms.
Of the several industries mentioned the manufacture
of woolen goods ranks first in point of the date of its
inception, and the magnitude of its operations. Its pro¬
moters were before the Congressional committee and
may be allowed to speak largely for themselves. It will
be seen that these enterprises would not have been under¬
taken in the absence of the Chinese and that their suc¬
cess has been only moderate.
Herman Heynemann testified as follows ;—^
" Q. What is the character of your business } A. I
"am engaged in importing goods and also in manufac-
" turing.
" Q. What kind of manufacturing } A. I am presi-
" dent of the Pioneer woolen factory and the agent of the
"Pacific jute manufacturing company. I am the orig-
" inator of the former.
" Q. What are your manufactures ? A. Woolen.
" Q. Cloths ? A. Cloths, blankets, flannels, shawls,
" yarns, and everything that is made out of wool, almost.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 532.
82
WOOLEN MILLS,
"Q. Fine cloths? A. Not fine cloths, because our
wool is not adapted for that ; but we make good cloths.
" Q. Is our manufacturing here more for our own
" use or for export ? A. Entirely for our own use.
"We are not able to compete with Europe yet, sq as to
" export.
" Q. What is the magnitude of operations ? A. Very
" limited. I believe we consume about 2,000,000 pounds
"of wool, and that we export 38,000,000.
" Q. In what branches of manufacture are there the
" largest institutions here ? A. In money value I believe
" the largest incorporations here are the Pioneer and
" the Mission woolen factories. I do not know how much
" they have invested in the rolling mills, but there is a
" million of dollars now invested in those woolen mills.
" The Pacific rolling mill is the only establishment that
"could compare at all, and I do not know how much
" money there is invested in that.
" Q. In the other branches are there any large facto-
"ries? A. Yes; latterly shoe factories have been
" started here.
" Q. What number of operatives do you employ ?
"A. In the two mills, I should judge that we employ
" 600.
" Q. What two mills ? A. The Pioneer and Mis-
" sion, which form one incorporation.
" Q. When did you establish your manufactory ?
"A. In 1861 this incorporation was established. There
"was a little private establishment which was burned
"down, and then I started this corporation.
" Q. What operatives were employed in the old fac-
" tory ? A. Some Chinese and some whites.
" Q. Are all the operatives in your factory, now,
"Chinese ? A. No, sir; I have been listening to testi-
"mony, here, to the effect that a good many white
CHINESE INDISPENSABLE.
83
" laborers have been displaced by Chinese. Just the con-
" trary has been taking place in our factory. For instance,
"white girls have taken the place of Chinese. As a mat-
"ter of course, any superintendent will always give the
"preference to people whom he can understand rather
" than to people with whom he has difficulty to speak.
" That is an immense advantage in favor of white labor.
" Q. Why do you employ Chinese in your factory ?
" A. Originally we could not get any others at all ; at that
"time it would have been an absolute impossibility to
" have run the factory upon white labor, simply because
"we could not get white operatives.
"Q. Would the factory have been established with
"white labor A. No, sir; as a matter of fact, even
" with Chinese labor, competition has been so active that
" we have had no dividends whatever.
"Q. You say that you employ a certain number of
" Chinese. Have you the option of employing an equal
" number of boys or girls at the same rates ? A. That is a
very hard question to answer. If you have got a number
" of employes who know exactly what to do, you are not
"going to discharge them and take another number
" without knowing whether they can do the same thing ;
"but as labor is offering in that particular factory every
"day, the number of white girls is increasing, and the
" proportionate number of Chinese is decreasing.
" Q. Could you discharge the Chinamen you have
" now employed and replace them with white labor with-
" out any disadvantage ? A. We could not do it. Of
" course we have taught a certain number of operatives,
" and to discharge them all would disorganize everydiing,
" Q. How do the Chinese compare as operatives with
" American boys and girls ? A. I do not know that
" they are any better. I think Arnerican boys and girls
" would be fully as good.
84
JUTE FACTORY,
" Q. Of the whole number of your operatives how
" many are Chinese ? A. I should think about one-half,
" exclusive of the Pacific jute factory. There the number
"is almost entirely Chinese, except the foreman. We
"tried there to have Scotch help, white girls. We im-
" ported them for that very purpose, but could not keep
"them a fortnight. They ran away, and we could not
" keep them, so that we have very few now.
" Q. Would you be able to go on in manufacturing
" without Chinese ? A. I think it would be prejudical
" generally to our factory. I would say, as to the Pacific
"jute factory, that it could not go on without Chinese
" labor.
"Q. What is the difference A. In the Pacific jute
" factory the looms are so much heavier that very few
"women can run them.
" Q. Do women run those looms in Scotland ? A Yes,
" sir ; whether they are stronger there or how it is I do
"not understand ; but it is very hard work. We are in
" direct competition with them.
" Q. How many Chinese do you employ } A. In the
"jute factory, I should judge, about 120.
"Q. How many persons own this jute factory A. I
"should judge about 30.
" Q. So the tariff is kept up for the benefit of 30 white
"persons and 120 Chinamen? A. We have not asked
" particularly to have the tariff kept up, except that we
" introduced the industry and we found that we; could
" not compete without Chinese labor.
" Q. The cost of bags to the farmer is the cost of pro-
"duction with the cost of manufacture added ? A. Not
" at all.
" Q. If it were not for the tariff, bags from Scotland
" and Hindostán would be likely to absorb the market
"here ? A. You might h^ve a bag that would cost five
EASTERN COMPETITION
85
"cents, but if there was no local factory it might cost
" twenty cents.
" Q. I am speaking of the competition between Dun-
"dee and Hindostán } A. Suppose you have no local
"factory. You might have to pay twenty cents, as you
" did last year."
Mr. Robert F. Peckham, president and managing agent
of the San Jose woolen mills, situated in the city of San
Jose, testified ;—^
" Q. How many Chinese do you employ in your mill ?
" A. When we are running full we employ about 20
" white hands, and our business gives employment to 8
" or ID white men outside. We employ about 65 Chinese.
" About three-fourths of the expense of running the insti-
"tution, including the labor performed in selling our
" goods, is paid to white labor, and about one-fourth is
" paid to Chinese. We employ Chinese because it is
"necessary to compete in our business. To our white
" help we have to pay wages far in advance of what is
" paid in similar institutions in the Eastern States, with
"which we come directly into competition. To China-
" men, on an average, we pay less. A year and a half
" ago we compared our pay-rolls with several factories in
" the East, and I found that in our business and in theiPs,
" there was but very little difference ; that with our
"high-priced white labor and low-priced Chinese labor,
"we average with them. They are 20 percent, under us
" at this time.
" Q. How are you able to compete with them under
" these circumstances ? A. I do not know that we can
"compete with them next year, but we have been
" able to hold our own pretty well by having the ad-
" vantage of the market in the selection of our wools.
" Q. You have some advantage or disadvantage in em-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 555'
86
CHINESE INDISPENSABLE,
" ploying Chínese. What is it "í A. With the prices that
" are demanded for white labor in California we could
" not carry on the business ; we should have to close our
"works. There are about $3,000,000 of capital engaged
" in the business on the Pacific coast, and I suppose that
"all are in the same fix.
" Q. Can you obtain white labor at the same price ?
" A. At the prices we obtain Chinese }
"Q. Yes, sir. A. Very seldom.
" Q. Could you supply the places of the Chinese with
"boys and girls } A. We have tried a number of boys
" and our experience with boys has been that where their
" parents are with them at the mill, to look after them
" and see that they perform their duty, we have no trouble
"with them. We have several boys of that kind, rang-
"ing from 14 to 18 or 20 years of age, to whom we pay
"wages considerably in advance of Chinese wages. We
"have tried the experiment, though, of employing other
" boys whose parents were not there to look after them,
"and it has been a failure. They would work a few
" days and then stop and go off.
" Q. You say that you have employed some boys and
" girls at higher wages than you give the Chinese. Why
" do you pay them higher wages if their ability is the
" same } A. I will say that, as a rule, whenever we can
"get a white person, be he boy, man, or woman, who can
" perform the duties of a Chinaman, we give them $5 a
" month more than we pay the Chinamen for the same
" labor.
" Q. Simply because you prefer to give a white man the
"labor, if he can do it} A. Yes, sir. We prefer to do
"so, provided we can do it and compete in the business.
" Q. And you do that at some pecuniary sacrifice}
" A. We do it at pecuniary sacrifice.
" Q. Would your business of manufacturing have been
NO MANUFACTURES WITHOUT CHINESE.
87
" started, or now exist without Chinese labor ? A. It
" could not be carried on without it.
" Q. The work, then, that is being done would not
" have been done at all} A. The work that is being
" done would not have been done at all. If the China-
" men were taken from us we should close up to-morrow.
" Q. Y ou say the reason why you are compelled to
" have cheaper labor than white is on account of the dif-
"ficulty of competition in your business with Eastern
" products .i* A. Yes, sir; that is the difficulty.
" Q. Does the difficulty arise in no degree from com-
" petition here with other manufacturers A. If there
"was no competition with the East, and all the other
" mills here employed this cheap Chinese labor, we should
" have to do it too ; but if we all agreed upon it here, and
" there were no mills in the East, we could employ white
" labor.
" Q. Does not the expense of transportation, &c., give
" you the control of the market among your various mills
"here? A. No, sir; it does not give us the control.
" Q. Then notwithstanding your cheap labor, you find
"difficulty in competing with the mills in the East.? A.
"Yes, sir.
" Q. In this home market.? A. In this home market.''
Something has been said, in the testimony quoted
above, regarding the manufacture of jute bagging in Cal¬
ifornia. This industry has become prominent for the
reason that it is the custom, as I believe, to ship wheat in
bags from California, and not in bulk as is done in the
Eastern States. My information is that ship-owners and
insurers, looking to the length of the voyage to Europe,
and the tempestuous nature of some portion of the seas
to be crossed, have decided that the cargo put up in bags
is less likely to slxift than when in bulk, and have insisted
upon its being so shipped. The tax imposed upon the
88
MANUFACTURE OF BAGS.
producer is a heavy one, and of course whatever would
tend to lower the cost of bagging would be of advantage
to him. Beyond a doubt the manufacture of bags upon
the spot has cheapened the cost of bagging at large in
the San Francisco market, and the benefit to the farmer
has been so direct and positive that, aside from all ques¬
tions as to the kind of labor employed in their manufac¬
ture, the promoters of the industry should be considered
public benefactors.
The following further evidence regarding this industry
was given by Mr. Max Morganthau, a capitalist of San
Francisco, who appears to have taken broad views in re¬
gard to home industries, to have made consistent efforts,
extending over a long series of years, to promote man¬
ufacturing of different kinds, and to have invested largely
in such enterprises ;—^
"Q. How long have you resided in this State A.
" Twenty-seven years.
"Q. What is your business A. For the last fifteen
"years, manufacturing.
" Q. What manufacturing interests are you connected
"with.^ A. I am interested in three manufactories—
"the woolen mills, the jute factory, and the candle and
" soap factory.
" Q. How long have you been connected with the jute
" mill ? A. Since it was in existence, six years.
"Q. How many bags do you make in that mill.? A.
" This year we run a little more than usual. We make
"about 12,000 a day.
" Q. In previous years where did we get our bags.?
" A. They came from Scotland.
Q. They are grain bags.? A. Yes.
" Q. What is the capital stock of the company in the
"jute business.? A. Between $400,000 and $500,000.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 8oi.
CHINESE INDISPENSABLE.
89
" Q. Do yoli know the amount that we paid Scotland
"for bags before you commenced manufacturing ? A.
"We must have imported last year from eighteen to
"twenty million bags. My estimate may be a million
" short ; I cannot tell.
"Q. What did those bags cost here.^* A. I am not
"posted; but I should think they must have cost ten
" cents or eleven cents apiece.
" Q. How many bags are you manufacturing now to
"supply the place of those.? A. Within the past four
" months we have run over-time, and we must have aver-
"aged not less than 12,000 a day.
" Q When we imported bags at ten cents, or eleven
"cents, the aggregate amounted to $2,000,000 annually ?
"A. At least.
" Q. Do you work Chinese labor in the jute factory í
"A. When we ordered the machinery, we ordered a
" whole cargo of white people to come with it from Scot-
" land ; but they left us.
"Q. For what reason.? A. When we engaged them
"they thought they had a good thing, and when they
" arrived it seemed they could do better.
"Q. What did you do then.? A. We were com-
"pelled to shut up or employ Chinese labor.
"Q. You employed Chinese.? A. Yes, sir.
" Q. Is it not a fact in almost all the departments of
"goods which we manufacture that we cannot get white
labor to enter into the manufacture of those goods to
"any considerable extent to compete with the East.?
" A. I am sorry to say that there is too much truth in it.
"We cannot get them."
In regard to another considerable industry, the manu¬
facture of cordage, Mr. Henry C. Beals, editor of the
Commercial Herdtdy of San Francisco, testified as fol¬
lows ;—^
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 617,
90
MANUFACTURE OF COREA GE.
" Q. I will ask you in reference to cordage. What is
"the condition of that industry in this State, and the
" amount of the manufacture ? A. I would say that
"about a year ago, at the invitation of Mr. Tubbs, who
"is president and leading holder of the San Francisco
" cordage factory, I went out and visited the factory with
" him. I went all through it and saw the working of the
" whole establishment. I am also familiar with it in other
"ways. About a week or so ago, I met Mr. Tubbs and
" spoke to him in regard to the factory. He took occa-
" sion then to tell me, what I knew before, that they em-
" ploy exclusively Chinese labor there. This was only a
"fortnight ago. ' He told me that it was utterly impossi-
"ble for him to manufacture cordage without Chinese
" labor ; that they had tried Chinese labor and were sat-
" isfied that the employment of white • people to manu-
" facture cordage was a matter entirely beyond their con-
" trol. Heretofore, until the establishment of this cord-
"age factory, we imported our cordage almost entirely
"from New Bedford. Since the establishment of this
"factory, owing to the encouragement they have had,
"there has been another factory started at Alameda,
" which also manufactures cordage, and they also employ
"Chinese. The result has been that now almost the
" entire amount of cordage that is used here, is manufac-
" tured by ourselves.
" Q. Could they compete with New York ? A. No.
" Q. They sent it there and sold it at a loss ^ A. They
"sent it there and sold it at a loss. They sent it there,
" and bucked against them as we say.
" Q. Both of these factories employ Chinese ? A. As
" to the one at Potrero, I am not so sure, but I am quite
" confident that the other one does.
" Q. , Have you the imports for a year or two past ?
" A. The imports are here for a series of years, but the
" increased consumption would probably explain it.
EMPLOYMENT OF CHINESE.
91
" Q. Read them, please ? A. The imports of cordage
Tn 1871 were, 12,741 coils, 1,930 packages; in 1872,
^ii,337 coils and 2,535 packages; in 1873, 7,370 coils
'and 1,766 packages; in 1874, 5,288 coils and 485
•packages; in 1875,7,238 coils and 874 packages ; which
' shows a very large falling off. ^ ^ The consumption
' of cordage on this coast approximates six millions and
' a half pounds per annum. Now, nearly all that six
' millions and a half pounds is manufactured here from
' Manila hemp, imported in a rough state, mostly sent
'from Manila to Hong Kong, and from there in the
' steamers."
It would seem that the statement made by Mr. Beals,
that the San Francisco cordage factory employed only
Chinese, must be accepted with a reservation. Un¬
doubtedly, the foremen would have been Americans, and
no doubt as engineers, teamsters, &c., a considerable
number of Americans must have been employed. A
table prepared by Mr. Kessler, a witness before the com¬
mission, indicates that the works named employ 45 white
men and boys, and 30 Chinamen ; and that two junior
enterprises of the same kind, but of less magnitude, were
employing whites only.^ Still another table, given in Mr.
Brooks' brief, indicates that one of these two factories
did emplov Chinese, the number of employés being 33
have shown, no doubt, that Chinese performed the simpler
work of the given factories, and at less wages than the
whites, and that these mills, like the woolen mills, were
able to make in this way an average cost of labor, which
would enable them to compete with cordage-makers
elsewhere.
The information given in the report of the Congres¬
sional committee^ in regard to the Chinese as cabinet-
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1212. ®Br. Br. Ap. D.
whites
more careful inquiry would
92
CABINET-MAKING, ETC,
makers and box-makers, is meagre. Mr. Badlam, city
assessor, stated in evidence, that about "350 are engaged
"in making cigar-boxes."^ Mr. James R. Rogers, an
officer of police, detailed to give information and report
upon the industries in which the Chinese were taking
part, makes no mention of their employment in this
branch. Mr. Lessler's table contains a list of box fac¬
tories—packing, paper, tin, and for cigars—with a state¬
ment of the persons employed, which does not indicate
that any Chinese whatever were so employed. The tables
given by Mr. Brooks show, however, that in four cigar-
box factories, 85 whites and 125 Chinese were occupied.^
As these were not Chinese factories, and as the Chinese
would, undoubtedly, enter upon this kind of enterprise
for themselves, the whole number of them at such work
may have been as great as Mr. Badlam estimated.
Regarding their employment as cabinet-makers proper
both Mr. Badlam and Mr. Rogers are silent. Mr. Brooks
and Mr. Lessler give lists of twenty establishments in
which something more than 1,000 whites and about 70
Chinese were at work.
It vrill be seen that this industry, cigar-box making
aside, has not attained to importance in California, and
that the employment of Chinese in it is not extensive.
In point of fact the native woods of the Pacific coast have
not been found suitable for the manufacture of furniture,
and wages have been too high to admit of competition
with the factories of the Eastern States. It may be said
with safety that 95 per cent, of all the furniture used is
imported from the East, and the same is true, as I believe,
of the carriages and wagons.
In the manufacture of candles and soap Mr. Lessler
and Mr. Brooks agree in ennumerating three factories
employing^ in all 29 whites and 68 Chinese.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 723. ^Br. Br., Ap. D.
CANDLES AND SOAP.
93
This is an industry which should take large propor¬
tions in California, for the reason that tallow is produced in
the State in large quantities. Mr. Mergenthau, to whose
evidence in another direction I have already referred, gave
to the committee a history of his experience in candle
and soap making, and various facts bearing upon the
trade, which are interesting. ^
" Q, Up to a very few years ago did we not buy all
"the candles from the East that we used on this coast
"A. To my great sorrow we buy them to-day from the
" East
" Q. Do we not send our tallow to Boston and the
" East, and it is made into candles and sent back here ?
Last year we shipped away from here several mil-
" lions pounds of tallow. ^ ^ The amount (of candles)
" our factory turns out now is about 60,000 boxes. An-
" other factory here reaches 75,000 boxes, but I do not
" believe that we use less than 600,000 or 700,000 boxes
" a year.
" Q. Do you think we imported that number A.
" We import them now.
" Q. What is the value of the candles we imported
"before you went into the business.^ A. I will take
"the average of 100 boxes at $3 a box.
" Q. How many boxes do we import now.^ A. I
" should think that we import to-day not less than five or
" six hundred thousand boxes. I think that is a close ap-
" proximate.
"Q. That would be $1,800,000 worth that we import
"now.^ A. Not less than that.
" Q. Has not the business of making candles been open
" to capitalists here for 20 years 1 A. Yes, sir; it is open
" to everybody. It is not a paying business to-day. We
" cannot compete., ^
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 896.
94
COMPETITION DIFFICULT.
" Q. Because you cannot get the tallow ? A. We can
get plenty of it cheaper than in the East.
" Q. Do you employ Chinese in your manufactories.^
A. Lately; but not all. There is no factory run on
this coast but that you may say 66 per cent, of the wages
goes to white labor. ^ ^ For instance here is my pay¬
roll. When I started I had nothing but white labor,
and I will show the difficulty. I started in with girls
principally. (Exhibiting books.)
" Q. State how the pay-rolls run ? A. When I
took them on the business, July 29th, 1871, I had nota
single Chinaman employed. All those I had employed
was one man here, $2 a day—a white man ; another,
$1.50; another, $1.50; another man, $1. Here comes
again, $1.50. Now come the girls, 87cents a day
right along. So this pay-roll goes on. Now down
here again are some men, $2, $2, $2, $1.75? $2, $2, &c.;
$2.50; $2. This goes on up to December 2nd, 1871,
From then I started to put in a few Chinaraen. The
reason was this ;—As I have stated my man had no
capital. I went out every day to see what was going
on at the factory. I came out one morning and found no
steam up. I asked our people what was the matter.
^ Well, the girls did not come to-day.' ^ What is the
^ trouble ' They got a holiday.' Said I, ^ What holi-
' day ? There is no holiday in the city/ They said
^ Oh, well, we did not want to tell you. We stop very
^ often. We have days here when we cannot work.'
Said I, ' Mr. Winters,'—-that is the name of the superin¬
tendent—^ I will tell you what holidays I recognize in
^ this place. I recognize Christmas, New Year's, Fourth
^ of July, and you may give them St. Patrick's day and
^ every Sunday, but any other holiday I have got
^ to stop; because, you see, when these girls do not
^ come all the rest of the work is stopped. We start
UNCERTAINTY OF LABOR.
95
" ' up in the morning at five o'clock with the steam, and
" ^ and they do not give us notice, and do not come.
" ^ The coals are gone, and the other hands have to be
" ^ sent away. That thing must be stopped. If it is not
" ^ stopped I will shut up the factory.' ^ ^ Finally
" they abandoned the premises. They would not work.
" I had a soap man there. The soap man I paid $2.50 a
" day. One day my man came in and said, ^ Mr. Morgan-
" ^thau, we have got to quit. There is no soap man.
" ^The man is dead drunk. It is a dangerous business.
" ^ He may blow up our whole factory. Can you get
"'another one .^' It is always the same thing when I
"I start to do something. I have tried fifteen soap men,
"but I have not got one for the last eighteen months.
"It is a great risk to sacrifice the other men who are
" there taking care of the machinery, so that in fact I
" have not had one for the last eighteen months. There
" are none here.
" Q. Look at your pay-roll to-day and state how it is ?
"A. I started in with Chinese. The first Chinese was
" December 6th. I paid them $27. The whole pay-roll
" is $287.30, of which the Chinese received $27. The next
"week the Chinese labor was $30, and the whole pay-
" roll was $290. This does not include the superintend-
"ent. The following week the Chinese labor was $26.25,
" and the pay-roll was $260.40.
" Q. State how it is now A. To-day the pay-roll
" is one white man, $5 ; one white man, $3.50 ; one white
"man, engineer, $4.12^ ; one white man, $2 ; one white
"man, $2.25 ; one boy, $1.50 ; Chinese boss, $1.25 ; Chi-
"naman, $i ; Chinaman, $i ; Chinaman, $i ; and so
" on. The pay-roll to-day is $298. With $60 for the
"superintendent, the whole pay-roll is $358, and out of
"that the Chinese'receive $162.
" Q. The reason you give for the employment of these
96
MANUFACTURE OF MATCHES.
" Chinese is not on account of your getting them cheaper,
"but on account of the unreliability of the white men
" you had before ? A. Exactly ; I should keep white
" labor any time. I have always given instructions, not
"only in the candle factory but in the woolen mills,
" wherever you can place white labor, as near as possible,
"always give whites the preference.
" Q. Even at higher rates ? A. If not too much. I
" always prefer to give them the preference."
The recital of experience thus given will not seem singu¬
lar to persons who are familiar with the conditions of labor
in newly settled districts. Laboring men and operatives
are unsteady in their habits of labor just in proportion as
they do not feel the pressure of necessity. It is not too
much to say, perhaps, that the same proposition could be
predicated of men in all departments of life. With high
wages, for such the wages of California are, and with
many opportunities for employment open, the laborer
regards hard work as a thing to be avoided, either by a
choice of pleasanter employment or by the taking of
frequent holidays. It is only when competition is close,
and the difficulty of earning bread is great, that steady
assiduity in one vocation is to be expected.
According to the tables given by Mn Lessler and Mr.
Brooks, there were three match factories in San Fran¬
cisco, in 1876, in which 38 Americans and 2$ Chinese
were employed.
Mr. William H. Jessup, a manufacturer of matches,
testified before the commission, as follows ;—'
" Q. Have you had experience in the employment of
"boys,girls, and Chinese.^ A. Yes, sir.
" Q. What have been the results of your experience ?
"A. The result of my experience with boys and girls
"was very-unsatisfactory.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 816.
WHITE ARTISANS UNCERTAIN.
97
" Q. What was the difficulty in the employment of boys ?
"A. They were unreliable, both in constancy to labor
" and in their conduct about the factory. I never could
" rely upon them to perform their work satisfactorily. If
" I would leave them and go up the street, when I came
"back I would find them throwing matches all over the
" factory, and sometimes I would find them on top of the
" building chasing each other over the roof.
" Q. How long did you try to carry on your factory
"with boys } A. Something near a year. Before I went
" to hiring Chinese labor, I hired white men. I set them
"to work, and gave them good wages from the first.
"They were dissatisfied. They were not satisfied to
" take the rate we could pay to compete with imported
" matches. We were compelled to hire labor as cheaply
" as possible in order to produce the article in any way.
" They would commence to work, and would expect to
" make good wages from the first. If they could not, they
"would be dissatisfied. For instance, in learning they
" would probably not make even ten or fifteen cents a
"day, and the Chinamen, now, practiced hands, would
" make probably $3 a day, at the same rate we were then
"paying for putting up matches.
" Q. From what class of people did your white men
" come A. The laboring class, as a general thing.
" Q. They were of no particular nationality A. No;
" none at all.
"Q. You had to take green hands altogether } A. I
" had to take green hands altogether. There were no
" instructed hands here, no artisans who understood the
"business at all. Occasionally a man would come along
"who understood manufacturing, but he would want $3^
" or $4 a day, to begin with. I have two or three such in
" the wooden department. I there make wooden boxes
G
98
CHINESE LABOE.
"to put the matches in. There I employ some half
"dozen white men.
" Q. What was the next change you made ? A. The
next change I made was to try girls in the packing of
" matches and putting them up, and I found more diffi-
" culty with them than with the boys, and could not do
" anything with them.
" Q. From what classes did your girls come.^ A. The
" poorer classes ; laboring women.
" Q. What do you say was the difficulty with them ?
"A. They were unreliable, and they were dissatisfied
" because they could not make good wages from the first.
"Q. In what respect were they unreliable.? A. I
"could not depend upon them. When I would show
" them how to do a thing and go away and leave them, I
" could not rely upon their doing it. They would not be
" instructed. That was a difficulty I found with the boys.
" It was utterly impossible to set them to work and give
"them instructions that they would abide by. They
" would make little changes to-day and little changes to-
" morrow, and in a word, you would find them doing en-
"tirely different from the instructions you gave them.
" Q. The boys you say would not stick to work.?
" A. They would not stick to work, and would destroy
" the property, and it was the same characteristic in re-
" spect to learning as with the girls.
"Q. How was it in reference to the girls.? A. They
" were always fooling and talking, and could not get their
" minds down to business.
Q. What was the next change you made.? A. The
" next change I made was to hire Chinamen.
" Q. What was the result of that experiment.? A.
" The result of that was the building up of a factory to
" the exclusion of the imported matches.
" Q. Did you carry on that business at a profit? A
" I did.
ADVANTAGES OF CHINESE LABOR. 99
" Q. Did you carry on the business with either boys,
"girls or white men at a profit? A. I never could have
"succeeded. I am satisfied of that fact.
" Q. In what respect did the Chinese prove more ad-
"vantageous? A. They were more attentive to their
" business ; there was no fooling or leaving of their work.
" They would stay and work, and they were satisfied with
" the wages that they made, depending all the while on
" the facility in getting along faster, turning out more
" work after a whiley^and they would learn. They would
" follow instructions. You take a Chinaman, a green boy,
"into your factory and show him just how to do a thing,
" and if you leave him and come back, if it is a year after-
" ward, you find him doing the work precisely as you in-
" structed him. Whenever you have given him proper
" instructions he will abide by those instructions."
The manufacture of brooms and broom brushes ap¬
pears to be one of the very few industries which has been
carried so far in California as to enable dealers to ship
their goods to foreign ports in considerable quantities.
The total number made in 1876 was about 70,000 dozens,
and of these about 20,000 were sent to Australia, the
Sandwich Islands, New Zealand, Peru and Chile. I un¬
derstand from the evidence that the home market for
brooms is wholly supplied by the local factories.
The Honorable Frank M. Pixley testified before the
commission regarding this industry, as follows;—^ "About
" ten or eleven years ago my brother, who is a poor man
" and a mechamic, engaged in the manufacture of broom
"handles. He employed about six white workmen.
" Their wages were from three to four and a half dollars
" a day, according to their skill in running turning-lathes.
" ^ ^ Shortly after he had gotten into the business
" some one else .established a factory and employed four
"or five Chinese to work it. In a very short time these
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 567.
100
MANUFACTi^FE OF BROOMS.
" Chinese became so expert in the manufacture that they
" established the trade themselves, with one white man as
" foreman. The capital required was not large, and the
"result was that the six or seven Chinamen, under a
"white man, took up the business. They were required
" to keep a horse and wagon to dispose of their wares.
" This horse was kept in a stable. The Chinese lived in
" the same stable with the horse, fed and cooked for them-
" selves in an upper loft, and slept there, and so reduced
" the wages that much, thrusting in this particular in-
" stance my brother out of his employment."
This would appear to have been the modest beginning
of the business in California. It does not appear, how¬
ever, that the competition of" six or seven" Chinese have
kept all Americans out of the business, or that the capac¬
ity to live over a stable is the only factor involved af¬
fecting the ability of the two races to compete in the bus¬
iness.
Mr. Lessler and Mr. Brooks both give tables of the
employment of artisans in this department. The latter
enumerates five factories in which 115 men and 35 boys
were engaged, but no Chinese.
It would seem to be true, however, that the Chinese
have competed actively in the business. Mr. Robert H.
Gillespie, a practical broom-maker, testified before the
commission that " nearly every factory in the State em-
" ploys Chinese*" ^ The same witness testified further,
however, that "there are some Chinese who make as
" high as ten dollars a week manufacturing brooms by
"the piece ;" that whites earned at an earlier date as much
as $26 dollars a week ; that some at the moment were
earning $15 ; and that the latter are so much more ex¬
pert than the Chinese that they are able to make 400
brooms week, of a kind of which the Chinese would
make only 300; or 800 of another against 600.
^ Rep, Ch. Im., p. 356.
RELATIVE PEAGES.
101
Another broom-maker, Mr. Edward L. Cortage, tes¬
tified that exclusive of Oregon, between 90 and 100
Chinese were engaged on the whole coast in the manu¬
facture of brooms. The same witness said ;—^ "Aceord-
" ing to hearsay, in the big cities of the Union, the prices
^^were pretty nearly on an average all the time until
1869 or 1870, when Eastern prices came down a trifle.
"Nowadays broom-makers are generally hired by the
"month, and attend to everything, even on the farm.
" The prices paid in St. Louis are exactly the same as
" those paid here now ; there might be a quarter of a
" cent on some kinds of work more, or a quarter of a
" cent on another kind of work less, but it is about the
" same thing."
The inference from all this is, that the broom-makers
of San Francisco have been obliged of late by the com¬
petition in their trade, a part of which has been that of
Chinese, to work for less wages than formerly, but cer¬
tainly not for less than Eastern broom-makers, and that
a considerable industry has been built up in the State as
a consequence, which otherwise would have languished,
as manufacturing generally languishes, in the State.
The other special industries in which Chinamen in
San Francisco were engaged in 1876, were the making
of boots and shoes, of hats and caps, of cigars, of cloth¬
ing and shirts, of lace and embroidery, and in laundry-
work. As we have already seen, others were engaged
in canning and preserving fruits and pickles, and a few
seem to have been employed in and about glass-works,
glue-vv^orks, and in powder-mills and tanneries and as tin¬
smiths. Such remarks as I have to make regarding their
participation in these several industries are reserved for
the next chapter.
^ s ^
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 356.
PART IL—CHAPTER VIL
THE MATERIAL RESULTS OF CHINESE LABOR IN
CALIFORNIA. SPECIAL INDUSTRIES.
The manufacture of boots and shoes. Testimony of Mr. Badlam, Mr,
Rogers, and Mr. Lessler, as to the number of Chinese employed.
Wages paid to journeymen shoe-makers in 1871-1875. Prices of shoes
reduced. Testimony of Mr. Gibson and Mr. Beals. California a
leather producing State. Hats and caps. Manufacture of cigars, &c.
Testimony of Mr. Beals. Two-thirds of the cigars used made in the
State. Testimony of Mr. Morganthau. Number of Chinese engaged.
Testimony of Mr. Rogers, Mr. Badlam, Mr. Lessler, Mr. Brooks and
Mr. Muther. Wages of Chinese and Americans. Wages in California
and the East compared. California tobacco. Advantage of home
manufacture. Industries of the needle. Relative employment of the
Chinese. Relative rates of wages. Woolen manufactures. Testi¬
mony of Mr. Morganthau. Shirt-making. Laundries. Testimony
regarding number of Chinese employed. Lower rates for laundry-
work has inured chiefly to advantage of poorer classes. Testimony of
Mr. Babcock. Glass-works, glue-works, powder-mills, &c.
Mr. Badlam, assessor of the city of San Francisco,
stated to the Congressional commission, as the result of
official inquiry, that from 1,500 to 2,000 Chinese were
engaged in making boots and shoes ; and 1,000 more in
making slippers.^ Another witness, Mr. Rogers, an officer
of police, stated that there were " eleven slipper manu-
'Mactories in San Francisco, where large quantities of
''this article are made, the main work being done by
" men at the shop, and the finishing by Chinese w'omen
" at their homes during the day ; in fact, nearly all of
" this article is from Chinese labor." ^
Speaking of shoes and gaiters in particular, this wit¬
ness sa-idr ;—" An immense amount of material is manu-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 252.
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1168.
BOOTS AND SHOES.
103
" factured into merchandise of this nature. ^ * There
" is no doubt but what eight-tenths of the ladies' and
"children's gaiters and shoes, made in this city, are of
" Chinese manufacture."
Another witness, Mr. Morris Lessler, presented to the
commission a series of statistical tables, which he had
compiled, after inquiry throughout the city.^ From these
it would appear that there were thirteen firms and
associations engaged in the manufacture of boots and
shoes ; that six of these employed Chinese ; that the
number of Chinese so employed was 470, and of Ameri-
*
cans, or persons of other nationalities not Chinese, 338 ;
that in the seven other establishments, 574 Americans
were engaged, and that about 1,500 Chinese were em¬
ployed by Chinamen in the same line, or were working
for themselves.
The business of shoe-making in San Francisco is one,
therefore, which had already, in 1876, attained to con¬
siderable magnitude. The result was exactly what might
have been expected ; the cost of making shoes had been
greatly lowered, and the reduced cost of manufacture
had been followed by a considerable reduction in selling
rates.
Mr. Charles L. Lancaster, a practical shoe-maker, ap¬
peared before the commission as the representative of a
shoe-makers' association, and gave evidence regarding the
rates paid for manufacturing which I tabulate as fol¬
lows ;—
Kind of work. Price per doz. in 1871. 1875.
Ladies, French kid boots $12 00 $ 9 00
" kid Balmorals •. 10 50 8 50
Men's, Oxford ties 10 50 8 50
" Neilson " 10 50 8 50
Ladies, 3x cloth, fox kid buttoned boots. 9 00 7 SO
^ y ^
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1211. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 341.
104
PRICES REDUCED.
Kind of work. Price per doz. in 1871. 1875.
Ladies, ix cloth, kid buttoned boots... g 00 S SO
" IX Balmorals 8 00 S SO
" Imitation sewed 18 00 10 00
Misses, Neilson ties 9 00 7 00
" French kid 3x 9 00 7 00
Morocco leg, calf boots 28 00 14 00
French calf, top boots 23 00 11 00
Second quality calf boots IS 00 7 10
It will be seen that the reduction in the cost of the
manual part of the manufacture ranged from 50 to 20
per cent.
As to selling rates, the Reverend Otis Gibson testified
before the commission as follows ;—^
"Before we had much Chinese labor here, or any
"manufacture of boots or shoes, we imported mostly
"from Massachusetts. The money of California went
"out of the State to the manufacturers of Massachusetts,
" and every man paid 100 per cent, more for the boots and
" shoes that he wore in this State, than he pays to-day.
"The 75Q,ooo or 1,000,000 men in California must pay the
" 500 or 1,000 shoe-makers in the State double price for
" boots and shoes, or pay it to Massachusetts, or let the
" boots and shoes be manufactured by cheaper labor. ^ ^
" Every man now gets his boots and shoes for less money
" than he could get them by having to pay it to boot and
" shoe-makers in the white trade.^'
Mr. Beals testified ;—^
" Formerly boots and shoes were brought here entirely
"from Philadelphia and Massachusetts. Of course they
"came from New York more or less, but since the estab-
" lishment of Chinese factories here, the quantity brought
" from there has diminished very materially. It was not
" until the. establishment of the Chinese boot and shoe
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 516
^Rep. Ch, Im,, p. 6i8.
BENEFITS TO CONSUMEES,
105
" factories that other people were drawn into the business.
" ^ ^ The total importations it would be diffi-
" cult to give because the size of packages is very
" conflicting and there is no way of obtaining information
" as to the number of dozen in a case."
While these declarations are not of the most definite
sort, and I have no data by which I can compare with
exactness the prices for which boots and shoes were sold
at different dates, and determine the effect of local manu¬
factures upon the market, it is entirely certain that
consumers have been largely benefited. Throughout the
Eastern States the Crispins' associations have done much
to enhance the cost of manufacture. In California the
competition between Americans and the Chinese has
been open and direct. The Chinese in point of fact have
carried the day until of late, and are still in the ascend¬
ancy numerically. Cheaper production gives in the long
run of course cheaper prices, and local manufactures
invariably break down greatly the prices of imported
articles. California is, moreover, a leather producing
State. In earlier days the leather made was shipped
abroad or to the East, and some portion of it was returned
in manufactured forms. The consumer had thus to pay,
in the price of his purchases, the cost of two or more ex¬
pensive shipments and of several commissions. It cannot
be for his interest to do this, nor for the interest of the
cattle-raiser who produces hides, for that of the tanner
who prepares them, nor in the broadest sense for the
interest of the country.
In regard to the manufacture of hats and caps, I have
no information beyond what appears to be an estimate
of the number of persons engaged in it, contained in Mr.
Brooks' tables.^ Accepting this estimate as more or less
nearly correct, it - would. appear that in 1876 about 300
' Br. Br., Ap., D,
106
MANUFACTURE OF CIGARS.
persons found occupation in the trade, of whom about
200 were Chinese. In the absence of more definite in¬
formation it would be useless to make any comments
upon it.
Mr. Beals gave the following evidence before the com¬
mission as to the manufacture of cigars in San Fran¬
cisco ;—^
"Within a few years the trade in cigars has entirely
" changed. I could not tell the date, but within the last
" eight years the business has changed very greatly. Up
" to that time most of the cigars which were used on this
"coast were either imported from Havana, or Manila, or
" what we call American cigars coming from New York ;
" but now probably two-thirds of all the cigars that are
"consumed on this coast are made in this city. We not
" only use California tobacco, raised below here, but we
" receive from the East an immense quantity of Connec-
"ticut and Kentucky seed leaf tobacco, which is sent
"here in hogsheads and old dry goods boxes. It is
" bought up to a very great extent by the Chinese, and
" made into cigars to the extent of millions pf dollars a
"year. I have no doubt that two-thirds of all the cigars
" consumed in this city are made here. They use some
" Havana tobacco, but comparatively little. There is an
" establishment on Washington street where they use
"some very high cost Russian or Turkish tobacco ; they
" will not give information or state the value per pound,
"yet they consume considerable. Most of the cigars
" made here are from the Connecticut leaf. We use some
" Ohio and some Kentucky tobacco."
Mr. Morganthau testified ;—^
" I remember the time when they used to import every
"cigar from the East. Of course Havana cigars come
" here to-day, but they used to get our cigars from the
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 618. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 805.
JVU3IBER OF CHINESE EMPLOYED,
107
" East. There was not a white man here making cigars,
" and the result was that cigars were shipped from the East.
"Afterward cigars were shipped from here to the East,
" and we have done a great business, because of the Chi-
" namen making the cigars here, we get them really in
" proportion cheaper than they do East. But it seems
" that the Eastern people would not stand that and they
"have taken hold of the business, and that business
" has stopped here for they cannot ship East because the
" Eastern people can work equal with the Chinese here."
Mr. Rogers testified as follows;—^
" The number of cigars manufactured in the first Con-
"gressional district of California during the last year,
"nine-tenths of which have been made in the city and
" county of San Francisco and by Chinese labor, amounts
" to one hundred and twenty millions five hundred and
" ninety-eight thousand. This includes about six million
" cigaritos. Deduct six million made by white labor,
"and the balance one hundred and fourteen millions
" five hundred and ninety-eight thousands remain."
The same witness estimated the number of Chinese
employed in the business of cigar-making at 3,300. Mr.
Badlam's estimate was 2,800 ; ^ Mr. Lessler's table gives
about 3,200,^ and Mr. Brooks', which is more in detail,
about the same number. ^ Mr, Frank Muther, a cigar-
maker, testified that the internal revenue-tax was paid on
9,300,000 cigars a month; and that it would take 3,000
Chinamen constantly at work to make them. He added
to this computation an allowance of 500 for Chinese pack¬
ers and strippers, and of 2,500 for those out of employ¬
ment, making a total of about 6,000 following the trade.®
The same witness stated that there were about 100 Amer-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1167. ^ Br. Br. Ap. D.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p.'252. - ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 113.
® Rep. Ch, Im., p. 1212.
108
ECONOMICAL CONSIDERATIONS,
ican cigar-makers in San Francisco, of whom 50 or 60
were at work.
It appears from these statements that the Chinese in
California, employed by Americans, or by persons of their
own nationality, make nearly all of the cigars which are
manufactured there. It appears also that the industry
was begun, practically, by Chinese, or with their assist¬
ance.
In this connection a statement made by the witness
Muther is interesting. His information was, that nearly
one-half the cigar-makers of Havana were Chinese; that
many of them had become dissatisfied with their treat¬
ment and removed to San Francisco; and "that is the
"reason we have got so'many Chinese cigar-makers here."
The same witness testified that the average earnings of
American workmen in San Francisco at the moment were
about $11 a week, but that the Chinese would average
only $6 a week.
It is to be regretted, perhaps, that there is any con¬
sumption of cigars in our country, for the habit costs our
people a great deal and yields them few compensating
advantages. But if tobacco is to be consumed it is un¬
doubtedly better that the money which is expended should
not go out of the country. In the present instance the
evidence shows that more than 100,000,000 of cigars
are made in San Francisco. To say nothing of cigars
imported from abroad or from other States, which may
cost as much more, these 100,000,000 would bring in the
market an average of $20 a thousand, perhaps $30, or
say from two to three millions of dollars. The wages of
the men employed in making them would all, or very
nearly all, be expended on the spot. This would amount
to say one million dollars annually, and beside this con¬
siderable svtms realized as profits by the importers of the
raw material would also remain and add so much to the
CALTFOJRNTA TOBACCO.
109
wealth of the community, or rather diminish by so much
the drain of money out of the community.
To what extent cigars would be manufactured in Cal¬
ifornia if there were no Chinese engaged in the business,
and no competition on their part in the general market
for labor, cannot be determined, The evidence is that
the industry was begun with their assistance, and so far
as we may judge it would not have taken any great pro¬
portions to this day in their absence. If one-third of all
the cigars consumed in the State are imported, as it is,
perhaps nine-tenths would have been if the Chinese fac¬
tor had not been brought into play.
Mr. Beals, in the testimony which I have quoted,
alludes to Californian grown tobacco. There is every
reason to believe that the plant will find a congenial soil
and climate among the numerous soils and climates with
which the State is favored. The industry of growing
tobacco, with the complementary industry of manufactur¬
ing it into forms demanded by the tastes of those who
use it, may very well yield such results to the State as
will make her citizens of two or three generations hence
look back with surprise and astonishment at the hostility
displayed in our time against the Chinese promoters of
the interests involved.
The fullest information in regard to the participation
of the Chinese in San Francisco in the different indus¬
tries of the needle, is contained in Mr. Brooks' tables.^
From them I extract the following statement ;—
Employment. Men. Girls. Chinese.
Cloak-making ... lOO
Dress-making, about I.ooo
Embroidering .... 28
Glove-making 13 88 ...
Lace-making.. 32 20
^ Br. Br., Ap. D.
110
INDUSTRIES OF THE NEEDLE,
Men. Girls. Chinese.
Milliners, about
Neckties
Sail-making.. .
Shirt-making. .
Clothing, mens'
ISO
30 246 239
558 884 620
350
28
Mr. Brooks states, further, in notes appended to his
enumeration of the firms and associations engaged in
making men's clothing and shirts, that a great many
"other persons" "work by the piece outside," but he
does not indicate whether among such persons Ameri¬
cans or Chinese are more numerous.
The foregoing table as it stands, indicates that 751
men, 2,728 girls, and 907 Chinamen find employment in
the several industries named. Mr. Gibson's estimate for
the same year was, 1,230 Chinese " sewing on machines,"
and 168 upon "clothing for Chinese."^ Mr. Badlam
stated in evidence before the commission that according
to official information, 3,250 Chinamen were engaged in
making "clothing, overalls, undershirts, etc."^
Mr. Levin Marshall, a journeyman tailor, testified before
the commission, that there were in San Francisco, as he
believed, about 100 American tailors, and 1,000 Chinese.^
Mr. Erric Westine, another witness, set down the
number of American tailors at between 300 and 400, but
offered no computation as to the Chinese.^
It seems probable then, that the number of Chinese so
employed does not equal the number of white persons,
men and girls ; but it may be said with certainty, that
Chinese competition in the making of men's clothes
and shirts, has been active, and must have tended to
break down the wages of the whites in those special
directions, and to an extent in all needle-work.
2
^ Ch. in Am., p. 59
Rep. Ch. Im., p. 252.
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 352.
'^Rép. Ch. Im., p. 354,
RELATIVE TVA GES.
Ill
Mr. Marshall stated the result of this competition as
follows ;—
" I used to get $9 a dozen for boys' pants, and now I
"make them for $5.50 ; for men's, I used to get $15, and
" now I get $6.50 to $7.50." The accuracy of his evidence
becomes doubtful, however, in view of his further state¬
ment ;—" The whites make men's pants for $9, when
"they used to get $15 for them. You cannot go idle
" altogether, and must do something."
The same witness, when asked the difference between
the prices of clothing in California and in the Eastern
States, answered that they were making clothes in Cali¬
fornia, with Chinese labor, cheaper than in the East,
but acknowledged that clothing was imported from the
East.
Mr. Westine testified that journeymen tailors worked
by the piece, and that their earnings averaged $15 to
$20 a week, "when they have work." In response to a
question as to the relative rates paid in San Francisco
and New York, he said ;—"The prices in New York are
" reduced about the same as here,"
It is very evident, however, that the competition of
Chinese has not been able to break down the cost of
making men's clothing to the level of the cost in the East.
It is only a few years since all such clothing was imported
into the State. In 1875, according to Mr. Morgan-
thau's evidence ;—^ " From eight to ten millions of dollars
"worth of clothing y^as imported. We send our wool
"from here to the East. Our factories use up from
"2,000,000 to 2,500,000 pounds of wool out of a gross
"produce of from 50,000,000 to 60,000,000 pounds. We
" pay the expense of shipping the rest of that wool to
"the East by railroad. The goods are made up there
"and come back-here. We have taken all the trouble to
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 803,
112
ECONOMICAL CONSIDERATIONS.
" make people understand that we can make as good an
article here as there is anywhere in the world. The
" best proof of that is that we supply the government of
'The United States with our goods here. That is the
" only resource that we have got. There are two woolen
" mills that turn out not less than $3,000,000, or could do
" so very easily, but the goods are all imported. I under-
" stand that there were three boys' clothing manufactories
" started here, and they had to abandon them ; they
" could not get hands ; it was an utter impossibility."
Certainly, when one considers the condition of this
special branch of the industries in question, the making
of men's clothes, the matter for surprise is that the com¬
petition of the Chinese should be regarded as otherwise
than beneficial. If Californians were asked the simple
question;—Has it not been fortunate in a variety of ways,
that of late years you have been able to order your cloth¬
ing made on the spot, fortunate for you individually as se¬
curing your convenience and your pecuniary interest ; for¬
tunate for the State as working up materials produced
and manufactured in the State, and as giving employ¬
ment to your people —there could be, as I think, but one
answer retnrned. Yet it appears to be entirely over¬
looked that the condition of the given industry, re¬
garded by itself, and regarded as a part of the general
industries of California, has been brought about in a
great measure by the Chinese. The one sole proposi¬
tion which has appeared to engross the attention of work¬
ing people and of public men, is the declaration that
the competition of Chinese keeps white men out of the
avocation. That it has this effect is not to be denied
altogether, but the force of the proposition is vastly weak¬
ened when we remember that the industry would not
have existed in its present large measure, if it had not
been for the patient working of the Chinese.
COMPETITION WITH WOMEN ' lia
The same general tenor of remark may be followed in
speaking of the shirt-making interest. It would seem
that 30 men, 246 women, and 239 Chinese are employed in
this industry, besides those who work in their own houses.
We may judge that many men, women and Chinese do
work at home. Can there be any doubt that the Chinese
participate in the industry only because the pay of wo¬
men in California, in all the branches which they fill, is
high. The woman as a domestic servant, commands
from $20 to $30 a month. This, including board and
lodging, means that she receives more than a dollar a
day for her services. Is it astonishing then that some
few Chinese, adepts as they are with the needle, should
share the business with women? Is it not almost won¬
derful that the industry existed at all while wages were
so high, and is it not certain that if women can do more
than half the work of shirt-making in San Francisco,
now, they will do it all when wages fall to the rates which
prevail in the Eastern States ?
A certain adaptability of the Chinese for needle-work
is indicated by the fact that the only professional em¬
broiderers in San Francisco are Chinese, and that out of
52 persons engaged in making lace, 29 are Chinese.
Nevertheless the tables of Mr. Brooks show that the
cloak-makers, the dress-makers, the glove-makers, and
the milliners are all women, and that the number of
women so employed is about double that of the number
of Chinese engaged in needle-work of all kinds.
In this connection I may quote the language of a wit¬
ness before the Congressional commission, Mrs. Anna F.
Smith, a widow, and dependent upon her own hands for
a livelihood ;—^
" Q. Have the Chinese invaded the domain of female
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 899.
H
114
CHINESE LAUNDERERS,
" labor in this city ? A. I suppose they have in a gen-
" eral sense. ,
" Q. What effect has that had upon upon the worlcing
" women ? A. It has reduced the prices of their labor
^ or the opportunity for them to get labor.
"Q. Has it thrown many of them out of employ-
" ment ^ A. Not to my certain knowledge.
" Q. But to your general knowledge ? A. I cannot
" say to my general knowledge, except as I read in the
"newspapers, and hear persons speaking who are op-
" posed to the Chinese."
The number of Chinese laundry-men in San Francisco,
in 1876 was estimated by Mr. Badlam at 1,200.^ Mr.
Rogers said ;—^ " There are about 300 laundries scat-
"tered throughout the city, averaging five men each.
" Some of these establishments employ double sets of
"hands and run day and night. It may be safely said
"that there are 1,500 men employed, exclusively Chinese,
" in Chinese wash houses in this city, while as many more
" are employed at the larger establishments of the same
"nature, which are carried on by white management.
"Not less than 3,000 men are employed in this business
"alone." Mr. Brooks' tables indicate that there were
about 50 laundries which employed 500 women and 300
Chinese, and about 1,400 more Chinese were employed
in Chinese-owned laundries.^ Mr. Gibson's estimate of
of the whole number of Chinese washer-men was 3,500.'^
I shall not extend remarks in this connection further
than to point out that, as the washing of clothes is not a
'productive industry, and its cost is one of the charges of
living, it is an object that it should occasion as little
drain upon the pecuniary resources of the community as
possible. So far as the Chinese, all things considered,
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 251. ^ Br. Br., p. 107.
Rep. Ch. Im.,p. 1168. ^ Ch, in Am., p. 59,
ADVANTAGES TO WORKING CLASSES. 115
work more cheaply than others, the saving to the com¬
munity is direct and positive.
It would seem further that a large measure of the ad¬
vantage derived in this way has inured to the classes
who have most occasion to live economically. Mr. Wil¬
liam F, Babcock testified before the commission that the
Chinese "do the washing for .all the mechanics;"^ and
again ;—" I think this very employment of the Chinese
"in laundry-work causes mechanics to change their
" clothing much oftener than they did when they paid a
"high price for their washing. Take the tops of these
"houses where the Chinese laundries are, and look at
" the lines of ragged clothes, old red shirts, pantaloons,
" and every ordinary, common thing, garments that I do
" not believe were washed half as much before, and that
"were not even fit for a woman to wash.
" Q. Were there any women engaged in the business
" here before the Chinese} A. That I do not know
" anything about. Domestics do that work now, but to
"what extent I do not know. I have a laundry-woman
" in my house.
"Q. You do not understand me. I want to know
" whether there were any women engaged in the business
"of keeping wash-houses on the streets and seeking
" clothes to wash, the work that the Chinese are doing
"now ? A. Not of any consequence. There were some
" few French laundries.
" Q. Is not the great part of the support of these
" Chinese wash-houses from the poorer classes of people,
" who are thus relieved from doing their own washing ^
"A. I think so.
" Q. Is not the washing of the more wealthy classes
" generally done in their houses, by white servants } A. 1
" think so.''
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 713, 817.
116
CHINESE TIN SMITHS,
Evidence to the same effect was given also by Judge
Campbell/
The number of Chinese employed in glass-works, glue-
works, and in tanneries, in San Francisco, is so small as
to suggest the idea that their duties are those of super¬
numerary laborers rather than skilled artisans. In
powder-mills a greater number are engaged. Mr. Brooks
shows that two companies employ, together, 28 whites
and 80 Chinese. Mr. Lessler states, in this connection,
that the secretary of one of these associations informed
him that they employed the Chinese for minor purposes,
" in coopering, and in filling cartridges, as the fumes are
" very dangerous to the health, killing any ordinary white
" man within two years."
The number of tinsmiths in San Francisco was esti¬
mated, by Mr. Brooks, at 300 whites and 70 Chinese.
I find no comment upon their participation in this in¬
dustry in the evidence taken before the Congressional
committee. It would seem likely that their work is done
for their own people, from whom the demand for tin
vessels to be used in the mines, for household purposes,
&c., would be considerable.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 735.
PART IL—CHAPTER VIIL
THE MATERIAL RESULTS OF CHINESE LABOR IN
CALIFORNIA. DOMESTIC SERVANTS.
The Chinese are good servants. Testimony of Mrs. Swift, Judge Hey-
denfeldt, Mrs. Avery, Mrs. Smith, Judge Lake. Personal testimony
of author. Difficulty of procuring servants in California. Testimony
of Judge Hastings. His views challenged. The scarcity of servants
due to lack of supply and not to their unsatisfactory treatment by em¬
ployers. Wrong ideas about the Chinese taught by some persons of
intelligence and high position. Judge Hastings' ethnological disqui¬
sition. His views about the six companies. Mr. McLennan's testi¬
mony. High praise of Chinese as servants. White girls will not go
into the country. Testimony of Mr. Brier, Col. Hollister, and Mr.
Morganthau. No surplus of working women in California. Number
of Chinese servants in city and State. Housekeepers would deplore
the removal of the Chinese.
Whether the Chinese make good servants is a
question which has been variously answered in Cali¬
fornia. My own observations and experience in China
and in California would lead me to respond without hes¬
itation in an affirmative sense. As I desire, however, to
speak upon this part of my subject, as upon all others, with
all the authority possible, I shall place the tenor of the
evidence taken by the Congressional committee, and
other evidence, briefly before my readers and leave them
to decide whether my opinion is well grounded.
In the index of the Congressional report will be found,
at page 1277, the entry, "Chinese as domestic servants."
The substance of the testimony referred to under this
head, both that for and against Chinese servants, is given
in the following extracts.
The first witness indicated w^ Mrs. Sophronia Swift,
118
CHINESE SEE FANTS,
who was called, as I judge, by the counsel against the
Chinese. She testified as follows ;—^
"Q. Do our people generally employ Chinese as
" domestic servants ? A. Among my acquaintances
" almost all have Chinese servants.
" Q. Is your acquaintance pretty extensive ? A. I
" have a large circle of acquaintances, and I have had a
^'pretty good opportunity to learn where there were
" Chinese servants. I have been for two years a solicitor
" for insurance. I have gone to a great many private
" families, and almost always the answer to the bell was
" by a Chinese servant.
" Q. What is the price of wages here of a white do-
" mestic servant-girl ? A. I have never asked for a sit-
" nation myself, but I have given them from $15 to $25.
" Q. A good cook, how much ? A. They would
" range from $30 in a private family, to $40 where they
*^have considerable work.
Q. What does the Chinaman work for as a domestic
"servant.^ A. They work from $i up to $50 and
" $60. In many families they are considered finer cooks.
" Q. They are paid, then, in accordance with their
" capacity as servants ? A. They are considered by
" some people, better cooks because they attend to just
^pne branch. I The Chinese when they work, work at one
industry. They are not like our working girls. If a
" Chinaman goes into a family to cook, he says, ^ Me no
" ^ do chamber work, me do cooking.' If a woman goes
" into a house she has got to do sewing, all the house-
" work, take care of the little boys and girls, and do the
"washing and ironing. Chinamen do one branch.
" They do the cleaning, or else they do the housework.
" I am speaking of families who keep more than one
" Chinarnan in the house,
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 244.
MRS. SWIFT'S TESTIMONY.
119
" Q. They are used as servants, from the cellar to the
"garret, as cooks and chambermaids and nurses ? A. I
" suppose they are.
" Q. Do they not make pretty good house servants ?
" A. They do not.
" Q. Are they not faithful ? A. They are not.
" Q. Do they retain their places long ? A. Not gen-
"erally, some of them. Where they have plenty of
"chances to steal, and get high wages, and get the
" confidence of people, they are like a great many other
" people, they- want to keep their places.
" Q. Have you employed Chinese ? A. I have.
" Q. Do you speak from experience ? A. I speak
" from experience in my own house, and in my neigh-
" bors' houses, and from the reports in the newspapers,
"and my associations with business men. I have been
" eight years a business woman, and I have heard men
"whom I can believe tell their experience of Chinese
" servants and of white women."
The next evidence referred to in the index is that of
Judge Heydenfeldt. His testimony was as follows ;—^
" Q. Is not their character, as domestic servants, gen-
" erally praised by every one of your acqaintances ?
"A. Yes; I have heard nothing to their disadvantage
" upon that score, nor, indeed, upon any other in regard
" to their labor. As far as concerns their industry, and
" their frugality, and general intelligence, and their clean-
"liness, I think those who have been in the habit of
"employing them, and know something about them,
"place them above the corresponding class of other
" people."
The next evidence is that of Judge Campbell ;—
" Q. Do you treat them as house servants any differ-
" ent from any, others ? A. Precisely the same.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 505.
®Rep. Ch. Im., p. 733,
Í20
JUDGE CAMPEELES TESTIMONY.
" Q. How is it in regard to the trust and confidence
" that you repose in them ? A. I have always reposed
" the same confidence in them that I have in any others.
" I have one white man, a white woman, and a Chinese
" boy generally. That has been my average for the last
" nine years. I treat them all alike.
" Q. Comparing servants with servants, how do they
" compare ? A. I prefer the Chinese to any others.
" Q. In what respect are they preferable 1 A. They
" are more quiet, they are more systematic, they are very
" cleanly, and very intelligent ; and when there was a
"press of matter, such as another servant leaving, or
" sickness in the house, or anything of that kind, when
" extra work was required to be done, I have found them
" very ready to take their share of that extra work.
"Q. What has been your experience with them in
" respect to their honesty} A. So far as my personal
" observation goes, I have never had occasion to distrust
" any of those who have been in my employ. They have
"had free access to pretty much everything.
" Q. What is your experience in regard to their faith-
" fulness to work when you are absent, or when they are
" not watched, and as to the necessity of watching them
" A. I have already given you the extent of my experi-
" ence, but from that little experience I should judge that
they were very faithful."
The next evidence is that of Mr. Francis Avery, who
had been a resident of California for several years, and
had been brought into contact with the Chinese in vari¬
ous ways. His testimony regarding their character as
servants was as follows ;—^
"Q. Have you employed them in your family.^*
"A. Yes, sir.
" Q. How have you found them as house servants}
"A. All that could be desired.
* Rep. Ch. Im., p. 844.
MR, AVERY'S TESTIMONY,
121
''Q. Trustworthy and competent ? A. Entirely trust-
" worthy and competent.
" Q. And honest ? A. And honest. I had one
" servant temporarily in my employ when I had some
" friends visiting me, who was a little dishonest, but he
" was the only exception.
" Q. Have you trusted them, in the absence of your
" family, with the care of your house and valuables} A,
"Yes, sir; I have left everything in the house in their
" charge, open.
" Q. Are they cleanly in their personsA. Re-
"markably so.
" Q. Do they ever talk impudently to your family}
"A. I never knew but one to do that, and he was a
" cook. My experience with cooks is that if they are
" good they are usually impudent.
" Q. Do they claim privileges at night and by day
"through the week A. Not greater than those
" claimed by other servants.
"Q. You live in the city A. Yes, sir.
" Q. How extensively are Chinese employed in the
" capacity of domestic servants in the city} A. That I
" cannot answer, only to say to a very large extent.
" Q. Why are they employed} A. Because they
" make better servants.
" Q. Do you think it is on account of their quality as
" servants that they are given employment} A. Y es,
" sir ; I am sure of that because, as far as I am able to
" find out, the wages paid to them are the same as the
" wages paid by persons employing white servants.
Q. Is there difficulty in getting white female ser-
" vants in this city } A. There is difficulty, I under-
" stand, in getting good ones ; but there is that same dif-
" ficulty in the East. There is an abundance of white
" servants and plenty of them get employment.
122
WHITE SERVANTS SCARCE,
" Q. I understand that the Chinese are emplobed ye-
"cause of their character as servants? A. Yes, sir;
fin fact, in many cases, I may say, I have heard of people
'■'who employed them for no other reason, people who did
"not like the Chinese, and were prejudiced against them.
" Q. What is your impression as to the trust reposed
" in them by people ? Do they leave their houses with
"the Chinese in charge during their absences, with as
"much freedom as they leave their homes with other
" servants in charge ? A. Yes, sir.
" Q. Is there or is there not as much trust reposed
" in their integrity as in white servants ? A. I think
"there is.
"Q. Do you think that they are as free from the
" charge of petty stealing as white servants? A. Yes,
"sir; my experience in that respect shows them to be
"fully as trustworthy as the generality of white serv-
" ants."
Mrs. Anna F. Smith testified ;—^
"Q. Have you had any experience with Chinese
" servants in this city or coast ? A. I have not had any
" special experience with them ; that is, I have not em-
" ployed Chinamen-since I have been in California.
" Q. When did you employ them ? A. I lived in
" Colorado two years, in business for myself, and then I
" employed a number of Chinamen at different times.
" Q. How did you find them as servants in Colorado ?
" A. I found them honest, truthful, fair and straightfor-
" ward in their dealings with me on all occasions.
" Q. Have you had any experience here, where you
"have lived or come in contact with them, as servants ?
" A. I have seen them in the houses of my friends as
" servants and I have seen them in houses where I have
" been-working and living.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 897.
THEIR CHARACTER AS SERVANTS,
123
" Q. Is there any complaint in reference to them as
" servants, or what is. their reputation as domestic serv-
" ants ? A. Their reputation varies. Chinamen as
" servants vary as much as' whites, that is relatively to
" each other. Chinamen are good servants and there are
" poor servants among Chinamen ; but I think my expe-
" rience is that they compare favorably with whites. As
" far as regards some white persons whom I have hired I
" should prefer them. I always prefer them, and I have
"hired both.
"Q. Are there many Chinese servants in Colorado.'^
"A. No, sir; not any great numbers.
" Q. What employments are they in, there, generally
"A. A few are employed as house servants, but the
" greater number are carrying on laundries for themselves.
" Q. What do they pay them, there, as house serv-
" ants ? A. Their prices there are the same as the whites
" so far as I know. I paid them the same wages that I
" paid to white persons."
The next and the last witness cited in the index as
speaking in regard to this subject was Judge Delos Lake,
one of the most prominent lawyers of San Francisco.
His evidence was as follows ;—^
"Q. Are there many Chinese servants in this city.^
"A. Yes, I think so, but not so many as there werefor-
" merly. I have had them in my house. I do not re-
" member exactly what the vote of my household on the
" subject is, but I rather think against them, because
"Q. You left an answer incomplete. A. I think
" they were mostly young boys, seventeen, eighteen, nine-
" teen or twenty years old ; and were used as a kind of
" assistant to the cook, &c. I think their labor was aban-
" doned because their words were not very good. They
" make an engagement and leave very unceremoniously.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1013.
124
TENOR OF THE TESTIMONY.
" It was for that reason, more than for anything else, I
" think, that their labor was finally abandoned. So far as
^^my observation goes they are not a truthful people.
"You cannot rely upon their words at all.''
The evidence thus adduced is decidedly favorable, in
the main, to the Chinese as servants. It is by no means
all that is contained in the testimony given before the
Congressional commission, but I believe that it repre¬
sents fairly the tenor of the whole. As I said in open¬
ing this chapter the selection of evidence is that of the
person who compiled the index of the book which con¬
tains the report of the committee and the testimony given
before it. I have accurately reproduced what the given
witnesses said, and it seems unnecessary to go further.
As a matter of course all servants are not good servants,
and as a matter of course the best of them could not
please some employers. I do not believe that Asiatic
servants are likely to be as good as those of European or
American origin, for the reason that their education is
not such as to enable them to appreciate perfectly the
wants, wishes, or peculiarities of their employers. I should
be sorry to think that the moral education of Europeans
or Americans is no better than that of Asiatics, or that
Europeans and Americans do not exhibit the results of
better training in whatever spheres of life they may be
placed. That the Chinese do very well as servants, nev¬
ertheless is not to be doubted. I can speak personally
of the devoted attention of a Chinese boy when I was
suffering from a long and tedious sickness which brought
me, while away from home and away from all persons of
my family, to the verge of the grave. More anxious and
unremitting service no person could have rendered.
During the years which have passed since, the same serv¬
ant has-been my constant attendant and trusted with
everything which is ever trusted to one in his position.
CHINESE FITNESS FOR DOMESTIC SERVICE. 125
My own experience is not different as I believe from that
of many other persons who have lived long in China.
And indeed how could it be otherwise. Are not these
people endowed in all respects with the same faculties
and affections as ourselves.? Do they not exhibit among
themselves all the domestic virtues.? Are they not fru¬
gal, industrious, orderly and painstaking.? Why then,
when carefully taught, as they must be if they are to un¬
derstand our wants and how to satisfy them; when well
paid and considerately treated, should they not become
useful servants.? It appears to me, in point of fact, that
it would be impossible to find any race or class of people
on the whole face of the earth, not of our own stock, so
eminently well qualified by temperament and habits of
life to take the place of servants in American homes.
The great boon which the Chinese have been to house¬
keepers in California, can only be appreciated when a
further statement is made of the difficulties which have
been met there in procuring servants other than Chinese.
It is to be remembered that the State is not only young,
but that it is distant from the sources of supply. Of the
thousands of immigrants from Europe who land upon
our shores in each year, but few in any department of
life reach that most distant part of our territory, and
fewer in proportion of this class than of any other. They
are women as a rule and they cannot well undertake the
long journey by sea or by land. The class is not one
which is so well-to-do that its members may choose such a
destination. It is not to be doubted that it has been
more difficult to procure white servants in California than
in the newly settled regions of the northwest, to which
access is more easy, although the wages paid there have
been much lower.
In order to elucidate this point more perfectly, I quote
again from the testimony given before the Congressional
126
SCARCITY OF WOMEN.
committee. In doing so I shall take the evidence which
is classed in the index under the following heads :
" Scarcity of Servant-girls " Experience with Servant-
"girls/' and "White Girls as Servants/' and quote it in
full, or sufficiently so to correctly indicate its tenor.
The first testimony indexed is that of Judge Hastings,
a well known citizen of San Francisco, and an old Cali-
fornian.^ It is as follows ;—
" Q. It has been stated here that it is impossible to
"get white labor for house purposes in this country, and
"that those places have been filled by Chinamen. Have
"you kept house A. I have kept several houses in
" the last twenty-five years. I have now three or four
" ranch houses.
" Q. Can you get white household servants } A. No,
" sir. The reason has been stated by the reverend gentle-
"man, (Mr. Brier), who testified a while ago, and the
"reason is a very good one, Catholic servants do not
" desire to go to the country. The reverend gentleman
"spoke of Catholics alone, but then there are a great
" many other girls in this country, thousands and thous-
" ands of them, who would go to the country, and would
" become servant girls if it was made as honorable as in
" other countries. I know that servant girls in the Northern
" States are treated comparatively with a great deal of
" respect ; they are treated as members of the family, and
" treated kindly. Girls in Iowa will stay and work for
" eight and twelve dollars a month in preference to com-
" ing to California to be treated as Chinamen. They will
" not stand these things here. These are American girls
" I speak of. I do not know if that is the reason why all
" our girls do not take to employment, for instance in
"washing or in cooking, but I think it is. I think if we
" had no Chinamen, and if we would make washing and
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 595»
JUDGE HASTINGS' TESTIMONY,
127
cooking the honorable business that it ought to be
" made, as honorable as any other business in the world,
*^our girls would take to that kind of employment in
" preference to wandering over our streets and falling into
"vicious life."
It occurs to me in reading this extract that the witness
has allowed his theory to carry him too far. There is no
reason, as I think, to believe that all the families in the
country towns of California, in the mining districts and
on farms would fail to treat their much needed servants
with reasonable consideration. I feel sure that many do
treat their Chinese servants quite as well as persons in
that grade of life generally are treated. If the latter are
indeed dealt with as an inferior race by many persons in
California, the fault is one for which men of the class of
Judge Hastings are in a large degree responsible, for they
have encouraged the disposition to deride and denounce
the Chinaman, and have taugh unthinking people, and
the rising generation to look down upon them as a
degraded and degrading element of the population. The
difficulty of procuring servants to go into the country
is one, I take it, which exists everywhere in our land,
but certainly in a greater degree in more remote districts,
and in a greater degree in California than anywhere east
of the Rocky Mountains for the reason that servant-girls
are fewer, and also because they are, as I think, rather
more exacting in California than elsewhere, sharing in this
respect the habit of all persons of the white laboring
class in the State.
In saying that men of Judge Hastings' class have
taught wrong ideas about the Chinese, I do not speak
unadvisidly. I shall not stop here to discuss this prop¬
osition at large, but I think it well to quote some
portion of the language which this gentleman used before
the committee, in proof at least of his attitude ;—^
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 586.
128
AN- ETHNOLOGICAL DISQUISITION
" My opinion is, and I speak from the highest authority,
that the Chinese are almost another species of the genus
homo, I do not think that they are another species,
but they are a very wide variety. They vary from the
" Aryan, or European race ; their divergence is very wide.
" I think they vary so much that the offspring of the
"Chinaman, united with the American race would be
"unfertile, or'would be imperfectly fertile. I speak from
" the highest authority. It has been established in
"modern times. The formula among all modern phil-
" osophers is, that where in organic life what is called a
" morphological species of the same class unites with a
" morphological species of the same class, which species
"vary very greatly, the offspring is, as laid down, unfer-
"tile, and if not unfertile, is very imperfectly fertile.
"That is the formula. That is agreed now to be the
"truth by all ethnological philosophers of the present
"age. I do not say that the Chinaman is of another
"species, but he is a variety that, for a good many
"reasons, diverges from the American citizen so widely
" that the offspring of these two varieties, as I have said
" before, would be, I have no hesitation in saying, imper-
" fectly fertile if not mules."
Having thus declared that essential differences existed
between members of the human family, created by one
God, and nourished originally in adjacent districts of the
Asiatic continent, the learned judge proceeds to lay
down a further proposition which the progress of our
inquiry will enable us to pronounce equally unfounded.
I refer to his declaration that the Chinese in the United
States are peons. His language is as follows ;—" Chinese
" labor is a servile caste. The Chinaman is in a state of
" peonage. They are in a state of peonage ; they are
"not freemen."
When pressed to define what he meant by peonage,
JUDGE HASTINGS ON CHINESE PEONAGE.
129
the witness said further ;—" They have to pay, first, the
" commissions due to the persons who engage them, and
"then to the companies who take care of them. He
"belongs to the great companies until he does that.
"They order him to go here and there; thay see he is
"not starved; they see that he is fed, and that he is
" employed. It is a very elegant organization ; it is
" really beautiful, and hence it is you never hear of these
" people being beggars."
Mr. Donald McLellan testified ;—^
I will say that since the agitation of this Chinese
"question here within the last six months, it has been a
"very difficult matter for any one to hire white help,
"more so than ever before. What the actual cause or
" reason of it is, I do not know ; but my own impression
" is that if it were not for the Chinese boys, as they are
" called, the Chinese servants we have in our houses, in-
" stead of paying an Irish woman, a good cook, etc., $2 5
" and $30, we would have to pay what I did when we
"first came here, from $40 to $50 a month. I speak
" now of my own knowledge. A good Chinese servant
" can do twice the work of any white servant woman you
"can have here. He will do house work better and do a
" great deal more of it. So far as my observations go,
" Chinese servants here are not high servants. They do
" not work by the hour, eight hours a day, but they work
" at all times and are willing. That is my experience.
" I have a Chinaman in mind now, who was employed
" two years in my daughter's family, and he did the work
" of two servants,
" Q, Do you know whether any American born girls
" are acting in the capacity of house servants ? A. I
" do not think that an American born girl would work
" out in California- for any wages,
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 621. I
130
WHITE SERVANTS SCARCE.
" Q. Do you see a good many Chinese boys doing all
"the work of a family ? A. Yes, sir. I hear our friend
" Pixley employs them.
" Q. Do you think good white girls, who will do the
"whole work of a family are to be found ? A. No, it
" is impossible to get them. American born girls, be
" they of Irish parentage or otherwise, as a general thing
"will not go out to service. Two weeks ago I was in
" Crosett's establishment on Clay street, w^aiting to em-
" ploy a servant, and while sitting there two persons came
"in and wished servant girls to go into the country.
" Crosett replied ;—^ There is no use to say anything to
" ' any of them'—there were thirty or forty in the room—
" * you cannot hire a white girl to go into the country.'
" Q. What do you mean by the country ? A. I
" mean the interior.
" Q. Do you mean to say there are not a great many
" good girls in the interior ? A. I only tell you the
"reply Crosett made to those two gentlemen. He said ;
" —^ It is no use ; you cannot hire a servant girl to go
" ^ into the country and work.'
" Q. Have you traveled about the State ? A. I have.
" Q. Did you ever see a white servant girl in any iso-
" lated farm-house away from town ? A. I never have.
" Q. By the interior you mean away from villages
" where there are churches ? A. This party wanted ser-
" vants to go to Chico, which is quite a large town ; but they
" would not go there. Of course they will go to Sacra-
"mento and Stockton, and some of the interior cities,
" but outside of any large place you cannot induce them
" to go ; their faces are set against it. That is an admit-
" ted fact, I believe.
'•Q. It there were not Chinese in California is it not
"fair to-suppose that we would be able to get white ser-
"vants here A. Itcosts a good deal of money for
WILL NOT GO INTO THE COUNTRY,
131
" that class of people to come here, and unless money is
" sent to them, or loaned to them, they will not come.
" It is a great distance from their homes. Undoubtedly
" there are a great many Germans, Irish and other nation-
" alities who come to New York. Every ship that comes
" brings them, and they bring them across the Atlantic
*^for $io. To come to California costs $ioo.
" Q. Do you not think one of the causes why Amer-
" ican and white girls will not take employment is be-
" cause of the presence of the Chinese here A. No,
" sir ; I think American or white girls are above the bus-
ness of going out. They prefer to be educated. They
all want to be ladies ; they want to be considered as
such."
The Rev. Mr. Brier testified ;—
" Q. Do you know whether white girls can be obtained
" to fill the places of house servants in the country} A.
I think they cannot possibly be obtained. The Catho-
" lie girls do not like to go to the country because they
" have not got their churches, and they will not stay. It
" used to be, before we had any Chinese servants in the
" place, almost impossible to get girls or any servants to
" go to the country. We had to depend upon Indians
^^and such classes of people.
" Q. Do you know whether or not it is difficult to
" obtain white girls to do all the work of small families }
"A. It is very difficult in the country.
" Q. In the city it is difficult} A. I do not know
" about the city.
Q. Who are house servants generally ? A. They
" are generally Chinese, in the country.
" Q. In the city } A, I do not know.
" Q. In the ordinary capacity of maid-of-all-work
" have you ever seen an American born woman ? A. I
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 572.
132
CHINESE ONLY IN THE COUNTRY.
"never knew but one in California, and that was in my
" own neighborhood, and she was rather living there as a
" home, but received wages."
" Colonel Hollister testified ;—^
" Q. Are the Chinese employed as house servants
" generally in the country 1 A. There is nothing else
" we can employ. I have been in Santa Barbara seven
" years and I have sent as many as ten times to San
" Francisco for women. They come and stay about two
"weeks. I pay their passage down—ten, fifteen, or
" twenty dollars ; there are various changes in the rate.
" We cannot do anything with them after they come.
" Q. What is the objection to going there A. It
" is in the country and they are not quite near enough to
" the cities and towns. It is an objection to the religious,
" I suppose, on account of their going to church, and I
" suppose they do not have as many sweethearts as they
"like. I cannot say what their motives are, I only
" know the fact that they will not stay.
" Q. As a matter of fact they are not willing to go
"into the country as house servants } A. No, sir ; there
"is no use talking about it ; they will not stay at all. It
" is Chinamen or nothing.
" Q. What would be the effect upon the country peo-
" pie if they were deprived of Chinamen as house serv-
" ants ? A. It would be very disastrous. I cannot tell
"how we would get along. I think the thing would re-
" suit in about this, that every farmer wonld cease hiring
"labor and the family would do just what it could do."
Mr. Morganthau testified ;—
" I think we must have four to five thousand Chinese
" employed in our private families. I have not any in
" the house, never had one, and would not have one my-
" self as a servant. If you should take them away from
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 773. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 811.
EXPERIENCES WITH WHITE SERVANTS. 133
" their employment in families I believe all our ladies
" would try and beg of them not to leave this country,
and they would say we cannnot get along without them.
When you come to this point I will give you my expe-
"rience. Since the 4th of July last"—the evidence was
given in November—" I have had about twenty girls in
"my house. I pay $35 a month to the cook and $25 to
" the girl up stairs. I have had not less than twenty-
" four if not more since that time. Out of these four or
" five had to be carried away. I had even to send for
" the police to get them out."
After reciting various experiences with white servants
indicative of their exacting demands for privileges and
their lack of steadiness, the witness proceeded ;—
" I want to prove that our labor has not been de-
" creased ; that we are scarce in girls to-day, and good
"girls. You can send for two thousand ladies, the best
" ladies here, and they would make the same statement
" to you. It shows that we are not overcrowded with
"good girls."
The next and last reference in the index to white girls
as servants in California, is to testimony of Mr. Avery.
As his evidence has been quoted in an earlier part of
this chapter, I do not need to repeat it here.
It will be seen from the evidence thus adduced thatf
I
Chinese servants in California are pronounced by compe¬
tent witnesses to be satisfactory in a marked degree, and
that the supply of women is declared, in a not less posi¬
tive way, to be inadequate to the demand. While this is
true, measurably, in reference to employment in the city
of San Fransisco, the evidence shows further that the very
greatest difficulty is met by persons living in country
villages, and throughout the interior generally, in pro¬
curing women asAK)Usehold servants, and that resort to
the Chinese is not a matter of choice but of necessity.
134
CHINESE INDISPENSABLE.
It is idle to put forward declarations that there is a sur¬
plus of women, as workers, in California. So long as
those who are not fitted for special occupations are able,
in the city and in the country, to obtain places in which
their food and lodging is provided for them and they are
paid from $20 to $40 a month as wages, there can be no
suffering among the members of the class who are willing
to work.
My own experience in one single instance is not with¬
out significance in this connection. Upon a recent visit
to California an excellent Irish maid who had been in my
family for many years, asked for her discharge in order
to visit her old home. This was given to her, and in
consideration of her long service a sum of money in ex¬
cess of her wages sufficient to pay her expenses to her
home. She had been much about the world, and was a
shrewd person well able to decide where her opportuni¬
ties for employment and her compensation would be most
satisfactory. Having made her visit and built up her
health, which had been shattered by residence in China,
this woman, notwithstanding the distance and the ex¬
pense, which must always be matters of importance to
one of her class, made her way directly back again to
California, taking with her a young female relative. The
two of them are now at work there and perfectly con¬
tented with their opportunities.
The number of Chinese house servants in San Fran¬
cisco in 1876 was estimated by Mr. Badlam at from 5,000
to 6,000;^ by Mr. Rogers at 5,000,^ and by Mr. Gibson
at 4,500.^ Assuming that the correct number was about
5,000, about one in five of all the Chinese in the city were
engaged as domestic servants. At the same rate about
15,000 would have been at service in the city and State,
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 253. ^ Ch. in Am., p. 59.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1168.
NUMBER IN CALIFORNIA,
135
a number so inconsiderable that considering the aggre¬
gate of population in the State, and the declared absence
of servants, one can only reach the conclusion that the
work of housekeeping in California is declined whenever
possible, and that the families who do keep house are
obliged to rely upon their own labor to a greater degree
perhaps than anywhere else in the country.
In whatever way, then, we regard the subject, the assist¬
ance which has been given to the people of California
by the Chinese as servants is seen to have been of much
importance. The experiences of such Chinese may be
humble. What they have done does not strike the im¬
agination with so much force as their services in the
building of railroads, in mining, in agriculture and in
manufacturing. Yet it is in this direction, perhaps, that
they would be most missed if removed from the State.
We can readily agree with Mr. Morganthau's state¬
ment that, in prospect of such a catastrophe, the women
of California would declare that "they could not get
" along without them."
PART III.—CHAPTER I.
OBJECTIONS WHICH HAVE BEEN ADVANCED AGAINST
THE CHINESE. THAT THEIR LABOR IS SERVILE.
This objection, or charge, of fundamental importance. Statements of anti<
Chinese partisans. Distinction between a contract to labor, and a con¬
tract to repay money advanced, out of wages. How the Chinese were
employed by the Central Pacific railroad. Evidence of Mr. Crocker.
General employment of the Chinese. Evidence of Mr. Roberts, Judge
Heydenfeldt, Mr. Heynemann, Mr. Brier, Judge Campbell, Mr. East-
erby. Col. Plollister, Mr. Macondray, Mr. Peckham, and Mr. Shearer,
indicating that Chinese labor is free. Evidence of the presidents of the
six companies to same effect. How the Chinese come to California,
Statements of Mr. Gibson, Mr. Speer, Dr. Williams and Mr. Cleveland.
Opinion of the committee of 1862. Slaveiy in China. Mr. Speer's
and Dr. Eitel's views. Labor by a class. The tendency in Califor¬
nia to degrade labor by denouncing the Chinese.
I have placed the objection made to the presence of
the Chinese in California, that their labor is servile in
character, at the head of the first of the series of chap¬
ters in which I shall deal with the various objections
raised, because I regard it as the most important; and I
believe it to be the most important because, whatever ad¬
vantages California may have derived from the labor of
the Chinese, the people of that State and of the country
would be entirely justified in condemning the system of
labor if it were tainted by the essence of slavery. I trust
that I shall be able to show conclusively that it is not in
any sense a system of slave or servile labor, although it
is perfectly certain that Chinese women have been held
in Califotîiia under contracts, and that the system in
vogue, so far as they are concerned, is one which should
be condemned and corrected.
IS CHINESE LABOR SERVILE?
137
It will be useful in pursuing this branch of our inquiry
to state what has been put forward by the party opposed
to Chinese immigration.
'Mr. Pixley, the agent of the municipality of San Fran¬
cisco, in presenting to the Congressional commission the
views of the anti-Chinese party, used the following Ian-
guage '
"In reply to your third interrogatory; —^ Do they
" ^come here voluntarily, and by what means do they
" 'get here?'—we answer frankly, yes, they come here vol-
" untarily, so far as the males are concerned. They come
" here, many of them, under contracts of labor, but those
"contracts are voluntarily entered into, and they are,
"therefore, in that sense, free immigrants to our coast.
% % Very many of them undoubtedly come upon their
"own means. It requires but the little sum of forty dol-
" lars. Those who have not the means to come by them-
" selves, " after the first came and made money, they
"returned money to aid their friends and relatives, as all
" our European immigrants in the early times used to do.
"There are undoubtedly many instances where the Chi-
" nese six companies, or wealthy members of them, send
" to bring them here, in order that they may go upon their
"rolls and become laborers, out of which they make
" money as middle-men or agents. The Central Pacific
"railroad demanded ten thousand of these laborers, and
"the demand was greater than the market afforded.
" Through the six companies they sent their money to
" China and brought them here, and that is the way in
" which they come."
Mr. King, the agent of the anti-coolie clubs, said;—
" The majority of Chinese males probably came here vol-
" untarily, as Mr. Pixley suggests, but are bound by ser-
' Rep. Ch. Im., p. 15. ® Rep. Ch. Im., p. 32.
138
EXAGGERATED STATEMENTS.
"vile labor contracts for long terms of years, and while
" such contracts exist they are to all intents and purposes
"the absolute slaves of the contractors. For although
" these contracts are void by our law, yet the superstition
" and fear of the Chinese bondsman for his master is so
"great as to prevent him from breaking his contracts.
" That such fears are well grounded we shall show by ev-
"idence, and we shall establish, further, this fact, that
" death at the hands of a Chinese assassin has frequently
" been the fate of the Chinese slave who attempted to
" break his shackles and regain his freedom."
It will not surprise persons who are familiar with the
extreme language used in California in regard to the
Chinese to learn that not a particle of evidence was pre¬
sented to the commission which would in any way sustain
the declaration made at the close of the preceding
extract. But one witness pretended to speak upon the
point, a man, the looseness of whose statements can
be appreciated only upon perusal of his testimony, and
his declarations, as will be seen upon an examination of
of them, were founded upon pure hearsay.^ In point of
fact, I find no testimony, in all that taken before the
Congressional commission, touching the assassination of
any Chinaman by any other Chinaman, or by any body
of Chinamen, much less any testimony showing that
assassination has been used systematically to enforce the
observance of labor contracts.
Putting aside this assertion of the representative of the
anti-coolie clubs there remain other assertions by him
and by his colleague Mr. Pixley, which demand serious
attention. Is it true,
ist. That the Chinese come to America under contracts
to labor 1
^ 'I
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 94.
IVHAT IS MEANT BY SERVILE LABOR. 139
2d. That the Chinese six companies import contract-
laborers.
3d. That the Central Pacific Railroad Company sent
money to China and imported contract-laborers 1
It will be understood at once that a distinction is to be
drawn between a contract to labor, and a contract to re¬
pay money advanced, or due and owing in any way, out
of earnings. Under the former the individual might be
required to give his services for a month, or a year, or
two, or five years, to his creditor. He would not be at
liberty to choose his employment, he would be in a sense,
a man in bonds, and any considerable class of such labor
might be justly considered servile. The policy of our
government discourages such contracts, whether made at
home or abroad, although there are instances in which it
is permitted and sustained by law, as in the cases of ap¬
prentices bound to masters in order to learn a trade, and
of seamen. It is true, of course, that contracts to labor
are constantly made with us, but the law limits the terms
for which such contracts may run, and prescribes such
remedies when the contracting servant fails, as to reduce
the penalty to the measure of damages sustained by the
employer. There can be no imprisonment ; there can be
no specific performance decreed.
But our laws do not disfavor contracts to repay money
advanced, nor discourage in any way the sense of obli¬
gation which a debtor should entertain toward his creditor.
A note of hand executed in London, or Berlin, or Canton,
can be sued upon in the courts of New York or San
Francisco, precisely as if it had been executed in New
York or San Francisco. It may have passed from hand
to hand by assignment or endorsement but it remains
valid in all places and, in all hands, until finally ex¬
tinguished by payment of the debt or by the law of
limitations.
140 CHINESE IN CALIFORNIA ARE FREEMEN
Without entering now upon the question, whether
many of the Chinese who come to the United States do
or do not secure funds with which to pay their expenses,
from friends or relatives, from money-lenders or other¬
wise, which money they agree to repay out of their
earnings, I proceed to examine the evidence in order to
determine whether the declarations of Messrs. King and
Pixley may be sustained.
In doing this, it will be convenient to take the third
proposition, that the Central Pacific railroad imported
contract-laborers, first.
I have already quoted at considerable length from the
testimony given by Mr. Strobridge and Mr. Charles
Crocker in regard to the employment of Chinese on the
railroad in question. It will not have occurred to any
one who read the evidence so adduced that their story
indicated that the Chinese who were in their service were
any thing else than freemen. But if doubt can be pos¬
sible on this point, the emphatic language of Mr. Crocker
may be quoted to show with precision what his impression
of their condition was, and how the Central Pacific
railroad secured Chinese laborers ;— ^
" Q. Do you or do you not believe that Chinese im-
" migration to this country has the same tendency to
"degrade free white labor as that of Negro slavery in the
"South } A. No, sir ; because it is not servile labor.
"Q- It is not} A. It is not ; it is free labor; just
"as free as yours or mine. You cannot control a China-
"man unless you pay him for it. You cannot make a
" contract with him, or his friend, or supposed master, and
" get his labor unless you pay for it, and pay him for it.
" Q.Did you ever make contracts with the six com-
" panies, or any particular Chinaman, to import here a
" certain number of Chinamen to work upon your roads }
^ Rep. Ch. Ira., p. 674.
EVIDENCE OF MR, CROCNER,
141
"A. I never made any contract with the six companies.
" I made a contract with a merchant here.
" Q. With any one } A. We made a contract with
" Koopmanschap.
Q. For how many Chinamen } A. I told him all
"he would bring, up to 2,000. He brought 500.
" Q. When you employed Chinamen, did you employ
" the individual Chinaman, or did you employ some man
" to furnish you with a certain number of Chinamen
" A. On any road where we employed them for labor,
"we always procured them through the house of Sisson,
"Wallace & Co., here. * ^ That house furnished us
" with Chinamen. They gathered them, one at a time,
"two, three, four of them in a place, and got them
" together to make what is called a gang, and each gang
"is numbered.
"Q. Just like mules A. Well, sir, we cannot dis-
" tinguish Chinamen by names very well.
" Q. Like mules } A. Not like mules, but like men.
"We have treated them like men, and they have treated
" us like men, and they are men, good and true men. As
"I say, we employed them in that way. They come
"together in gangs of 25 and 30, as we need them to
"work on a job of work, and the account is kept with
"the gang. No. i, 2, 25, 30, 50, 100, just as it is. Each
"gang has a bookkeeper to keep the accounts among
"themselves. We have a foreman, and he keeps the
" account with the gang, and credits them. Every night,
" the Chinese book-keeper, who is one of the workmen,
" and works in the pit along with the rest, comes up with
" his book, and he says so many days for that gang, and
" they count it up, and they agree, and each puts it down.
" When the pay day comes, the gang is paid for all the
"labor of the-gang, and then they divide it among them-
" selves.
142
NO CONTRACT-LABOR ON RA/LR O ADS.
" Q. Does the same thing obtain with the white men ?
"A. No, sir; we get the individual names of the white
" men.
" Q. You do not pay the individual Chinaman when he
"works for you ? A. We pay the head-man of the gang.
"Q. Some head-man A. He is a laborer among
"them.
" Q. You do not pay them in the same manner that
" you pay white men ? A. In the same manner, except
" that we cannot keep the names of the Chinamen ; it is
"impossible. We should not know Ah Sin, Ah You,
" Kong Won, and ail such names. We cannot keep
" their names in the same way, because it is a difficult
"language. You understand the difficulty. It is not
" done in that way because they are slaves.
"Q. Is it not a kind of servile labor ? A. Not a bit.
" I give you my word of honor, under oath here, that I
"do not believe there is a Chinese slave in this State,
" except it may be a prostitute. I hear of that, but Ido
" not know anything about it."
It will be seen from this evidence that the Central
Pacific Railroad Company have not imported, through
the six companies, or through a wealthy Chinese, or
through any one else, any contract-laborers to work on
the railroad in question, or on any of the roads controlled
by them.
At this point we may conveniently inquire whether
the employers of Chinese laborers in California, generally,
endorse the view of Mr. Crocker, that they are freemen.
A considerable number of such employers gave testimony
before the Congressional commission. I quote from
their evidence as follows.
Mr. George D. Roberts testified ;—^
"Q. It'is alleged that these men come under a con-
^Rep. Ch. Ijn., p. 442
MR, ROBERTS' TESTIMONY,
143
" tract of service—voluntary contracts, but a species
"of slavery. The question I desire to ask is whether,
" because they do come like that, and that they work in
" droves, and contract through one man, does not account
" for the efficiency of their labor } A. I think that is a
" mistake, that there is nothing of that kind at all. I
" find my Chinamen entirely independent of the bosses.
"When the bosses do not pay them they come to me.
" If the boss does not pay them any wages they tie him
" up and call on us. That has been the case in several
" instances. I find that each man has his account and
"he holds the boss responsible."
Judge Heydenfeldt testified ;—^
" Q. In your intercourse with these people, have you
" had an opportunity of forming an opinion as to whether
" they are under the control of any masters, or are they
" independent men, acting for themselves ? A. I can
" only answer that by saying that it never seemed to me
" that they are controlled, I do not know whether they
" are or not.
" Q. Did those employed by you act for themselves }
"A. Yes.
"Q. Independently.^ A. Yes; in engaging them
"as servants for the various employments they seemed
"to act for themselves. In making contracts for the
" reclamation of tule lands, that is generally done through
" contractors. One Chinaman, a man generally of con-
"siderable intelligence, will make the contract, under-
"stand it, and live up to it. He employs the Chinamen
" who do the work. Whether he would have any control
" over them, whether they belonged to him or were per-
" fectly free, I do not know.
" Q. If they become dissatisfied, do they consult their
" own pleasure about leaving, or do they act under any-
^ Rep Ch. Im., p. 511.
144 HOJV THE CHINESE MAKE CONTRACTS.
body else ? A. They always consult their own pleasure
when they are domestic servants, cooks, or anything of
that kind. I have employed some and they have left
" on Saturday without asking leave of anybody else, or
without consulting anybody else, so far as I knew."
Mr. Herman Heynemann testified ;—^
" Q. What is your observation, whether they are under
" the control of any person, or whether they are free 1 A. I
" think this so-called coolie business is a mere trick, a
" sham, a delusion. I do not believe that they are any
more slaves than any other people at all, except as a
"general rule they are absolutely very poor in their
"native country, and have their passage money ad-
"vanced. Many of them have not been able to repay it
" at all, and then they are constantly in debt. When
" any white man has a debt hanging over him he is not
" as free and independent as a man who owes nothing,
" and that is the way with the Chinamen."
The Reverend William W. Brier testified ;—
" Q. What is your observation as to whether they are
" freemen or bondmen ? A. I think the only bondage,
" so far as I have ever been able to learn, the only obli-
" gation they are under, is for money advanced for their
" passages here. ^ ^ Every man who employs China-
" men, has one that he calls the boss Chinaman. When
" he wants men he does not go around over the country
"to look them up, but he just says to the boss, H
" ^ want so many more men next week,' and that obtains
"the men. He gets a small percentage, I suppose. I
" know it is the case with my Chinaman. I suppose it is
"universally the case with the boss Chinaman who
" secures work for other Chinamen, to get a certain per-
" centage of the wages of all the men who work, to re-
" ward Ekn for his agency in the matter. All the con-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 534. ^ Rep. Ch, Im., pp. 569, 580.
JIOW THE CHINESE MAKE CONTRACTS, 145
''tracts for Chinese labor, so far as I know, are made
"with what is called a boss Chinaman, and he hunts up
"other Chinamen and brings them in. There are a great
" many Chinamen going from one point to another, and
" from one place to another, and if a man has a crop ex-
" posed he can get a large number of men to work for
" him."
Judge Campbell testified ;—
" Q. What is your opinion, from the observation and
" intercourse you have had with them, as to their free-
" dom} A. In what sense do you use the word free-
" dom}
" Q, That is, whether they are under the control, as
"bondmen or slaves, of any person ? A. Judging from
" my own experience, I have never had the least reason
" even to suspect that they are under the influence of any
" other person than themselves.
" Q. You contract with them directly ? A. I con-
" tract with each one individually.
" Q. Do you pay the person you hire ? A. I pay
"them individually. Sometimes when three or four
" come together, and are working for me together, one
"will receive the pay for the whole, but it does not seem
" to make much difference which one it is. One of them
" will come to me with a statement of the time each one
"has worked, and he will receive their pay, and I hear
" nothing of it afterwards. I presume it is divided among
" them according to their proportion of labor."
Mr. Henry W. K. Clarke testified ;—
" Q. How do these Chinamen come here, voluntarily ?
" A. I have heard and read a great deal about coolie-
" labor, and the manner in which they are brought here,
" but my observation and experience, so far as they have
" extended, satisfy me there is no truth in it, that it is a
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 734. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 690.
J
146 HOW THE CHINESE MAKE CONTE A GTS.
"whispered tale and has no real source. I think they
" were attracted here, as probably you, and I, and all of
" us were. In early times we came to get money with
"the intention of returning, but having arrived here,
" many of them no doubt would remain and become
"permanent citizens, if there was any encouragement
"given them to become permanent citizens."
Mr. Anthony W. Easterby testified ;—^
" Q. Does Chinese labor partake somewhat of the
" nature of servile labor 1 A. What do you mean by
" servile labor
" Q. I will put the question in another way. Is there
" that individuality about Chinese labor that there is about
" white labor 1 A. I think that they are perfectly inde-
" pendent of their foremen. In hiring these men in large
"numbers, you generally employ a foreman to get the
" amount of men you require ; I have noticed that some-
" times scores of them leave without the wish of the fore-
" man. Therefore I suppose they are independent.
" Q. Do you pay them individually or do you pay the
" foreman A. I pay the foreman.
" Q. You hire them through the foreman} A. I
" hire them through the foreman."
Colonel Hollister testified ;—
" Q. In your intercourse with them have you formed
" an opinion as to whether these Chinamen who are here
"are free or not} A. If there was ever a slave among
" them I knew it not. I treat with my men severally and
" individually. I have no go-betweens. I say to a Chi-
"naman, generally one who has been a father among
" them and understands the language well, ' I want two
" ^ more Chinamen ; get good men ; the best men ; go
" ^ bring them on and I will give them so much.' I take
" simply any one of them who understands the language
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 746. ^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 771.
TENOR OF THE EVIDENCE,
147
" and can talk well. I never supposed or believed that
there was a particle of peonage or slavery among the
Chinamen of California ; and I do not believe there is
" to-day.
" Q. Have you seen any evidence of any control exer-
"cised by one Chinaman over another A. Not a par¬
ticle."
Mr. Frederick W. Macondray, of the house of Macon-
dray and Company, merchants of San Francisco, en¬
gaged in the China trade and consignees frequently
of ships and steamers from China, testified ;—^
" Q. Do you know from your experience in China,
" whether they come here voluntarily or under compul-
" sion} A. My impression is that they all come here
" voluntarily. I think some have come here under con-
" tracts between particular men.
Q. How far does the contract go} Is it the ad-
" vanee of money for their passage } A. I presume that
" it is. I really know nothing about that matter at all.
" Q. You know of no contracts ever having been
" made for servile labor, here, like the coolie trade t A.
"No, I never knew a case of that kind.
" Q. You have a line of ships from here to China ?
"A. Yes, sir.
" Q. Do you bring any passengers by those ships}
" A. When they wish to come, of course."
Mr. Robert F. Peckham testified ;—
"Q. In your dealings with these people have you
"formed any opinion as to whether they are free, or
" whether they are dependent and bound to any one } A.
" I am not of the opinion that they are bound to any
" one, in one sense of the term ; but when they agree to
" perform service for another, particularly for a China-
" man, they observe their agreement in the utmost good
1 Rep. Ch. Im., p. 855. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 554.
148
TENOR OF EVIDENCE,
" faith. Our process of securing Chinese help is through
" a Chinese merchant in this city, who I understand acts
" in the capacity of an intelligence office. He agrees to
" furnish so many men to do so much work. He picks
" up these men where he can get them, and gets a com-
" mission from them for procuring them situations."
The Reverend Frederic E. Shearer testified
" Q. Have you, in your intercourse with the Chinese,
" seen any evidence which leads you to think that these
people are under bonds to any others ? A. In my ob-
" servations I have been led to think otherwise. At one
"time, when I had sickness in my family, and when a
" domestic in my service left at almost a moments notice,
"I retained a Chinaman for two or three days, and at
" the end of that time placed him, at the request of a
" lady, in her family. I am fully confident that he made
"his own contract with her."
The witnesses whose testimony I have quoted, were
among the most respectable citizens of California. They
were all persons who had come in contact with the Chi¬
nese in that State, and could not have failed to detect
any indications of a system among them savoring of
slavery or contract-labor. While this is true, I desire to
call attention further to the fact that not one of these wit¬
nesses appears to have had any knowledge that the six
companies, who are charged by Mr. Pixleywith importing
coolies under a system of contract-labor, were in any way
concerned in the earnings of the Chinese who fell under
their observation. This one fact should be sufficient evi¬
dence that they do not import labor, for clearly if that is
a matter of business with them, if that is the object, or
one of the objects for which they exist, then also it must
be an object for them to place the labor which they im¬
port, and in doing so they would come into relations, di-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 636.
EVIDENCE OF THE SIX COMPANIES.
149
rect or indirect, with the employers of labor through¬
out the State.
It is possible, fortunately, to cite the evidence of the
managers of these companies on this point. They were
not called before the Congressional committee, but were
summoned to appear and give evidence before a com¬
mittee of the Senate of California which took evidence
in San Francisco, in the month of April, 1876.
One of these, Leung Cook, president of the Ning
Yeung company, stated as follows;—^
Q. Do you know anything about the organization
" of the six companies ; are you a member of either one,
" and if so state which? A. I am employed in the Ning
"Yeung company as officer. I have general charge of
" that company, write letters, send letters for my coun-
" trymen, take charge of their mails, &c. I am president
" of that company. When Chinamen first came to this
" country, knowing nothing of the language, they found
" it difficult to get along, and the company was organ-
" ized to assist them in getting employment, and in going
" from place to place. It has been in existence about
" twenty-two years.
" Q. Has this company any office in any part of
"China? A. No; because it don't need it. The sole ob-
" ject is to look after Chinamen here.
"Q. How do Chinese laboring men get here? A.
"They come of their own accord and pay their own
"passages.
" Q. Where do they get the money to pay? A. They
" are industrious and save their wages.
" Q. Is not the money used by some of these people
" advanced to them, and then collected here by these
" companies ? A. No, sir ; the company has no passages
" to pay for them.., -
^ Rep. Sen. Com. 1876., p. 64.
150
TESTIMONY OF THE PRESIDENTS
" Q. Are there not men in China who contract to pay
" passages here, and the Chinamen here have to pay the
" money back to them ? A. I don't know about that."
Lee Ming Hown, president of the Sam Yup company,
testified ;—^
" Q. How did the members (of your company) come
"here.^ A. They heard that everybody in California
" made a fortune, so they came here. If they have means
" they pay their own passages ; if not, they borrow
" from others. They sell their farms and property to get
"here. If they have no property and can't borrow they
" don't come.
" Q. How much salary does the company pay you "ï
" A. Eighty dollars a month.
" Q. What does the president do 'i A. Attends to
" new comers, persons not acquainted with the language
" of the country, and assists those who want help, such
" as the sick and disabled."
Yung Ty, president of the Hop Wo company, tes¬
tified
" Q. How do people belonging to your company come
" here 1 A. They raise money mostly at home. Some
" borrow from friends in China.
" Q. How many belonging to your company are cool-
"ies } A. We have none of that class, for our men are
" mostly farmers at home.
" Q. Are they men who own land ? A. Most of
"them are working it on shares; some of them own the
" ground, some of them are working for wages, and some
" for themselves.
" Q. Are they called coolies ? A. I don't know what
"you mean by coolies. They are not slaves; they are
" simply the lower class of men, who work for a living.
" Q. - ' What is a coolie ? A. I do not know.
^ Rep. Sen. Com., p. 71. ^Rep. Sen. Com., p. 94
OF THE SIX COMPANIES.
151
" Q. Do you know what a slave is ? A. We have
" no such in our own country."
Si Quon, president of the Yung Wo company/ was
examined by the same committee, but not a question
was put to him in regard to the importation of coolie
labor, and the same remark may be made in regard to
the examinations of Sin How, ^ president of the Kung
Chow company, and of Chin Fong Chow, president of the
Yan Wo company. The bias of this committee against
the Chinese was very great, and it may be asserted with
justice, that if they failed to prove by these several
witnesses that the six companies were engaged in the
importation of coolie labor, or of coolies, it was not
because they overlooked this point. As a matter of
fact the committee was appointed for the purpose of
gathering evidence against the Chinese, and of prepar¬
ing a memorial to the Congress of the United States
against them, and they did their work to the best of their
ability, apparently.
I have thus given evidence which shows, more or less
conclusively, that Chinese laborers in California have
seemed in the eyes of their employers to be freemen,
that they have come to the country under no contracts to
labor, and that the six companies have no concern in any
advances which may be procured by such laborers in
their own country for the payment of the expenses of
their voyages to ours. The evidence is taken from the
testimony of employers, and of the presidents of the six
companies. The immigration of these laborers, and the
operations of these companies have been observed, how¬
ever, by several intelligent witnesses beside those already
named, and is is worth while, for greater certainty, to take
notice of the conclusions reached by them.
^ Rep. Sen. Com., pü 97.
^ Ch. in Am., p. 259.
152
CHINESE COME VOLUNTARILY,
Mr. Gibson, says ;—
" The Chinamen who come here, in every case come
voluntarily. It is true that many of them are assisted
financially to get here, and to find employment after
they get here, and for such assistance they gladly
agree to pay a certain per cent, of their actual wages,
until the stipulated sum is paid and the contract
canceled. From the beginning until now
the opposition to Chinese immigration has constantly
repeated the unqualified statement that a large pro¬
portion of the Chinese who come to this country are
imported, or brought here, by the six companies, or
their agents, and that all these laboring Chinamen are
to all practical intents and purposes, the slaves or peons
of these companies. ^ ^ In his reply to Father
Burchard in 1873, the writer, who, from long experience
with the Chinese ought to have known what he was
talking about, boldly maintained there was no slavery
of Chinamen in America. If these Chinamen are all
slaves, and have been slaves during these twenty years
of their residence in all parts of the Pacific coast, in
which time, according to our agitators, they have
constantly blocked our courts of justice with their
multiplied civil and criminal suits, certainly it is rea¬
sonable to suppose that some opportunity would have
occurred for obtaining reliable evidence as to the exist¬
ence of slavery among them. But up to the present
time no such evidence, or shadow of evidence, has been
produced. These Chinese coolie-slaves are a most
remarkable class of slaves. They go and come when
and where they please, work and refuse to work at their
pleasure ; they use the proceeds of their labor as they
choose, buy their own clothes, pay their own rents, go to
the theatre, gamble, smoke opium, bring suits in our
^ Ch. in Am„, p. 259.
ABSURDITY OF THE CHARGE,
153
courts, send money home to parents and friends, and act
in all respects just like freemen. And yet we are told that
they are abject slaves. What wonderful legislative and
executive ability those six Chinamen, the presidents of
these companies, must have to enable them to hold so
many people in such abject slavery. Why have not
some of these slaves taken advantage of our laws against
slavery, and prosecuted their cruel masters in our courts,
and obtained a decree of their own freedom ? Why do
the hundreds of intelligent Chinese Christians in Amer¬
ica constantly assert that there is no such thing known
among their people in this country as slavery, or bond¬
age, except in the case of women. This charge of
slavery made against the Chinese ought to be as pub¬
licly and widely withdrawn as it has been publicly and
widely made, unless some evidence can be produced to
substantiate the charge. A great, free people, in the
very act of celebrating the first centennial of their
independence, cannot afford to wage a war of races,
based upon a tissue of falsehoods, and wilful misrepre¬
sentations, instigated by prejudices, ignorance and
bigotry, and conducted on the methods of political
chicanery. ^ ^ As to the six companies, and the
power they yield, great misapprehensions prevail in the
minds of the people. It is the custom of the Chinese
in China, when any considerable number emigrate from
one city to another, to come together and form a kind
of mutual aid society, or guild. The officers are elec¬
tive, and hold their places for a specified length of time.
Voluntary subscriptions are raised, and voluntary taxes
are imposed, for the purposes of providing a hall or
quarters for the meetings of the guild. Generally a
temple, or shrine of worship, dedicated to the particular
divinities of the ^class, is -erected in connection with this
hall. This hall becomes the rendezvous of the members
154
THAT THEY ARE SLAVES.
" and retainers of the association. Membership is entirely
" voluntary, and may be severed at the will of the
" individual."
Mr. Speer, the author of " China and the United States,"
states ;—^
"The means to pay the expenses of the voyage to
" California are obtained by the Chinese emigrants in the
"same way in which they are by our own people in
" similar circumstances. One sells out his little shop ;
"another leaves the farm on which he was born, and
" where his father lived before him, in the hope of bring-
" ing back money enough to pay off some troublesome
" debts, or to enable him to add a few acres to it, or to
" give to his son a good education. A third is aided, if
" he has been unfortunate in business, or afflicted in his
" family, by contributions from a few of his relatives. A
" fourth borrows money at a high rate of interest, which
"is to be paid on his return. After the most careful
"inquiry on the subject from all classes of the Chinese, I
" have never been able to learn that any were brought
"over by capitalists, and worked as slaves are, against
" their will, and for the advantage of the employer. This
" fiction, so often repeated in print and otherwise, in this
" country, arose from the clubs, or companies, which the
" Chinese are accustomed to organize in any region where
" a number of them may be temporary strangers together."
The same author, in another chapter, speaks at length
of the purposes and peculiarities of the six companies,
and gives a translation of the rules of one of them.^ I
shall have occasion to advert to these companies more
particularly in another place and, at the moment, content
myself by saying that I have found nothing in the rules
of the given society, or in the general character of these
organizations, as described by Mr. Speer, to suggest even
that they import labor, or laborers.
^ Ch. and the U. S., p. 473. ^Ch. and the U. S., p. 557*
DR. WILLIAMS' EVIDENCE.
155
The venerable S. Wells Williams, L. L. D., author of
the " Middle Kingdom," for a long series of years secre¬
tary and interpreter of the United States legation at
Peking, and personally acquainted with the questions
arising in connection with Chinese immigration, both
because of his official duties, and of his long residence
at Canton, in a letter addressed to the committee of
the Senate of California under date of June 30th, 1876,
stated as follows ;—^
" I think it is certain that no ship has arrived in Cali-
" fornia with Chinese who had been engaged to go there
"as contract-laborers, and I think too that hundreds,
" perhaps thousands have been deluded into accepting
contracts as coolies," (to go to Peru, Cuba, &c.,) " from
an idea that they were to be taken, if they were not
" actually told so, to the golden hills." (California).
Mr. Daniel Cleveland, of San Francisco, gave in 1868,
to Mr. Ross Brown, then our minister to China, a paper
on the subject of Chinese immigration, which will be
found printed in the book of diplomatic correspondence
for that year. Mr. Brown, in a letter which is published
in the same volume, stated that he knew " of no citizen
"of California better qualified than Mr. Cleveland to
"treat the subject with candor and intelligence." Mr.
Cleveland says ;—
" Before discussing the subject of Chinese labor, it may
" be as well to say that there are no ^ coolies' in this
" State and never have been. Emigrants obtain money
" to pay their passages in various ways ; some have
" money, others sell their property and obtain it ; some
" borrow from friends or relations ; some pledge their
" families as security for the loan. They come of their
" own option, and when they arrive here, are free to go
" where they please, and engage in any occupation they
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1246. ^ Dep. Cor. 1868, Pt. I, p. 541.
156 OPINION OF THE COMMITTEE OF 1862.
" will. Those who arrive in this city without means, are
" assisted by their countrymen, and loaned money to go to
" the mines or engage in some other labor, and aided in
"obtaining employment. They are as much free agents
" as our own people. A great and widespread misappre-
"hension has existed on this subject and has caused
" much of the hostility to the Chinese."
I close this series of extracts with the following words
by the committee of the California Legislature of 1862;—^
" Your committee is satisfied that there is no system of
" slavery or coolieism among the Chinese in this State.
" If there is any proof going to establish the fact that any
"portion of the Chinese are imported into this State as
"slaves or coolies, your committee have failed to dis-
" cover it."
It was my intention in beginning this chapter to speak
of the advanced position which the Chinese Empire has
held in regard to slavery, of the democratic quality which
pervades its polity, and of the absence of caste among
its population. It seems to me, however, that the allega¬
tion against the Chinese in California, that their labor is
servile in character, has been so fully refuted that I have
no occasion to go further, and as I could not do so with¬
out encroaching upon space which must be reserved for
other purposes, I refrain from a presentation of the facts
in this connection. To those who may be disposed to
carry inquiry into this domain, I may say that a chapter
is given by Dr. Speer, in his really admirable book,
" China and the United States," to " Popular Government
" in China;" and that the most lucid statement which I
have seen in regard to the forms of servitude which exist
in China, is contained in a report made by Dr. Eitel, in¬
terpreter to the government of Hong Kong, which will
be found in-the Hong Kong Government Gazette of the
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1189.
NO SLAVERY IN CHINA.
157
4th of February, 1880. The system as described is a
part of the patriarchal polity of China, and is so far un¬
like the slave systems of other regions, that an injustice
is done by speaking of it as slavery. And, such as it is,
it affects in the least possible degree the class which in
other countries is regarded as the essentially valuable
portion of a body of slaves. I mean adult males. Dr.
Eitel declares that he has never seen such a slave, and I
may add that during nearly twenty years residence in
China I have not known a native of that country to whom
the term slave would seem applicable. In the vast ma¬
jority of cases the domestic servitude of the Chinese may
be regarded as favorably as the system under which
children in the United States are sometimes bound to
masters to learn a trade, or to assist in their general
labors, in consideration of the food and clothing and
other benefits conferred upon them.
I am aware that arguments of much weight can be ad¬
vanced to sustain the proposition that when the labor of
a country is performed altogether, or in very large meas¬
ure, by a class of the population, and this class differs
from the employing class in origin or stock, a tendency
is generated to degrade the laboring class and labor, and
that this is unfortunate. I have no desire whatever to
dispute this proposition, but I assert with emphasis that
when conditions are such that labor is necessarily in large
measure relegated to a class, the duty rests with all citi¬
zens to counteract the evil effects which may result, by
all reasonable means. And certainly the readiest means
which may be used is the right instruction of youth, and
of the less intelligent classes, in regard to the essential
dignity of all honest, earnest and free labor. If the pub¬
lic men of California, its statesmen, its politicians, its
priests, its journalists and its teachers of all classes had
consistently and continuously commended the Chinese
158
AMERICAN INTOLERANCE.
for their industry, and pointed to them as an example of
what may be accomplished by a people of less mental
and physical vigor than ourselves by the simple force of
steadiness at work, we should have heard far less of caste
and its degrading influences, and the young men of the
State would have grown up to habits different from those
which characterize the hoodlum. As for myself I know
no reason why I should not, if need be, hold the plow
while the Chinaman drives, or drive while the Chinaman
holds, than do the same work with a native American as
my associate, or a German, or an Irishman. Experience
among different races had only served to intensify the
belief in which I was educated, that labor is honorable,
and that all men under the sun are worthy in the meas¬
ure of their intelligence and moral excellence, and not
according to their grade in life or the hue of their skin.
But it may be said with truth that no great country of
the west, in modern days, has been more false than our
own to the great principle to which I adhere. As wit¬
nesses let the Negro and the Chinaman rise and declare
the wrongs to which they have been subjected, both by
the conduct of individuals and by legislation.
PART III.—CHAPTER IL
OBJECTIONS WHICH HAVE BEEN ADVANCED AGAINST
THE CHINESE. THAT THEY DISPLACE OTHER
LABORERS.
The question treated from the stand-point of the laborer. The interest
of the laboring class is not antagonistic to that of the capitalist. The
laboring class slow to appreciate the fact. Trades-unions, strikes, &c.
Antagonism to laborers who do not join in coercive measures. Antag¬
onism of this kind to the Chinese in California. Its use as a party
cry. Its success. White laborers have not been displaced by the
Chinese. Two doors for labor opened for one shut. Examination of
facts legarding railway construction and its results. Facts regarding
reclamation of swamp lands. Facts regarding employment of Chinese
in mines. Report of committee of 1862. The contribution of the
Chinese to the agricultural achievements of California. Chinese labor
does not displace but supplements white labor. Fruit-raising. Testi¬
mony of Col. Hollister, Mr. Heynemann, Mr. Colton, Mr. Crocker,
Mr. Estee. Chinese as operatives. Testimony of Mr. McLennan,
Mr.Peckham, Mr. Wheeler. Chinese in special industries. Tendency
of white to displace Chinese labor. Testimony of Mr. Buchanan.
vShoes, cigars and clothing still imported into the State. Laundry
work. Advantages to families of Chinese laundries. Prices of the
necessaries of life reduced. List of sixty industries in which the Chi¬
nese are not employed. Domestic service. The employer entitled to
support as well as the employed.
In the earlier chapters I have demonstrated the fact
That the Chinese iiave contributed largely to the material
prosperity of the State of California, and to the conven¬
ience and comfort of its people. It is urged against
them, however, that they displace laborers of our stock,
and that the injury which they occasion in this way, far
more than overbears in importance the value of their
contribution to the wealth of the employing class and of
the State.
160
CAPITAL AND LABOR
In addressing myself to the consideration of the ques¬
tions which are thus raised, I shall deal with them on
the very narrowest ground, placing myself as it were in
the position of the laboring man, and examining the
subject from his stand-point. I am well aware, however,
that in doing this I shall not be able to exclude from the
inquiry, considerations which affect the wealthy as well
as the poor man ; for the conditions of all classes in a
community composed of freemen, are related in so intri¬
cate a manner that it is difficult to say what circumstan¬
ces may affect this or that class, which will not tell also
in favor of all others.
It may be said at once that it is the interest of the la¬
borer that he should receive high wages, and that of the
employer that wages should be low. It is not true, how¬
ever, that the interests of these classes are antagonistic.
It is in point of fact the interest of each that wages shall
be so graded that industries may go forward. If they are
too low, the laborer falls away from his employment ; if
they are too high, the employer ceases to employ. There
must be found an equilibrium so that the employer shall
receive encouragement to invest his capital, and to exer¬
cise supervision and care, and the laborer to learn the av¬
ocation and to be constant in it.
There have been times and places in the history of the
world, and there may now be places where the propo¬
sition which I have stated would not hold. It would not
hold in California if her territories were separated from
those of the rest of the world by material barriers which
the enterprise of her people had not broken down, and her
soil was owned by a few persons. It might in such case
be the interest of these proprietors to reduce the general
population to a condition of utter dependence. This
night be^true eyen in a more developed society if all
roprietors were engaged in the production of one or two
iples, a market for which could be found abroad only.
NOT ANTAGONISTIC.
161
The conditions in California are very different from
those which I have thus supposed. Her population is
composed of persons of various aptitudes, and of various
degrees of wealth. Her soil is sufficient to subsist a
population of fifteen or twenty times the present number.
Her mountains are very rich in the precious metals, and
her capacity for the production of all the fruits of the
husbandman's toil is practically boundless.
Let us suppose now, that in this region, so vast and
fruitful and yet only partially populated, no railways have
been constructed, and that capitalists arrive and discuss
the question whether they will undertake an enterprise of
this sort It is of concern to them, in this discussion,
whether they can procure the necessary labor at rates
which will justify them in proceeding. It is the concern
of the laboring man who is resident on the spot that the
enterprise shall go forward, both because it will give him
employment at the moment, and because it is likely to
make his opportunities for other employment greater.
And so it will be found in all other directions in which
capitalists are considering whether to invest money. One
stands ready to establish a cotton factory, another to
open a coal mine, but each must know before he begins
whether, when he has completed his mill, or opened his
mine, he will be able to secure laborers at such rates of
wages, and in such numbers as to enable him to compete
in production. And while the capitalist is making his
calculations, the laborer, if he be reasonably intelligent
and prudent, will watch the business with interest, for he
may find employment in the mill, or in the mine, or in
the numerous industries which are connected with them.
The proposition then is that the capitalist will not only
be willing, but find it is desirable, to pay wages sufficiently
high to attract labpj, and to ensure a constant and satis¬
factory supply of it, and that men of the laboring-class
K
Z62
CAPITAL AND LABOR,
will find it to their interest to work for such wages as will
encourage the capitalist to give them employment. And
when we reflect further that after all capital has no
option, and labor has no option, but that both the one
and the other must be employed, we come at last to
the demonstration that in our days, at least, the two
move forward upon a basis of mutual advantage.
The laboring classes are very slow, however, to appre¬
ciate the fact that employers are likely to pay them as
high wages as they can afford. They do not stop to
think that if a given business insures a good return to
the capitalist-employer, he is certain to extend his oper¬
ations, and, in order to secure labor, make easy terms
with it ; or that, failing in this, some other capitalist
will come forward, and, by entering upon the business,
increase the demand for labor and the chances for emr-
ployment at high wages. We have, as a consequence,
trades-unions and strikes, and the introduction into great
enterprises, by means of them, of uncertainties and risks,
which make the capitalist less willing to enlist in such
undertakings, and which, if carried far enough, must
break them down.
The disposition to resort to such means of forcing up
the price of labor exhibits two phases of equal unreason,
one of which is disregard for the employer who has
staked his means upon the result of his enterprise, who
has given employment when he could aflbrd it, and
perhaps often, when he could not ; the other is displeasure
at persons who will not join in coercive measures against
employers.
In the State of California, although wages have been
unusually high, and still remain so, the disposition to be
exacting toward employers has been very marked. Great
industrial enterprises, like those of England, do not exist,
and we hear comparatively little of trades-unions, but
A POLITICAL CRY,
163
individuals of the laboring classes leave their employ¬
ment for slight cause, and with but little regard for
employers. It is simply notorious that labor is unsteady
and uncertain. And while this is true, circumstances
have tended to create in the minds of the workingmen
peculiar hostility to those who are their competitors in
many lines of employment. In saying this, I allude, of
course, to the Chinese, who are steady, while the others
are often unsteady, and who, more than all, are content
with rates of wages which they condemn as too low.
The outcry which has been made in this way has been
long and loud. It has been taken up by a newspaper
press which has not borne in all respects the highest
character. It has entered into politics, until it has come
to be believed that no aspirant for political honors can
succeed who does not join in it. It has controlled political
parties, and demanded consideration in the halls of Con¬
gress. It has influenced presidential aspirants, dictated
its own terms, and, at the last, enforced action from the
chief magistrate of the nation.
It is too late in the day to indulge in any hope what¬
ever that broad views may be instilled into the minds of
the laboring classes of California. Their views have
been accepted so readily, have been endorsed so per¬
fectly in high quarters, and have afforded so many rally¬
ing cries in the political battle field, that the case is sim¬
ply hopeless. But a love of fair play exists among the
American people at large, and joined to this a capacity
to reach just conclusions upon questions of State policy,
which leave abundant room for hope that a demonstra¬
tion of the almost wholly baseless character of the cry
against Chinese cheap labor will receive correct appre¬
ciation.
I assert, that, so- far as the statement that the Chinese
have displaced the labor of our own people in California is
164
TWO DOORS OPENED FOR ONE SHUT
concerned, it is capable of demonstration that they have
produced just the contrary effect, and, having reference to
what has been said in earlier chapters of the material
advantages to the State created by their labor and to the
general principle set forth already in this chapter, that
they have actually opened two doors for the employment
of our people where they have closed one.
Let us take up first their services to the State in the
construction of railways.
It has been proven in the chapter which I devoted to
this branch of their industries that they displaced no white
laborers, and that in the construction of the Central Pa¬
cific road, of the Southern Pacific, and of other lesser
roads, they were employed because American laborers
could not be procured. And what has been the result 1
The Central Pacific has opened the way for thousands,
perhaps hundreds of thousands of our people and of the
people of Europe, to enter the State, and this, and the
other roads, have opened the way to them for take up
lands here and there throughout the whole State, and to
engage in pursuits to their own advantage and the ad¬
vantage of the State which it would not have been pos¬
sible to follow, in the the absence of such roads.
I do not know to what extent our people have been
induced to enter the State by reason of the existence of
these roads, and of the facilities which they afford in a
variety of ways. I find it stated broadly that in the year
1875, 44,937 more persons entered the State by the Pa¬
cific railroad than departed by that line 'I and that the
population of the State was believed to have increased
from 560,247 in 1870 to 900,000 in 1876,^ these being the
years in which the full influence of the construction of
the roads began to be felt.
I am vuot now speaking of the future, and I am not
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 992. ® Br. Br., p. 131.
RESULTS OF RAILROAD BUILDING.
165
speaking of the moral or political aspects of the Chinese
question. I am addressing myself to the simple ques¬
tion whether up to the present moment the Chinese have
displaced our people. What they may do in the future
I shall consider at a later moment. Other aspects of
their immigration I shall also consider at a later moment.
But it seems to me that were there no other answer to
the proposition which I combat, this one which I have
now put forward, standing by itself, would be sufficient.
It may be responded here, that the one proposition
does not necessarily exclude the other, that it may be
true that thousands upon thousands of our people have
been induced to enter the State by the increased facilities
for their ingress and their industries created by the roads,
and yet that other thousands have been driven out from
their employment by the Chinese. But were this true, I
must assume that we should regard primarily the inter¬
ests of the larger number, and that if two doors for
employment have been opened while but one has been
closed, the laboring man of California is better off be¬
cause of the result. It is not necessary, however, to stop
here to discuss this question, for the reason that my
further argument will show that there is scarcely one
branch of employment from which the presence of the
Chinese has excluded white men in any large measure.
I have given a further chapter in the earlier part of
this book to the work done by Chinese in reclaiming
lands subject to overflow. In doing so, I have shown by
evidence that the labor so performed is of a sort which is
distasteful to our people, and that as a consequence pf
this, and of the higher price of white labor, these recla¬
mations would not have been made without the assistance
of the Chinese.
I have no data ^from which I can determine how many
acres of land have been added in this way to the pro-
166 RESULTS OF RECLAMATION- WORKS.
ductive acreage of the State^ nor does it matter for the
purpose of my inquiry. What is essential and what is
true, is, that the lands so reclaimed have been occupied
in large measure by our own people, that the slender
dikes passed around them by the patient toil of the
Chinese have enabled white men to turn over with the
plow every part of those lands, to raise there, at one and
the same time, their crops and their families. My im¬
pression is, that there is not an unemployed white man in
California, who having a little capital, could not go upon
these reclaimed lands and secure an abundant return for
his labor and his money, and that the proprietors of these
lands are so anxious to have them worked that they
would extend facilities to all suitable persons who might
come forward for such occupation, regardless of their
abilty to find, for themselves, the means to supplement
their labor.
It would appear at first sight, that the labor of China¬
men in the placer mines of California would be in
competition with the labor of our people, or at least that
it would add nothing to their opportunities for employ¬
ment, but it is easy to prove that this view is a careless
and unfounded one. Let us suppose that the Chinese
gold washers of 1862 realized from their labors the gross
sum of $15,000,000 a year. At this date nearly all the
Chinese laborers in California were engaged in the mines,
their earnings were very large, and the expenditures of
the whole class could be rightly charged against the in¬
dustry which supported them. The committee of the
Legislature of California of 1862 gave the following
estimate of those expenditures ;—^
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1190.
CHINESE IN THE MINES. 167
"STATISTICS FOR 1861.
" Duties paid by Chinese importers $ 500,000
"Freight money to ships from China 180,000
" Passage money to ships, " " 382,000
"Head-tax 7jS5ö
" Boat hire
" Rent for stores, and storage 370,000
"Licenses, taxes, &c., in the State 2,164,273
" Commissions paid to auctioneers and brokers. 20,396
" Drayage in San Francisco 59,662
"Teaming in interior of State 360,000
Paid for American products in San Francisco 1,046,613
"Paid for American products in State 4>953>3^7
"Paid for fire insurance in San Francisco.... 1,925
" Paid for marine insurance " " 33)^47
" Paid for steamboat fares to Sacramento and
" Stockton 50,000
"Paid for stage fares to and from the mines.. 250,000
" Paid for steamboat up river freights 80,000
"Water rates for Chinese miners 2,160,000
" Mining claims bought by Chinese 1,350,000
Commenting upon this table, the committee of 1862
said ;—
" From the above remarkable statistics, amounting to
" fourteen millions of dollars, nearly, you will be able to
" form an idea of the value which this Chinese population
"and industry confer upon the State. Dissect these
" various items and observe what employment this
"scourged race gives to our shipowners, our water-men,
"teamsters, steamboat men, stage owners, with their
" hostlers, and horses and blacksmitlis, and carriage-
" makers, our farmers and cattle-men, in short, in nearly
" every branch of human industry in the State."
The language ^ thus used is very just, but it was not
necessary to give statistics to enable one to reach the
168
WEALTH CONFERRED
interesting conclusion of the committee. It is entirely
certain that the earnings of any class of laborers are
expended almost as soon as they are received. The
Chinaman is not an exception to this rule. He is de¬
scribed as very thrifty, yet it is his weakness, as it is that
of other men, to increase his outlays as his income
increases. If he saves ten per cent, of his earnings, he
does well for a man of his class. My own opinion is
that he does not do so, and I am fortified in this judg¬
ment by my personal knowledge of the Chinaman and
some facts that I may adduce at a later moment. Let
us suppose, then, that his earnings are $15,000,000 an¬
nually. Of this sum, ten per cent, having been deducted
for savings, $13,500,000 will pass into general circulation,
remaining to enrich the State, or passing out of it to pay
the debts of the general population. It is a stream of
wealth which enriches the whole region. It is perennial
in its flow. Its benefits do not cease at the source, or
with its origin. It moves the wheels of industry through¬
out its whole course.
To what has been said it is desirable to add a proposi¬
tion, which will have been inferred from what I wrote in
the chapter on Chinese in mining, and which I restate
in the forcible language of the committee of 1862 ;—
" These departments of labor," (the enterprises of ship¬
owners, steamboat men, &c., referred to previously) " are
carried on by white men, independent of Chinese labor,
" but largely indebted for their recompense to Chinese
" industry and patronage. And for this fourteen mil-
" lions of dollars which we gather from the Chinese what
" do we give in exchange } Mainly, thus far, the privi-
" lege to work in the mines, on bars, beds, and gulch
" claims, which have been abandoned by our countrymen
" and other white men, because, by their intelligence and
" skill they could find other diggings where they could
BY THE SCOURGED RACE,
169
"do better. Such claims to all but the patient, moder-
"ate Chinese would otherwise have remained idle and
" unproductive."
From that time to this, as I believe, the situation, so
far as our inquiry is concerned, has not changed. Placer
digging is carried on not for wages, but for the find of
gold. The white man will enter upon the industry if it
will repay him to do so, but not otherwise. For one
reason and another the white man has had an advantage
over the Chinaman. The laws and customs of the min¬
ing districts, for instance, have given him facilities to
purchase claims, not possessed by Chinamen. The lat¬
ter, in fact, have generally held from or through whites.
The security enjoyed by the white man has been greater
than that of his competitor. The latter has had to bear
the burden of a grievous tax, not imposed upon the
white. From deep mining white miners have managed
to practically exclude Chinamen. In hydraulic mining
the testimony shows that the whites, as employers, have
nearly monopolized the business, and that when they have
employed Chinese, they have been driven to it by high
wages demanded by the whites, and the necessity to
economize or close their work.
It would be impossible to say, then, upon any basis of
broad reasoning that the opportunities of white laborers
in California have been decreased and impaired by
the presence of the Chinese in the mines of the State.
In their narrow ways of regarding the matter the case
may seem different, but that does not alter the fact nor
excuse the more intelligent portion of the community
and of the nation from taking a sensible and just view
of it. The general good demands that they should do
this and the good of the working men themselves de¬
mands that the ^-more intelligent should enforce their
views.
170
ASSISTANCE GIVEN BY CHINESE
To make an argument here to show that the Chinese
have contributed greatly to the agricultural achievements
of California, and that in doing so they have supple¬
mented the labors of our own people rather than com¬
peted with them, would be to repeat in great part the
statements and evidence given in the chapter dealing
with their labor in this department of industry. I may
recapitulate briefly, however, the tenor of that chapter,
and point out with clearness the lesson to be derived from
it. It would seem, then, thaf^although the farmer of Cal¬
ifornia has appeared prominently in the markets of the
world as a producer, more particularly of wheat, the cir¬
cumstances surrounding him have obliged him to take
up a system of husbandry which has been so directed as
to enable him to draw the utmost from the soil, at the
least possible expense. Land has been cheap, capital
and wages have been dear, and under these circumstances
the system graphically called land-killing is inevitable.
The wages of laborers, and the ability to command a
great deal of labor at short notice, are important mat¬
ters in such a condition of things. The average of the
former has been broken down somewhat, perhaps, by the
presence of the Chinese; the latter has been supplied by
them more or less in the measure of the demand. These
few facts indicate the large place which the Chinese have
taken in the agricultural enterprises of California, and
pursued further will show that the services of the Chinese
have increased the demand for white labor. The profits
of farmers are never large. As a rule wealth rarely falls
to their lot, and the fact indicates how close must be
their economies. If then there had been no Chinese in
the State, it may be doubted whether the narrow margin
of profit which the farmer expects would have been real¬
ized in California, and failing this the lands would have
remained unbroken by the plow or turned back after their
IN AGRICULTURE.
171
first crops to be ranged over by herds of cattle and of
sheep. But the presence of the Chinamen would seem
to have turned the scale in favor of the farmer, or at least
enabled him to extend his operations. It happens, more¬
over, that the kind of farming practiced in California re¬
quires a great deal of what may be called skilled labor.
The plowman handles his team of four or six horses and
manages, while driving, a gang of plows. Sowing is done
in the same large way, and harvesting with the heading
machine is a difficult matter requiring quickness of eye,
familiarity with horses and with machinery, and consid¬
erable physical vigor. For all these branches of the far¬
mer's work the American is better fitted, by far, than the
Chinaman, but the labor of the latter comes in to sup¬
plement that of the former in what might be called the
simple drudgery of the work. The Chinaman can ride
in the header wagon and clear the grain as it pours in, he
can discharge the loads and feed and clear the thresher,
he can sack the grain, and where, under a more careful
system, the fields are cut by reapers instead of headers,
he can bind up the sheaves and load them on the wagons.
While the Chinaman comes in in these ways to sup¬
plement the work of the American in wheat growing, in
other branches of farming his services are not less useful,
while still complementary in character. If the field is
one in which maize is being grown, he is an excellent
hand at the hoe, he can shuck out the ripened ears, and
turn the shelling machine. If root crops are cultivated,
no man is more practical in the small work of hoeing
and weeding, and of digging out the crop than he. Mean¬
while, in all these branches, the farmer is himself the over¬
seer and his white-hands are filling the more difficult
places, and earning larger wages than the Chinese, in the
measure of their ^greater adaptibility, skill and experience.
In fruit raising, we find the conditions analogous. The
172
FRUIT CULTURE, ETC,
farmer requires a few skilled hands to assist in the prepar¬
ation of his land, in the planting of orchards and vine¬
yards, in grafting and in pruning. And when the season
of harvesting arrives his work must be hastened or the
fruit drops to the ground and is lost. When saved the
various careful processes for its manipulation or preserva¬
tion fall necessarily into the hands or under the supervi¬
sion of persons of greater intelligence and experience.
If it be thought that I have deceived myself in the fore¬
going statements, I can only ask my readers to study for
themselves with care the testimony taken before the
commission of Congress. I may, however, without extend¬
ing my writing unduly, quote some portions of the
evidence which relates to this subject.
Colonel Hollister, for instance, said ;—
" Q. Could you raise wheat here and export it with-
" out Chinese labor} A. I think not. They are useful
" in very many places in the field. They are not very
" skillful planters, but in gathering the crops, and handling
" them in other ways, they are very important, so much
so, that farming crops would have been failures entirely
" if it had not been for the Chinamen to gather them in."
And again ;—
" Q. What effect does the presence of the Chinaman
*^have upon immigration A. If the immigrant has a
" bit of sense, the Chinaman is the best inducement in
" the world to bring him here. If he knows anything
about what is in the country, he will know that there is
" somebody here to do the work, that kind of work which
" he cannot, or does not want to do."
Mr. Heynemann said ;—
" Q. What is our chief element of wealth at the present
" time ? A. Commerce. California is dependent upon
" her unrivaled position on the Pacific ocean.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 773. ^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 535.
ENCOURAGES WfflTE IMMIGRATION
173
Q. What are our great articles of export ? A.
grain, wool, wine, precious metals ; grain, of course,
" leading everything.
"Q.- Without the grain trade would there be the
" same amount of building cities, grading and other work
" that is done by white labor ? A. California would not
" exist as a State as she now does.
" Q. Do you think the presence of the Chinese dimin-
" ishes the immigration from the Eastern States ? A. I
"think it increases it."
Mr. Colton said ;—
" Q. State whether, in your opinion, the presence of
"Chinamen retards the settlement of the country by
" white people ? A. I do not think so ; on the con-
" trary, I think that it would have the reverse effect, if
" anything. They perform a class of labor that you can-
" not have done in any other way. It enables farmers to
" carry on their occupation in various ways ; and with-
" out the employment of this labor I do not believe that
" land would have been cultivated anything like soprosper-
" ously as it has been. ^ ^ I have heard a great deal
" said about white labor not having employment, but I
" have yet, in twenty-seven odd years, to find any white
" man who was honest in his purposes, to fail to get
" labor. If he will attend to business honestly and in-
" dustriously, he will not only find plenty to do, but the
" first thing you know he will be managing tvv^enty or
" thirty Chinamen ; that, I think, is the result of these
" matters in this country."
Mr. Crocker said ;—
" I think that they afford white men labor. I think
" that their presence here affords to white men a more ele-
" vated class of labor. As I said before, if you should
"drive these 75,0,00 Chinamen off you would take 75,000
^ Rep. Ch. Im,, p. 6oi. Ch. Im., p. 670.
174
RECENT IMMIGRA TIONS.
" whites from an elevated class of work, and put them
" down to doing this low class of labor that the Chinamen
"are now doing. For any man to ride through Califor-
"nia from one end to the other and see the miles upon
" miles of uncultivated lands, in the mountains millions
" of acres of timber, and the foot hills waiting for some
" one to go and cultivate them, and then talk about there
" being too much labor in the country is simply nonsense,
" in my estimation. There is labor for all, and the fact
"that the Chinamen are here, gives an opportunity for
"white men to go in and cultivate this land when they
" could not cultivate it otherwise."
Mr. Estee testified ;—^
" Q. How is it with regard to white passengers } A.
" The white passengers overland }
"Q. Every way.^ A. Since 1854 or 1855 the white
" immigration has not been so large as it has been in the
" last two or three years.
" Q. You mean it has not been larger than in the last
"two or three years A. Yes, sir. From 1850 to
"1854 it was very large.
" Q. Then there was a great influx on account of the
"gold fever A. Yes, sir ; that was temporary."
The Reverend Mr. Brier testified ;—
" I think that Chinese immigration has been an ad-
" vantage to the pecuniary interests of the State, and I
" think it has kept up the prices of the labor of white
"people. In 1857 I white man that
" I always keep than I do now, and he was a much bet-
" ter hand than I have now. While traveling in the East
"this spring I made diligent inquiry in different States,
"and I found that the price of labor on farms ranged
"from $12 to $15 a month for that class of laborers who
"receive he^'e $25 to $30. I judge from that, that some-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 713. ^ ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 572.
CHINESE PREVENT STRIKES.
175
thing has raised the price of white labor among us and
"kept it up."
The same witness said ;—
"I know that I would have to stop and dig up my
" fruit trees, without Chinese labor."
And again ;—
" I think it decidedly to the interests of the country,
"that in the employment of capital in manufacturing,
" and in the production of such things as can be exported,
" there should be such pay to the capitalists as will induce
" them to go into it ; otherwise these industries would not
" be carried on, and, therefore, detriment would befall the
" capital of the State and the laborers."
The considerations affecting the employment of our
own people and the Chinese in manufacturing enterprises,
as operatives, are of the same kind precisely as those
affecting employment in agriculture, but the case is more
concrete, and serves to illustrate the rule more perfectly.
I shall let employers of labor in this department, explain
the facts.
Donald McLennan, of the Mission woolen mills, a
man to whom this branch of industry in California owes
more than to any other, testified
" The Chinese are a necessity in this way ; if we had
" six hundred white persons, we would not be sure on
"Monday morning whether one of them would come to
"work or not. If I wanted to borrow $100,000—and I
"had often to borow from $50,000 to $100.000 in starting
" my mill—and had an entire community of white help,
" the banker would tell me at once ;—^ McLennan, I
" ^ would readily give you this sum of money, because I
" • know your intentions are honest, that you are indus-
"^trious, &c., but what security is there that you can
" ^ repay me.' I ^ould reply, ' I have got my business,
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 608.
176
INTRODUCTION OF CHINESE
" ' and I have got my white labor running largely/ But
"he would answer, ^You do not know but that these
" ^ people may strike upon you at any moment, and when
"^your note becomes due you cannot meet it/ But
" Chinese labor, as a portion of the help, is a check upon
" anything of that kind.
" Q. Can you successfully compete with the Eastern
"market? A. Yes, sir.
" Q. Could you substitute white labor to-day and do
"that ? A. Not at the present price of white labor.
" Q. How many operatives have you ? A. We have
" 600 altogether—about 300 Chinese and the rest whites.
" Q. What is the difference in the rates of wages that
"you pay to the two races ? A. We pay our white men
"from $1.75 to $6 a day, and we pay the Chinese 90
"cents a day.
" Q. What is the difference in the amount of work
" they perform ? A. The white help is more skilled
"labor, and the Chinaman does more medium work,
"such as attending machines, and working in lighter
" work.
" Q. They are employed in a different kind of work ?
"A. Yes, sin The white men are the foremen, the over-
" seers, the carpenters, machinists and engineers, and
"work in the dye-house and the several departments of
" work. I wish it understood distinctly that it is not my
" wish, and never has been, to employ any of these people
" where white men should be ; but, at the same time, I
" firmly believe that if the Chinese were driven from the
" State, the State would be more than half bankrupt."
Mr. Beckham, of the San Jose woolen mills, testified ;—^
" We employ Chinamen because it is necessary for us
"to compete in the business. To our white labor we
" have to .pay wages far in advance of what is paid in
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 553.
BENEFICIAL TO OTHER LABORERS,
177
" similar institutions in ' the Eastern States with which
"we come directly into competition. To Chinamen, on
"an average, we pay less. A year and a half ago we
" compared pay rolls with several institutions in the East,
" and I found that in our business and in theirs, there
" was but little difference ; that with our high priced white
" labor and cheap priced Chinese labor, we average with
" them."
Mr. Alfred Wheeler, who, although not an employer
of labor, seems to have been a careful observer of the
industries of the State, testified ;—^
" It is in the light of such an establishment as that of
"woolen mills that I made the remark that the intro-
" duction of Chinese labor is beneficial to the white la-
" borer entirely ; that it enables the white men of Cali-
" fornia to get blankets at a reasonable price, and every
"one uses them; and also that there are a thousand av-
" enues of labor which a factory furnishes, which are not
"performed by the Chinese. All the manufacture of
" boxes in which the goods go, the drayage, the building
" and manufacture of machinery, keeping it in repair, the
"distribution of goods when manufactured, on the rail-
" ways and steamers ; there are a thousand avenues of
"business and trade which follow the introduction of
"such an industry,"
We come now to consider the effect of Chinese compe¬
tition in special industries, such as shoe-making, cigar-
making, and washing.
I have shown in the chapter devoted to the special in¬
dustries of the Chinese in California, that shoe-making
was not carried on to any extent in California, until the
moment when the Chinese, employed at first by our
own people, began to be connected with it. It cannot
be true, therefore, to any great extent, that our own peo-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 529.
L
178
CHINESE HISPIA CEE.
pie, or persons' of other nationalities not Chinese, have
been ousted from it by Chinese competition. In point
of fact it is likely that at no previous date the number
of white persons engaged in shoe-making was so large
as in 1876.
There is one feature of the course of manufacturing
industries in California to which I have not heretofore
adverted, and to which I shall only refer now, as I shall
have occasion to dwell upon it at some length at a later
moment. I mean the evident tendency of white labor to
displace that of Chinamen. One instance of a marked
character is afforded by the shoe-trade, and the story
may best be told in the language of a witness who ap¬
peared before the Congressional commission. This wit¬
ness was Mr. William G. Buchanan. His evidence is sig¬
nificant in more than one direction. He testified ;—
"Q. Are you a manufacturer? A. I am superin-
" tendent of a factory.
" Q. What establishment are you in ? A. Einstein
" Brothers.
Q. Is that an extensive concern ? A. It is one of
" the largest in the city.
" Q. What do they employ generally ? A. All
" white labor.
" Q. Did they formerly employ Chinese labor ? A.
" They did.
" Q. What led to the change from Chinese labor ?
^^A. They thought that they could make shoes just
"about as cheap with whites as with Chinamen, and
" thought that they would try it. They started it grad-
" ually, and accordingly as it went along they found they
" were successful, and they got rid of them all.
" Q. They can make shoes as cheaply with white la-
" bor as with Chinese ? A. They are making shoes as
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 332.
INDUSTRIES OF THE NEEDLE,
179
" cheaply with white labor as they were making them
"with Chinese labor.
" Q. Do you know whether or not there is a white
" man's co-operative shoe establishment ? A. There is.
" Q. Do you know what they receive on the invest-
" ment ? A. It is paying a good deal more than bank-
" ing rates.
" Q. Do you know how much more ? Do you know
"whether it paid for last year 24 per cent ? A. It did."
In regard to the manufacture of cigars, the same re¬
mark may be made again, that our own people were not
displaced by the Chinese, but that the business was be¬
gun, practically, by the Chinamen.
It is to be said also, that in spite of Chinese cheap
labor, a large proportion of the cigars used in California
are made in the East. This means, simply, that the Chi¬
nese have not been able to make them more cheaply
than Eastern manufacturers, and that when white men
choose to enter seriously into the competition, they will
be able in California to accomplish what the white men
in the East are doing. Meanwhile every individual in
the State who uses cigars, gets his supply at less cost
because of the Chinese manufacturer.
In the industries of the needle again, the same line of
argument applies. In the earlier days the State de¬
pended upon the East for its clothing, and its under¬
wear, both for men and for women. Later on, the pres¬
ence of many of our own people, able and anxious to
work at home or in shops, rather than to go into the fields
or into domestic service, led to the introduction of va¬
rious industries of the needle, and these again to the em¬
ployment of the Chinese. One would be glad to know
that the poor women of San Francisco have such a re¬
source reserved Tor their labor, and would not begrudge
to them the poor recompense of their tedious toil. Yet
180
CHINESE LA UND EIES,
it cannot be said that the women of San Francisco are
driven very hard in comparison with their sisters else¬
where. The test of this is the wages paid to them in
factories and in domestic service In the former they re¬
ceive six or eight dollars a week, in the latter nearly if
not quite as much, and the demand in the latter direction
is constant and far in excess of the supply. It is true,
moreover, that the Chinese do not by any means take
up all the need le-work of San Francisco, and it appears
quite certain that they will be displaced from it as the
numbers of our ov/n people increase and the organization
of this kind of enterprise proceeds.
To what I said in regard to the peculiar industry of
the Chinese, laundry work, in the chapter on this in¬
dustry, I find it desirable to add nothing excepting
language used by Mr. Brooks in his testimony before the
Congressional committee ;—^
"We had no washerwomen here formerly, that is to
" say the class was very small and the expense of wash-
"ing was very high. All the poorer classes of the
"community did their own washing. In 1849 there were
" few women here of any kind at all. There were some
"men engaged in washing, Frenchmen, I think, and I
" think some of the natives. The Chinese did not take the
" place of any three thousand, or two thousand, or twelve
" hundred, or any other number of washer-women. They
"now do the washing in great part for small house-
" keepers, and they reduce in that way their expenses of
"living very greatly. When a man has a wife and one
" child, he can get along without any servant at all if he
"puts out the washing. If he has a larger family than
" that, he can get along with one servant, if he will put
" out his washing. If he has his washing done at home,
" he cannot get along with that help. The Chinese laun-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 927.
LIVING EXPENSES.
181
"dries enable a great many mechanics to keep house
"pretty well, who would otherwise live in tenement
" honses."
I find it appropriate at this point to advert to two
further general facts ; first, that Chinese industries have
undoubtedly lowered living expenses in California, and
second, that there are a great many industries into which
they do not enter at all.
It is a matter of course that increased production of the
fruits of the soil reduces the prices at which the consumer
may purchase them. In point of fact, meats excepted,
there is probably nothing of local production, placed upon
the tables of the people of San Francisco, which is not at
least one-half cheaper to-day than it was in 1854 or
perhaps in i860. This is due not only to cheaper pro¬
duction, to which as we have seen, the Chinamen have
contributed in very large measure, but also to the cheap¬
ening of the profits of the distributing agents through
whose hands family supplies of the sort must pass. And
here again the presence of the Chinaman has made itself
felt. There is not a householder who cannot provide
himself daily with the best vegetables and fruits which
the markets supply, from the Chinese vendors who pass
his door each morning.> The same condition of things
may be predicated not only of San Francisco, but also of
all the other cities and towns of the State. The Chinese
are everywhere as constant to employment of this sort
as to the greater industries in which they have engaged.
All this may be a matter of small concern to the
wealthy, but the difference must be of moment to men
who work for the wages of labor. It is claimed in Cali¬
fornia that table supplies of local production are cheaper
and better than elsewhere in the nation. If this is true,
and if the fact ^is largely due to the Chinamen, it is at
once evident that if Chinese competition has broken
182 INDUSTRIES NOT AFFECTED BY CHINESE,
down in any degree the wages of labor, their industries
have simultaneously increased the purchasing power of
these wages in a degree which may, and probably does,
more than compensate for the fall, excepting, if we must
make any exception, in one or two special directions in
which for whatever reason the Chinaman has taken a
more active part.
The industries of San Francisco upon which the Chi¬
nese do not enter are shown in the following list which I
have prepared from Mr. Lessleds tables;—
No. employed.
Agricultural implements 95
Bag manufacturers 84
Bed-comforters 15
Bolt and nut workers 24
Boiler makers 260
Bell foundery and brass works 257
Iron-sheet manufacturers 24
Lead pipes and works 26
Mattresses 78
Meat preservers 58
Mirror factory lO
Maccaroni and vermicelli 34
Marble yards 148
Mucilage 4
Nickel platers 18
Oakum picking 16
Organ builders 14
Pumps 68
Paint works • 11
Plumbers 325
Planing mills 475
Paper mills 20
Provision'packers 34
Saw manufacturers 20
INDUSTRIES OF SAN FRANCISCO. 18^
No. employed.
Saw filers 46
Soap manufacturers 82
Safe factories 65
Stair building 146
Sugar refineries 290
Blacksmiths tools 49
Trunks 85
Tanneries 53^
Engravers tools 5
Type foundery 58
Upholsterers 150
Wood turners 65
Wire works 98
Barbers 1,850
Blacking 14
Belt factories 21
Box factories, packing 428
" " paper 51
tin 21
" " fancy 8
Beds and bedding 919
Billiard factories 35
Book binders 200
Bakers 800
Coffee and spice, preparation of 88
Cracker, (biscuit,) factories 130
White-lead works 10
Chair factories 28
Coppersmiths 60
Coffin factories 46
Coopers 276
Engravers 62
File works 35
Foundery and iron works 1,987
184
EMPLOYERS PESER FE
No. employed.
Flour mills I33
Plumbers and gas fitters 482
Gilders 40
Gold platers - 38
Horseshoe nails 16
The list thus given embraces more than sixty diflferent
industries. Mr. Lessler's table indicates that many of
them are in their infancy, or at least that they have
attained to no considerable development. But what is
being done in them is accomplished by workmen not of
Chinese origin. The number of such is about 12,000.
There is one other considerable department into which
the Chinese have entered—domestic service ; but I allude
to it only to pass it over. For the evidence shows not
only that the supply of white domestics in California is
very limited, and that wages are very high, but also that
they cannot be procured at all in the farming districts
and in the interior generally. There is no occasion for
complaint on the part of this class. In point of fact, the
agents of the anti-Chinese party, who appeared as counsel
before the Congressional commission, do not appear to
have thought it worth while to present any grievance on
behalf of this class.
The facts and considerations presented in this chapter
indicate very conclusively the correctness of my propos¬
ition, that the Chinese in California have not displaced
laborers of our own stock. The argument has not been
exhausted by any means. As already intimated, I shall
have more to say bearing upon it in another place, when
considering the prospects of immigration as affected by
the demand for labor.
For the present, then, I leave this branch of the sub¬
ject, remarking only, in conclusion, that in my judgment
the members of the employing class in California are
CONSIDERA TI ON,
185
t
entitled to great credit for the liberal disposition which
they have shown toward their white employés, and to be
sustained against an unreasoning cry on the part of the
latter ; that the laboring man himself should be taught
to entertain, if possible, broader views of the relations
between capital and wages, and that both employers and
employed should exercise not only judgment in dealing
with the Chinese, but an appreciative respect for their
rights as men, and for the great services which they have
rendered to them, and to the State and nation.
PART III.—CHAPTER III.
OBJECTIONS WHICH HAVE BEEN ADVANCED AGAINST
THE CHINESE. THAT THEY SEND MONEY
OUT OF THE COUNTRY.
The statement that the Chinese send considerable sums out of the
country unfounded. The views of the committee of 1862. When
earnings are large expenses are large. Laborers seldom make any
savings. The Chinese not an exception to the rule. The lower
scale of wages in China does not imply that the Chinese, in a large
sense, are thrifty. Their needs in California different from those at
home. Cost of their clothing compared. The Chinamen are epi¬
cures. Testimony of witnesses. Chinese restaurants in San Fran¬
cisco. Absence of domestic and other restraints. Employment not
continuous. The gross earnings of the Chinese in California. The
amount expended by them. Productive nature of their labor. When
not productive it is still of value to the State in an economical point of
view. General outflow of American wealth for the products of other
regions. Unnecessary sensitiveness in regard to the remittances of
the Chinese.
A further objection urged against the Chinese in Cali¬
fornia is that they draw from the mountains great quan¬
tities of the precious metals and from the employers of
labor, or consumers, a liberal recompense for their services,
and that, living with mysterious cheapness, they are ena¬
bled to send out of the country a large part of the wealth
which pours into their hands. Other fallacious state¬
ments are thus put afloat which are spread zealously over
the whole country, and come to have great weight in
the minds of the people at large and even among legis¬
lators.
I have already made some brief remarks on this sub¬
ject. Tliése I shall repeat and expand in this chapter so
far as may appear necessary to correct the misapprehen-
EXPENSES FOLLOW EARNLNGS.
187
sion in the minds of those persons who are disposed to
consider the facts and to reach just conclusions.
The report of the committee of 1862 presents, as I
believe, the right view of the question. It showed that
the Chinese then in the State, numbering by their esti¬
mate 48,391 persons, of whom they believed 30,000 were
engaged in the mines, expended annually in payments to
white men for services rendered or materials supplied to
them, about fourteen millions of dollars. This is possi¬
bly a large estimate of their expenditures. The official
census of 1860 gives the Chinese population of the State
in i860 as 34,993. If 30,000 of these were in the mines
and for each and every day in the year each one was
earning $2, the aggregate could be $21,900,000, a sum
far in excess of their probable earnings. But reduce the
earnings as we may, or reduce the estimate of their ex¬
penditures as we may, we cannot do away with the sig¬
nification of the table of expenditures presented by the
committee. It is a matter of course that if earnings
were high, expenses were high, and that in the measure
largely of the success of the Chinese as miners, their out¬
lays, whether for ordinary supplies or for personal grati¬
fication and enjoyment were high.
The rule among laborers is that they expend all their
earnings to meet the demands of the moment. The
term laborers, may be applied to those who work with
their hands for wages, and as well to such as work in
mines, such as the placer washings of California. It is
true that the latter are not working for wages but they
are expending their energies to obtain results for the day.
In this, their efforts are not like those of the farmer who
is constantly adding to the value of his farm, by sub¬
jecting it to tillage, and by increasing his stock of
buildings, of anim'äls, etc., or the tradesman who is ex¬
tending his custom. In point of fact, the rule that men
188
UNMARRIED MEN NOT THRIFTY.
who work for wages do not accumulate, is applicable to
persons of higher grade than the manual laborer. It may
be possible for the foreman in a factory, the clerk in a
merchantile house, or the government employé to grow
rich by savings, but the cases in which this happens are
very rare indeed.
There is no possible reason why we should treat the
Chinese in California as exceptions to the rule. They
have been pictured as a very peculiar race, in a great
variety of ways. A certain mystery has been thrown
around them. People have been taught that they pos¬
sess, or are possessed by, all kinds of abominable vices.
Yet they have been credited with one great virtue, that of
thrift, a virtue which necessarily implies the possession of
many others.- We are told in particular, that they live
upon a pittance and that they send their savings home,
to provide for their relatives, or for their own comfort
when they finally retire from their labors among us.
But in point of fact, they are men with the ordinary ne¬
cessities, appetites and weaknesses. They are, perhaps,
more dutiful to parents than people of our own stock,
but this certainly does not increase their opportunities to
economize.
That the Chinese in California are not subject at the
moment to all the necessities of our own people is quite
true. Few of them have families, and they escape in this
way a multitude of expenses ; but neither do they re¬
ceive as large wages, and it is well known that the
unmarried man in the lower grades of life, is less thrifty
as a rule than the one who has a family.
That they come from a stock which is used to pri¬
vations, and who live very cheaply is also true, but the
fact that they live cheaply at home may imply an absence
of thriff,'and of the capacity for enterprise rather than
necessities of an over-powering nature. The countries of
WANTS OF CHINESE IN CALIFORNIA,
189
Europe, where population is the most dense, are some¬
times the most prosperous. In point of fact, it seems
scarcely possible to over populate a country when the
habit of enterprise is strong and labor is made productive
of its best results by right systems of government and of
industry. Without entering upon this question, I may
say that the actual needs of a Chinaman are very differ¬
ent in California from those which attend him in his
natural home. The district from which he comes borders
upon the tropics, and the climate is so mild throughout
the year that a jackqt and pantaloons of cotton cloth
will serve all purposes for nearly the whole year, and one
or two extra garments of the same sort only are needed
at the coldest season. His hat is pleated roughly with
straw, and his foot-gear are sandals made of the same
material. Probably his whole wear for a year could be
purchased for five dollars. But when the same man
stands upon the soil of California, his work, the climate,
and the customs of the country impose other necessities
upon him. He is soon found dressed in coat and panta¬
loons of woolen material, with underwear of cotton
He wears a felt hat, and the leather boots or shoes of the
country. His cut of dress remains peculiar according to
our ideas, although he makes an effort to assimulate it to
our own. As a rule it has seemed to me more comfort¬
able, and of better goods than the dress of the white
laborer.
While this change of dress imposes serious expense
upon him, his boots alone in America costing each year
from twice to four times a^ much as his whole gear in
China, his food is also more expensive. He labors in his
native fields in an easy going, quiet way, without much
mental or physical wear and tear. But in California the
situation is different. He,has far less physical strength
and energy than the white man, and if he is to compete
190
EXTRAVAGANT TASTES OF CHINESE.
with him he must do so in virtue of steady application to
his task. It happens in this way that the plain meal of
rice, which at best costs twice as much in California as it
does in China, must be supplemented by a more nour¬
ishing diet, of which meats form a great part.
It would appear too that the same refinement of taste
which induces him to don, when his means will permit,
whether at home or abroad, clothing of a more or less
beautiful kind, leads him in California to indulge, as
he does at home, in many pleasures of the palate. I
have fallen upon a statement somewhere in the great
mass of evidence taken before the Congressional com¬
mittee, but to which I cannot refer at the moment, that
the food of the Chinese miner in California is more
varied than that of the American. Colonel Hollister
said that they use meats and vegetables in about the
" same proportions as my own family." ^ Another wit¬
ness, an officer of police, stated that there were m.any
Chinese restaurants in the city of San Francisco, well
"supplied with a variety of food, with champagne and
" other wines, and in which you can have anything you
"call for."^ Still another, Mr. John W. Dwinelle, de¬
clared that in his belief "the Chinaman is so good a
" cook because he has got a sweet tooth of his own. The
" Chinamen are very fond of pig, and of duck, and on
" Sundays when we do not employ them on account of
" our religious principles, they live very well I am told." ^
Mr. Gibson describes a Chinese restaurant;—"A three-
" storied building, with balconies in the second and third
" stories, gaudily painted with deep green, and trimmed
"with red, and a profusion of Chinese lanterns helping
" to give the place a peculiarly Oriental appearance," and
says that " like other Californians many of the Chinese
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 795. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1077.
^ Rep, Ch. Im., p. 226.
EXPENSES OF T'HE CHINESE.
191
"live in restaurants. Plain living in a common restau-
" rant can be had by a Chinaman for eight or ten dollars
" a month. Good living will cost from fifteen to twenty
" dollars, according to the taste and ability of the
" boarder." ^
It must not be forgotten that the Chinese in California
as a rule have left their homes at an early age, that is to
say before the usual time among them for contracting
marriages, and that they stand upon our soil free from
the restraints of family discipline and affection. The
patriarchal system of China and the practice of early
marriages conduce in a very large measure to the sta¬
bility of the State and to the moral well-being of the in¬
dividual. But these controlling influences do not follow
the Chinese to our country, and as a consequence he is
a less careful man than he would otherwise be in all his
habits. The indulgence of his tendencies thus indicated,
cause a drain upon his resources which beyond doubt
limits considerably the amount of his eventual savings.
It is to be remembered, again, that many of the Chinese
do not get constant employment. There is a demand
for them at the harvest season, but except at this season
their opportunities among farmers are limited. Through¬
out the whole mining region the gradual working out of
placer deposits, is leaving them less room for enterprise.
In the towns and cities they must take their chances in
the keener competition occasioned by the increase in the
number of the general population and of their own kind.
I have supposed that very nearly all of the Chinese in
California are workers, whether for our people or among
themselves, and at the present moment it is possible that
they are earning an average of sixty cents a day for three
hundred days in a year. This may be too high an esti¬
mate or too low.., At best it is only an estimate. Taking
^ Ch. in Am., p. 69.
192
ECONOMICAL CONSIDERATIONS,
it as such, the individual Chinaman in California would
earn annually $i8o. I have supposed that out of this
sum he would remit to China, or save, lo per cent, of the
whole, say $i8 a year. But let it be granted, for the sake
of the argument, that the saving is 20 per cent, instead
of 10. We have then the gross earnings of the Chinese
in the State annually 75,000 x $1^0=$ 13,500,000
and his savings 75,000x36= 2,700,000
The difference between these amounts is... .$10,800,000
and this sum, at any rate, we may expect to remain in
the country.
Whence, now, is this money derived. Certainly it
comes in part from the mining interests, and so far as it
is drawn from this source, it may be said that it would
not be brought into existence at all as tangible wealth if
it were not for the industry of the given class. It comes
again from the farmers, and the fruit growers, who are
able to pay over so much out of the returns received from
their lands, because these returns yield to them not only
the given amount of money, but beyond this enough more
to meet other expenses, and to leave a margin of profit.
It comes again from the builders of railroads, the re¬
claimers of swamp lands, and manufacturers ; and yet
again, from enterprises in agriculture and in manufactur¬
ing, managed by the Chinese and of which they are the
proprietors. All these industries belong directly and
positively to the class of productive industries, and a
large measure of the produce remaihs in the country,
enabling the general population to live in circumstances
of increased ease, or passes out of the country to pay
the accounts created by their importation of articles of
utility, of beauty, or of personal gratification. It is wealth
which brings wealth, and it is wealth which would not
exist if it had not been for the labors of the Chinese.
ECONOMICAL CONSIDERATIONS.
1Ô3
The pecuniary result to the State, to draw a parallel
which will enable one to grasp my idea more clearly, is
like that which comes to the farmer who goes outside
of the members of his own family in working his lands.
It is well for him if his family is large enough and strong
enough to cultivate his fields, but if not, and he has all
the natural and artificial means required excepting labor,
he may, and generally does, find it to his advantage to
engage laborers outside, although he has to pay to them
wages representing a portion of his produce. The ad¬
vantages to the State, however, are far greater than to the
farmer, because the outgo from the State is only a frac¬
tional part of the money which is paid to the laboring
class.
It is true that a part of the labor of the Chinese in Cal¬
ifornia is not what political economists would style as
directly productive. Some of it is rendered to individ¬
uals and families as personal service ; it yields nothing
that did not exist before. Yet this labor may still be
indirectly productive as enabling the individual, or the
family or some member of it, to labor in a productive
way, or to labor more efficiently than he could do other¬
wise. But when it is not productive in any ordinary
sense, it may still be useful and a matter of gain to the
community. The object of production is to serve the
wants and the convenience of the several members of
the community, and among these wants are some which
require outlays of labor from which, while no production
results, a great deal of convenience and comfort are de¬
rived. It is to be presumed that this convenience and
comfort would demand services in any case, and that the
services given by the Chinese are valuable just in the
measure for which they are commanded.
I am aware that the political economists of America
are very sensitive in regard to the outflow of wealth, re-
M
194
THE OUTFLOW OF MONEY.
garding it often as a loss to the country, for which no
resultant advantages can compensate. I am not alto¬
gether of this opinion, although I adhere to the propo¬
sition that the system of protection to home indus-
ries is required by our immediate circumstances. But
a perfect application or result of the system has not
been obtained by us, and never can be. Our money
does and will continue to go out of the country, to
pay for a thousand and one articles which we do not
produce so well as they are produced abroad, or which
we do not produce at all. A considerable part of
our national bonds are held abroad, and we must pay
the interest every year. Even the money of the poor
man goes out to pay for the tea, the coffee, and the sugar
which he consumes.
Why then should so much stress be laid upon the
paltry amount which the Chinese take away from our
shores. It is not large in the aggregate. It is not a
considerable part of the wealth which they create. It is
an incident of their employment, and we employ them
not because they demand our employment, but because
it is of advantage to us to secure their services. To be
entirely plain, we have had ten talents given to us, and
it is our duty to use them in such manner as to increase
the number, and we do precisely that in employing the
much dreaded " Mongolian."
PART III.—CHAPTER IV.
OBJECTIONS WHICH HAVE BEEN ADVANCED AGAINST
THE CHINESE. THAT THEY ARE A VICIOUS PEOPLE.
The disposition to be censorious criticised. Men are actuated by good
motives. Experience among different nationalities. Race prejudices.
Tendency of the laws. Political considerations. The Chinese sys¬
tem of ethics. Charts of the ethics of the Chinese. Confucian mor¬
als. The moral faculties. The cardinal virtues. Self-examination
among the Chinese. The influence of the Confucian morals upon the
nation. How it is exhibited among the Chinese in California. Char¬
ity for the failures of the Chinese. Habits of Chinese immigrants.
Testimony of Mr. Babcock, Mr, Brier, Mr. Colton, Judge Heyden-
feldt, Mr. Loomis, Mr. Sneath, Mr. Brown, Judge Campbell, and Mr.
Cooledge. Christianity among immigrants. Testimony of Mr. Deal,
Mr. P'rancis, and Mr. Shearer. The witnesses before the Congres¬
sional committee favorable to the Chinese were men of a high grade of
intelligence and respectability. The Chinese a peaceable and easily
governed people. Their vices less dangerous than those of white
men. Statistics of Californian penal institutions, and hospitals. The
results shown favorable to the Chinese.
In dealing with the declarations so often presented to
the world by the anti-Chinese party in California that
the Chinese are a vicious race and that they have trans¬
ferred to our shores some of the worst forms of their
wickedness, I must confess at the outset that my habit
of mind has not been such as to lead me to dwell upon
the defects of my neighbors or the general depravity of
my fellow beings. I have striven always to indulge in
that broad charity which leads one to search out what is
really good among his fellow men, and to seek an ex¬
planation of vice in faults of education, in surrounding
circumstances and, more than all, in failures of judgment
growing out of á disordered or imperfect mental organi-
196
EXPERIENCE AND CHARITY,
zation. I know very well that it is necessary for the
welfare of society that the lines between virtue and vice
should be clearly drawn and that wrong doing should be
punished. I know quite as well, however, if I have not
deceived myself, that there are many minds which are
more or less incapable of distinguishing between truth
and falsehood, right and wrong, and that the defect is
not one of temper or heart, so to speak, but of the brain.
If this is true how great charity should we observe toward
our fellow-men, more especially when we remember that
defects of education and extraordinary temptations,
affect more frequently the classes among whom defects
of mental organization are oftenest found.
While my natural bent of mind has tended to make
me reflect somewhat seriously on the subject, my oppor¬
tunities for observation have been, as I believe, more
than usually extended. My avocation for very many
years was that of a magistrate dealing with a multitude
of matters occurring at a leading sea-port of the world,
and affecting all grades of society and persons of all
nationalities. If my reflections have led me under these
circumstances to adhere more rigidly to my theories,
and in the course of years to recognize the merit of the
broad proposition that the common Creator has not
made his creatures radically different in quality of brain
or in disposition to serve the purpose of their creation,
that all are actuated under normal conditions by good
motives, and that similar disorders of the brain or mis¬
fortunes of circumstances affect all in the same way, I
"have at least the certainties of my experience to lead
lead me to a more perfect trust in my convictions.
I ask 'my readers to dwell a moment upon this part of
my remarks. There are some among them doubtless
who have not been brought into almost daily contact
with men of all classes, and there are others who know a
jRACB PREJUDICES,
197
few individuals only of this race, or that race, among all
the various races which crowd the surface of the earth.
Many hear of vice only through newspaper reports. If
my experiences have been different, and if I have still
come to have a more kindly appreciation of human
nature, the result may deserve consideration. Let us
take at any rate the case of race and class prejudices.
Can there be a doubt in the mind of any candid reader
of history that the depreciation of the French by the
English, which one has observed running through the
literature of the last century, was extreme and in a great
measure unfounded ? Did not the martial courage of the
Turks in the recent war with Russia surprise those who
had thought of them as an Asiatic people enfeebled
by climate and by national vices ? Was not our civil war a
revelation to us of the capacity of the Southern people
for heroic effort, and to them of Northern devotion to
somethings more worthy than the loom and the ledger ?
What man of the North or of the South has not taken a
more liberal view of the rights of the Negro, and of his
capacity to take part in government, since he was en¬
franchised ? Observe again the course of legislation as
expressing the conception of vice among the nations.
The progress of science has taught that there is such a
thing, so to speak, as crime committed, in which no re¬
sponsibility whatever attaches to the individual. It is
the boast of our own country that we have gone further
in the determination of the question of responsibility in
mental disease than any other people. Certain great
principles have been laid down by our legislators and
our judges in this respect, and yet what legislation can
define the border land between disease and sanity.
While we have progressed in this way, how far have we
advanced in our conceptions of the treatment of crime
and criminals ? Broadly stated, the object of punish-
198
NO RACE FREE FROM FAULT.
ment now, in large measure, is the reform of the crim¬
inal, and the word Reformatory has been made to apply
to a class of penal institutions which have only come
into existence of late years.
It is impossible for me to treat in one chapter the
mental and moral peculiarities and delinquencies of the
Chinese, and to trace these back to their sources in
national education, and polity, and in the circumstances
of life prevailing in China. It would be a work of less
difñculty to trace out the causes of the mental and moral
peculiarities, not to say delinquencies, of the American
people. He would be an inconsiderate man who would
deny that there are failures among the Chinese, and I
may be so bold as to say as much of the person who
would hold up our own people as models of virtue, public
and private. I shall not attempt the task, neither shall
I attempt to show that my ways of thinking about the
question of vice are not singular. Those whose studies
or experience have led them to reflect on the subject,
will appreciate my position, and those who have not
been led to such reflections must be taught in other ways
than by my arguments. Yet, one may claim that a
broad charity is called for in the discussion of a subject
in which class "and race prejudices, and the interests of
politicians have been the active agents. It is not be¬
coming in any one to be dogmatic, but I state with
emphasis, that such prejudices and such interests have
occasioned much of the denunciation of the Chinese in
California, and with this preamble I pass on to deal with
the question in a more direct manner.
It is the fashion oí people who condemn the Chinese
for viciousness to say, with an appearance, and doubtless
the impulse, of charity, that they are not Christians, that
they have not been taught to revere one God, and to
determine their methods of life by the precepts of re-
THE ETHICS OF THE CHINESE.
199
vealed religion. This is to be admitted without reserva¬
tion. I know no other sentiment which can supply the
place of religion, and I know no system of religion which
can be compared with our own. It is nevertheless true,
that personal and civic virtues of an exalted sort may
exist where the faith of Christ is unknown, and that a
system of morals of a high order may be arrived at and
taught in the absence of revealed religion.
If one stops but a moment to reflect upon the facts
that the empire of China is populous beyond the measure
of any other nation, and that it has had a settled govern¬
ment, and retained its autonomy for a longer period than
any other nation, he will be ready to believe that her
rulers and public men have not been destitute of
capacity nor of virtue, and that her people have not
been, to say the least, more vicious than other peoples.
Continuity of national existence and of government is
an argument in favor of a people and of their systern,
which no sophistry can condemn.
It would not serve my purpose here to describe the
Chinese system of government, but I may justly call
attention to their system of morals. In doing this, it
would be easy to present its leading features in my own
language, or in that of those who have studied it more
closely, and with greater opportunities, than I have done.
It is not necessary to do either, because, fortunately, the
whole system may be presented in concrete form from
a Chinese source. I refer to a series of charts exhibiting
the ethical philosophy of the Chinese, translations of
which have been given to the world by Dr. Martin of the
Peking University.^ At the risk of seeming to extend
my writing to an undue length, I reproduce these trans¬
lations here.
^ Hanlin Papers, p.'163.
A OHAET OF CHINESE ETHICS.
IN FOUR PARTS.
Part I.—Chart of the Great Study.
-<
/This contains the_ True Tradition of the Holy Sages,
Whoever obtains this doctrine may live in pros¬
perity and die in peace. I have accordingly con¬
densed it into_ a chart, to be hung on the right of
your easy chair, to. aid your study of virtue, just as
the ancients made use of inscriptions on their gir¬
dles and wash-basins.
V
Heaven having given existence to man, the doctrine of the Great Stud,y succeeded, and established order in society.
Restricted in its sphere, it produces the perfection
of individual excellence—a Holy Sage,
His aim is.
PERSONAL VIRTUE.
The means to its attainment are—
I. Propriety of Conduct.
a. Right Feeling.
3. Sincerity of Purpose.
4. Intelligence of Mind.
C From the Son of Heaven
< down to the private man, every one must begin
t with the Cultivation of Personal Virtue.
With free scope for its exercise, it makes-a
Reformer of the World—a true King.
His aim is,
SOCIAL IMPROVEMENT.
Fidelity and Truth.
Suavity and Respect.
Dignity of Carriage.
Precision of Wor^ and Actions.
'Avoiding Prej'udice.
Restraining the Passions.
Cherishing Good Impulses.
.Adhering to the Just Mean.
Self-examination.
Scrutiny of Secret Motives.
Religious Reverence.
Fear of Self-deception.
The Discipline of
the Family.
-<
2.
•<
Rejection of Error.
Comprehension of the Truth.
Quickness of Moral Perception.
Insight into Providence. o.
Study of the Laws of Nature.
Study of the Constitution of Man.
^ Study of the Records of History.
The Great Study stops only at
The Government
of the Empire.
The Subjugation
flit. Pacification)
of the World.
Perfection.
The means to its attainment are —
( Filial Piety.
Fraternal Love.
Conj'ùgal Fidelity.
Care in Choice of Associates.
Strictness in Intercourse of the Sexes.,
Attention to Established Rules.
Instruction to Children.
Caution against Partiality.
Harmony with Neighbors.
Regard for Frugality.
Science of Government.
Power of Combination.
Reverence for Heaven and Ancestors.
Discrimination in Choice of Agents.
Love for the People.
Zeal for Education.
Strictness in Executing the Laws.
^ Wisdom in Conducting War. [ments.
Righteousness in Rewards and Punish-
Liberality in admitting the Expression
of Sentiment.
Frugality in Expenditures,
>
-<
I
Skill in Legislation.
Part II.—A Chart of the Heart. The Chart of the Great Study will acquaint you with the prin¬
ciples of virtue ; but as the keeping of the heart is a matter
of great difficulty, I accordingly subjoin this chart of it.
^ The Wisdom Heart is minute and subtle,
(f. e., the germ of virtue is small and feeble.)
Influence of Primordial Harmony.
The Wisdom Heart.
1. Obeys Heaven.
In Propriety of Conduct.
{Regulating the External Actions,
and
Moderating the Internal Passions.
In the Exercise of Charity.
¡Conquering the Malevolent Affections,
and
Governing the Desires and- Aversions.
2. Restrains Self.
In Subduing the Lusts.
r Repressing Self-love,
By -< and
(.Curbing Animal Appetite.
In Guarding against the dangers of Solitude.
•D (Not injuring one's body, soul, nature, or life.
^ 1 Not forgetting the reverential exercise of self-control.
He who pursues this course will daily rise in illumination, and finally
become a saint or sage. Propitious stars will shine on him, and happiness
attend his footsteps.
The Human Heart is in constant jeopardy,
. . (z. <?., beset with dangers and prone to evil.)
Point of Divergence
between Shunzxiú. Che.'^
Influence of Gross Matter.
The Human Heart.
I. Indulges Self.
In Habits of Indolence.
Leading to 1 and Drankenness.
° I Idleness and Waste of Time.
2.
In Carnal Lusts.
T J Shameless Excesses,
heading to-j Immoralities.
In Avarice.
Leading to
Dismisses Conscience.
In Yielding to Impulse.
■p j Sensual Pleasure.
^ ( Anger, Strife, etc.
In Treachery.
Involving I
In Hypocrisy.
Dissimulation and
Involving] ^Srd.
*The best and worst characters mentioned in history.
He who follows this course, daily drifts into deeper^ corruption, and
finally becomes a beast or monster. Evil stars glare on him, and calamity
overtakes him.
S
§
I
I
to
O
Part III.—A Chart of Moral Excellence.
' Momentarily keep it in mind.
BEXEVOJLEIiiCE.
Puhlic Spirit.—Give all their dues, and let not self set up an opposing
interest ; but find your own good in the common weal.
Charity.—Do not to others what you would not have done to you.
, Remember not old injuries, and treat men according to their
several capacities.
Filial Piety.—Gratify the wishes of your parents, and worship your ances¬
tors ;
Carry out their pu^oses, and reflect honour on their name.
Mercy.—^Treat all children with kindness, not your own only.
Pity the widow and fatherless, and give succor to brute animals.
Magnanimity.—A great soul can bear offence without resenting it.
He mingles with men on easy terms, and affects no superiority.
Kindness must be repaid, but not injury.
Rather suffer a wrong than do one.
The two roads of virtue and vice_ are clearly treated in
the above chart, but as the virtues are not easy to
practice, I add a chart of moral excellence.
Tremblingly hold it fast,
«IIJSTICE.
Manliness.—If you fail in anything, seek help in yourself.
Stand to your post, and let not vague desires draw you from it.
Fraternity.—Respect your elder, and be kind to your younger brothers.
Reverence age, and give precedence to years.
Courage.—When you see the right, do it ; when you know your fault, cor¬
rect it.
If rich be not insolent ; nor cringing if poor.
Integrity.—Hold it fast, change not for custom.
Be content with simple fare, and when you see gain, ask. Is it
just ?
Modesty.—Let the men be continent, the women chaste.
Abhor evil, and fear falling.
WISBOM.
Knowledge of Man.—Detect false pretences, cleave to the virtuous, and avoid the vicious. Let not floating rumors move you to dislike a good man.
Knowledge of Nat^ire.—Be erudite, inquisitive, thoughtful, discriminating. Investigating heaven and earth, the past and present.
Knowledge of Fate.—Practice virtue, take care of yourself, do your duty; and let good or ill fortune come as it may.
Use of the Eyes and Ears.—Keep the distant in clear view, and have an open ear for good counsel. Read no immoral books, hearken not to flattering words.
BOEITEXESS.
Respect.—Proceeding from an inward feeling.
It manifests itself in apparel and demeanor.
Caution.—Treasures the fruits of observation, hides the bad, and publishes
the good.
It preserves conjugal harmony, and maintains decorum in the
intercourse of the sexes.
Htimility.—When rich, feels poor ; when full, feels empty.
Makes no boast of abilities, nor prides itself on place or reputa¬
tion.
Deferetice.—Declines much, and takes little;
And is only solicitous to find a lower place than others.
OOOB FAITH.
Simplicity.—In word and deed, in and out, one and the same.
In study or action, uniform from beginning to end.
Truth.—The words of the inner chambers should bear repeating in the
palace.
Your private life should be such that heaven and earth might
witness it.
Sincerity of Purpose.—Complete your engagements.
And be faithful in behalf of others.
Honesty of Intention.—So live that your heart will not condemn you, the
people dislike you, your family shame you, or your friends
reproach you.
Part IV.—A Chart for SeLF-ExAMINATION. The virtues may be copied from the chart of moral
excellence, but lest vices should creep m unawares,
I conclude with a formula for self-examination.
If you have faults, correct them.
OFFJEXCES A.ÔA.ÏXST BEXEVOEEXCE.
Inflicting misery on family relatives ;
And finding pleasure in giving pain to man or beast..
Envy.—Jealous of the advantages of others, obstructing their promo-
tion.
. Offended at the superiority of others, indulging in detraction.
-^Playing wicked pranks, and forgetting favors.
' Delighting to hear of others' faults, and taking pleasure iu pub¬
lishing them.
Selfishness.—Consulting its own interest, and
Seeking its own advantage.
Treachery.—Inveigling others into evil, and^
Involving them in calamity for its own ends.
Petulance.—With spirit so contracted as not to endure an accidental
touch.
If none, redotible your zeal in the j>ursuit of virttte.
OFFEXCES JLOAIXST eFIJSTICE.
Cupidity.—Never satisfied, but always longing.
Indulging the senses, coveting fame, and pursuing gain.
Flattery.—With artificial smiles and simulated voice.
Playing the sycophant in hope of power.
Parsimony.—Neither .succoring the needy, nor rewarding the descrying.
Concealing wealth, and affecting poverty.
Indecision.—Indolently procrastinating, and shifting with custom.
Drifting with the current, and bending before power.
Discontent.—Uneasy in its condition, and destitute of self-satisfaction.
In everything it murmurs against heaven, and finds fault with
man.
Perversity.—Capricious in choices and aversions, not seeking the right ;
Following inclination, and regarding neither good nor evil.
OFFEXCES AOAIXST WISBOM.
Depravity.—Neither inquiring right nor wrong.
Nor distinguishing good from evil.
Levity.—Leading to inconsiderate words and actions.
Shallowness.—Prying and meddlesome.
Mistaking slight praise or blame for glory or shame.
Interpreting slight favour or opposition as love or hatred.
Obstinacy.—Holding to its own opinions, and refusing to be convinced.
Narrowness.—Content with a narrow circle of familiar thoughts, and
Unwilling to-extend the view, or enlarge the sphere of knowledge.
OFFEXCES AOAIXST FOMTEXESS.
Pride.—Using wealth and power for self-magnification.
Employing talents and learning to eclipse others.
Arrogance.—Immodest in language, disrespectful to the aged.
Perverse in action, and heedless of advice.
Carelessness.—In affairs negligent of details.
In disposition harsh, in manners blunt.
Ostentation.—In all things tending to excess.
In general aiming to outshine others.
OFFMiXCES AOAÎXST OOOB FAITM.
Superficiality.—Without solid virtues, seeking an empty reputation.
Making a fair show, but hasty and insincere in friendship.
Insincerity.—With heart and life at variance.
Coveting the name of virtue.
Deceit,—In words false, in actions dishonest.
Intrigue,—Scheming, calculating.
Plotting and shifting.
S
§
I
to
o
CO
204
THE ETHICS OF THE CHINESE,
In the essay with which Dr. Martin has published these
charts, he says that their author is unknown, but that "the
" want of a name detracts nothing from their value. The
"author has no merit beyond the presentation of the
"subject in a tabular view. Of the ethical system so
" exhibited, he originated nothing ; and the popularity of
" his work is due mainly to the fact that it is regarded
" as a faithful synopsis of the Confucian morals."
Part I, as Dr. Martin continues, is " an epitome of the
" ^ Takio,^ the most admired production of their great phil-
" osopher, and prized so highly for the elegance of its
" style and the depth of its wisdom, that it may be often
" seen inscribed in letters of gold and suspended as an
" ornamental tablet in the mansions of the rich."
Part II, according to our author, "is chiefly interesting
"for the views it presents of the conditions of human
" nature. It is not a map of the moral faculties, but a
"delineation of the two ways which invite the footsteps
" of every human pilgrim. On the one hand are traced
"the virtues that conduce to happiness: on the other
" the vices that lead to misery. Over the former is writ-
"ten Tao-sin, 'Wisdom Heart,' and over the latter, Jîn-
" sin, ' Human Heart,' as descriptive of the dispositions
"from which they respectively proceed. These terms,
"with the two sentences of the chart in which they oc-
" cur, are found in the Shu-king, one of the oldest of the
"sacred books, and are there ascribed to the Emperor
" Shun, who filled the throne about B. C. 2,100. Quaint
" and ill-defined, they have been in use through this long
" period, as a simple expression for an obvious truth—
"recording as the result of a nation's experience, that
" to err is human."
Part III, our author proceeds, "presentsus with good-
" ness in,all its forms known to the Chinese. It is chiefly
" remarkable for its grouping—the entire domain being
THE CARDINAL VIRTUES,
205
" divided into five families, each ranged under a parent
"virtue. The Greeks and Romans reckoned four cardh
" nal virtues, but a difference in the mode of division,
" implies no incompleteness in the treatment of the sub-
"ject. The Chinese do not, because they count only
" twelve hours in the day instead of twenty-four, preter-
" mit any portion of the time ; neither when they num-
" ber twenty-eight signs in the zodiac, instead of twelve,
"do they assign an undue length to the starry girdle,
"of the heavens. The matter is altogether arbitrary.
"Cicero makes four virtues cover the whole, ground
" which the Chinese moralist refers to five.
" But while, in a formal treatise, definition and expla-
" nation may supply the defects of nomenclature or ar-
" rangement, the terms of a moral class, like that of the:
" cardinal virtues, are not without effect on the popular
"mind. In this respect the Chinese have the advant-
"age. Theirs are, Jin, E., Che, Sin, Le^Benevolence,
"Justice, Wisdom, Good-faith, Politeness. Those of
"Plato and Tully are^ Justice, Prudence, Fortitude and
"Temperance. In comparing these Prudence and Wis-
"dom may be taken as identical, though the former
"appears to be rather more circumscribed in its sphere
"and tinged with the idea of self-interest. Temperance
"and Politeness are also identical, the Latin term, con-
" templating man as an individual and the Chinese
"regarding him as a member of society. The former,
" Cicero defines as ro rt pert or, and a sense of propriety,
" or love of order, is precisely the meaning which the
" Chinese give to the latter. In the European code, the
"prominence given to Fortitude is characteristic of a
" martial people, among whom at an earlier period, under
"the name of aperrj, it usurped the entire realm of
"virtue. In the progress qf society it was compelled to
"yield the throne to Justice, and accept the place of a.
206
BENEVOLENCE AND GOOD-EAITH.
" vassal, both Greek and Latin moralists, asserting that
" no degree of courage which is not exerted in a moral
"cause, is worthy of a better appellation than that of
audacity. They erred, therefore, in giving it the posi-
"tion of a cardinal virtue ; and the Chinese have exhib-
" ited more discrimination by placing it in the retinue of
"Justice. They describe it by two words, Chih and
"Yung. Connected with the former and explaining its
" idea, we read the precept, ^ When you fail, seek help in
" ^ yourself ; stand firm to your post, and let no vague
" ' desires draw you from it.' Appended to the latter is
"the injunction, 'When you see the right, doit; when
"'you know a fault correct it. Neither yield to excess,
" ' if rich, nor swerve from right, if poor.' What a noble
" conception of moral courage—of true fortitude !
"Benevolence and Good-faith, which are quite sub-
" ordinate in the heathen systems of the West, in that of
" China, are each promoted to the leadership of a grand
" division. In fact, the whole tone of Chinese morals, as
"exhibited in the names and order of their cardinal
" virtues, is quite consonant with the spirit of Christianity.
"Benevolence leads the way in prompting to positive
" efforts for the good of others ; Justice follows to regulate
" its actions ; Wisdom sheds her light over both ; Good
" faith imparts the stability necessary to success ; Polite-
" ness, or a sense of propriety, by bringing the whole
" conduct into harmony with the fitness of things, com-
" pletes the radiant circle.
" Part IV. is the counterpart of the preceding, and is
" interesting mainly on account of the use for which it
" is designed. The whole chart is practical, and is in-
" tended, the author tells us, to be suspended in the
"chamber of the student as a constant monitor. The
" terms in^which he states this contain an allusion to a
" sentiment engraved by one of the ancient emperors on
SELF-EXAMIA^A TIO AT.
207
" his wash basin ;—^ Let my heart be daily cleansed and
"'renewed, and be kept fresh and pure forever/ This
"part of the work has for its special object to aid the
" reader in detecting the moral impurities that may have
" attached themselves to his character, and carrying for-
"ward a process of daily and constant improvement.
"To some it may be a matter of surprise to find this
" exercise at all in vogue in a country where a divine re-
" ligion has not imparted the highest degree of earnestness
" in the pursuit of virtue. The number who practice it is
" not large ; but even in pagan China, the thorny path
" of self-knowledge exhibits ' here and there a traveler.'
"Tsang-fu-tsze, an eminent disciple of Confucius, and
"the Xenophon of his Memorabilia, thus describes his
" own practice. ' I every day examine myself on three
"'points. In exertions on behalf of others, have I
" ' been unfaithful} In intercourse with others, have I
" ' been untrue } The instruction I have heard have I
"'made my own V An example so revered could not
"remain without imitators. Whether any of them has
" surpassed the model is doubtful ; but his ' three points,'
" they have multiplied into the bristling array displayed
" in the chart, which they daily press into their bosoms,
"as some Papal ascetics were wont to do their jagged
" belts. Some of them, in order to secure greater fidelity
" in this unpleasant duty, are accustomed to perform it
" in the family temple, where they imagine their hearts
" laid bare to the view of their ancestors, and derive
" encouragement from their supposed approval."
I have, thus, in the briefest possible space, but in the
most authoritative form, presented to my readers a picture,
so to speak, of the Confucian ethics. A word now is needed
to indicate the influence which they have exerted upon
the nation. I cannot do this more briefly, more thoroughly,
or authoritatively, than by quoting from Dr. Legges' intro-
208
DIFFUSION' AND INFLUENCE
duction to his great translation of the Confticián clas>-
sics
"At the present day education is widely diffused
" throughout China. In no other country is the schoolmas-
" ter more thoroughly abroad, and in all schools it is Con-
" fucius who is taught. The plan of competitive examin-
" ations, and the selection for civil offices only from those
" who have been successful candidates, have obtained for
" more than twelve centuries. The classical works are the
" text books. It is from these almost exclusively that the
" themes proposed to determine the knowledge and the
" ability of the student are chosen. The whole of the
" magistracy of Chinais thus versed in all that is recorded
" of the sage, and in the ancient literature which he prer
"served. His thoughts are familiar to every man in
" authority, and his character is more or less reproduced
*^in him.
" The official civilians of China, numerous as they are,
"are but a fraction of its students, and the students, or
" those who make literature a profession, are again but a
"fraction of those who attend school for a longer or
"shorter period. Yet so far as their studies have gone,
" they have been occupied with the Confucian writings.
"In many school-rooms there is a tablet or inscription
" on the wall, sacred to the sage, and every pupil is re-
" quired, on coming to school on the ist and 15th days
"of each month, to bow before it as an act of worship.
"Thus, all in China who receive the slightest tincture of
"learning, do so at the fountain of Confucius. They
" learn of him and do homage to him at once. During
"his lifetime he had three thousand disciples. Hun-
"dreds of millions are his disciples now. For two thou-
"sand years he has reigned supreme, the undisputed
"teacher'of this most populous land.''
It may be asked what the Confucian classics and eth-
OF CHINESE ETHICS.
209
ÎCS have to do with the Chinese in California. I answer
at once that they have much to do with them. The
whole structure of government in China is permeated by
the principles of which they are the expositors. The
whole character of family life has been moulded by them.
There is no Chinaman in his native country, or in ours,
whose conceptions of filial duty have not been affected
by the sentiments which Confucius taught, and which
have come to be a part of the daily life of the immense
masses of the empire. All the influence of a government
which is founded upon the patriarchal idea, and has
devoted no small part of its efforts to the diffusion of ed¬
ucation, and has considered education as having for its
more immediate object the diffusion of a system of mor¬
als suited to the requirements of the people and the sta¬
bility of the empire, have been so directed as to give au¬
thority to his teachings. The Emperor is the father of
his people. His officers take his place as such in the
administration of affairs. If the father or the mother of
any officer dies he must retire frorn duty for a period of
years to mourn for the deceased one. To wives or daugh¬
ters who have shown extraordinary devotion, monu¬
ments of imperishable stone, large, ornamented, and en¬
graven with legends describing the merits of the individ¬
ual, are put up by imperial decree, and may be seen scat¬
tered at not infrequent intervals along all the highways
of the empire. The worship of ancestors has grown
out of this system of ethics, and of the efforts made by
government, and every Chinaman among us who ar¬
ranges in life that his bones shall be sent back to his na¬
tive land to rest with his ancestors, bears unconscious
testimony to the influence of the great teacher.
It is idle to say, then, that the Chinaman who reaches
our shores, does ,not bear with him the impulses derived
from the ethics of his race. He has drawn them into his
N
210
MORAL CULTURE
being with his mother's milk. He has imbibed them
from the attitude of respect insensibly adopted by every
member of his family toward the parents of the family,
and by every member of his community toward the elders
of the place. He knows no other pathway than that which
has been trodden from time immemorial by the teem¬
ing millions of his countrymen on the pilgrimage of life.
As he hopes for prosperity here, or rest in the land be¬
yond the grave, he draws the faith of his ancestors to his
heart. It is an always present, over-shadowing belief,
which does not keep him perfectly in the ways of recti¬
tude, but what faith is there of human or divine origin
which accomplishes perfectly that result. And if there
is failure, and we are stern, let us still remember that
charity which is commended to us by our own system as
the greatest of all our duties, and which would lead us to
add not to his burdens, but to cheer and encourage him
by example and by deed. I mistake the generosity of
my country people, my faith in human nature is too con¬
fiding, if we are to take any other course. That great
sentiment which has enfranchised and raised up a whole
nation of another race and hue, which is providing for
the sick and fatherless among us by charitable insti¬
tutions of greater magnitude than have been seen else¬
where, and which is sending out the messengers of the
Cross into all lands, will not fail in this emergency.
Following the course which I have already adopted^
when dealing with questions of fact, I propose now to
place before my readers the testimony of Californians re¬
garding the moral qualities of the Chinese. For obvious
reasons this will include statements of a special nature
indicating their faithfulness at work, their peaceable ten¬
dencies, their sobriety, etc. Afterward I shall allude to
the other ^de of the case, and indicate that we cannot
rightfully visit the iniquities of some of their numbers
OF THE CHINESE IN CALIFORNIA.
211
upon the whole class of immigrants, and that we have
ourselves to blame measurably for the evils which do un¬
doubtedly exist.
Mr. Babcock testified ;—^
" Q. In your dealings with the Chinese, how do you
find them for honesty and integrity } A. They are
" very keen, clever merchants ; they buy closely, I never
lost a dollar with one of them in my life. I would trust
"them with four, five, ten, or fifteen thousand dollars just
" as soon as I would any of the jobbers in the city.
" Q. Would you not trust them a little sooner ? A.
"No; I cannot say I would trust them a little sooner.
" Mr. John Parrott did all their banking business here for
" years, and he told me that he had never lost one dollar
" of principal or interest from any Chinaman while he
" was in the business. We sell them Mexican dollars
" frequently ; every week almost, and if they want to take
"them to their place to examine them, we always let
" them do it. * I think they pay their debts of all
"sorts and kinds ten times more promptly than white
" people ; I believe they pay their rents better and more
" promptly."
The Rev. Mr. Brier said ;—
" I believe the laboring class of Chinese are less cor-
"rupting on the people here, than any other class of
" foreigners that we have in the land. That is my firm
" belief. I have employed them ; I have had them on
" my place ; I have had them near to me, and I put more
" confidence in them than in any other foreign nationality
"whatever. ^ ^ They are a very polite people.
" When I go out to the field, they bid me good-morning
" in a very polite manner. They are not easily excited ;
" they are very equable in their temper of mind. They
" are very cleanly ; they keep themselves neat, and
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 711. ^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 576.
212
GOOD-FAITH OF CHINESE MERCHANTS.
" clean, and nice ; there is nothing offensive about them.
" Scarcely any of them ever swear ; none of them that I
have ever known drink whisky."
Mr. Colton said ;—^
" I have never had occasion to find fault with them.
They have always been prompt, and faithful to carry
out their engagements. I think that you can consider
them an intellectual people, a thinking people. They
"are not a people to fiy kites and make a great fuss, but
" they go along steadily and persistently, and they are
" industrious and frugal. I never saw a drunken China-
" man in my life. They are always themselves ; they do
" not have any sprees. I have heard of their smoking
" of opium, but out of three or four thousand on the road
" there are no opium smokers. There is no trouble with
" them ; they are always on hand in the morning ; they
" do a full day's work ; and they are certainly the most
" cleanly laborers we have,"
Judge Heydenfeldt said ;—^
" Q. From your acquaintance with the population of
" California of all kinds, how does the morality and the
" behavior of the Chinese contrast with the morality and
"behavior of immigrants from Europe.? A. Taking
" the classes that we have seen before us, the Chinese are
" something better. I think they are more faithful, more
" reliable and more intelligent. ^ I think that they
"have more industry than the corresponding class of
" whites. ^ ^ I think that they are thoroughly reliable
" and perfectly faithful to their engagements,"
The Reverend Mr. Loomis said ;—^
" The Chinese at home, in their own country, are out-
" wardly the most correct, the most thrifty, and unexcep-
" tionable, in their domestic and commercial life, of any
" of the nations who have not enjoyed the advantages of
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 6oi. Rep. Ch. Im., p. 450.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 509.
OF THE CHINESE AT LARGE.
213
" a Christian civilization. As a body in this country
" they are a quiet, inoffensive, docile people. There are
"none among them like the hoodlum element among our
"lawless boys and young men. There are none who
" compare to the low, profane, debauched, drunken
"crowds, that infest portions of most American and
" European cities."
Mr. Sneath, manager of the Merchants Bank, said ;—^
" I have been a merchant most of my time in Califor-
" nia. I have dealt a great deal with Chinese, and with
"Chinese merchants in this city particularly. I have
"always found them truthful, honorable, and perfectly
" reliable in all their business engagements. I have done
" business with them to the amount of several millions of
" dollars. I have never had a single one of them fail to
" live up to his contract. I never lost a dollar by them
" in all mv business with them."
Mr. Brown, cashier of the Bank of California, said ;—
" In our business transactions with Chinese merchants,
"they have always been very straightforward and very
" correct."
Judge Campbell said ;—
" Q. What is the moral character of Chinese immi-
" grants, as compared with that of immigrants from other
" countries ? A. I am not prepared to answer that
"question definitely, but from the general knowledge I
"have upon the subject I do not think they differ much
" from any other class of immigration of the same char-
" acter and standing as themselves ; that is, in the same
" vocations, following the same line of life."
Mr. Joseph A. Cooledge, manager of the Merchants'
Exchange, said ;—^
" The rule has obtained to a great extent to charge
" the offenses of- individual Chinese to the nation, while
^ Rep. Ch. Im.,p. 542. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 733.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 797. ^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 490,
214 TESTIMONY OF TEACHERS OF RELIGION.
" crimes of other people would be fixed on the individual -
" alone, without regard to his nationality. I am not con-
" vinced that the Chinese are less law-abiding than other
"people, though, through the prejudice that exists against
" them, many are arrested for crimes which, if committed
" by what is called a white man, would pass unnoticed,
" and our laws show a larger proportion of arrests than if
" the laws were impartially executed. * If, as is claimed,
" the greater portion of the Chinese now here are of the
" lowest order of their own countrymen, it speaks volumes
" in favor of Chinese civilization, and a strong induce-
" ment to encourage a larger immigration of the better
"classes. * * Chinese merchants at the Exchange
" are treated just the same as the people of. any other
" nation. They are treated with as much courtesy on
" 'change as anybody could be."
The Reverend David Deal presented to the Congres¬
sional commission a memorial of the " members of the
" preachers' meeting of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
" in the city of San Erancisco." It contains the follow-
" ing statements, among other things of interest
"We have carefully noted their habits of industry and
" quietness of demeanor, and have rarely known them to
"solicit alms.
"In many of our churches we have Sabbath schools,
" as well as the night schools, in which they receive in-
" struction, and we find them eager to learn our language.
"They take an interest in reading the Scriptures, and
" manifest anxiety to understand lessons of truth.
" We have given personal attention to the missionary
" efforts of the different churches on the coast, and have
" been personally acquainted with a number of the con-
" verts, in whose piety and purity of intention in joining
*
" the Christian church we have entire confidence.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p; 443.
TEACHERS OF RELIGION,
215
" The Chinese native preachers are called to endure
" the persecution of the early Christian church. We have
" in our number those who have witnessed, personally,
" their heroic devotion to the truth.
"We would ask that the Christian sentiment of the
" land be not wholly ignored, for it is not confined to the
" unthinking multitude who, for the time, can be ruled
" by passion. And we really fear it would require a more
" potent effort to convert some of them to Christianity,
" or to a more correct appreciation of a genuine Christian
" civilization than it would the Chinese."
Mr. Easterby said
" Q. How are they, then, in regard to performing their
" contracts, generally ? A. Wherever I have employed
" them they have faithfully carried them out.
" Q. What do you say in regard to their honesty}
" A. I have never found a dishonest Chinaman.
" Q. How is it in regard to their temperance ? A. I
"have never seen one—in fact I have never known one
"—to drink liquor."
The Reverend John Francis, a missionary of the Bap¬
tist Home Missionary Society, said ;—
" I find the Chinese to be just like other people ; I
" cannot perceive any difference at all. When we bring
" religious truths to bear upon them, they appreciate and
"exemplify religious principles just like other people.
" I have been, to some extent, connected with almost all
" nationalities in both hemispheres. I hold the office of
" a minister, and I am not able to point out any difference
"between a Chinaman and people of other national-
"ities, Welsh, Irish, French, Scotch, &c. When I bring
" the truth to bear upon their intellects and hearts, the
" effect is alike."
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 746. ^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 484.
216
GENERAL TESTIMONY,
Colonel Hollister, speaking of the Chinese in the town
of Santa Barbara, said ;—^
^'Out of the whole four hundred in the place, there
^'have been four arrests in the course of a year. Two
"of them were dismissed ; two cases were for petty lar-
" ceny, stealing vegetables, or something like that, from
" their own people. I never saw a better population in
" my life."
Mr. Jessup said ;—
" I do not believe I ever had a Chinaman in my em-
" ploy who ever took a dollar's worth of property from
" me. In the match factory the habit had been to take
"revenue stamps all the way from $i, up to $1,500, at a
"time, and leave them in charge of the Chinamen, and
" I do not believe that we have ever lost a dollar's worth
"of stamps since we have used them. Repeatedly I
"have given my Chinamen $1,500 worth of stamps at a
" time. I do not believe I have ever had one lie to me.
" I certainly have never found it out if he has. As far as
" my experience goes I find them very truthful."
Mr. McLennan said ^
" I never found a case of theft among them. It is
"possible that such things might take place and we not
" know it, but we have never discovered anything of the
" kind, or noticed that anything was taken away."
Mr. Beckham said ;—
"It is hard to speak of the honesty of any people as
"a whole class. There are good, bad, and indifferent
" among the Chinese, as among any other class of people.
" I can safely say that they will average well. * ^ Our
" business is with Chinese to a considerable extent. We
"have carried to the account of profit and loss from
"$5,000 to $8,000 a year, and $75 covers all we have
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 744*
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 821.
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 607.
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 555*
GENERAL TESTIMONY.
217
"ever lost by a Chinaman. ^ ^ There are Chinese
"merchants in the city whom I would credit to-day
" $20,000, who have not got $2,000 visible to me. They
"never fail to pay."
Mr. Roberts said ;—
" I do not think they are models as to honesty, but
" they are about as reliable as the common run of men
"who fill such positions. If you take the educated, in-
"telligent Chinamen, the merchants, I find them very
" reliable,, very trustworthy, and we seldom have the dis-
" agreement of a cent in our accounts."
The Reverend Mr. Shearer said ;—^
"Notwithstanding the difiSculty of inducing a heathen
"people to renounce idolatry and ancestral worship, and
" to give up friends and worldly prospects to gain nothing
" but peace of conscience here, and heaven hereafter ;
" and notwithstanding the fact that the brutal treatment
"they often receive from an idle, vicious, and prejudiced
" class of our own citizens has a tendency to make them
" despise Christianity because they erroneously attribute
" these wrongs to a Christian people, the progress of our
" mission work has been eminently encouraging, both as
" to the number of converts, their integrity and piety, and
" as to the increase in the means and agencies employed,
" and the sympathy manifested by the churches of our
" denomination." (Presbyterian).
Mr. Wheeler said ;—
" I have found them a pacific, mild, and gentle people,
" so far as I have had experience with them. Those who
"have been in my employment as domestic servants, I
" have always found extremely subordinate and respect-
" ful, quiet, attentive, and rather avoiding difficulties, in
" such cases as I have seen, than seeking them. They are
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 443. ®Rep. Ch. Im., p. 517.
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 632.
218
GENERAL CONCLUSIONS.
"conscious, evidently, of the prejudices existing against
" them. The children of the community are disposed to
" pelt them with stones, and they avoid giving them the
" opportunity. I have seen them go around a block rather
" than pass by four or five boys whom they thought might
" stone them, not because they personally feared the boys,
" but they did not want to be subjected to the annoyance."
The evidence which I have thus quoted, is certainly
not unfavorable to the Chinese in California. The wit¬
nesses cited, are each and all of more or less prominence
in the State and of undoubted intelligence. They are
thoughtful and experienced men, whose views for all
reasons are entitled to much consideration. And those
views are not those of a minority of the witnesses who
were actually called before the commission. I have, by
no means exhausted the statements favorable to the
Chinese. If I had taken them all out from the record,
placing those which are favorable on the one side, and
the unfavorable on the other, the lists would show that
the former predominated, and that the witnesses who
spoke for the Chinese, were, as a rule, of a decidedly bet¬
ter grade of intelligence, education and experience than
the others.
It would be difficult under these circumstances to admit
that the Chinese in California may be seriously objected
to as a specially vicious class of the community. They
are men, and have vices. But they are, as a rule
in California as in China, a peaceable people, easily gov¬
erned, whose forms of vice are of a less malevolent kind
than those of white men, and less dangerous to the peace
of a community. In subsequent chapters I shall indicate
what positive evils do attend their presence among us,
and the remedies which may be sought in political nego¬
tiations-, in legislation, and in administration. I conclude
this one with a reference to statistics, as demonstrating
STATISTICS,
219
more perfectly the general conclusion in regard to the
^^icious tendencies of the Chinese, which I have reached
from the facts already presented.
On page 121 of Mr. Brooks' "Appendix to Open-
" ing Statement and Brief," will be found the following
statistics ;—
Number of admissions to Almshouse from May ist,
1870, to September, 1876,
Miscellaneous 3^257
Chinese 6
3,263
Number of admission to Industrial School from 1869
to 1877.
Miscellaneous 1,107
Present number 225. Chinese 9.
STATE PRISON OF CALIFORNIA.
Year.
Total.
Foreign.
Native.
Chinese.
Irish.
1851
33
18
IS
None
6
1852-1853
105
58
47
do
S
1853-1854
154
85
69
5
10
1854-1855
190
98
92
6
21
1856-1857
291
157
134
12
33
1858-1859
396
234
162
16
40
1859-1860
483
295
188
21
46
1860-1861
516
310
206
28
SI
1861-1862
553
330
223
33
62
1862-1863
515
305
210
31
58
1863-1864
540
335
205
36
60
1864-1865
577
342
23s
47
63
1865-1866
551
345
206
S3
55
1866-1867
648
421
227
81
72
1867-1868
692
449
243
78
85
1868-1869
732
358
374
76
86
1870-1871
880
403
477
118
86
1872-1873
931
453
478
150
87
220 STA TISTICS,
State Insane Asylum.
Year.
Total.
Foreign.
Native.
Chinese.
Irish.
1851
13
5
8
None.
2
1852
128
63
65
do
10
1853
284
133
151
I
28
1854
307
123
184
I
24
1855-56
380
149
231
I
23
1857
248
124
70
6
32 1
1858
260
165
105
II
71
1859
276
164
112
7
57
i860
248
134
114
7
49
1861
219
iSS
64
5
36
1862
301
203
98
II
49
1863
252
170
82
8
57
1864
219
155
64
8
66
1865
268
158
TOO
9
60
1866
279
149
130
10
48
1867
313
186
127
8
69
1868
387
266
121
10
107
1869
482
303
179
17
99
1870
562
395
167
13
141
1871
523
349
174
13
122
1872
506
347
159
24
107
1873
401
270
Ï31
16
94
1874
524
330
T74
23
114
1875
615
417
198
27
147
Taking the statistics of the State's prison first, we find
that in 1860-61, the whole number of prisoners was 516
That of the Chinese was 28
In the year i860 the whole population of the State
was 379^994
That of the Chinese was 34)933
The .Chinese population then was something less than
one in ten, while their part of the whole number of crim¬
inals was about one in eighteen.
TENOR OF STATISTICS. 221
In the year 1870-71, the whole number of prisoners
was 880
Including of the Chinese 118
In 1870 the population was 560^247
Including of the Chinese 49,310
Their proportion of population was then about one in
eleven, and of criminals about one in seven and a half.
In considering the bearing of these statistics, it must
be remembered that the Chinese in California are nearly
all males, that the percentage would need to be very
largely against them to compensate for this, and that the
difficulty of procuring convictions of white men with
white juries would be sensibly greater than that of pro¬
curing convictions against Chinese, the juries being white.
The table indicates, apparently, an increase of crime
among the Chinese in late years. They do not go far
enough for me to judge whether this is apparent or real,
but it is by no means improbable that there has been an
increase. This might arise from unfavorable tendencies
of their position among us, or from an increased flow cf
persons driven from China because of their crimes.
Taking the table of the State's Insane Asylum, we
find that in i860 there were seven Chinese inmates out
of two hundred and forty-eight, and in 1870, thirteen,
out of five hundred and sixty-two. The difference in
the percentage in this direction is so great as to occasion
surprise, more particularly when one remembers that the
absence of women among the Chinese has a direct and
positive tendency to increase forms of vice which occasion
insanity.
With one further citation I shall close this chapter.
Mr. Edward J. Armstrong^ testified that he had ex¬
amined the records 'of the district court of the fourth dis-
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 74 3.
222
TENOR OF STA TIS TICS,
trict of California, at San Francisco, and that the total
number of cases in that court, up to date, had been
28,824. Out of this great mass of trials, he found that,
" there were twenty-nine actions in which the Chinese
"were defendants, in which they were sued for breach of
" contract, or debt, or on promissory notes ; for the fore-
" closure of a mortgage, one ; damages for assault, one ;
" and for malpractice there were two."
PART III.—CHAPTER V.
OBJECTIONS WHICH HAVE BEEN ADVANCED AGAINST
THE CHINESE. THAT THEY HAVE SET UP A
GOVERNMENT IN CALIFORNIA.
Statement of Mr. Pixley. Improbable nature of his declaration. The
subject of importance. Statement of Mr. King that the death penalty
is enforced by secret tribunals. Statement of the Congressional com¬
mission. No sustaining evidence in that taken by the commission.
Certain testimony taken by the Senate committee of 1876. The six
companies. Mr. Gibson's description of their character and objects.
Mr. Pixley's statements regarding the companies. Courts of arbitration
among the Chinese. Evidence of the presidents of the six companies.
Conclusions of the Senate committee of 1876. Mr. Rogers' testimony
examined. It is hearsay and uncertain. The Hip Ye Tung society.
An organization of ruffians for unlawful purposes. Failures of the
city and State in dealing with the Chinese. Control of the foreign
settlements at Shanghai and Hong Kong.
I shall take up and consider in this chapter the further
general objection advanced against the Chinese, that they
have instituted a government of their own upon our soil.
In regard to this assumed feature of Chinese life in
America, Mr. Pixley, in his opening argument before the
Congressional commission, said ;—^
I have no doubt that I shall be able to prove that
"there are secret tribunals, exercising a criminal and
civil jurisdiction, an imperium in imperio \ that they
"have tribunals and forced penalties, even to the extent
"that property and life bear enforcement. We think we
" shall be able to show, by good testimony, that it is a
"common practice for them^ secretly, to advertise the
" payment of money for the assassination of informers
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 23.
224
IMPERIUM IN IMPERIO THEORY,
" and enemies ; and that their institution is so secret and
" so subtle, and so close, as to have defied the scrutiny of
" detective police, or the investigation of the courts."
A person who is not eager to believe evil of his fellow-
beings may be permitted to question this language and
to ask at once how it can happen that proofs of the exist¬
ence of such an imperhtm in imperio^ to use the words of
the advocate of the anti-Chinese party, can be so readily
available to him when they have not been available to
professional detectives and to the courts. A tribunal
must have a name and a place in which to hold its ses¬
sions, but Mr. Pixley has failed to prove the name or the
place of meeting of the mysterious association which he
has pictured for us. A tribunal which enforces its pen¬
alties must have its executive agents, but these again
are left—shadowy myths, creatures which the imagina¬
tion may depict, but which are not otherwise presented
to us. If property and life have been sacrificed,
whose life is it that was yielded up, and what property
was it that was sequestrated ? If this tribunal has such
vast powers, why does it need to " advertise" the pay¬
ment of money for the assassination of "informers and
" enemies r Who again are the officers and which the
courts who have attempted to scrutinize and investigate
the "institution."
Such language as that of Mr. Pixley is not language
to be used lightly. It is a grave arraignment of a. peo¬
ple who have sought our shores largely because we have
invited them to come, because we have need of their
labor, and who are among us under guarantees given by
the nation for their good treatment. It was used before
a commission appointed by the Congress of the country
to inquire into the qualities of those people. It was
carelessly used under circumstances when a grave and
decorous treatment of the subject was called for by all
STATEMENTS OE ANTl-CfflNESE PARTISANS. 225
the facts involved. It was accompanied by blasphemy
which no considerations of duty, no regard for things
human or divine ever led man to utter in such a pres¬
ence. I refer to the closing words of a succeeding para¬
graph of Mr. Pixley^s opening address, in which he
said ;—
" I believe that the Chinese have no souls to save, and
" if they have, they are not worth the saving."
Mr. King, the representative of the anti-Chinese clubs
of California, in a paragraph which I have already quoted,
said ;—^
'^We shall prove that the majority of Chinese males
"come here bound by servile labor contracts for long
" terms of years, and while such contracts exist they are,
*Ho all intents and purposes, the absolute slaves of the
"contractors. For, although these contracts are void by
"our law, yet the superstition and fear of the Chinese
" bondsman for his master is so great as to prevent him
" from breaking his contract ; that such fears are well
"grounded we shall show by evidence, and we shall
"establish further this fact, that death at the hands of
"the Chinese assassin has frequently been the fate of the
" Chinese slave who attempts to break his schackles and
" regain his freedom."
I have already demonstrated, as I believe, the injustice
done to the Chinese by the statement that they come to
California under contracts to labor. Mr. King's further
statement of the way in which such contracts are enforced
falls to the ground necessarily under these circumstances.
As it is a part and parcel, however, of the imperiuni in
imperio theory, I place it again before my readers in
order that they may judge whether there is any other
foundation for that theory,
I do not forget that the majority of the Congressional
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 28. ^
226
STATEMENT OF THE
commission endorsed the proposition advanced by Mr.
Pixley and Mr. King, in regard to the existence of a
secret rule among the Chinese in California, although they
did not endorse the other proposition, that they had been
imported under labor contracts. What they said in this
connection is contained in the following sentence ;—
It was further shown that the Chinese have a quasi
"government among themselves, independent of our laws,
" authorizing the punishment of offenders against Chinese
" customs, even to the taking of life."
It might be possible to pass by the allegations of
Messrs. Pixley and King, but it is not possible to dis¬
regard the conclusion of the majority of the commission.
I trust that, notwithstanding this dictum^ I shall be able
to show that no such government, and no such tribunal
or tribunals, exist in California, and that the majority of
the commission allowed themselves to be deceived by
certain loose statements, and by the support given to
them by certain facts which, while they appear to sus¬
tain their conclusions, are susceptible of a very different
explanation.
I should say, now, that it is my impression that the
honorable senators and members of Congress who com¬
posed the majority of the committee, the minority con¬
sisting of but one person—Senator Morton, the chairman,
whose name would be a tower of strength to any cause
—traveled outside of their record in the given matter.
There is no positive evidence in all that taken before
them of the existence of any secret tribunals, any quasi
government among the Chinese in California. Such
testimony was given before the committee of the Senate
of California, which held sessions in San Francisco in the
months of April, May and June, 1876, but the whole of
that testimony was objected to when offered before the
CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE,
227
Congressional commission ; ^ was never accepted by it,
and did not find a place even among the miscellaneous
papers which are bound up with the report of the com¬
mission. I shall, nevertheless, advert to and examine
this evidence, in order that all the statements which have
been made authoritatively, in this connection, shall receive
appropriate attention. I must, at the same time, con¬
demn that evidence as carelessly taken. No counsel
were employed, and no serious attempt was made to go
to the bottom of any of the questions at issue. The
testimony taken by the committee covers no more than
160 pages, and this fact alone affords a sufficient com¬
mentary upon the value of its labors.
I have said that certain facts which appear to sustain
the conclusions expressed by the Congressional commis¬
sion are susceptible of explanation. It will clear the
ground very much if I remove the obstructions to a cor¬
rect appreciation of the facts in this way.
It will have been remarked by all persons who have
paid any attention to the Chinese immigration ques¬
tion, that the six companies have been objects of great
suspicion and dread. It is these companies which, as we
have seen, have been charged with the importation of
contract-laborers, and the proposition that the Chinese
have a government of their own in California, has been
given form and credence by the assumption that the
companies exercise a general control over them.
Let us inquire then, about the purpose and organiza¬
tion of the six companies.
It is to be said at once that they are miscalled com¬
panies. The idea conveyed by the word is that they are
mercantile or commercial associations, while the fact is
that they are mutual aid societies, pure and simple, al¬
though the service- rendered by them to their members,
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 67.
228
THE NATURE AND OBJECTS
'and the Chinese population generally, are more various
than is usual among such societies with us.
The Rev. Mr. Gibson thus describes their objects ;—^
" As to the six companies and the power they wield,
great misapprehensions prevail in the minds of the peo-
"ple. It is the custom of the Chinese in China, when
"any considerable number emigrate from one city to
" another, to come together and form a mutual aid soci-
"ety, a guild. The officers are elected and hold their
"office for a specified length of time. Voluntary sub-
" scriptions are raised and voluntary taxes are imposed
" for the purpose of providing a hall, or quarters for the
" meetings of the guild. Generally a temple or shrine
" of worship, dedicated to the particular divinities of the
"clan, is selected in connection with the hall. The hall
«
" becomes the rendezvous of the members of the associa-
"tion. Disputes and differences among themselves are
" generally compromised and settled according to the
"advice of the officers and influential members, without
"resort to magistrates. Membership is entirely volun-
" tary, and may be severed at the will of the individual.
" Of such character are the several Chinese associations
"in California, now known as the six companies. Each
" company represents a certain district in China, and
"claims as members all the Chinese from that district.
" There are no formal rites or ceremonies of admission.
"No admission fee is charged. No certificates of mem-
"bership are issued. The name, age and native place
" of each immigrant is obtained, immediately on the ar-
" rival of the steamer, by the officers of the several com-
" panies, and the name thus obtained is at once enrolled
" in the books of the company representing the district
"from whence he came."
My impression is that Mr. Gibson is not correct in say-
^ Ch. in Am., p. 337.
OF THE SIX COMPANIES.
229
ing that no admission fees are charged. It appears that
some of the companies do require a payment, either
upon the enrollment of the individual or so soon as he
is able to make it. My impression is, also, that the names
are taken upon the steamers for the reason that a certain
responsibility attaches to a family, clan or village, under
the Chinese custom, for the acts of individuals of the
family, clan or village, and that a certain reproach would
fall upon the whole number of immigrants from a given
district, if individual members were not restrained from
wrongful acts, or were not defended and provided for
by his fellow Chinamen in case of need.
Mr. Gibson continues ;—
" In the early days of California these companies were
" more useful than now. They gave advice to the newly
" arrived immigrant. They took some care of the help-
" less poor and the sick, and they did quite a business in
" shipping home the bones of the dead. But now, nearly
"all the immigrants have personal friends already here,
" waiting to receive and advise them. The sick and poor
" are also generally cared for by personal friends, if cared
" for at all. And the opinion seems to be rapidly grow-
" ing among the Chinese that the bones of a poor China-
" man can rest almost as well in America as in China."
We have seen already that the feeling of the Chinese
in regard to the return of their dead to China grows out
of national beliefs which may be called religious in their
character. It is the filial piety of the race, which regards
the obligation of the son as extending beyond this world,
and which has inculcated the idea that no person can be
considered happy in the next world whose remains do
not rest where family care can be exercised, and family
sacrifices offered over them. It happens in this way that
the district associations which exist in China, undertake
to provide for their members as well when dead as when
230
AI^BITRA TI ON OF DISPUTES,
alive, and that a place of deposit for the coffins of those
who die is a part of the property of such associations.
In these depositaries such bodies remain until called for
by the friends of the deceased persons, or a convenient
opportunity offers for them to be sent home by the asso¬
ciation. In such case the expense is defrayed by the
association if need be.
This purpose of caring for the dead is one of the most
prominent among the motives which have induced the
Chinese in California to form and sustain the associ¬
ations kown as the six companies, and the ordinance
which was directed against the removal of the remains of
Chinese was one of the shrewdest movements which have
been made in California to discourage Chinese immi¬
gration.
Mr. Gibson says further ;—
" Differences and disputes among themselves, however,
^^are still at the option of the parties, referred to the ofifi-
" cers and influential members of the associations as a
" court of arbitration. But the companies do not claim
" to have, nor attempt to use, any civil or criminal juris-
" diction over the people. And, indeed, the compromises
" recommended by the companies are not always accepted
" by both parties in dispute, and such cases are frequently
"appealed from the adjustment recommended by the
"companies, to the decision of our courts.''
Mr. Pixley seems to have arrived, in a measure, at the
same conclusions in regard to the six companies as those
expressed by Mr. Gjbson. I find so much that is just in
what he says of them, and his statement is so significant
as coming from an opponent of Chinese immigration,
that I shall quote it at length ;—^
" My opinion is that the Chinese six companies are the
" growth of our Chinese immigration, and the result of the
* Rep. Ch. Im., p. 23.
THE SIX COMPANIES.
231
peculiar circumstances attending the large influx of
Chinese to our coast ; that they were the natural growth
of necessities that called them into existence. They are
peculiar to California, and have no protection under our
law, and no recognized authority or existence in China.
They are voluntary associations. They have features
belonging both to relief and benevolent societies, and
to business and money making organizations. I think
their growth came in this way. As from the different
ports and localities of China, the pioneer came to this
coast, as he sent back for his relatives and friends and
aided them by his money, or induced them by his ad¬
vice or by the statement of the El Dorado which he
found here, and this labor bonanza that paid him so
richly, he induced his neighbor and relative from the
same village, from the same family, and the same local¬
ity, to come to California to partake with him of the
benefits of this newly discovered El Dorado. The
second comers naturally would come consigned to
their old neighbors, and the fact of vicinage and
neighborhood would naturally bring them together,
and out of it would come a natural result of association
and organization. When this necessity was found to
exist, and when it was practically inaugurated by an
organization, the benevolent feature was introduced ;
that is, they take these people ; they provide for them
when they have money to pay ; they furnish them with
labor when they are able to labor, and when they can
find contracts for them. They sometimes make ad¬
vances, especially for food and materials and tools to
go into the mines, the tules or elsewhere ; they open
an account with them ; they contract their labor ; they
receive their pay from the original contractor, and open
an account with each coolie, if you please to call him
that. They open an account with them, charging them
232
THE SIX COMPANIES.
" large interest for advances, charging percentage for act-
" ing as their agent, and finally when the debit and credit
" account is balanced and they are out of debt, then the
" Chinaman is free."
Now some of these statements are reasonable enough
on their face. Those which describe the circumstances
which have led the Chinese to come to our country
could not be more liberally expressed. The words
newly discovered El Dorado" and " bonanza of labor"
are graphic, and at the same time accurate. But when
Mr. Pixley assumes to say that the companies make con¬
tracts for the labor of their members he travels outside
of the proofs, and outside of the range of the possible.
We have already learned exactly how the Chinese are
engaged to labor by Amercan employers, that all con¬
tracts are made directly with individual laborers, or
with gangs of men whose only bond of association is
prior acquaintance and the convenience of the moment.
The facts as I shall develop them will show again that
the six companies have but a few officers, and no system
or staff of organization by which they could undertake
to contract for the labor of their members.
And while I have found Mr. Pixley's remarks so far
just, I could not myself state more liberally the conditions
under which the assistance of the companies is lent for
the settlement of disputes. He says, continuing the par¬
agraph from which I have already quoted ;—
'^The association is a voluntary one, and being in
" this relation, they arbitrate and settle difficulties among
" each other. Members of the same company, naturally
submit to the officers of their company the arbitrament
" of their disputes, and if the members of one company
are imposed upon, or their rights infringed by the mem-
"bers of another, the natural result is to bring an adjust-
THE SIX COMPANIES.
233
" ment between these two companies ; and thus, arbitra-
" ments, and courts and settlements are brought about."
Leung Cook, president of theNing Yeung Company,
testified before the California Senate committee, as fol¬
lows ;—^
" When my countrymen come to California, my com-
" pany takes care of them, pays their boarding and lodg-
"ing expenses. For this they collect afterward from
" each man five dollars. That is considered to pay back
"the company for its advances, for expenses and its
" trouble. When they pay it back they get a permit and
" can then buy tickets. When men are sick, poor and
" unfortunate, they remit the five dollars and give a per-
" mit anyhow. When men are in debt to anybody, and
" the company finds it out, it will not give the permit.
"If the debtors are too poor to pay, they are allowed
" to go."
" Q. Who is it makes up the company to which you
" belong} A. Myself, inspector and cook, three mem-
" bers, officers."
Lee Ming Hown, president of the Sam Yup company,
testified ;—
" Q. Where does your company get its money} A.
" By subscription from the stores}
" Q. How long have you been at the head of your
" company 1 A. About one year.
" Q. How often do they change 1 A. Once a year.
"Sometimes a man is chosen for a second and third
" term.
" Q. Who elects officers } A. The merchants, mem-
" bers of the companies.
" Q. How much salary do they pay the president ?
"A. Eighty dollars a month.
" Q. What does the president doA. Attends to
^ Rep. Sen. Com., p. 64. ^ Rep. Sen. Com., p. 70.
234
THE SIX COMPANIES.
new-comers, persons not acquainted with the language
" of this country, and assists those who want help, such
"as the sick and disabled."
Yung Ty, president of the Hop Wo company, testi¬
fied ;—^
" Q. How do people of your company come here}
" A. They raise money mostly at home. Some borrow
" from friends in China.
" Q. What do they do with the sick } A. If they
"have relatives they take care of them.
" Q. How is it that so many Chinese are in our hos-
" pitáis} A. I don't know. All that belong to our
"company we take care of.
Sin How, president of the Koñg Chow company, tes¬
tified ;—
" Q. What do you do with your sick } A. If they
" have brothers or relations they take care of them, if not
" we take care of them."
Si Quon and Chin Fong Chow, presidents of the Yung
Wo and Yan Wo companies, were also examined and
gave evidence of precisely the same sort as that given by
the four others.^
I take it that if these much questioned organizations
were really business associations, or if they together con¬
stituted a quasi government, an Imperium in imperio, we
should have found a serious effort made by the commit¬
tee of the California Senate to prove the facts out of the
mouths of these officers, and that having accomplished
this, the same men would have been summoned before
the Congressional commission. But no such effort was
made, and the fact of itself shows that the Senate com¬
mittee recognized the essentially useful and harmless
character of the companies. I have not been able to
^ Rep. Se"ïr. Com., p. 94. ^Rep. Sen. Com., pp. 97, 98.
^ Rep. Sen. Com., p. 95.
CONCLUSIONS OF SENATE COMMITTEE, 235
find a report of the conclusions of that committee, but
the Honorable E. J. Lewis, one of its members, person¬
ally visited the Chinese quarter, and reported as follows
regarding the companies ;—^
" We then went to the office of one of these compa-
"nies, the Sam Yup company, where we met the heads
"of these six companies. We had a long conversation
" with them, first as to the number of Chinamen that be-
" long to each company. ^ ^ The companies, I think,
"are societies for the protection of Chinamen coming
" from some particular locality in China, or in the prov-
" ince of Canton. Each company represents a separate
" district. Their custom is that whenever a ship arrives,
" an interpreter or inspector goes on board and finds out
" the locality from which each Chinaman came. His an-
" swer determines the company to which he shall go, and
" he is at once enrolled as a member thereof. So far as
"we could gather from the Chinese they do not pay any
" dues. The presidents deny having exercised any crim-
"inal jurisdiction or to have punished offenders. They
"said that no man could go home if he owed any debts
" to the merchants, because that was the agreement
"among themselves. The steamship company, being in-
" terested in shipping them, agreed not to let them go.
" ^ ^ We asked them if they had power to suppress
" gambling-houses and houses of prostitution, and to
" compel the people to keep clean. They said they had
" not. They said they could advise but could not com-
" pel.''
The several statements thus made accord so perfectly,
they point so positively to the proposition that the six
companies are essentially social and benevolent associa¬
tions, that it seems unneceásary to make any further
citations of evidence.
^ Rep. Sen. Com., p. 44.
236
THE SIX COMPANIES.
There are those who will see in the facts as I have
presented them, a certain danger, while, doubtless, many
others would say that it is no man's interest to interfere
with the companies. So far as they are mutual aid
societies merely, they are, as I believe, beyond criticism.
I believe further, that there is, in fact, no reason to com¬
plain that they offer to the Chinese in California an
inexpensive way to settle disputes. Are not courts of
arbitration distinctly favored by legislation } Are not
individuals commended by public sentiment when they
are able to call in disinterested friends to pass upon their
questions, instead of resorting to the courts } Are not all
the societies which exist among us given to disciplining
their members ? Can it be possible that these companies,
some of which number tens of thousands of members,
and whose only officers, so far as we have been able to
discover, are their presidents, inspectors, and cooks, are
really dangerous in any sense.
I assume now to say that the only proof of the state¬
ment that the Chinamen have set up tribunals in America,
and that they have a quasi government of their own
among us, is such as may be taken out of the constitution,
purposes, and organization of the six companies. It
would appear, however, that certain acts are attributed
to the Chinese in general, and to the interference of those
companies, which are exceptional, and which cannot be
brought home to the one or the other any more than the
organization and crimes of the Molly Maguires can be
attributed to the society of St. Patrick, or to the Irish ele¬
ment of our population at large. This will appear from
the following statements given in evidence before the
committee of the California Senate.
I quote the testimony of Mr. James R. Rogers, a police
officer, ;^ho was examined afterward before the Con¬
gressional commission ;—^
'■ Rep. Ch. Im., p. i6.
HE ARS A Y TESTIMONY,
237
" Q. Is it not understood that there is some sort of a
"Chinese tribunal here which settles matters, and de-
" termines whether Chinamen, arrested on criminal pro-
* cesses emanating from our courts, shall be acquitted or
"not. A. I do not know, of my own knowledge, that
"such a tribunal exists. I only know that when a
" Chinaman swears differently from what they want him
"to, his life is in danger. A Chinaman has just returned
" here after an absence of three years. A man was killed
"by accident, and he was notified that he must pay
" $1,200. His partner had a knife stuck in his back on
"Jackson street, and he was told he must pay $i,200.
"He asked me what he should do and I said not to pay
"it. He said that they would kill him, or get Chinamen
" to swear him into State's prison. They sometimes, in
"that way, use our courts to enforce their orders just as
" policy may direct. They have no regard for our laws,
" and obey them so far as they do, only through fear."
The evidence does not go very far to sustain the quasi
government theory to which senators and members of
Congress have lent the support of their names, but such
as it is, it deserves consideration. " I only know that
"when a Chinaman swears differently from what they
" want him to, his life is in danger." This is hearsay and
report only, for it was not followed by proof of a case
in which life had been lost under such circumstances.
But as hearsay, if it points to anything, it points to this,
that Chinese who have committed offences sometimes
threaten other Chinese with vengeance if they divulge
the facts. Perhaps white men do the same thing.
Again, " A man was killed by accident and he (some
"other man, it is to be presumed) was notified that he
"must pay $1,200." This is hearsay throughout. It may
be that the friends-of the deceased offered to compromise
the case, to make no complaint, upon payment of $1,200,
238
A BAND OF RUFFIANS.
It may be that the demand for $1,200 was a blackmail¬
ing operation.
Now, there is nothing certainly in the evidence that is
not susceptible of ready explanation. One can only
wonder that the honorable members of the California
Senate did not probe the matter further, but perhaps
they found here, as in the case of the presidents of the
six companies, that the effort would not lead to a result
which would serve their purposes.
This witness, Mr. Rogers, when called before the Con¬
gressional commission, and examined by Mr. Pixley,
gave the following evidence ;—^
" Q. Do you know anything in regard to the exist-
" ence of tribunals among the Chinese ; and can you
" state any instance in which you had a right to suppose
"that the transaction was governed by these Chinese
" secret associations if they exist 1 A. Some two or
" three years ago we had an institution, (whether it exists
"to-day or not I do not know,) called the Hip Ye Tung
" society, and we used every means and exertion to break
" it up, and tried to find out the bottom of it but failed.
" That that society did exist at that time there is no
" doubt, but we were met by so many obstacles that it was
" impossible to ferret it out.
"Q. Do you think that that institution has been
" broken up } A. I think that it has been broken up
"under that name. I cannot state the name. It was
"given to me yesterday. I think the same institution ex-
" ists under another name.
" Q. Can you name to the commission any incident
" where crime has been protected, or money has been ex-
" acted, by them or any other secret tribunal} A. Only
" from rumor ; nothing that I could give of my own
" knowledge."
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 230.
ITS ORIGIN AND PURPOSES.
239
It is well known that a society called Hip Ye Tung did
exist in San Francisco, but there is no proof of it in the
foregoing evidence. Still less is there any proof that the
society, exercised the power of a quasi government. It
may have been a band of criminals, of gamblers, of pro¬
prietors of brothels. To call it a secret tribunal would
be forcing language to the last point.
A better light is thrown upon the Hip Ye Tung by the
evidence of another witness, Alfred Clarke. As I may
refer to his testimony in another place, I remark here only
that he described it as an organization connected with
the control of prostitutes, to enforce the subordination
of prostitutes to their importers ; an association of ruffians
who might be expected to use any means whatever to in¬
timidate credulous men, and still more credulous women,
of their own stock, but who cannot by any process of
reasoning be called the administrators of a quasi govern¬
ment, the pillars of an imperium in imperio.
Without pursuing this subject further, it may be said
with justice, as I believe, although the evidence is sug¬
gestive of the facts rather than direct and positive, that
there is in California a considerable number of lawless
Chinese. Some of these doubtless have learned their
evil ways in our own country, in the wild life of the min¬
ing regions, where, in times now happily passed, crime was
not unknown among the various nationalities represented;
and others in the midst of the vice of the centres of pop¬
ulation in California. Others again belong doubtless to
the class of fugitive criminals who have been driven out
of their own country by fear of the law, or to find a free
field for their avocations. To whichever class we may as¬
sign them we cannot deny that they find among us a
large degree of immunity in wrong doing. There has
been made by the. State of California and by the city of
San Francisco no serious effort to organize a system
240
FAILURES OF LEGISLATION:
fitted to meet the difficulties occasioned by the presence
of a large exotic population, differing from ourselves in
l^guage and habits of life. The State and the city
should educate and employ permanently a corps of inter¬
preters, some of whom should be attached to the offices
of the superintendents of police, others to the courts and
still others to the offices of superior administration. Not a
few Chinese speaking policemen should be employed.
These in all their respective grades should be so well
paid and so certain of permanent employment as to
secure continuous and faithful service. But neither the
State of California, nor the city of San Francisco, nor any
county or town of the State possess such an interpreter.
The police offices and the courts depend upon persons
casually employed to do such work. At one time it is a
missionary, called away from his proper duties ; at an¬
other a half educated Chinese ; at another some one of
our people who has picked up a smattering of Chi¬
nese. It is simply impossible that government can be
well administered under these circumstances.
I venture here to make a comparison. For fourteen
years I was consul general at Shanghai. There exist
there three districts, adjoining one another, but delim¬
ited by certain natural boundaries. Within these are
resident a foreign population of 3,000 persons, and a
native population of 200,000. The management of
police, &c., in all these districts falls upon the foreign
residents, for the districts were originally set apart for
them, and they instituted their own measures for the
preservation of order, and of health, the making of roads,
Scc.j and the Chinese who reside there have come in
since and have been required, by concert of action be¬
tween the foreign and native officials, to submit to local
regulations^ The affairs of police, &c., and the adminis¬
tration of justice,move on very satisfactorily. The whole
EXPERIENCE A T SHANGHAE AND HONG KONG. 241
district is as clean and well ordered as the best parts of
San Francisco. Justice is administered by a native
magistrate, asststed by official interpreters from the sev¬
eral consulates, and upon the criminal side, at least, no
occasion for complaint arises.
Take the case again at Hong Kong. The number of
the foreign and native population is not much different
from that at Shanghae. It is a British colony, and the
administration of affairs is simplified in consequence.
Every traveler will be able to tell how perfectly the
streets are kept, and how secure are life and property.
We do not hear there, as we do not at Shanghae, of se¬
cret tribunals, &c. Reasonably intelligent efforts are
made in those places to render the organization which
deals with the Chinese, competent for its work, and su¬
perior to temptation, and the results have been such as
to establish the fact that the Chinese are easily governed.
Scattered through the evidence taken before the Sen¬
ate committee, are allegations that in some instances
papers have been posted in San Francisco and Sacra¬
mento offering to pay a price for the murder of an indi¬
vidual named. I have never heard of such work in
Shanghae or in Hong Kong, much less in any city un¬
der Chinese domination. There is evidence also that a
witness who had reported against and caused the arrest
of some person who had murdered one of our country¬
men, was killed outright. I have not heard of such a
thing in China. We can only conclude that our system
is defective, and that it is time for Californian legislators
to give practical attention to the control of the Chinese,
instead of limiting their efforts to the preparation of
measures like the cue-cutting ordinance, the cubic-feet-
of-air law, &c., directed not against offenders, but against
the Chinese as a ,class. There should be as much wis¬
dom in San Francisco as in Shanghae or Hong Kong ;
p
242 EXPERIENCE A T SHANGHAE AND HONG KONG,
and if the 30,000 Chinese here cannot be controlled by
all the force of our society, while mere handfuls of for¬
eigners control them in the latter cities, we must acknowl¬
edge that there is something radically defective or ine¬
lastic in our institutions.
PART III.—CHAPTER VI.
OBJECTIONS WHICH HAVE BEEN ADVANCED AGAINST
THE CHINESE. THAT THEY WILL NOT ASSIMI¬
LATE WITH OUR PEOPLE.
The views of the Chinese on this matter. The doctrine of Confucius that
all on earth are of one family. The teachings of Christ. Virtue the
right basis of government. Treatment of foreigners in China com¬
pared with that of the Chinese in America. The "root " of the ill-
treatment of the Chinese. Native Americans responsible. American
race intolerance. Mr. Swift's views. "Better dissolve treaty relations."
What is meant by assimilation. The Chinese intelligent, frugal, in¬
dustrious and peaceable. Their treatment different from that accorded
to other immigrants. The object is to deal justly with them and to
leave assimilation to work itself out. The alleged failure should grat¬
ify anti-Chinese partisans. What is justice ? The real danger lies in
departure from sound rules. The social question outside of legisla¬
tion. Efforts of the Chinese to adopt Western methods. The edu¬
cational mission. Views of Prince Kung.
When one hears frequently reiterated the declaration
that the Chinese will not assimilate with our people, he
is likely, if he is a person who is desirous of forming in¬
telligent opinions and of being just to all men, to inquire
how this matter appears to the Chinese, and what they
have to say about it. For undoubtedly there are two
sides of this question as of most others.
I am able to present the view of the Chinese from
the pen of one of their number who was resident, when
he wrote it out, in America. It is a paper worthy to be
read, because it is simply framed and yet pertinent and
forcible. I commend it to my readers, moreover, as not
in any way false to what I believe to be the ideas enter¬
tained by many of" the Chinese ;—^
^ Ch. and the U. S., p. 59-
244
THE CHINESE WILL NOT ASSIMILATE.
From the time of Pv/an-ku tül the present, a period
" of many tens of thousands of years, there have been
"born among us a host of sages. Gifted by Heaven,
" they attained to exalted excellence. Their beneficent
" influence extended not alone to those who were near, it
"shed peace upon the nations. Still later Heaven pro-
" duced a sage pre-eminent in his excellence, Confucius,
"the great teacher of China. He combined what was
" greatest and best in all that preceded him and became
" the exemplar of all ages. As to things on high, he
" showed men the peace of heaven ; as to things on earth
" he taught them virtue. The sages had the wisdom to
" discover that all men on earth are one family. Now
"what is meant in styling all men on earth one family.^^
" It is, that the people of China, and of countries foreign
" to it, are all embraced, as it were, in one great circle of
"kindred, with its parents and children, its elder and
"younger branches, its bonds of unity; the pervading
"principle love; no one member debased, no one treated
"with dislike. Again after several centuries Heaven
"brought forth Jesus, and ordained Him to be a teacher
"in foreign lands. This Jesus also taught mankind the
" fear of Heaven. He showed that the chief end is to
" pray for eternal life. He comprehended the reverence
" due to Heaven, and the obligations of virtue. He was
"in accord with the holy men of China. He looked
" on all beneath the sky as one great family. He did not
"permit the separation of men into classes, to be loved
"or despised. But, if the religion of Jesus really teaches
" the fear of Heaven, how does it come that the people
" of your honorable country trample upon and hate the
"race which Heaven loves, the Chinese.^ Should not
" this be called rebellion against Heaven ? And how is
"it possible to receive this as of the religion of Heaven."
This is a plain argument, and will be recognized as a
A CHINESE ARGUMENT,
245
forcible one. It will surprise many as coming from a
Chinaman. The next paragraph, however, breathes a
still more exalted tone, and shows a wider intelligence.
" The wise men of China plant at the very foundation
" of government the idea of virtue, not that of physical
''power, just as do those who profess the religion of
" Christ. Virtue is that which commands the intuitive
"submission of the human will. Great vessels of war
" and powerful artillery may destroy cities and devastate
" a country. That is physical power. But moral power
" is essentially different. The noblest illustration of moral
" power is the teacher at the head of his school. It is the
" spirit of man which deserves respect, not his form. If
" the spirit be noble and good, although the man be poor
" and humble, his features homely and his apparel mean,
" we honor and love him. If the spirit be not so, though
" the man have wealth and position, though his counten-
" ance be beautiful and his clothing rich, we regard him
" with contempt. But we affirm that the people of your
"honorable country dislike the Chinese, because they
" see the plain appearance and the patched clothes of
" our poor, and do not think how many spirits there are
" among us whom they could respect and love."
There is nothing in all this savoring of prejudice against
ourselves. It is the language of a man earnestly re¬
monstrating against contumelious treatment. It is lan¬
guage which could only fall from the lips of a person
full of a certain charity. " How many spirits are there
"among us whom you could respect and love." And
why not ? Can it be otherwise when the people who
come to us have possessed, as our writer states, the lessons
of sages whom the whole world has learned to admire ;
have enjoyed a settled government for many centuries ;
have attained to no mean development of the arts. Are
they contemptible men merely, these Chinamen who
246
A CHINESE ARGUMENT.
number a third of the human race. Is there no virtue
in us that we cannot make it our work to learn whether
there are not, in fact, many spirits among them "whom
" we could respect and love."
" China," as our author continues, " possesses a trade
" with all foreign lands. When a man from your country
" arrives in China, none of our officers or people treat
" him otherwise than with respect and kindness. When
"he is defrauded or injured, if the matter is of slight
"consequence, the offender is fined or beaten ; in a grave
" case, he forfeits his life. Even if there are no witnesses,
" the officers must thoroughly inquire into the circum-
" stances. In murders and brawls, if the criminal be not
" discovered, the magistrate is called to account and de-
" graded. When a foreigner commits a deed of violence,
" a spirit of great leniency and care is manifested upon
the trial of the case. This is not because of a lack of
" power to punish, but we sincerely dread to mar the beauti-
" ful idea of gentleness and benignity toward strangers
" from afar."
"Now, why is it that when our people come to your
"country, instead of being welcomed with respect and
" kindness, they are, on the contrary, treated with con-
"tempt and evil} It happens even that many lose their
" lives at the hands of lawless wretches. Y et, although
" there are Chinese witnesses of the crime, their testimony
"is rejected. The result is our abandonment to be mur-
" dered and our business to be ruined. How hard is it
" for the spirit to bear such trials ? It is true that some
"persons hold that the Chinese are of no advantage to
"the country. But can it be affirmed that we are of no
" advantage ? And, besides, it is to be considered that
" we are^ universally a law-abiding people, and that our
" conduct is different from the lawlessness and violence
" of some other foreigners. Were it not that each so little
A PLEA FOR BETTER TREATMENT.
247
" understands the other's tongue, and mutual kind senti-
" ments are not communicated, would not more cordial
'intercourse exist?"
This still is not the language of prejudice. It is a well
told, but kindly declaration of ill treatment and a pathetic
appeal for " more cordial intercourse." It is not a refusal
to adopt our manners and ways. It is the longing expres¬
sion of a desire for justice asa common standing ground
with us. It describes an ideal condition of things in
China, but the ideal is one which the government of
China has done much to inculcate among its people. It
is a broad declaration of the peaceable tendencies of the
Chinese, and this no man may gain-say. Their chief re¬
proach among the nations is a lack of adaptation for war,
and of capacity to defend themselves against attack.
Who can say whether if those among us had shown a less
peaceful temper, and had resented their injuries with
quick falling blows, they would not have commanded re¬
spect from classes who regard a quiet disposition as an
indication of weakness which may be safely trampled
upon. The Negro among us was a quiet man too, and
he paid the price of his gentle qualities in generations of
bondage, and we the price of our wrong doings towards
him in years of fearful war.
The writer of the paper from which I have quoted,
proceeds to a more detailed statement of the injuries
which have been inflicted on his people. I shall cite,
however, only one paragraph more.
" The class that engages in gold digging is made up, as
"a whole, of poor people. We go on board the ships.
"There we find ourselves unaccustomed to winds and
"waves, and to the extremes of heat and cold. We eat
" little, we grieve much. Our appearance is plain, and our
^ —
" clothing poor.' At once when we leave the vessel the
" boatmen extort heavy prices ; all kinds of conveyances
248
A CHINESE ARGUMENT.
require from us more than the usual charges ; as we go
" on our way we are pushed, and kicked, and struck by
"the drunken and the brutal ; but we cannot speak your
"language, we bear our injuries and pass on. Even
"when within doors, rude boys throw sand, and bad men
" stones after us. Passers by, instead of preventing these
" provocations, add to them by their laughter. We go up to
" the mines ; there the collectors of licenses make unlawful
" exactions, and robbers strip, plunder, wound, and even
" murder some of us. Thus we are plunged into number-
" less uncommiserated wrongs. But the first root of them
" all is that very degradation and contempt of the Chinese
" as a race of which we have spoken, which begins with
"your honorable nation, and which you communicate to
" people of other countries, who carry it to greater
"lengths. Now, what injury have we Chinese done to
"your honorable people that they should thus turn upon
" us and make us drink the cup of wrong even to its last
" poisonous dregs."
Aside from the tone of patient remonstrance which
characterizes this appeal for better treatment and for
the recognition of brotherhood, there occurs in it, in the
last paragraph, an intimation that it is not the class of
foreigners who have paved the way for their abuse. It
is boldly and distinctly asserted that contempt for the
Chinese " begins with your honorable nation," and that
the example which we set is " bettered" by the people of
other countries. I am free to confess that the author
of the appeal may be right in this statement. I know
of no people who have seemed to me to have so many
prejudices of race as ourselves. Whether it is due to our
long contests with tribes of savages, the natives of the
vast territory which we have occupied ; or to the institu¬
tion of siàvery which took upon itself among us, the
very worst features which slavery has ever exhibited ;
jracje prejudices m america.
249
whether it is a pride of stock stimulated by our suc¬
cessful conquests over the many difficulties attending
the settlement of a new, and in some respects, an inhos¬
pitable region ; or whether all these have combined to
produce the result, it would seem that a Negro, in times
now passing by as we may hope, or a Chinaman still,
meets with a less ready reception from us than in any of
the European nations. Forgetful of our Asiatic origin
and descent, forgetful that our Saviour bore the dark
hue of his nativity, we seem to cling to such prejudices
with a tenacity that can only be loosened by rude shocks.
And all the while we cry out,with what to Heaven must
appear the grossest delusion and hypocrisy, that these
other races resist our influences—that they will not as¬
similate. We hold them all at arms length and then
throttle them because they will not approach nearer to
us. This is our boasted liberality and generosity.
Take up the mirror, my countrymen, which the
despised Chinaman has presented to your eyes. With¬
draw your gaze for a moment from the "plain appear-
" ance and poor clothing" of the man who holds it, and
mark what you may observe.
I am well aware that my own remarks on this subject
may be held up to derision, that it is not a likely thing
that persons who have indulged in prejudices will admit
the fact simply because they are told that such is their
habit. To this I have a few words to present in answer.
I shall take them from the mouth of a witness before the
Congressional commission, who has been presented to
the nation as a representative Californian. I allude to
Mr. John F. Swift, of San Francisco, one of the commis¬
sioners recently appointed to readjust our relations with
China.
250
MR. SIVIFT'S VIEWS.
He said ;—^
" They cannot assimilate, so that the next generation,
and the one after, and all the generations, will be equally
alien and ignorant, without speaking of the present
men, the individuals who happen to make up this com¬
munity now, so that practically if we could see one
hundred or five hundred years from now, we should find
the same uneducated class of Chinamen, not speaking
our language, here temporarily. The number is kept
up, not by births, but by their importations, those here
dying or going back in their old age ; so that they are
always the same degraded, ignorant class of people,
constantly striking against the sentiment of our people,
always hostile to it, always growing and increasing, and
more ugly and angry, having no interest in the country,
utterly valueless for defensive purposes, surely, when the
nation is fighting, as it must be at some time, for no
nation can be exempt from war. The strong prejudice
that has grown against them in this State is evidenced
by the facts which have been proven, which are un¬
doubtedly true. I heard part of the testimony of the
Reverend Mr. Loomis, who has just testified. What he
said is true as to the strong prejudice of this commu¬
nity ; it is a fact. It may be disagreeable you may
think it is a pity ; but it is human nature and it is our
nature. This prejudice has grown. It is ten times as
strong as it was ten years ago. In 1852 the Chinamen
were allov/ed to turn out and celebrate the Fourth of
July, and it was considered a happy thing. In 1862
they would have been mobbed. In 1872 they would
have been burned at the stake. That element to the
statesman is surely a very important element to deal
with. We cannot overcome it ; it grows and it must
be treated as a fact."
^ Rep. Cli. Im., p. 952.
EXTREME VIEWS.
251
Now all this is the language of extravagance and de¬
clamation. It is too extreme, too highly colored. If I
have spoken strongly, this witness has outdone me a
thousand times. But his talk indicates at least what he
feels. It is said that you cannot tell what a man is from
what he says of himself, but you may do so from what
he says of others. He has spoken unadvisedly of the
Chinamen and he has spoken unadvisedly of the people
of California. The former are not the ugly, angry class
which he depicts. The latter are not the passionate
mob which he describes. But he is himself full of preju¬
dice, and what is true of him is true of many others.
He suggests what statesmen should do and he has been
taken at his word. Educated, intelligent and enlightened
according to his own views, he winds up his evidence
with a broad proposition. What it is, he may say for
himself ;—^
" Q. In view of all the evils which you have stated here
" in connection v/ith this immigration, would you be willing
" now to abrogate all treaty relations between the Uni-
" ted States and China in order to stop this immigration t
"A. It cannot be stopped in any other way.
" Q. You would do that sir } A, Yes, sir."
That is to say, our witness has become so impressed
with a given view, has allowed himself to so far magnify
what he considers evils, and to shut his eyes to economi¬
cal considerations, and considerations of duty, that he
proposes deliberately to deny the "inalienable right of
" man to change his home and allegiance," to throw over¬
board the traditions of our nation in this respect, and
to draw between us and the Chinese, a wall of seclusion
more effective than the wall v;hich they erected centuries
ago against the incursions of barbarians. Could human
prejudice go further 1
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 968.
252
WHAT IS ASSIMILATION?
It is not necessary to dwell longer upon the proposi¬
tion that there are two sides of this question of assimila¬
tion, and that an intelligent doubt may be expressed
whether the Chinese are more disposed to keep at a dis¬
tance from us or we to keep them at a distance.
But what, after all, is meant by the vague phrase that
the Chinese will not assimilate. It has been iterated and
reiterated, but is it entirely certain that any one knows
what is meant} Has it not owed some part of the influ¬
ence which it has exerted to its very uncertainty and in-
definiteness I claim for the Chinese only that they
shall be treated with even handed justice, and this claim
is met at once by the mysterious declaration that they
will not assimilate. What is it then which is wanted in
this direction }
We have seen that the Chinese work in our fields, in
our factories and upon our public works. They have
been described for us as free men, as industrious, patient,
pains taking, faithful, skillful, frugal, peaceable freemen.
Can one ask more in these directions 1 Their competi¬
tion is dreaded because they possess many of the quali¬
ties which make laborers useful to others and to them¬
selves. They might lose some of these valuable charac¬
teristics and assimilate more closely in doing so to a part
of the population of California. Would we have them
do this}
We have seen that their merchants are shrewd, enter¬
prising and honorable. We have found them upon 'change
respected, even courted. In business relations, then, as
in labor, they have not failed.
We have seen that they are open to the truths of re¬
vealed religion. The testimony of a minister who has
been among them, and among many other nationalities,
is, that when religious principles are brought to bear upon
them they appreciate and exemplify them "just like other
" people."
WH A T IS ASSIMILA TION?
253
We have seen that in face of many special temptations
crime is not more rampant among them than among our¬
selves.
We have seen that they care for their own sick and
needy.
We have seen that they settle their differences and
difficulties by friendly negotiation and arbitration.
We have seen that they appreciate the proposition that
in the universe there is physical power and moral power,
that the school teacher is the noblest illustration of the
latter, and that it is virtue which, better than " great ships
of war or powerful artillery," commands " the intuitive
" submission of the human will."
We have seen them pleading for us to believe that
" there are spirits among them whom we could respect
" and love," if we would but look beyond their " plain ap-
pearance and the patched clothes which they are
" obliged to wear."
Do we ask more than this } Do we demand that men
of a race whose traditions are different from ours, whose
education and training are peculiar to themselves, should
suddenly cast off devotion to their past and meet us on
a common ground of social intercourse, their heads un¬
shaven, their cues cut off, their bodies encased in tight
fitting garments, that they shall eat potatoes rather than
rice, and drink wine instead of tea ? What then are
these externals that we should pay so much attention to
them ? If the Chinese fulfill the purposes of life, if they
have a decent regard for the future existence, must we
still show discontent because their dress and some of
their customs indicate their origin ?
How is it that we treat other imm.igrants, and what do
we expect from them ? Do we ask the clod-hopper from
Ireland, the operator from England, the peasant from
France, or Italy, or Germany, into our drawing-rooms, and
254
UNITY OF HUMAN FACTS.
invite them to marry our daughters ? Do we not admit
their children to our public schools ? Do we not encour-
age them to take an interest in our institutions by mak¬
ing them citizens ? Do we treat the Chinaman in such
manner ?
There are questions in regard to race which I do not
pretend to solve. That our origin was one I do not
doubt. That differences which have grown up have re¬
sulted mainly from divergences of climate I believe.
That institutions and systems mold the character of a
people I feel sure. That our manhood is different, that
there is not one common soul of humanity, that there is
not one Providence for all, I deny. And where is the
difficulty in resting right here ? Why have we to make
a better plan for the Almighty than He has made for
Himself ? Can we not be just above all things and leave
consequences to take care of themselves ? We no longer
burn men at the stake or tear them limb from limb
because they do not believe in the same dogmas of reli¬
gion as we do. Must we refuse to allow them to wear
their hair and their clothes as they like, to desire that
their bones shall rest with those of their kindred ?
It is possible to give free rein to the imagination, and
to anticipate a flood of Chinese descending upon our
coast, as the Huns and Vandals poured down upon
Rome, but armed with the implements of peace rather
than those of war. If the Huns and Vandals had so ap¬
proached the Imperial City, the genius of the race would
have found work for them to do, and might have utilized
them to spread further its own domination and rule. It
is possible for us to say that an overpress of peaceful in¬
surgents may be inconvenient. But if so, why has it
not occurred to men who use the non-assimilation propo¬
sition, that,- so far as it has any merit, it tends to decrease
the dangers which they have pictured. If we do not
RIGHT TREATMEN2 DEMANDED.
255
want the Chinamen among us, why do we complain be¬
cause their love of native land, leads them to return to
their own shores. If we congratulate ourselves that the
broad Pacific rolls its floods between the seat of this
dreaded stock and ourselves, why should we grieve that
there are other barriers between us 'arising from differ¬
ences of education partly, partly from differences of a
deeper kind engendered by differences of climate and
of habit 1
I have said that I ask for justice, only, for this despised
race. What does justice consist in.? It does not demand
the breaking down rudely of social barriers, but it does
demand the admission of men to a place in our estimation
graded according to their merits and their virtues. It
does not demand that we should risk our safety and
theirs by admitting them to a share in the control of gov¬
ernment in advance of their education up to the require¬
ments of intelligent citizenship, but it does demand that
we should offer them opportunities, and encourage them
to fit themselves for citizenship. It condemns the course
of legislation, or of custom, in California which excludes
their children from the schools. It condemns the syste¬
matic misrepresentation of the Chinese which has gone far
to mislead the nation. It demands that the government
should be far-reaching and consistent in its efforts to de¬
fend and to elevate the Chinaman. It sees no wisdom in
failures to attempt to learn who these people are, and
how they may be best dealt with. But beyond this I say
nothing, and propose nothing. If, in the great future,
and under such a system, the barrier of race keeps them to
their side of the Pacific, there will be none to complain.
If they are led by a reawakened national spirit to go
abroad in a measure which I do not anticipate, and fall¬
ing upon our shoi*es to take part in our life and progress
it will still be well. The only danger comes in when we
256
SOCIAL QUESTIONS.
refuse to deal with this people as with others, when ex¬
cusing ourselves for our lack of forethought and wisdom,
for our failure to be just, we keep them among us as
an alien and indigested element. If they are law-abid¬
ing men at home, they may be kept so when among us.
If they are faithful and intelligent in the ordinary avo¬
cations and relations of life, they may safely be trusted
with the franchise, all in due season, not carelessly but
as the result of well-devised and temperate legislation.
The social question is a part of the whole, but it is
outside of the direct scope of legislation, and it may be
safely left to settle itself. Legislation will, of course, af¬
fect it indirectly and very deeply, but it is not the
business of legislators to say who shall be our friends and
associates, or whom we shall marry. The wife of an able
and accomplished Chinese known to many Americans is
an estimable American lady. This fact has not discredited
her among those who know her. It has not affected his
position as a trusted officer of his government. What
has happened in this instance will happen hereafter. The
position of women in China is not all that is to be de¬
sired, and there will be much more in common between
a Chinese educated among us and an educated lady of
our own stock, than between the same man and the great
mass of his country women. These are all matters which
cannot be determined by any hard and fast rules. Each
individual must determine what will most conduce to his
own happiness, and it may be said with certainty that
what does this is best, not only for him, but also for the
community in which he lives.
The Chinese Government has recently sent to the
United States more than one hundred selected boys to
be taught our language and our knowledge generally.
It has intcjaded to give them a career in the public service
of their country after they return to their native land.
CHINESE EFFORTS TO ASSIMILATE.
257
It is reasonable for that government to have many fears
that these youths will become attached to our institutions
and to our social lif and that they may be incapacitated
in this way for their duties and life at home. It does
entertain such fears. It has not that confidence in the
natural bent of the Chinaman which those among us have
who urge the non-assimilation theory.
It is too soon for us to determine what may result in
the way of intercourse between us and the Chinese in
the long future. It is less than thirty years since they
began their migration to our shores. The period is too
short to admit of the solution of all the questions in¬
volved. Yet, something may be predicated in view of
what has occurred among us, and something in view of
what is occurring in China. It was not an idle under¬
taking for China to send her young men to learn all that
we are able to teach. It will be recognized in a few
years, when these young men enter among ourselves
upon offices connected with international intercourse,
that China has done wisely, and the contrast with our
own lack of foresight will be remarked upon. For not
only has our government failed to educate or to employ
one competent person in America to deal with the Chinese
who are among us, but it has failed to educate any in¬
terpreters for our service in that country. We go about
our affairs in a happy-go-lucky style that constantly sub¬
jects us to humiliating experiences, and deprives us of
the opportunity to develop the best possible results from
our intercourse. China has not been content, however,
with the given experiment, and some others of the same
sort, but she has established a central school at Peking
and others at other points in the empire.
In doing these things, China has been actuated, it may
be said, by no peaceful purpose, but to strengthen herself
for the inevitable conflict with foreigners. I admit that
Q
258
MEMORIAL OF PRINCE KUNO.
such considerations have had weight, but these are not
the only ones. Her government has come to recognize
the fact that Western people have outstripped her own in
the arts and science, and is ashamed of this condition of
things. The memorial of Prince Kung, as chief secretary
of state for foreign affairs, favoring the establishment of
the imperial college at Peking is very much in point
here. This whole paper is worthy of careful perusal,
but I am able to reproduce only one or two brief
extracts which, while characteristic of the document,
illustrate the temper of the prince and the arguments
by which he sustained the proposal. He says ;—^
"We have weighed this matter maturely before laying
"it before the Throne. Among persons who are un-
" acquainted with the subject, there are some who will
" regard it as unimportant ; some who will censure us as
" wrong in abandoning the methods of China for those of
" the West ; and some who will denounce the proposal
" that Chinese should submit to be instructed by people
" of the West, as shameful in the extreme. Those who
" urge such things are ignorant of the demands of the
" the times.
" In the first place it is high time that some plan should
" be devised for infusing new elements of strength into the
" government of China. Those who understand the times
" are of the opinion that the only way for effecting this,
" is to introduce the learning and mechanical arts of the
"Western nations. Provisional governors, such as Tsoh
"Tsung Tang and Li Hung Chang, are firm in this con-
"viction, and constantly presenting it in their addresses
" to the Throne. The last mentioned officer last year
"opened an arsenal for the manufacture of arms and
" invited men and officers from the metropolitan garrison
to go there for instruction, while the other established
^ Hanlin Papers, p. 314.
MEMORIAL OF PRINCE KUNO.
259
in Foo Chow a school for the study of foreign languages
and arts, with a view to the instruction of young men
in ship-building and the manufacture of engines. The
urgency of such studies is an opinion, therefore, which
is not confined to us, your servants.
" Should it be said that the purchase of firearms and
steamers has been tried, and found to be both cheap
and convenient, so that we may spare ourselves the
trouble and expense of home production, we reply that
it is not merely the manufacture of arms and the con¬
struction of ships that China needs to learn. But in
respect to these two objects, which is the wiser course
in view of the future, to content ourselves with pur¬
chase and leave the source of supply in the hands of
others, or to render ourselv^es independent by making
ourselves masters of their arts ? ^ ^ In olden times
yeomen and common soldiers were all acquainted with
astronomy, but in later ages an interdict was put upon
it. In the reign of Kang Hi the prohibition was re¬
moved, and astronomical science once more began to
flourish. Mathematics were studied together with the
classics. A proverb says;—thing unknown is a
^scholar's shame.' Now, when a man of letters, on
stepping from his door, raises his eyes to the stars, and
is unable to tell what they are, is it not enough to make
him blush ?
As to the allegation that it is a shame to learn from
the people of the West, this is the absurdest charge of
all. For under the whole heaven the deepest disgrace
is that of being content to lag in the rear of others.
^ ^ Not to be ashamed of an inferiority, and when a
measure is proposed by which we may equal or even
surpass our neighbors, to object that it is a shame to
learn frojn them, and refusing to learn, to be content
with inferiority, is not such meanness of spirit an indel¬
ible reproach ? "
260
THE RENAISSANCE OF CHINA.
This is not the language of unreasoning hatred. It is
language which indicates respect for us, and an earnest
desire not be surpassed by us in the struggle for political
and industrial pre-eminence. It means the adoption of
our ways so far as these may be necessary, to the end
that China shall not remain behind her neighbors. She
intends to assimilate her conditions to ours. It was
written eighteen years ago, and already great strides have
been made. Several machine-shops, ship-building yards
and arsenals have been brought into existence and suc¬
cessfully operated. The national arms, strengthened by
the adoption of more or less of our system and materials,
have reconquered and pacified all the ancient territory
of the State. A great steamship line, with more vessels
and more tonnage than any of those under our own flag,
is in successful working. Students from her schools are
already passing abroad into her missions and consulates.
Her renaissance is so far acknowledged that European
States are disposed to seek, or to prevent, alliances with
her.
Is it not time then, in view of the qualities exhibited
by Chinamen upon our own soil, in view of the illiber-
ality which has characterized our treatment of them, in
view of the progress which China is herself making, and
in view of our common humanity, to drop this cry that
the Chinese do not assimilate, and to devote ourselves to
a policy which will be more just at the moment and
which will conduce to build up relations of enduring re¬
spect and profit between the two great nations of the
opposite coasts of the Pacific}
PART III.—CHAPTER VIL
OBJECTIONS WHICH HAVE BEEN ADVANCED AGAINST
THE CHINESE. PROSTITUTION, GAMBLING,
CRIMINALS, DISEASED PERSONS.
Prostitution a natural result of the circumstances. It should be sup¬
pressed. The attempt to hold prostitutes in a condition of semi-
slavery. The supply comes from Hong Kong and can be com¬
pletely cut off. Statement of the means which may be adopted.
What has been done already in this connection. Disposition of the
Chinese government. How prostitutes come to America. The
nature of their control. The Hip Ye Tung band. An attempt to
break up the band and the cause of failure. The efforts of the six
companies to suppress prostitution. Police officers share in the
profits. The local police system. Officers directly-dependent upon
the support of gamblers, &c. Evidence of the six companies.
Money payment to police. Testimony of Mr. Rogers, Mr. McKen¬
zie, Wong Ben, Ah Chung. The police system has been improved
of late. Difficulties attending government in California. Fugitive
criminals. Diseased persons. Contract-laborers. Evils may be
grappled with under existing treaties.
My readers will have learned from the preceding chap¬
ters that I adhere strongly to the proposition that the
Chinese have added greatly to the wealth of California,
and to the convenience, comfort and success of her peo¬
ple. They will have learned also that I dispute earn¬
estly the statement that they are a servile class, that
they interfere with the labor of our people, that they
send money out of the country, that they have set up ,a
quasi government of their own upon our soil, and that
they do not accommodate themselves to the require¬
ments of our life and organization. I shall present in
this chapter certain- further objections which have been
urged against them and which in my opinion demand
262
SPECIAL EVILS.
attention. I allude to the prostitution which is found
among them, to the fact that they are given to gambling,
that there are among them undoubted criminals, some
of whom are fugitives from their own country, and
that forms of disease exist among them which may pos¬
sibly be a source of danger to us.
If we assume that there are 75)000 Chinese in Cali¬
fornia, that considerable portions of this number are res¬
ident in San Francisco and in other cities, and that
nearly all of them are adult males who are unmarried or
absent from their families, we at once picture a condition
of things from which we should expect certain evil con¬
sequences, and first of all prostitution.
I do not need to dwell upon this proposition nor to
extend remarks in regard to the conditions which usually
attend prostitution. It is a loathesome thing in its least
objectionable forms. It is because it takes upon itself
forms among the Chinese in California which are par¬
ticularly objectionable that it demands more earnest at¬
tention.
One may say, at once, that prostitution is not easily
dealt with, and that certain governments, finding them¬
selves unable to suppress it, have proposed to regulate
and control it. I advocate no such idea, and I do not
believe that the people of America are disposed to do so,
in any measure. If there exist reasons why this should
be attempted anywhere, certainly they exist in a city
like San Francisco, and as respects the Chinese ; but to
my mind it is not desirable anywhere, or under any cir¬
cumstances, to compromise with iniquity. It is not the
part of morality ; it is not, as I believe, conducive to
public interest. At best, we cut off in such fashion some
of the unfortunate results only, while we increase de¬
moralizing effects. The licensing of brothels and gambl¬
ing houses, under the assumed plea that we may thus
PROSTITUTION.
263
control them, is a specious kind of proposition which
can only be put forward and acted upon in communities
where the moral tone has been brought down to a low
level, or distinctions between right and wrong have been
refined away by sophistry. It has been proposed, over
and over again, by foreigners at the open ports in China,
as respects the districts managed by them, but it is to
the credit of the Chinese authorities that they have per¬
sistently set their faces against the plan.
One may say, again, that San Fransisco is full of
white prostitutes, and that there is no occasion to be over
sensitive at the failures of the Chinese in this respect.
I am not now dealing with questions which are outside
of the range of my proper inquiry. If prostitution is
rampant among our people there, if, as is said, more
white women of this degraded kind are found upon the
outskirts of the Chinese part of the city than Chinese
women within it, that is a matter for the people of the
city to deal with, and we may assume that they are
dealing with it in a more or less successful manner.
They deserve sympathy in such efforts, and they de¬
serve sympathy in their expressions of regret that they
do not succeed well there or within the limits of the
Chinese district.
It may be doubted whether the evils to our own people,
arising from the presence of Chinese prostitutes, are so
great as they have been represented to be, and whether
an earnest effort should not be made to cleanse our own
house before we turn to that of the Chinese. All this,
however, is a question of degree and of good taste, but
does not affect the proposition that we should do away
with the evil wherever and however we find it existing.
If an offensive ulcer exists upon one part of a patient
who is under treatxnent, it is not neglected because there
are other sores upon his body. If San Francisco needs
264
HOW IT MA Y BE STOPPED,
cleansing^ as all cities do, the operation may be carried
forward at all practicable points, and it would be the
height of folly to say that we should hold back our hands
at one place because it is difficult to carry out the neces¬
sary measures everywhere.
It is a matter beyond doubt, that joined to the system
of prostitution among the Chinese in California, and a
part of it, is a system of slavery; that the women are
largely imported and held under contract by their im¬
porters. How this is done I shall explain later ; at present
I desire to point out a means to strike at the whole sys¬
tem.
I shall not now attempt to speak of the local legisla¬
tion which may be enacted, or the administrative meas¬
ures which may be set in operation to deal with the
prostitutes who are already in the country. The salient
fact which I desire to point out is, that unlike the case of
white prostitution, there is no local supply of Chinese
women, and that if they are prevented from leaving their
own shores, the very root of the evil is destroyed.
Attempts have been made to do .this, which I am sat¬
isfied have been earnest and persistent. All such women
leave the port of Hong Kong. As Hong Kong is a
British colony, the consulate there is independent of our
consular and diplomatic establishment in China, and I
know comparatively little of the manner in which it has
been worked. I find evidence, however, in the report of
the Congressional committee that it has been usual for
the consul or a deputy to examine carefully all women
proposing to go to the United States, and to refuse to pass
for emigration those who belong to the class in question.
Those permitted to go were obliged to hand in to the
consul their photographs, and these were transmitted to
the custom officers at San Francisco in order that no de¬
ception should occur as to the persons passed. So much
CONSULAR EXAMINATIONS.
265
has been done under existing laws and regulations, and
there is great reason to believe, that very good results
have been brought about. It appears that in March,
1875, an Act of Congress was approved by the President,
providing measures to be taken to prevent the landing of
prostitutes and convicts, and that the examinations made
by the consul were devised by him to enable the customs
officers at San Francisco to enforce the law more per¬
fectly. The actual results accomplished were stated in
evidence before the commission by Mr. Giles H. Gray,
surveyor of the port of San Francisco, as follows ;—^
"Previous to this time there had arrived upon the
"steamers, frequently, from 200 to 400 women. During
"the quarter ending 30th September, 1875, there arrived
"161 females, and we had no information which would
" enable us to prohibit the landing of any of them. The
" next quarter, (that is to say, after the examinations of
"the consul had begun,) the number of females was
"reduced to forty-four, and in the first quarter of 1876, it
"was reduced to fifteen. In the second quarter the
" number was thirty-two, and in the third, twenty-four.
" The women who have been landed since we commenced
" to enforce the Page law, I have every reason to believe
" are respectable women, and they are accompanied by a
" letter—a certificate like this. (Producing a letter). The
" envelope contains a letter from the consul, a photograph
" of the woman, and a certificate in English and Chinese."
The witness felt confident that the consul's exami¬
nations were so searching and thorough that he had suc¬
ceeded in prevented prostitutes from leaving Hong Kong
for San Francisco. In this he was more or less mistaken.
It is notorious that our consulates generally are filled
by inexperienced men. There has not been an officer at
Hong Kong in the last twelve years who could speak the
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 388.
266 CONSULAR ESTABLISHMENTS INADEQUATE,
Chinese language. While this is true, the government
has failed during that period to provide for the cost of
employing there a competent interpreter, or any other
subordinate officer whatever. I do not know the de¬
tails of the working of the office, but I speak from a
a general knowledge of the appropriations made by
Congress. It is not possible to expect good results
under such circumstances. However this may be, there
is the further difficulty that even an experienced officer,
and one acquainted with the Chinese language and the
practices of the Chinese people, cannot say with certainty
whether a given applicant does or does not belong to the
prostitute class. He may have his opinions ; he may be
able to ferret out facts, but after all he can only reach
approximately satisfactory results. It was proven in
evidence before the commission, that twelve women, out
of a number represented by forty-eight photographs of
persons passed by the consul, had been found in San
Francisco under circumstances which indicated that they
were in all probability prostitutes. ^
The simple truth of the matter is, that an examination,
to be thorough, must be made by Chinese officials acting
conjointly with our own.
In saying this I speak from my general experience,
from a common sense point of view, and from an inci¬
dent within my own administration of consular func¬
tions, although perhaps not five persons in a year applied
to me during my fourteen years charge of the consulate
general at Shanghae, to be passed Hfor emigration. On
one occasion several women appeared and were ques¬
tioned by a subordinate officer, who reported to me his
failure to elicit information of a positive nature. They
were all good looking young women, who said simply that
their husbands were in California, and that they desired
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1142.
WINT EXAMINATIONS NE CESSAT V.
267
to join them. Under these circumstances, unwilling to
do them injustice, yet seriously doubting their story and
the various replies made to me, I referred the matter to
the native magistrate of the district, who with an inter¬
preter from my own office, succeeded in demonstrating
that they were prostitutes. I believe that no other kind
of examination can give reasonably certain results.
It may be said that the women all leave Hong Kong,
and that as Hong Kong is a British colony, the interven¬
tion of a native magistrate cannot be procured there.
While this is true, it may be said again, on the other
hand, that the women are with rare exceptions, subjects
of China, and that they ought to be relegated back to
Canton for examination before a magistrate and a con¬
sular officer, the consul at Hong Kong passing no wo¬
man not passed by the board there, or who had failed to
prove naturalization under the laws of the colony. The
two ports are adjacent to one another, and constant and
inexpensive steam communication between them exists.
Such a scheme would need the approval not only of our
own government but also that of China.
If it is asked whether the Chinese government would
give it approval I can only respond that I am satisfied
it would do so. In saying this I desire it to be distinctly
understood that, as to whatever has passed between the
Chinese government and myself in regard to all the va¬
rious questions which have come up between that gov¬
ernment and our own, I intend to preserve at the mo¬
ment that reticence which is becoming in an officer who
holds or has held a diplomatic position. The United
States government has the right to publish or dis¬
close diplomatic correspondence. The Chinese have the
same right, but the individual agent has not. He may
believe that it- would conduce to public interest if he
should do so. He may think that the reserve which is
268
JOINT EXAMINA TIONS POSSIBLE.
SO appropriate to his position may often subject him to
adverse and unjust criticism and censure. No man is a
fit agent, however, who does not subordinate himself to
the duties incident to his position. The members of the
present commission to China have been quoted in the
newspapers as expressing certain views, as finding the
Secretary of State in sympathy with them, and as mak¬
ing public what is to be undertaken by the commission
at Peking. To criticism for that sort of thing I have not
subjected myself in the past, and I do not propose to do
so now, although my official functions have ceased.
The way then to strike at Chinese prostitution in
America is to strike at the supply of prostitutes, and the
means are simple. If we add to the efficiency of the
consulate at Hong Kong we will add much to the chances
of good results. If we go further and in concert with
the Chinese government arrange measures under which
both governments may co-operate, we will accomplish
still more. And looking to what has been done by the
consul at Hong Kong under circumstances of diffi¬
culty, it would appear that the evil may be very success¬
fully dealt with, so far as the prevention of the immigra¬
tion of abandoned Chinese women is concerned.
While I do not desire to say anything in regard to the
control of the Chinese prostitutes already in our country,
that is to say, to point out the legislative or administra¬
tive measures which are needed here, I may appropri¬
ately and usefully extend my remarks so far as to indi¬
cate the special evils which characterize their prostitu¬
tion.
It will be manifest to the most careless observer that
Chinese women have not made their way to California
unassisted. They are members of a timid race, and they
are women, who, as such are constitutionally timid.
They are unlikely, therefore, as individuals or in compa-
SLAVERY AMONG PROSTITUTES,
269
nies, to come to our shores by themselves. That the
women of more experience of their class have promoted
such immigration is undoubted, but the scene is distant
and they would not be likely to enter upon such enter¬
prises without the assistance of the more courageous sex.
I speak in this respect from a consideration of the cir¬
cumstances rather than from facts proven in evidence,
but there is evidence at least that, once upon our soil,
these women are protected or controlled by men. This
will appear from what follows.
The Reverend Mr. Gibson, when examined before the
Congressional committee, testified that he had translated
from the original Chinese two contracts in regard to
prostitution, which are as follows ;—^
" An agreement to assist the woman Ah Ho, because
"coming from China to San Francisco she became in-
"debted to her mistress for her passage. Ah Ho herself
"asks Mr. Yee Kwan to advance for her $630, for which
"Ah Ho distinctly agrees to give her body to Mr. Yee
" for service for a term of four years.
" There shall be no interest on the money. Ah Ho
" shall receive no wages. At the expiration of four years
"Ah Ho shall be her own mistress. Mr. Yee Kwan shall
"not hinder or trouble her. If Ah Ho runs away before
" her time is out, her mistress shall find her and return
" her, and whatever expense is incurred in finding her and
" returning her. Ah Ho shall pay.
" On this day of the agreement Ah Ho has received
"with her own hands, from Mr. Yee Kwan $630.
" If Ah Ho shall be sick at any time for more than ten
" days she shall make up by an extra month of service
" for any ten days sickness.
" Now this agreement is proof. This paper received
"by Ah Ho is fitness.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 145.
270
SLA VEY AMONG PROSTITUTES.
^'Tung Chee, 12th year, 9th month, 14th day."
(October, 1873.)
"An agreement to assist a young girl named Loi Yan.
" Because she became indebted to her mistress for pas-
" sage, food, &c., and has nothing to pay, she makes her
" body over to the woman Sep Sam, to serve as a pros-
"titute to make out the sum of $503. The money'shall
"draw no interest and Loi Yan shall receive no wages.
"Loi Yan shall serve four and a half years. On this day
"of agreement Loi Yan receives the sum of $503 in her
" own hands. When the time is out Loi Yan maybe her
" own mistress and no man shall trouble her. If she runs
" away before the time is out and any expense is in-
"curred in catching her, then Loi Yan must pay that
" expense. If she is sick fifteen days or more, then she
"must make up one month for every fifteen days. If
" Sep Sam should go back to China, then Loi Yan shall
" serve another party till her time is out. If in such ser-
" vice she should be sick one hundred days or more, and
" cannot be cured she may return to Sep Sam's place.
" For proof of this agreement this paper.
" Dated 2d day 6th month, 15th year."
(About Sept., 1876.)
A witness named Alfred Clarke, a clerk in the police
office, examined before the commission, gave evidence in
regard to the means used to enforce these contracts, as
follows ;—^
" Q. Suppose a Chinawoman escapes, what do the
"owners do.? A. Follow her and take her back. If
" they fail they generally have her arrested for larceny,
" and get possession in that way. They use the pro-
" cesses of our courts to keep these women in a state of
" slavery. They do not let them get out of their clutches
" if they can help it, for they know that there is no legal
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 146.
JIOW IT IS ENFORCED,
271
" way of reclaiming them. The six companies do not
manage this woman business ; it is under the manage-
"ment of an independent company, the Hip Ye Tu- ig.
" Whether they import the women, I do not know, but
" they look after affairs here. A Chinaman married a
" woman at Gibson's," (out of a refuge provided by Mr.
Gibson for fugitives of this class,) and after the mar-
" riage received notice that he must pay for the woman
" or be dealt with according to the Chinese custom. He
" was made to believe that he would suffer personally if
" he did not comply with their demands. Acting upon
" information we arrested a number of persons and got
* some of their books which we had translated. On the
"rolls there were I think 170 women. Seven or eight
" Chinamen were arrested, but all the witnesses we could
" get for the prosecution did not amount to more than
" three or four, and no conviction was had."
This Hip Ye Tung society here mentioned, and of
which we have heard elsewhere, is thus described by Mr.
Gibson in his book on the Chinese in America ;—
"Associations of Chinese villains and cut-throats have
"been formed for the purpose of protecting the owners
" of women and girls in their property rights, and of do-
" ing any other villainous business that comes to hand.
" The San Francisco press know these men by the name
"of ^ Highbinders.' The name of the principal associa-
"tion or company is ^ Hip Ye Tung.' For each Chinese
"woman brought into the country, and sold into prosti-
" tution, under the protection of this society, the sum of
" forty dollars is levied as a fund with which to carry on
" its operations, and to pay the desperadoes who execute
"its orders. A small weekly or monthly tax is also
" levied upon each woman as a fund with which to carry
" on its operations, and to pay the desperadoes who exe-
^ P. 137-
272
A CASE IN POINT,
"cute its orders. According to a multitude of Chinese
" statements, and according to direct evidence before the
" Senate investigating committee, a part of this blood
"money goes into the pockets of special policemen.
" Some of these men have become rich from these fees
" and gamblers bribes. Chinese women have been taken
" from the steamers to some room or barracoon in China
" town and kept under the surveillance of a special police-
"man until the fees were paid and sales made."
Flaving thus told the purposes of the Hip Ye Tung,
Mr. Gibson proceeds to describe what occurred in a given
case, the same, doubtless, as that mentioned by Mr.
Clarke ;—
"In the summer of 1873, a Chinaman, by the name of
"Yet Sung, assisted three Chinese women to escape from
"a den of prostitution, and to find their v/ay to the
"Methodist mission-house, 916 Washington street. Yet
" Sung proposed to marry one of the girls, and certain of
"his acquaintances proposed to marry the other two.
" The girls accepted the propositions. The men procured
" licenses, and were duly married. A few weeks after,
"Yet Sung and his wife came in great terror to the mis-
" sion-house and asked for protection. The former owner
" of the girl, failing to collect her value, had brought the
"case before the Hip Ye Tung society, and one of their
" destroying angels had demanded her return or three
" hundred and fifty dollars. Unwilling to pay the money,
"and unwilling to give up the woman. Yet Sung had
"been dragged before the associated villians, in their
" secret council chamber, and given three weeks in which
" to choose whether to return the woman, or the assumed
" value, three hundred and fifty dollars, or to be assas-
"sinated. Two of Yet Sung's friends were present, and
"witnessed the proceedings. After consultation with
"certain lawyers, I assisted Yet Sung in having eight of
THE CHINESE MERCHANTS.
273
^'the leading Hip Ye Tung men arrested on a charge of
" conspiracy to extort money. The case was tried in the
"police court. To the credit of the Chinese merchants,
" I may say that more than fifty of them called me to a
" private interview, and encouraged me to go on, promis-
"ing to aid me in every possible way. Of their own
"accord, they employed the best legal counsel in the
" city to aid the prosecuting attorney of the police court."
The course of Mr. Gibson, in attempting to bring the
members of this society, or, to speak more accurately,
this band of wrong-doers, to accountability in a court of
law, deserves commendation of a positive sort. It is
probable that they resort to intimidation rather than
violence ; yet, if they come from the class of fugitive
criminals from China, their capacity to do harm may be
estimated. It is possible that Mr. Gibson, the fearless
defender of the rights of the Chinese when abused, the
equally bold denouncer of their offences, in taking the
course which he did, subjected himself to a degree of
personal danger.
The course of the Chinese merchants is equally cred¬
itable, but it is only what one acquainted with their class
would have expected from them. Recognizing the evils
attending the prostitution of their country women, they
have on more than one occasion, made efforts to mitigate
them. In the given instance, it seems that, unsolicited,
they employed a lawyer, whose name stands hardly sec¬
ond at the San Francisco bar, to aid in the prosecution
of the Hip Ye Tung men. Mr. Clarke has stated that
the books of the band had been seized, and that a list cf
170 women had been found in them. The case was one,
then, in which the opportunities to break up the opera¬
tions of the crew appeared excellent.
The result I leave Mr. Gibson's narrative to disclose.
I esteem him a just and intelligent man, but I would
R
274 PROSTITUTION AIDED BY THE POLICE,
willingly believe that a lack of acquaintance with legal
procedure has given him wTong impressions of what
occurred. He tells the story as follows ;—
" For some unaccountable reason the prosecuting at-
"torney refused to allow Mr. McAllister, the counsel
" employed by the Chinese merchants to aid him, or to
" take part in the prosecution ; refused to bring forward
" the official records of the society, which had been seized
" with the men, and which contained the names of the
"eight defendants as officers of the Flip Ye Tung. His
" whole conduct showed that he did not wish a conviction,
" and would not have it if he could prevent it. However,
"Yet Sung and his two friends testified to facts as above
" mentioned. The defendants, each simply denied the
"same ; claimed that they did not belong to the Hip Ye
" Tung, and brought forward two Chinese witnesses to
" testify for each defendant that they were all good and
"true men. To the astonishment and disappointment of
"all respectable people who had noticed the case, the
"jury rendered a verdict of acquittal.''
Mr. Gibson has been consistent in his statements that
the Chinese villains of the Hip Ye Tung class, are
actively assisted by our own people. He gave, for in-
instance, a description of that organization to the Senate
committee, as sworn testimony, and among other similar
declarations made by him at that time, will be found the
following
" A portion of the profits arising from this business
" goes to the Chinese, and a portion to men not Chinese.
u % % There is collected for each woman imported as
" a prostitute forty dollars. Of that, ten dollars goes to
"white men. Twenty-five cents a week, or month—I
" forget ,which—is levied on each woman, and part of this
" goes to white men. Gambling-houses pay five dollars a
^ Rep. Sen. Com., p. 34.
PROSTITUTION AND THE POLICE,
275
" week to certain policemen for the privilege of keeping
" open."
This evidence is not by any means all of the kind that
was presented to the Senate committee. It appears in¬
deed, that the presidents of the six companies made a
statement on the subject to the committee. I find at
least that Mr. Donovan, one of the members of the com¬
mittee, in examining Mr. George W. Duffield, a police-
officer of San Francisco, used the following language;—^
"Q. The heads of the companies told us that the
" gambling-houses had been in the habit of raising and
"paying money to men at the City Hall, to secure them-
" selves from interference, and the same thing in regard
" to prostitution. They said that if we would get honest
" American officers, there would be no more gambling
and prostitution in Chinatown ; but until that time they
" will continue to exist. This was told us by the heads
" of the companies, the six presidents being present 1
To this the witness responded, with an audacity which
is suggestive ;—
"In answer to that, I will state that all those men talk-
" ing to you were interested in those gambling houses."
And to the next question ;—" How is this population,"
the Chinese of San Francisco generally, " as to criminal
" propensities ? " the witness with equal promptness, re¬
sponded ;—
" They are a nation of thieves. I have never seen one
" that would not steal."
It appears that there exists in San Francisco a corps
of special or local policemen, who are not paid by the
city, but derive their incomes from subscriptions of resi¬
dents upon the beats assigned to them by the general
police authorities. It is a way of sustaining a large
police force, appaxently, without making a large appropri-
^ Rep. Sen. Com., p. 48.
276
THE SPECIAL POLICE SYSTEM,
ation from the municipal funds. How far the general
police authorities attempt to control these men I do not
know, but each one is allowed to wear the uniform of the
force, and a badge like that of other officers marked,
however, with words indicating that they are " special "
officers. One does not need to hâve had some experi¬
ence in administrative affairs to know that such a system
is faulty in the extreme, that it is utterly impossible to
control adequately such a body of men, and that their
existence must tend to demoralize the members of the
regular force.
Referring to this class of officers, Mr. Raymond, chair¬
man of the Senate committee, while examining Mr.
James R. Rogers, from whose evidence before the Con¬
gressional committee I have already quoted freely, asked
the following question and received the following an¬
swer ;—^
" Q. Do you know what wages local policemen get on
"an average.^ A. They get all they can. The exact
" amounts I cannot tell, but they are all good beats. The
" officers are all thorough, first-class officers. I consider
" them as fine officers as there are on the force. I have
"had them to assist me several times, and have always
" found them up to the mark. The local system is pretty
"good in some respects, it furnishes a guard for the
" Chinese quarter when the local police could not do it.
"They make a great many arrests and recover much
"stolen property.^'
Having passed this eulogy on the 'class of special or
local policemen, confessing in terms the inadequacy of
the regular force, and by inference his own crass igno¬
rance of a sound system of police and of human nature
at large, he was asked a further question ;—
" Q. -Suppose there were officers, regular policemen,
^ Rep. Sen. Com., p. 62.
THE SPECIAL POLICE SYSTEM.
277
" on those beats receiving no pay, (excepting from the
" city,) don't you think they could stop gambling and
" prostitution ? " And to this he responded, with per¬
haps a nearer approximation to accuracy;—"Yes, if they
" did their duty. There is hardly an ordinance that is
not violated by the Chinese, and not one that cannot
" be enforced. They have an idea that money is at the
" bottom of the whole thing, and that, if they want, they
"can buy privileges. They don't understand the city
^'treasury. I have had them ask how much I get, how
"much the chief, how much the judge."
It would appear then that the presidents of the six
companies have the support of this officer in their state¬
ment that gambling and prostitution will cease so soon
as honest officers are employed.
The evidence of the witness went further ;—
" Q. Do you know of the Chinese paying money to
" persons other than special policemen, for the purpose of
" protecting themselves in their business } A. I have
" been told so by Chinamen. Chinese who collected the
" money told me of its payment. The Chinaman was
"Ah You, the keeper of a store and gambling house.
" Q. To whom did he pay money A. ^
" Five hundred dollars a month.
" Q. For what purpose ? A. He said he paid it for
" the gambling houses to secure freedom from interrup-
" tion. He said so much money was paid per month ; it
" was collected from the games and stores. One hundred
" dollars went to the store," (to himself for his trouble i*)
" and the balance to .
"Q. For what purpose.^ A. Allowing gambling
" houses to run."
It is possible that many of the special policemen hav¬
ing to do with the-Chinese quarter in San Francisco are
^ The suppression of the name occurs in the printed report.
278
POLICE PAID BY PROSTITUTES.
above temptation. It will be seen, however, that they
are subjected to many temptations, and that even when
they refuse money for allowing prostitution and gamb¬
ling to go on, it becomes, their interest to wink at it.
They are paid by voluntary subscriptions of the house¬
holders. As the witness has said, " They get all they can."
The difference in their gettings, as affected by their ac¬
tivity or lack of activity, is suggested by the following
evidence, given to the Senate committee by local officer,
Andrew McKenzie ;—^
Q. Are there gambling houses on your beat 1 A.
" There have been, but they have been closed within the
last two weeks.
" Q. How many were there before} A. About
"twenty. We have never entirely suppressed gambling,
" but generally managed to keep it under some restraint.
" We have driven it and prostitution to the back streets,
" and off the street itself.
" Q. You are paid by the Chinese, are you not} A.
"Yes, sir.
" Q. And a large part of your pay comes from these
"gamblers and prostitutes } A. Yes, sir.
" Q. Does the closing of these houses affect your sal-
"ary to any great extent.? A. Yes, sir. We do not
" make such big collections. There is a dark hour in
" all kinds of business, and this is our dark hour just
" now."
This evidence was given on the 19th day of April,
1876. The sessions of the committee in San Francisco
began on the iith *of that month. The "dark hour in
" business" of our witness began, probably, when the time
for the committee to open its sessions, approached.
How long it lasted may be inferred.
Another witness examined by the Senate committee
^ Rep. Sen. Com., p. 88.
POLICE PAID BY PROSTITUTES,
279
was Wong Ben, a man half educated in the English lan¬
guage, who would appear to be an honest person, endeav¬
oring, according to the best light he had, to make a
struggle against the gambling and prostitute brokers, in
the interest oí young boys who come here and spend
" all their money in gambling houses and houses of pros-
titution."^
" Q. How long have you been in California ? A.
"Nearly thirteen years.
" Q. Where did you come from—what part of China ?
" A. Canton.
" Q. What have you been doing since you came to
" California ? A. Acting as interpreter, for a while, in
" the police and county courts.
Q. How long is it since you learned to speak Eng-
" lish ? A. About ten years.
" Q. Where do you live now ? A. I live here, in
"San Francisco.
" Q. Were you a witness in the police court yester-
" day, when some of the Chinese prostitutes were tried ?
"A. Yes ; we tried to break up that business. Last
" year I had two boys with me, and we tried to break up
" the gambling-houses and houses of prostitution. We
"tried to have the policemen arrest the keepers, but
" Charley Duiheld kicked the boy in the head, and told
"him to go away. He would not let us go into the
"gambling-houses to see who were there, so that we
" could have them arrested.
" Q. Are you helping the police ? A. Yes, sir.
"Charley Duffield told us we had no reason to go
" against the keepers of these houses.
" Q. Who are these keepers ? A. Wong Woon, a
" big fellow, who keeps a house of prostitution. An Geo,
"another big fellow-—every time a woman gets into
^ Rep. Sen. Com., p. 99.
280
THE HIP YE TUNG
"trouble he gets her out. He goes and collects commis-
" sion from women and makes them pay so much a
"month. He gets lawyers for the gamblers,too, and
" collects five dollars one week, and ten dollars a month.
"Q. Are these men merchants A. No; they keep
" gambling-houses, and houses of prostitution. They
"buy women in China, and bring them here to be pros-
" titutes—-and they sell them again here.
" Q. What do they say if you testify ? A. They put
" up one thousand five hundred dollars to put my life
" out. They tell me if that don't do it they will put up
" two thousand dollars, and then three thousand dollars.
" He told me last night he would give me one hundred
"and fifty dollars if I would not say anything, and that I
"must take it, or I would have my life put out. Wong
" Woon and An Geo collect thirteen dollars each month
«
" from gambling-houses, eight dollars a month from lot-
"tery-houses, then five dollars a week more from gam-
" biers. They tell me I must not go against them, and
" they would give me money. If I would not take ît
"they would put my life out. I won't take it, because
" young boys come here and spend all their money in
" gambling-houses and houses of prostitution, and by-
" and-by he hasn't got a cent. He can't go home. Why ?
"Because he can't go, for he gambled off his money.
" When he sees that he works all the time and never has
" a cent, he thinks it is no use to work any more, and so
" becomes a loafer on the street.
" Q. Who bring the Chinese women here} A.
"Wong Fook Soi, Bi Chee, An Geo, and Wong Woon.
"Q. What do these men do A. They keep gamb-
" ling-houses and houses of prostitution.
" Q. What do they do with the women ? A. They
"make them be prostitutes. If they don't want to be
^ »I —
" prostitutes they make them be.
" Q. Can they get away ? A. No, sir.
OR HIGH BINDERS,
281
" Q. What do they do with them when they get sick
" and cannot work any longer ? A. They don't treat
" them well at all. They don't take as much care of
" them, whether they are sick or well, as white people do
" a dog. Chinawomen in China are treated first rate,
" but in California these ^ big feet' women are treated
" worse than dogs.
" Q. How many Chinese prostitutes are there in this
"city? A. Take in the high-toned prostitutes, those
" that live up-stairs, and I guess there are about eight
" hundred.
" Q. Do you know what the six companies are ? A.
"Yes, sir.
" Q. Do they have anything to do with these women ?
"A. No, sir.
" Q. How do Chinese come to this country—do the
"companies bring them here? A. No. The compa¬
gnies only take care of them when they come here.
"Then they don't know the place and the language,
" and the companies look after them. The women are
" taken care of and brought here by these big fellows I
" mentioned.
" Q. How many gambling-houses are there here ? A.
" An Geo, Wong Woon, and those big fellows have got
" six big houses.
" How many smaller ones ? A. Seventy-five or seven-
" ty-six. Last year I got two boys and we counted eighty-
" two gambling-houses in this city. Duffield said if we
" didn't stop he would break our heads.
" Q. Who is Duffield ? A. He is a policeman who
"watches houses of prostitution and gambling-houses.
" He gets lots of money.
" Q. How much ? A. Five dollars a week from the
" gambling-house^^ and four bits a week from each pros-
" titute.
282
PA YMENTS TO THE POLICE,
" Q. How many women have been arrested to be tried
" to-day? A. I have forgotten. The first day we got nine.
" I don't know how many they got this next time. Yes-
" terday, when the trial was coming on, these big boss
" fellows with lots of money scared off the witnesses. I
" tried to make them not afraid ; but it was of no use.
" Q. Suppose a Chinawoman got away, what would
" they do ? A. Sometimes her owners put up money to
" get her back again ; sometimes they make the man who
"got her pay money to them for her. If a man take a
" woman away from a house of prostitution, they tell him
" they put his life out.
" Q. Do you know of any Chinamen being killed for
" taking away women from those houses ? A. One boy
" got killed up in Ross alley nearly four years ago. These
" big fellows hired men to kill him. Three men ran up
" and shot him, aiid ran a knife into him ; and that is the
" reason other boys are afraid to help women.
" Q. How old were you when you came to California ?
" A. About nine years old.
"Q. How old are you now? A. Nearly twenty-
" four.
"Q. How many gambling-houses were there two
" months ago ? A. Over eighty.
" Q. How much a month do they pay the police ?
" A. Five dollars a week each one. These four big fel-
/
" lows, besides that, collect thirteen dollars a month to
" pay a white man to get them out of trouble. The lot-
" tery-houses pay eight dollars a month.
"Q. How many lottery-houses are there ? A. Two
" or three hundred. When I have tried to get into gamb-
" ling-houses to see who were there, so I could arrest
" them, they wouldn't let me in. The bosses tell them,
" when they see me coming, to shut the door. I get a
"green boy from the mountains to go into a house of
COLLUSION WITH THE POLICE,
283
'^prostitution, so he can talk and see what kind of a
" house it is, so I can make him swear.
" Q. Whom are you assisting in this matter ? A.
" The boys working in this city here make twenty or
" twenty-five dollars a month, and they spend this in the
" houses of prostitution and gamble it off. They come
"to me and say;—'You get the gambling-houses and
" ' houses of prostitution shut up, and you will be a great
"'man.' Charley Duffield put one fellow in jail one
" hundred days for nothing, because he was helping me.
"Yesterday I had ten or twelve boys to swear in Court
"against the gamblers and the prostitute fellows. I
" told them not to be afraid, that nothing would happen
" to them. When they found out that they would get
"hurt if they swore, they all ran away. They put up a
" notice on the wall to put out my life for one thousand
" and five hundred dollars, but when I went to get it they
" tore it down.
" Q. Did you ever see any other notices offering re-
" wards for killing Chinamen ? A. Plenty of them.
" Q. Where do they have them posted ? A. On a
"five-story house on Jackson street. These big fellows
" had a place where they kept their books and money,
" and a list of all the men interested in gambling-houses
" and houses of prostitution. I knew I could not get in
"there, and told Ying Low to go there and see if he saw
" any books on the table. The first time he saw plenty
"books, and I went and got policemen to go there, but
" those big fellows all cleared out. I think they will have
" another meeting in two weeks or ten days, and I guess
" I can catch them then. Last month Wong Woon put
" up eight thousand dollars, that he got from gamblers to
" fight the law. Whenever a gambler or prostitute gets
" into trouble, they spend some of this money to get them
"out and fight the law. Yesterday I had fifteen wit-
284
FURTHER EVIDENCE
" nesses to swear against these fellows, but when Wong
" Woon saw that he asked for a continuance, and this
" morning I have only got two. My company tells me to
" break up these houses, and the six companies have put
"up a notice saying that if any more notices of reward
" are put up, they will fight."
While it would be possible to look upon the evidence
as that of an imperfectly educated man, not used to
weigh the importance of words, or to confine himself to
accurate statements, its general tenor is so far supported
by the other evidence which I have cited that it cannot
be set aside as worthless. There is, moreover, more of
the same kind of evidence to be found in the report
of the Senate committee. For instance, that of Ah
Chung ;—^
" Q. How long have you been in California } A. Five
" or six years.
" Q. How old are you } A. Eighteen.
" Q. What have you been doing in California ?
" A. Cooking.
"Q. For white people A. Yes.
"Q. Do you know how many Chinese prostitutes
" there are in San Francisco ? A. I think about one
thousand.
" Q. Who own them ? A. Wong Woon, An Geo,
" Bi Chee, and Wong Fook Soi.
" Q. Where do they get them ? A. They buy in
" in China and bring here.
" Q. What do they give for them in China ? A. About
" one hundred and fifty dollars.
" Q. What are they worth here ? A. Some nine
" hundred and some eight hundred dollars.
" Q. Do they steal some of them in China ? A. They
" buy them.
^ Rep. Sen. Com, p. 109,
REGARDING PROSTITUTION
285
"Q. Do they buy and sell girls in China ? A. Yes,
" sir.
" Q. Do you know how many gambling-houses there
"are in San Francisco } A. I think about two hundred.
" Q. What do the Chinamen do with anybody who
" testifies in court against the women } A. An Geo,
"Wong Woon, and Ah Fook put up money to kill him.
" Q. Do you know whether any paper is ever put up
"offering money to kill Chinamen.? A. Yes; I saw
" them.
" Q. Have they threatened to kill you if you testify.?
" A. Yes ; I am a little scared.
"Q. What are you afraid of ? A. Afraid shoot me.
"Q. Do you know of anybody being killed .? A. Yes.
" Q. What for.? A. One boy he testified against
"women, and they killed him with a knife."
And again, that of Ah Gow ;—^
"Q. Can you speak English .? A. Yes, sir.
" Q. How long have you been in San Francisco.?
" A. One year.
" Q. How long in California .? A. Three years.
"Q. Where have you lived .? A. At Half-moon Bay.
" Q. What did you work at.? A. Making cigars.
"Q. For white people.? A. No; for a Chinaman—
"Ah Wah.
"Q. To what company do you belong.? A. Ning
" Yeung.
" Q. Do you know anthing about threats made against
" Chinamen for testifying in the American courts .? A. An
" Geo, Bi Chee, and Wong Woon say they shoot me.
" Q. What for .? A. They say I pick out prostitutes
" in court.
" Q. Are you a witness now.? A. Yes, sir.
^Rep. Sen. Com., p. no.
286
PA YMENTS TO THE POLICE.
" Q. Do they threaten to shoot you if you tell the
" truth ? A. Y es, sir,
Q. Do you know anything about notices being
"posted up offering rewards for killing men ? A. Yes.
" I have seen them.
" Q. What were you put in jail for, lately } A. George
" Duffield said I bothered the women and the gamblers
" by coming into court against them.
" Q. Do you know how much money the Chinese pay
" these officers ? A. The gamblers, five dollars a week ;
" each woman, four bits ; lotteries, eight dollars a month.
" Q. What do the people who own women do, when
" they become sick and helpless ? A. I suppose they
"take care of them.
" Q. When they are sick and going to die, do they
" put them on the street ? A. Sometimes.
" Q. Do these people who own women whip them }
" A. The boss women whip them all the time.
"Q. Do you live in the Chinese quarter A. Yes,
" sir.
" Q. Are you afraid ? A. Sometimes. I do not go
" out at night, but stay in the house and lock my door."
It is unnecessary to carry this part of my inquiry fur¬
ther, although there is a great deal more evidence avail¬
able, of the same kind as that which has been cited, more
particularly in the report of the Senate committee.
To sum up the whole case so far as prostitution is
concerned, it may be said that out of 75^000 Chinese in
California, nearly all of whom are adult males, there
are in Sarî Francisco, perhaps, 1,000 prostitutes, very
many of whom are held in a condition of slavery. Their
obedience is secured by the co-operation of gangs of
desperadoes, many of whom doubtless are fugitives from
justice in'China. They are intimidated, in some cases by
THE EVIL MAY BE SUPPRESSED,
287
personal violence, and in still others by the preliminary
processes, of our courts. This condition of things is pos¬
sible because the State of California and the city of San
Francisco have not provided officers of special education,
or persons who have a competent knowledge of the Chi¬
nese language, and who are permanently employed to
assist in the control of the Chinese element, and because
the police force in San Francisco is deficient in numbers,
otherwise defective, and in some instances leagued with
the violators of law. A great deal more may be done on
the spot therefore, to suppress prostitution. The State
and the city are largely responsible for its existence in
its present forms. Beyond all this more may be done
by negotiations with China, and by adequate legislation,
to prevent the infiux of women of the class in question.
In regard to gambling, it may be said that the evil is far
less serious, and that it may be suppressed practically
on the spot, if an honest and intelligent effort be made
to do so. There are after all, but a handful of Chinese
in San Francisco, less in point of fact than one-fifth
the number who congregate in the English and Ameri¬
can settlements at Shanghae. The vice is one to which
the Chinese are prone, but it has been kept under sub¬
jection there so that it is not felt to be a public evil. It
is necessary to control it for the reasons assigned in the
evidence of Wong Ben. The Chinese youth more par¬
ticularly, resort to gambling places because they are
away from home, and because they have but few means
of amusing themselves. If unchecked they expend there
their money, get in debt and are led to petty thieving to
make good their obligations or to satisfy their wants.
One vice leads to another, and the men who gamble half
the night, naturally resort to houses of prostitution for
the remainder." ' "And so the hags who deal in women
and the deperadoes who abet them, and who abet and
288
FUGITIVE CRIMINALS,
aid gamblers, grow numerous and strong, and dangers of
other kinds follow.
I am well aware that there are some circumstances of
an extraordinary nature which make it difficult to secure
good government in San Francisco and in the State of
California. Communism, in an incipient form, has been
rampant there of late years. There is a reckless spirit
permeating all departments of society, engendered by
the excitements of mining-stocks gambling. There is a
large foreign element in the State, which takes part in
political affairs, although but little fitted for them by edu¬
cation at home or experience on the spot. It is a new
and forming society, and its requirements are constantly
changing. But all this makes it the more desirable for
the people of California to look their difficulties squarely
in the face, to inquire where the centers of wrong-doing
and failure really are, and to apply the remedy. If they
cannot do that they will themselves reap the reward of
their negligence.^
In regard to fugitive criminals from China, I need only
say that the ordinary consular examinations at Hong
Kong cannot possibly be sufficiently searching to pre¬
vent their coming. I doubt whether examinations made
at Canton would be thoroughly effective, but they might
accomplish more or less. As a detail it may be sug-
kSince the date of the evidence upon
which these remarks were founded,
a reformation of the police force
of San Francisco has been eftected.
The bill was introduced into the
legislature by Mr. McCoppin, upon
whose mind, as we may judge, the
evidence to which I have referred,
had made much the same impres¬
sion as it did upon my own. As
finally adopted, provision was made
for the control i)f the force by three
citizens, appointed by the judges of
the local couits. In this way the
force has been removed, more or
less perfectly from political influ¬
ences. The number of policemen
has been largely augmented, and,
if I am not misinformed, the class
of special officers has been entirely
done away with. The statements
of citizens with whom I have con¬
versed, and my own observations,
indicate that the reform has been
beneficial in a high degree. In
point of fact one hears at the mo¬
ment very little of the hoodlum class,
and very little of the personal abuse
of the Chinese.
NEED OF LEG/SLA EI ON
289
gested that the certificates granted at Canton should be
given to the individuals, to be vised at Hong Kong and
taken up by the customs authorities at San Francisco.
At present but one certificate is given to the male pas¬
sengers leaving Hong Kong by any one vessel, and all
that the customs officers can do is to count the number
arriving in order to see whether the five hundred or a
thousand covered by the certificate is exceeded by the
actual arrivals. Ah Ben, Ah Hoy, Kin Sam and a host of
other clean looking, respectable Chinamen may be passed
by the consul and their places supplied at the moment of
sailing by other persons who may answer to the same
names, but who may be quite a different lot. To pre¬
vent this sort of work the consulates must be enabled to
do their work thoroughly, and to follow it up in such
manner as to secure satisfactory results. All this could
be accomplished, but a person who is familiar with the
difficulties attending the carrying out of reforms in our
consular service, owing to the lack of interest shown in
the subject by Congress, and the great preoccupation of
that body, may be permitted to doubt whether much will
be accomplished in that direction until the Pacific coast
delegation takes up the business in an earnest and ener¬
getic manner. There are now among the representatives
of that district, as there always have been, men of great
activity and influence who will act wisely if they study
the case thoroughly. I shall be much pleased if any¬
thing which I have said shall contribute to give a right
direction to their efforts. I have received much kind¬
ness at their hands, and while I do not share in the dread
of the Chinese which characterizes them, I do share
largely in their attachment to the region from which they
come and in their desire to see it develope and increase
happily and broadly.
It remains to speak of the class of diseased persons
s
290
GOOD DISPOSITION
who, it is said, come from China, more particularly lepers.
I imagine that there is no danger of the spread of that
disease among our own people. It exists in China in a
mild form, comparatively, and does not appear to be an
object of dread. But it should be dealt with first, by the
examiners in China, and then by the health officers in
California. The experience of the past indicates that
very few, indeed, of the class in question reach our shores,
and that these few may be returned again to China. But
if this shall not be practicable, or if it shall not seem just,
certainly the State or nation should be able to provide
an asylum for them. The support of one, two or three
dozen of such persons would not prove a great burden.
There are those who will not be persuaded by what I
said in an earlier chapter, to indicate that there are no
contract-laborers among the Chinese in California. To
these I have only one word to say in concluding this
chapter. The Chinese authorities are not less adverse to
this business than our own. They have cut off all emi¬
gration to Cuba and to Peru, because it partook of this
character. They have insisted that persons seeking to
go to those regions shall produce proof that they go
voluntarily and that they are prepared to pay their
passages out of their own means. They have gone so
far, in order that no possible opportunity may be given
to agents or employers to set up any declarations which
may, in any way, threaten the independence of the emi¬
grants after they have reached their destinations. They
have never had any reason to believe that such a thing
as contract-labor exists among their people in our country,
and it is no betrayal of diplomatic secrets, or transactions,
to declare that they are as ready to meet our wishes in
this respect as we are to enforce them.
All the evils which I have pointed out may be dealt
with, then, within the lines of existing treaties. Free-
OF THE CHINESE.
291
men, and honest, good men, be they Chinese or other,
have the right, by all the laws of God and man, to come
among us, and once among us they have a right to the
equal protection of our laws. But criminals, contract-
laborers, if you please, lewd women, and diseased persons,
we have a right to exclude. The Chinese Government
will assist us to do so much. What more do we want}
PART IV.—CHAPTER 1.
FEARS OF AN OVERFLOWING IMMIGRATION OF THE
CHINESE. THE VIEWS OF ANTI-CHINESE PARTISANS.
There is no danger of a large influx of the Chinese. Examination of the
declarations which have been made on this subject. The report of
the Congressional commission. Its declarations not sustained by the
evidence. The report of the committee on education and labor. Its
exaggerated tone. The population of China. Wages in China.
Fares to California, &c. The debate in the Plouse of Representatives
on the fifteen-passenger bill. Remarks of Mr. Willis, Mr. Page,
Mr. Haskell, Mr. Davis, Mr. Corbett and Mr. Money. The debate
in the Senate. Remarks of Governor Booth, Mr. Jones, Mr. Matthews,
Mr. Blaine. The ''hordes of China." Fares to California again.
The differences between the Caucasian and the Chinaman. The
difference overlooked by anti-Chinese partisans. It will be time
enough to legislate to exclude the Chinese when their tendency to
come among us is established.
I have endeavored in the several chapters of parts two
and three of this book, to show that the Chinese have been
of very great advantage to the material interests of Cal¬
ifornia, that they have increased the opportunities of our
own people for enterprise, and conduced to their conven¬
ience and comfort in a very marked degree. I have
endeavored also to show that many of the objections
which have been advanced against them have no foun¬
dation in fact, and that certain evils which do exist
among them may be dealt with more or less perfectly
and successfully by intelligent action on the spot and in
China.
In the chapters which follow, forming part three of
this book, I shall deal with the prospects of Chinese im¬
migration, and shall endeavor to prove that an over¬
whelming influx of their class is not to be expected, and
THE FUTURE OF IMMIGRATION
293
that it is doubtful even whether they will continue to
arrive in such numbers as to occasion uneasiness on the
part of those who are disposed to disfavor their immi¬
gration most strongly.
It has been usual to make a very simple argument in
regard to the prospects of Chinese immigration. People
have said ;—" There are four hundred millions of China-
men in their native land. Population there is so ex-
" cessive that the masses are brought to the closest econ-
" omies, and wages are reduced almost to the starvation
" point. But on our side of the Pacific is an immense
" extent of almost unoccupied territory, which is favora-
"ble to life, to production\ and to comfort. Means have
" been provided by which the voyage hither has been
" made easy, safe and inexpensive. The way has been
" opened and the flow of migration has begun. We have
" a right to expect—we would be unwise if we did not
"expect—an immense movement from Asia. There is
"danger that we shall be Mongolianized.''
The train of argument thus presented is logical, and
has convinced many people. I believe, in point of fact,
that it is the supposed danger of an immense Chinese
movement toward our shores that has occasioned the
greater part of the anxiety which has been felt in regard
to the future of our relations with that race upon our own
soil. The same apprehensions exist in many minds in
reference to all immigration. The time has come in our
history when Americans may very well raise a question
whether it would not be as well for our permanent inter¬
ests if all immigration should cease, and that the people
now upon our soil should be allowed to possess it in perpe¬
tuity, developing their industries, their institutions, their
social and national life, free from extraneous and disturb¬
ing influences. However this may be, it is appropriate
that I should point out with precision what has been said
294
THE FEARS ENTERTAINED.
in this respect in regard to the Chinese, and examine its
bearing.
Take for instance the following extract from the report
of the Congressional commission ;—
"To any one reading the testimony which we lay be-
"fore the two houses, it will become painfully evident
" that the Paciñc coast must in time become either Amer-
" ican or Mongolian. There is a vast hive from which
" immigrants may swarm, and circumstances may send
" them in enormous numbers to this country."
The view thus advanced by the majority of the com¬
mittee is qualified in its form. There is nothing espe¬
cially painful in the proposition that the Pacific coast
must in time become either American or Mongolian. It
would be painful to think of that fair region subordinated
to the Chinese or to any other outside control. But it is
already American and likely to remain so. It may be
true that there is " a vast hive" of Chinese on the other
side of the Pacific, and that circumstances may send
them to our country " in enormous numbers." This lan¬
guage confesses that the danger is in the future. It is
guarded and qualified. But the majority of the commit¬
tee speak more positively a moment later. It is a rule,
perhaps, that people who have failed to study a subject
in all its parts, should grow more positive as they proceed
to state conclusions. In the last paragraph but one of
their report they say ;—
" This problem is too important to be treated with in-
" difference. Congress should solve it, having due regard
" to any rights already accrued under existing treaties
"and to humanity. But it must be solved, in the judg-
" ment of the committee, unless our Pacific possessions
" are to be ultimately given over to a race alien in all its
"tendencies, which will make of it, practicallyprov-
"inces of China rather than States of the Union."
THE DANGER NOT DEMONSTRATED. 295
Now there is no man in our country who can contem¬
plate this result with equanimity. I, at least, should not
be able to dwell contentedly upon the prospect of Amer¬
icans occupying and controlling a large part of China.
I doubt whether it would conduce to the broadest inter¬
ests of humanity to have such a thing occur. Much less
would I accept contentedly the idea of California becom¬
ing Mongolianized, to use a word which is constantly
in the mouths of the anti-Chinese party.
But does this painful danger exist ? If it does, the
honorable gentlemen who composed the majority of the
Congressional commission should have demonstrated
the fact. They had no right to pass it over in the two
brief paragraphs—clauses of paragraphs—which I have
cited. They had no right to speak once in language
qualified so far that it means nothing, and again in
language which is positive and certain. They were
charged by the nation with a solemn duty. They made
a farce of it by reporting back to Congress 1,200 pages of
indigested testimony with less than eight pages of com¬
ments upon it, and by passing comments, some of which
as I have already shown, were carelessly and inconsid¬
erately put forward. There is something due by honor¬
able senators and honorable members to their own dig¬
nity and good name, and something due to the dignity
and good name of the nation. They receive pay from
the nation, and they produce what ? A report of eight
pages, on twelve hundred pages of wide-reaching, in¬
volved testimony. They produce a report which passes
by the most serious of all the questions involved in less
than a half dozen inconsistent and uncertain sentences,
a report which sounds more as if it was intended for
a political campaign document than a solemn, judicial
exposition of facts and conclusions. It is not the only
report of the kind which has emanated from the brains,
of Congressmen.
296
A TIME-WORN ARGUMENT,
The committee on education and labor from whose
report I have quoted a statement in regard to the num¬
ber of Chinese in California, in the chapter treating of
that subject, deal more cautiously with the future of
Chinese immigration than the joint committee did.
After setting forth that in the year 1878 there were
150,000 Chinese in the United States, an estimate which
I have shown to be fifty per cent, in excess of the actual
number, they proceed as follows ;—
" China contains about one-third of all the human
beings on the globe. Its population is ten times greater
" than the United States. The density of the population
" may be realized by recalling the fact, that in the State
" of Ohio, the number of persons to the square mile is
" about 70, while in many provinces in China it exceeds
" 400, and the average is 300. The wages of the laboring
"classes in China range from three to five dollars per
" month. Their condition is a hard and undesirable one.
"They are exceedingly migratory in their disposition,
"and though their ports have been so recently open to
" free commerce, they are to be found to-day in every
" part of the civilized world. They find in America a
" congenial climate, high wages, and a more liberal gov-
" ernment. They are separated from us by a compara-
" tively narrow ocean, which is pacific in nature as well
" as in name. The passage can be made quickly and
"cheaply, the usual price being $40 to $50, which, by
" competition, has been reduced as Iowas $12. If any
" are too poor to pay this small sum, brokers stand ready
" to advance the necessary amount, to be secured by a
" mortgage-contract upon their future wages.
" Under these inviting conditions, it is fair to presume
" that there will be no decrease in the future, either in the
" extent or rapidity of Chinese immigration."
And so the conclusion is reached, that after another 30
FALSE PREMISES.
297
years we may have, say 300,000 Chinese upon our soil.
Perhaps the committee meant more than this. It is hard
to tell exactly what the report does intend to indicate.
The chairman might be able to say in what respect the
extent of Chinese immigration and its rapidity differ.
He might have expressed himself more lucidly and ac¬
curately in several ways. It is a consolation, however,
to know that, taking his own estimate, we have to add
to the 150,000 who have arrived in thirty years, another
150,000, to reach the conclusion that in the year 1910
A. D., we shall have no more than the result, as a state¬
ment of our Chinese population at a period when we
are expecting that our whole population will number,
say 75,000,000. At this rate, that inevitable day when
our Pacific coast fair territories are to become provinces
of our trans-Pacific ally, may be said to be so distant
that none of us need to concern oursdves greatly about it.
Let us dwell a few moments uport the several premises
presented by this report. It has the merit of being fuller
in this direction than that of the Congressional commis¬
sion, and we are the better able to estimate its value.
In the first place, were the members of the committee
entirely sure that the population of China is one-third
that of the whole world, or that it is ten times greater
than that of the United States. If they are, then they
have reached a conclusion as to a matter about which
a vast variety of opinions exist among persons very well
acquainted with China, and very much in the habit of
studying the various problems presented by that country.
Granting, in the second place, that 300 persons to the
square mile is the average of population in China, are
they at all sure that so great a number do not exist
comfortably, and that the lives of individuals may not be
pleasanter there than if they should transfer themselves
to a foreign soil.
298
FALSE REASONING.
Granting that wages are from three to five dollars a
month in China, may it not be true that the sum which
a Chinaman may earn at home will give him as many of
the necessities and gratifications of life there as twenty
dollars would among us.
By what process of reasoning, again, did the members
of the committee reach the conclusion that the Chinese
are migratory. Where have they emigrated to } What
states have they subjected and made practically prov-
" inces of China } " Have they overrun Japan, or Corea, or
Annam, or Burmah, or Siam Have they destroyed
the autonomy of any one of these surrounding inferior
nations Have they invaded India or Persia, or Turkey.^
" They are found in every part of the civilized world.'*
How many then in England, in France, in Spain, in Ger¬
many, in Russia}
" They find in America, a congenial climate, higher
" wages, and a more liberal government." It may be that
they have found all these good things, but is there very
much to be said about our liberality to them 1
"They are separated from us by a comparatively nar-
" row ocean, which is pacific in nature, as well as in
"name." Where then will be found a broader sea, or
where a more tempestous one in the latitude where these
people must voyage
When, and for how long have fares ranged at $12, and
where, in the last place is the proof that brokers stand
ready to advance money to persons proposing to emi¬
grate 1
I shall not stop here to make an extended argument,
or to adduce proofs to show how little of all that has
been presented in this direction by the committee on
education and labor is worthy of serious attention. It
may be,-perhaps, that it is the practice of Congres¬
sional committees to present broad conclusions, and that
ARBITRARY LEGISLA T/OH.
299
the details of their reasoning, and the fundamental facts
may be found in the debates to which their reports some¬
times give rise.
I have before me, as I write, the debates which took
place in the two houses of Congress in January and
February, 1879, upon the bill to restrict immigration from
China to fifteen persons upon any one vessel, the one
which having been passed by Congress in defiance of in¬
ternational obligation and the plighted faith of the nation,
was vetoed by the President. In this debate, for the first
time, the great questions involved were under discussion.
The occasion was such as should have brought forth all
the strength of the able and experienced managers of the
anti-Chinese agitation. Let us see what those managers
said in regard to this special, and this very important
question, the future of Chinese immigration.
The bill originated in the House of Representatives.
It was reported to the House from the committee on
education and labor by the chairman, Mr. Willis, on
the 29th day of January, 1879, who sent to the clerk's
desk to be read a special report, which dealt with three
points only: ist. Can Congress repeal a treaty.^ 2d.
Previous efforts at relief. 3d. Restrictive legislation
necessary. The whole of this, as reported in the Co7^-
gressional Record^ occupies two columns. It contains
not a word to indicate the views of the members of the
committee as to the future prospects of Chinese immi¬
gration. It was supplemented by some remarks of the
chairman of the committee, but these are equally silent
upon the point in question.
Mr. Page of California, a staunch advocate of the bill,
was practically the first speaker in support of it. I find
in his remarks this sentence only which indicates his view
of the matter
" China can spare ten millions of hardy, industrious
300
DEBATE m THE HOUSE
"paupers, and under present legislation and adminis-
"'tration on this subject, it is only a question of time as
" to the period that shall mark their coming."
The conceptions of the gentleman from Caifornia as
to what constitutes a pauper, appear somewhat unusual.
It is difficult to say too, why if China can spare ten mil¬
lions of paupers she may not be able to spare one hund¬
red millions. It may be that Mr. Page sincerely be¬
lieves that she can do so, but however this may be, he
gives no reason saving the ability of China to " spare "
them, why we should expect them to come.
The remarks of Mr. Page and those of Mr. Willis were
the only ones made to the House in advocacy of the bill
before it passed to vote, but certain members obtained
leave to print remarks. Among them was Mr. Haskell,
of Kansas. I find in his speech just this much and no
more in regard to the prospects of immigration ;—
" It is estimated that the Chinese empire contains at
" the lowest estimate, 300,000,000 of people. The cost of
" emigration to this country does not exceed $40. The
" supply is inexhaustible. The price of labor in China
"is ten cents a day, here it is at least $1. The premium
" offered to the Chinamen is a standing and sufficient in-
" ducement to bring them here."
Remarks by Mr. Davis, of California, were also printed.
They contain the same argument in different language ;—
" The question remains, are they likely to come in suf-
"ficient numbers to justify the proposed legislation.^
" On the one side of the Pacific ocean is a vast empire,
"densely packed with human beings, numbering hun-
" dreds of millions, where the wages of a common laborer
" are from fifteen to twenty-five cents a day, and whose
" poorer classes are plunged into such depths of poverty
" as we can'hardly conceive. On the other side is a young
" and blooming country waiting to be supplied with pop-
ON THE FIFTEEN-PASSENGER BILL.
301
"ulation, a land with genial climate and fertile soil, a
" paradise of hope to these wretched men, where a few
" years labor will enable them to return home rich for
"life. The passage across varies from fifteen to fifty
" dollars, and the wealthy men of China are ready and
"anxious to ship them over under labor contracts. Will
" they come ? Nay, they are here already, a hundred and
" fifty thousand strong, and in California they are numer-
" ous enough to form one-third of the adult male popu-
" lation of the State."
Mr. Corbett, of Wyoming, repeated the argument in
the following words ;—
" China, with its swarming hordes is a hive from whence
"an inundating flood of cheap laborers could easily be
"poured forth into the United States, sufficient to drive
"out or destroy the entire labor force of the country
" without creating any perceptible effect upon her own
" affairs, except a slight relief from the consequences of
" her own over-crowded condition."
Mr. Money, of Mississippi, after quoting from a book
written by Dr. Medhurst forty years ago, reciting the
progress made by the Chinese in some surrounding dis¬
tricts, said ;—
" Our Chinese commerce has established a steam ferry
"across the Pacific, and, as it increases, its facilities for
"transportation increase. The carrying capacity of a
" single steamship is five thousand human souls, and in a
" few years, at the present ratio, a half million Chinamen
" can be placed in San Francisco in a single year."
And with these and no other arguments on this very
important branch of the subject, taking it for granted
that the Chinese, who have been trembling for the last
fifty years at the encroachments of European power in
Asia and upon-their own territories, are to overwhelm us,
the bill passed the House by a vote of 155 to 72; 61
members not voting.
302
THE DEBA TE IN THE SENA TE
In the Senate the special question now under consid¬
eration was not treated of by Mr. Sargent or Mr. Grover
who spoke first in advocacy of the bill. But in Mr.
Booth's remarks I find the following language ;—
" The doctrine of the survival of the fittest does not
" mean the survival of the best or the strongest, but of
" that best fitted to its surroundings. In war the strong
" conquer ; in the sharp competitions of peace, in the
" struggle for daily bread, they whose wants are reduced
" to a minimum. A class of laborers whose wants,
" natural and artificial, are the least, will, if its volume be
" large enough, take the place of every other."
This is an attempt at least to deal with the question
philosophically, but it leaves untouched the fundamental
question whether the Chinese are likely to come in great
numbers, and the reasoning as to the survival of the
fittest is specious. Who is the fittest} Is it true that
the man whose wants are reduced to a minimum " will
take the place of the intelligent, skillful man who brings
to bear upon his surroundings something more than a
demand for a few pounds of meat or of rice daily t How
is it that to-day England and America, countries where
labor is dear, and where men do not live as cheaply as
they might do, are placing all Asia under tribute to them
for the materials with which the " hordes " of that great
continent clothe themselves } With men at least, or rather
with men as with other creatures, is it not the individ¬
uals who are best fitted to all their surroundings who
survive } Is the capacity to live cheaply more than one
of the conditions involved } Is not the Malay, who has
been defeated in labor by the Chinaman wherever they
have met upon a common ground, a cheaper liver than
the Chinaman.? Is not the Russian peasant a cheaper
laborer than the English operative 1 Is not the Anglo-
Saxon the most extravagant of all human beings, and
ON THE FIFTEEN-PASSENGER BILL. 303
is he not the most successful ? In point of fact, as
I believe, if you will present to me a people who have
reduced the expense of living to a minimum, I shall be
able to point out to you facts enough to prove that that
people occupy a low scale among the nations, and that in
the ways of peace and of war there is not much to be
feared from them.
The senator from Nevada, Mr. Jones, made the fullest
address of all those made to the Senate in advocacy of
the fifteen-passenger bill. He presented matter taken
from the testimony given before the Congressional com¬
mission, and from a wide reading upon the subject at
issue. His quotations and his arguments follow the lines
of the anti-Chinese party generally, but his reasoning
goes further than that of any other member of that party.
Whether it always tells in favor of his propositions I shall
leave my readers to judge, after citing some parts of his
speech which are pertinent to our present inquiry. The
headings are Mr. Jones' own ;—
"ENDURING WEALTH RESULTS ONLY FROM FREEDOM.
" Apparently no scheme for the rapid creation and ac-
" cumulation of wealth, promised better than that of rais-
"ing tobacco, rice, cotton and sugar in our Southern
" States by African slaves, in whom was found the rare
" combination of great bodily vigor, with a docility which
" made it practicable to obtain their labor at the cost of
"the coarsest subsistence. The scheme failed in prac-
"tice. In the long run and upon a large scale the cheap
" labor of inferior races never cheapens production.
" When wages are high and workmen educated and
" intelligent, there is a greater general capacity in the
" community to avail itself of the forces of nature and of
" labor-saving e:5ipedients and appliances."
It seems, then, that the senator from California and
304
THE ARGUMENT OF
the senator from Nevada are not in accord in their
reasonings. The one holds that the cheap laborer will
drive the dearer one to the wall. The other holds that
there are other things to be considered beside the mere
question of the capacity to work cheaply and with docility.
The latter proceeds to say ;—
" Thus, we know that the business of weaving cotton
" cloth has been transferred, within a century, from the
"labor of the East, which is nominally the cheapest,
" reckoned by daily money-wages, to the labor of England
"and the United States, which is really cheaper, reckoned
" according to its efficiency, as aided by machinery more
"cunning than human hands.
" It is thus, too, that the wheat of this country is able
"to compete in the British and other markets with the
" same grain produced by servile, or any poorly paid labor,
" in countries where land is equally fertile and abundant.
"American plows, harrows, and reapers, American modes
" of transportation and handling, enable their competition
" to be sustained, while the American scale of wages is
" still kept high."
The reasoning of Mr. Jones is incontrovertible, so far,
but when he goes further and says that it applies only to
cheap labor and dear labor, as employed in their native
regions, he is not, as I conceive, upon solid ground ;—
"ALIEN AND CHEAP LABOR DESTROY CIVILIZATION."
"These and other illustrations, which might be in-
" definitely multiplied, demonstrate the unsoundness of
"the proposition, that the introduction of a cheaper
"laborer is no more injurious to the American workman
" than the introduction of labor-saving machinery. The
" cheaper laborer prevents him from getting employment,
" whereas-, The improved machinery, by making his labor
" more efficient, secures to him better wages and more
SENA TO jR JONES.
305
"abundant employment. Nothing is more certain than
^^that labor is more in demand, and more highly re-
" warded in proportion, as machinery and labor-saving
" appliances of all kinds are multiplied. So, also, there
" is nothing more certain than that labor is less in de-
" mand, and receives, even when it can obtain employ-
" ment, a less proportion of the product of industry in
" those countries which adopt as their policy, the intro-
" duction of the cheap labor of inferior races. The preju-
" dices against the introduction of machinery, as being
"injurious to laborers, have long since given way before
"the practical demonstration of the fact that, just in pro-
" portion as labor-saving appliances increase the aggregate
" production of a community, the greater is the fund to
" be divided between capital and labor, and the laborers
" always get a share, even if not so great a share as they
" are entitled to, of the increase of that fund."
The argument of Mr. Jones is, in the main, of course,
a sound one, but thus far, I believe, it may be seriously
questioned. Skilled labor is that which is in demand in
advanced countries, and the labor of the people of less
advanced countries is never of this sort, and it does not
readily become so, in a measure seriously affecting the
employment of those native to the more advanced region.
There are considerations of native intelligence, of special
education, of physical vigor and endurance, which all play
a part in determining the result.
" From this statement of the reasons for the well estab-
" lished fact that the better paid labor of more advanced
" countries is able to sustain and triumph in the compe-
" titions of commerce, against the cheaper labor of the less
" advanced countries, it is apparent that they only apply
"where the cheaper labor is employed in the native
" habitat of the cheaper laborer and under the circum-
" stances which there surround him. When he is trans-
T
306
THE ARGUMENT OF
" planted to those countries in which the machinery and
" appliances and conditions of superior civilization exist,
" these reasons do not apply, or apply with diminished
force and the competition of the cheaper laborer be-
" comes ruinous."
Does it become ruinous ? Where has it been tried ?
The proposition is broadly stated. Are there no excep¬
tions to the rule ? Can it be stated as a general rule ?
Does the following further extract from Mr. Jones' argu¬
ment raise any questions in this connection which deserve
consideration ?
"No man ever executed such great works in various
" parts of the globe, and under such diversified circum-
" stances in respect to the labor employed, as the English
"railroad contractor, the late Thomas Brassey. It is
"related of him by his son that he always declared it to
" be the result of his experience that the money cost of
" different quantities of work was not substantially dif-
"ferent under widely different rates of money wages.
" Mr. Brassey said this in respect to railroads and similar
" works, when cheap labor was employed in the native
" countries of the cheap laborers, and it is only in such
" cases that his observation can be sound."
Railroads, canals, public works ! These, as it would
appear, are just the directions in which cheap labor can
be utilized. It would seem, too, that the labor of cheap
laborers must be less expensive in their native habitat
than when they are transferred abroad at considerable
expense and thrown out of their habitual modes of life.
In looking over the remarks made by other senators
and representatives, I find nothing advanced in regard
to the prospects of immigration in addition to what I
have already presented, which any anti-Chinese partisan
would- desire me to cite here. Among the other speak¬
ers on that side, however, was Mr. Blaine, and I am sure
SENATOR BLAINE.
307
that it will be interesting for every one to know exactly
what he had to say on this point. His words are as fol¬
lows ;—
"The argument is often put forward that there is no
"particular danger of numbers coming here; that it is
" not a practical question ; and as the honorable senator
" from Ohio is free to answer, I ask him if the number
" should mount up into n^illions, what would be his view
"then ?
Mr. Matthews r" The senator seems to expect a re-
" ply to his inquiry. I would say that when there was a
"reasonable apprehension by the United States of the
"immigration mounting up to such numbers, then I
"would take that into consideration.
Mr. Blaine Take that into consideration! The
"senator is definite. If it should come to millions in
" the population of the Pacific slope, he would begin to
"take it into consideration, That is practical legisla-
" tion ! That is legislation for an evil upon us to-day I
" The senator's statesmanship is certainly of a consider-
" ate kind."
The senator from Maine having dealt thus unceremo¬
niously, one cannot say considerately, with the response
of his colleague from Ohio, went on as follows
" Well, what about the question of numbers } Did it
" ever occur to my honorable friend that the vast myri-
" ads of millions almost, as you might call them, the in-
" calculable hordes in China, are much nearer to the Pa-
"cific coast of the United States in point of money and
"passage, in point of expense in reaching it, than the
"people of Kansas. A man in Shanghae or Hong Kong
"can be delivered at San Francisco more cheaply than a
" a man in Omaha. I do not speak of the Atlantic
" coast, where the-population is still more dense, but you
"may take the Mississippi valley, Illinois, Iowa, Ne-
808
THE ARGUMENT OF SENA TOR BLAINE,
"braska, Kansas, Missouri, all the great commonwealths
" of that valley, and they are, in point of expense, fur-
" ther off from the Pacific slope than the vast hordes in
"China and Japan.
" I am told by those who are familiar with the com-
mercial affairs of the Pacific side that a person can be
"sent from any of the great Chinese ports to San Fran-
" cisco for something over $30. I suppose in an emi-
" grant train over the Pacific railroad from Omaha, not to
" speak of the expense of reaching Omaha, but from that
" point alone, it would cost $50 per head, and that would
" be cheap railroad fare as things go in this country. So
" that in point of practicability, in point of getting there,
" the Chinaman to-day has an advantage over an Amer-
"ican laborer in any part of the country, except in the
" case of those who are already on the Pacific coast."
The senator from Maine having dealt inconsiderately
with the senator from Ohio, having quoted his language
so as to make it mean something else than its right pur¬
port, was scarcely more accurate in his general state¬
ments and inferences. We are sufficiently familiar with
the expression "the hordes" of China. The senator
from Maine bettered it certainly when he described the
population as "the vast myriads of millions, almostl'
" the incalculable hordes" of China. All this, however,
may be the language of declamation, somewhat out of
place, perhaps, in the highest deliberative body in the
land, somewhat savoring of stump-speaking; but certainly
when the distinguished senator comes down to ordinary
matters, the price of steamship and railroad fares, he
will be entirely accurate. Let us see.
He says that the fare from any of the great China
ports to San Francisco is something over $30. As a
matter-df fact it is something over $50. Including sun¬
dry necessary expenses, emigrants from Canton will pay,
ERRONEOUS STATEMENTS.
309
in ninety-nine cases out of an hundred, not less than $60.
If they go to Hong Kong from any other port, to sail
from there, their expenses will be considerably higher.
Now this $60 represents what ? If wages in China are
$3 a month, savings possibly may be $i a month. It
will take the laborer then sixty months or five years to
save enough to pay his passage to San Francisco.
I am not able to say how much it costs an emigrant
to go from New York to San Francisco via Panama. I
doubt, however, whether it is more than $50 or $60.
To say nothing of the difference in the wages of the
American laborer, and his greater ability on this account
to pay the expense of passage to San Francisco, there is
something to be added in regard to the enterprise of
the one over the other.
And here I desire to point out a fundamental mistake
made by all persons who argue as Mr. Blaine does. He
belongs to an enterprising race, and he judges the Asi¬
atic by his own standard. It never occurs to him that all
recent history shows the difference between the Asiatic and
the Caucasian, but there is a difference notwithstanding.
Europe and America are monogamie and monotheis¬
tic ; Asia is polygamic and polytheistic. To judge the
Asiatic by a western standard, is to go wilfully wrong on
all occasions. The fundamental differences indicated by
their religious tendencies, and by their social organization
characterize them throughout.
The reader will have observed that I have not found
very much in the declarations of anti-Chinese partisans
which has seemed to me worthy of the high argument
regarding the future of Chinese immigration. I recog¬
nize, nevertheless, the fact that an influx of the Chinese
in large numbers appears a natural thing to many persons,
to those even who-are as anxious as I am to deal justly
with the Chinaman. I shall not be able, probably to con-
310 I^ESTRICTIVE MEASURES UJ^NECESSARY.
viiice any others that such an influx is not to be expected,
but for those who are seriously desirous of reaching
sound conclusions, I am sure that I shall be able to pre¬
sent facts and considerations which will entirely justify
the position of Mr. Matthews, that it will be time enough
to talk of restrictive measures, of departing from our tra¬
ditional policy, when reasonable grounds for apprehend¬
ing an overwhelming immigration are established.
PART IV.—CHAPTER II.
FEARS OF AN OVERFLOWING IMMIGRATION OF THE
CHINESE. THE DEMAND FOR THEIR
LABOR FAILING.
The failure of public men to examine into the prospects of immigration cen¬
sured. The demand of the past exceptional. The demand failing.
The facts in regard to the demand for railroad building. Testimony of
Mr. Crocker, Mr. Strobridge, Mr. Colton, and Mr. Evans. Disabilities
of the Chinese. They are not acquainted with our language and
methods. Their inferior physical force. Testimony of Governor Low,
Dr. Meares, and Mr. Bigelow. Swamp land reclamations. White
men will not work in this direction. The advantages of reclamations
to farmers and the State. Mining. The numbers involved inconsider¬
able. Wheat culture. The important work is done by white men. The
aptitude of the Chinese for higher grades of labor examined. They
are hewers of wood, and drawers of water. Testimony of Mr.
Easterby, Mr. Roberts, Mr. Smith, Mr. Olmsted, and Mr. Mellon.
The demand for the Chinese illustrated by the census enumeration of
laborers in the different States. Disproportion of agricultural laborers
to the whole population of California. The average size of farms
in different States. California farms large, and laboring class small.
Farm productions in different States. Why so few Chinese have come
to California.
I have stated in the last chapter that I do not expect
a large immigration of Chinese, and I have shown some¬
what briefly, perhaps, but still with suiflcient fullness,
that those who do have reasoned in a vague and imper¬
fect manner. It has not been my purpose to attempt to
demonstrate that their arguments are false, as I have
passed them in review. The questions involved are too
extensive to be dealt with in that way. I have touched
upon them here and there, however, in order to indicate
that they might 'be justly called in question. I hope
that in doing this I have said nothing which may be con-
CAJ^ELESSNESS IN CONGRESS.
sidered captious or hypercritical. I confess, however, that
I am profoundly impressed by the importance of tJie
questions under consideration, and that I cannot repress
a degree of impatience when I find leading men of the
country careless of the plighted faith of the nation, re¬
gardless of the traditional policy of the government,
forgetful of broad interests, hasty and inconsiderate in
legislation. I am not speaking unadvisedly when I say
these things. In the not distant future, in our own land,
and much sooner, perhaps, in other lands, these failures
of our public men, and of Congress, will be recognized,
and condemnation will be visited upon them accordingly.
Foremost among the men of the nation to whom public
attention has been called in this connection, is the junior
Senator from Maine. I think that I know him well enough
to believe that when sober second thought comes in, he will
regret his course ; but whether he does so or not, he has,
by his own act, broken down his great opportunities.
His services to the downtrodden Negro have been great^
but he has discredited his own sincerity by taking up
an illiberal line toward the Chinese. It is a failure which
the great and generous American people will never forget
nor forgive. One could have wished that the voices of
some departed statesmen could have been heard in the
halls of Congress, that the phalanx of those who, in the
debate on the fifteen passenger bill, stood firm for good
faith and even-handed justice, might have been led by
the great senator from Massachusetts, Mr. Sumner, or by
the chairman of the Congressional commission, Mr. Mor¬
ton, who lived long enough to write out his views on the
questions involved, but not long enough to present them
to Congress in person. But the generous sentiments of
the American people, their love of fair dealing and of
right, are, not to be overborne by specious and empty
arguments. It is not to be expected that their first im-
FAILING DEMAND FOR THE CHINESE,
313
pressions upon any involved problem will always be right,
yet they swing around to the right and truth as certainly
as the point of the needle to the pole. If our statesmen
could but recognize this fact, and cease attempting to
guide their policy by the shifting and uncertain phases
of public opinion, it would be happier for them and for
the country.
In dealing with the prospects of immigration, I shall
take up, first, the question of the demand for Chinese
labor.
My study of the subject has led me to this conclusion,
that the Chinese who have already reached our shöres
have come because of a demand exceptional in its nature,
and which is passing away, and that their labor is not of
a kind which will enable them, speaking generally, to
compete permanently in the labor market of the country.
I shall not enlarge upon this conclusion, at the moment,
as illustrative of, or illustrated by any rules or principles
which have been laid down, or may be laid down, as
governing in such cases. I shall present the facts which
have led me to it, and leave my readers, without much
comment, to decide whether I have taken it up incon¬
siderately.
In presenting to them the material advantages which
the Chinese have conferred upon the State of California,
I spoke, in a series of chapters, of what they have done
in railroad building, in swamp land reclamations, in min¬
ing, in agriculture, in fruit raising, in special industries
and in domestic service. I shall take up now these sev¬
eral industries and inquire with more exactness why it
has been that they have been useful in them, and why it
may be said that the demand for their labor in these
several departments, or at least in most of them, will not
be continuous. - -
As to railroad building. This industry, if it may be
314
FAILING DEMAND
called such, has, as I believe, passed out of its first stage
into a second, where its progress will be much slower
than in the past. The transcontinental road was con¬
structed twelve years ago. It was a great work which
was pressed forward to its completion with extraordinary
haste. The subsidy granted by Congress had proven so
large in proportion to the cost of the line that the two
companies which had entered upon the undertaking were
urging their works forward, the one from the Eastern
side, the other from the Pacific end, with all possible
speed. Their profits were to be measured by the num¬
ber of miles which they might be able to lay down, and
the unprecedented spectacle was seen of parallel lines of
grading overlapping one another and passing the first
point of contact. The Eastern company, known as the
Union Pacific, had the advantage in being able to draw
upon the great resources of the labor market in the
whole country east of the Rocky mountains. The West¬
ern company, known as the Central Pacific, had to de¬
pend upon the limited supply of the California market,
and to pay the high rates of wages prevailing there,
which were certainly, for white men, twice what their
rival had to pay. It was inevitable under these circum¬
stances that they should seek to avail themselves of the
services of the Chinese, and it is not wonderful that they
found them useful as compared with the native laborers
whom they were able to employ. I have presented
abundant evidence in earlier chapters that the native
laborer in California, the laborer of American or Eu¬
ropean origin, has not cared to enter upon this kind of
work. He has made his way to California to do some¬
thing better than to use the pick and the shovel in rail¬
way cuttings and embankments. He could do better, if
intelligent and prudent, and the consequence was that
only those of a more shiftless sort accepted employment
IN RAILWA Y BUILDING,
315
upon the road, and that these were characteristically un¬
certain and unreliable in what they did.
It is in proof, however, that the more difficult work
was almost invariably performed by our own people. If
there were teams to drive, spikes to be driven, walls to
be laid, bridges to be built, it was always the white man
who did the work. In simple muscular work the Chi¬
nese, under the given circumstances, proved the more de¬
sirable laborers. In all else the white man, at extraor¬
dinarily high rates of wages and under distracting cir¬
cumstances, maintained his ascendancy.
I am aware that this statement may not seem to be
sustained by the evidence taken before the Congressional
committee, but a careful examination will show its cor¬
rectness. There is proof that in cuttings, both earth and
rock, the Chinamen held their own against the whites.
That they will not do so under ordinary circumstances
I shall demonstrate at a later moment. But as to the
part which they played in other directions the following
bits of testimony are in point.
Mr. Crocker, for instance, said ;—^
After we got Chinamen on to the work we took the
" more intelligent of the white laborers and made fore-
" men of them. ^ ^ They got a start by controlling
"Chinese labor on our road, and they are good trusty
" men."
And again ;—
" I believe that the white man is a better man than a
" Chinaman. I believe that when the brain of the white
" man rubs against the brain of the colored man, the white
" man will come out ahead all the time. When the white
" man comes in contact with Chinese labor he is impelled
" to greater exertion, and he comes out a better man."
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p.' 568. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 684.
316
FAILING DEMAND
Mr. Strobridge said ;—
" We made foremen of the most intelligent of the white
"men, teamsters and hostlers. The white men who
"worked in the pits were generally unsteady. The
" higher class, the mechanics, were steady men almost
" universally. ^ * The difficulty with white men is
" when they are off work. After they have been paid
"they will get drunk. ^ ^ There was always com-
" plaint when they did not want to work. When they
" wanted to work we had no difficulty with them."
The testimony of Mr. Colton, vice-president of the
Southern Pacific railroad, it will be remembered, was to
the same effect. This line, at the moment when he testi¬
fied, was being pressed forward with all possible speed,
in order to meet the work of an Eastern company on the
same route. There was no subsidy granted by Con¬
gress, saving a land grant, which however, was valuable,
but it was a matter of much concern to the Southern
Pacific company, which is identical as a matter of fact
with the Central Pacific, to carry its second line far
enough, at any rate, to prevent the through competition
of an independent line.
Mr. Colton's statements as already cited, were that sev¬
enty per cent, of the construction force were Chinese ; that
the white men as a rule were paid twice as much as the
Chinese ; that no white man was ever refused employ¬
ment ; and that the latter were engaged in a higher grade
of labor. His words in regard to the latter point
were ;—^
" I have never seen a Chinaman who could drive a team
"much. Teamsters and all that department are given
" to white men. When we are building a bridge or tres-
" tie work, it is in the hands of white laborers, and all
" the labor done about it, such as handling timber and
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 723. Rep. Ch. Im., p. 604.
IN RAILWA Y BUILDING.
317
everything of that kind, is given to white men. All
" our carpenters are white men. Chinese will do some
" work, as carrying stones and something of that kind,
" but all our masonry is done by white men. Almost all
"the bridge building, the timbering for tunnels, the ma-
"sonry and these various departments are handled by
"white men. Where there is a cut through a hill or
" tunnel, we have a gang of Chinamen of one hundred,
" with probably two or three white men as overseers."
It will be remembered, that Mr. West Evans, a railroad
contractor, testified before the commission, and that he
described efforts made by him to secure white laborers on
a short line which he had been constructing just prior to
the date when his evidence was given. His testimony
entirely confirms that of Mr. Crocker, Mr. Strobridge,
and Mr. Colton, that the Chinese were used only in rough
work ; that white laborers were not procurable in suffi¬
cient numbers, and that they were unreliable. Mr. Evans'
language is very much in point as to the ur willingness of
white men to do rough work ;—^
" They had all sorts of excuses, they said it was too
" hard work. It is a pretty wild country, and they com-
" plained bitterly of camping out. They seemed to have
"come here for another purpose. They had farms or
" something of that kind in their heads."
The remarks thus made will indicate with sufficient
precision, that there had not been in California up to
the date of the sitting of the commission, a sufficient
supply of white laborers to meet the demands for railroad
building, and that those who were there, were not disposed
to do hard work. It is not wonderful, under these circum¬
stances, that Chinese were used for such work, and that
they proved themselves able to get through with as much
of it as the whites did. It happens, however, that the
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 723.
318
CHINESE LABOE
trunk lines of railway in California are now nearly com¬
pleted. The demand for this exceptional kind of labor
will soon no longer exist in any large measure, and when
it does not exist, the labor, as a matter of course, will not
come.
The facts stated are significant as showing, further¬
more, that the Chinese do not adapt themselves to higher
grades of labor even after many years of experience.
The work on the Central Pacific was going forward in
1867-8, that on the South Pacific in 1875-6, on Mr.
Evans' Mendocino line in 1876. In all this time the
Chinese had not become teamsters, or carpenters, or
masons. This is not at all to be wondered at. They
come from classes who are not used to such work. They
do not speak our language. Their native ability may be
all that can be desired, but they naturally recoil from in¬
dustries which are strange and which require technical
education.
As to whether the strength of the Chinaman is such
that he is really on a par in this respect with the white
man, but one answer can be given. The average laborer
of our country is probably not less than five feet, seven
inches high, and weighs not less than one hundred and
forty-five pounds. I am not speaking from data of a scien¬
tific kind, but from my own observations, which are, of
course very imperfect. The Chinaman of California, will
not, as I believe, average more than five feet, three or four
inches, and they will not weigh more than from one hun¬
dred and-ten to one hundred and twenty-five pounds. If
one considers the difference in physical power thus shown,
and beyond this the difference in readiness and accuracy—
in the capacity to make every stroke of work tell—resulting
from the difference in education and experience, the con¬
clusion will be inevitable, that all other things being equal,
the white man in California will prove himself able to
LESS VALUABLE THAN WHLTE.
319
outdo his competitor in almost ail, if not in absolutely all,
the fields of rivalry.
There is abundant evidence in the report of the Con-
gressonal commission that I am not singular in this esti¬
mate of the relative value of the Chinaman and the white
man as a laborer. Governor Low, for instance, said ;—^
" In a great many kinds of labor, Chinese is worth more
" than white, but in hard, strong labor, which requires
" bone and sinew, white labor is better than Chinese."
Dr. Meares said ;—
In a physical point of view they are not aqual to the
" white man. They are not capable of doing the same
" amount of heavy labor. ^ ^ I think they are a short-
" lived race. That opinion is not derived from statistics,
" but is the result of my personal observations. As we
"see them here they are not a hardy, hale race. They
"are not capable of the same amount of physical labor,"
Mr. H. H. Bigelow said ;—
" Q. Then, are they better workers than white people ?
"A. No. Three Chinamen are about equal to two white
" men."
Railroad building on the Pacific coast is not at an end,
of course, but in the future, the lines constructed will be
mostly short lateral ones ; and for these, and for the
completion of other trunk lines, there is now enough
labor, Chinese and white, in the country. The Southern
Pacific will certainly not call for more Chinese. The
Northern Pacific will be pushed forward from the eastern
side. The Sacramento and Oregon line will go forward,
probably, by easy stages. The Chinaman has not yet
passed the Sierra Nevada in such numbers as to compete
seriously in the labor market there ; and I do not think
that the circumstances are such as to arouse any appre¬
hensions, at the moment, that they will do so.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 80. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 971.
Rep. Ch. Im., p. 126, 138.
320
SWAMP LAMPS.
As to swamp land reclamations. This is also a special
industry. It has not been carried so far forward as rail¬
road construction ; in point of fact, there remains yet a
very large proportion of all the low lying lands of the
State, unguarded by dikes. I do not believe that there
are any right-minded persons who will object to the
labors of the Chinese in this direction. White men in
California will not care to work with their feet in mud
and slush, and their lungs exposed to malarious inhala¬
tions. They will recognize the fact that every acre
reclaimed adds to their own opportunities for enterprise.
Some of this work, however, perhaps a large part, will
be done higher up on the courses of the rivers, where the
land is wet only during the rainy season, and is left dry
after the subsidence of the floods of that period of the
year. Such lands are owned largely by the farmers of
the region, who use them for pasturage, and who are
gradually pushing forward embankments adequate to
their partial protection from the water. The work of
reclamation in these higher districts, may be performed
in large part by the use of the plow and scraper, and it
is probable that but little Chinese labor will be needed.
The number of Chinese scattered through the agricultural
districts is not great, and if they are brought in to do
such work, it will be because the farm-hands ordinarily
employed are insufficient to undertake extraordinary
labor, and because it will be greatly to the advantage of
the farmers and the State to have the work completed.
It must be completed promptly, too, when undertaken,
for the reason that a half completed dike is washed over
by the floods, and its material carried away in greater or
less part.
As to mining. It was this industry which first attracted
the Chinese, to California, and which led to the large im¬
migration of early years. They named the country then
MINING,
321
" the gold hills," and they have retained the title ever
since. Australia is ^'the new gold hills." Washing for
gold was a work for which they were particularly well
qualified. They are accustoined in their natural homes
to working in the rice fields with their feet in the water
and their heads exposed to an almost tropical sun. The
universal culture of rice may have qualified them, in the
course of generations, to sustain such exposure with less
danger than a white man could.
Placer mining by hand is already very much a thing
of the past. I find that the census of 1870 contains the
following table of the productions of the precious met¬
als in California, cinnabar and silver quartz included ;—^
^ Census 1870. Ind. and Wealth, p. 760.
Hands employed.
Products,
Cinnabar
811
817,700
Gold. Hydraulic
1,396
1,622,993
" Placer
3,157
2,646,174
" Quartz
2,193
3^96,666
Gold and silver quartz.. ..
IS
15.000
Silver quartz
17
83,100
Totals
7,589
8,281,633
I understand from this table that the total number of
men concerned in mining in California is only a quarter
of the number of the Chinese who were engaged in the
mines in i860, as estimated by the joint committee of
the California Legislature, to which I have heretofore
referred.
I have no means of determining how many of the total
number of hands employed in 1870 were Chinese. Per¬
haps at a rough estimate we might say that three-
quarters of all those engaged in placer mining and one-
quarter of those ^ in hydraulic and deep mining were
Chinese. This estimate is mere guess work upon my
u
322
FAILING DEMAND IN AUNES.
part. Taking it for what it may be worth, we have the
following result ;—
^ of hands engaged in placer mining 2,367
of all others 1,108
Total 3,475
There are of course many other Chinese connected in
one way and another with the Chinese mining class
proper, but making every allowance for these, the result
is not such as to justify a conclusion that the State of
California is likely to be overrun by them.
As to agriculture. There is no direction in which the
Chinese have been employed in California in which the
results go further to show that, while they have been very
useful, and have contributed to the prosperity of the
State, their labor is not generally sought for, and that
it has come in only to supply an exceptional and pecu¬
liar demand.
The method of cultivating wheat pursued in that State
has been described and illustrates the point perfectly.
The ground is broken up by gang plows. The wheat is
sowed by a machine contrived for the purpose. It is cut
by another complicated machine called a header, which
takes off the ears and deposits them in wagons which
form, in fact, a component part of the machine. The
grain is threshed by machinery. All this work requires
skilled hands, men who are used to handling horses, and
who have mechanical aptitude enough to know when
the machinery is in working order and performing its
functions properly. Such work, as we might expect, and
as the evidence shows, is in the hands of white men, the
Chinese not having developed aptitude for it. But the
latter have been found exceedingly useful in supplement¬
ing wh-ite labor at the harvest season, when it is desira¬
ble to push along as rapidly as possible and the hands
regularly employed are not sufficiently numerous.
FAILING DEMAND IN FARMING,
323
There are causes in operation which will gradually, as
I believe, affect the demand for the Chinese in the direc¬
tion shown. But as some may say that they will develope
all possible aptitudes, and will invade the departments
of labor which the white man now fills, I shall devote
some remarks to this question of aptitude. It is of fun¬
damental importance and the examination of the evi¬
dence will show that the experience of farmers is not
different from that of railroad builders, that they are
hewers of wood and drawers of water rather than men
available for the ever varying demands of the employers
of labor.
Mr. Easterby, for instance, testified ;—^
" All the farmers that I have ever spoken with are in
"favor of having Chinese for servants, decidedly. In
" some cases they use them as laborers on the farm, for
" doing light work, and where horses are not used. The
" Chinese do not seem to understand the use of horses
" as whites do,"
Mr. Roberts'testified ;—^
" Q. Do you employ Chinese in preference to white
" men } A. I do not give them the preference. I gen-
" erally give white men the preference. ^ ^ After the
" land is reclaimed, then, of course, we employ white men
" generally. We employ white men where there is any
" machinery required, any work requiring a higher class
" of intelligence ; for instance, in running plows, thresh-
" ing machines, headers—in any work requiring a higher
" class of intelligence we generally employ white men.
" Q. Would they do more work than a Chinaman at
" the same thing A. In some particulars they will ;
" and they are more trustworthy, handling horses and
" machinery. We can explain things to them and they
" are better than. Chinamen."
^Rep. Ch. Im., p. 745.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 438.
324
FAILIÄTG DEMAND IN EAEM/NG.
Mr. Sneath testified ;—^
I am employing a considerable number of persons
" farming, pretty extensively, and employ nearly all
"white men, for the reason that Chinese do not under-
" stand farming. It is impossible to understand them
"properly on account of not being familiar with their
" language. They can only be worked in gangs, when
" they have their own head men, but still after awhile, as
" they take up with our language and pick up mechan-
" leal ideas, some of them become very useful."
Mr. W. N. Olmsted, a merchant of San Francisco, who
has lived many years in China, and had many opportu¬
nities to judge of the qualities of the Chinese there as
well as in California, testified ;—^
" Q. Do you consider cheap labor and low priced la-
" bor synonymous ? A. I do not know. Labor may
" be cheap, and yet it may not be low-priced ; it may be
" low-priced and yet it may be very dear.
" Q. Do you think that the Chinaman will ever be
" able to command the same wages that an American
"will ? A. No, sir, I do not think so.
" Q. Do you think that he is the equal of the Amer-
" ican ? A. I do not think so.
"Q. Do Chinamen acquire our language readily.^
"A. It takes them some time, still, a great many of
"them do pick it up readily.
" Q. Until they acquire a pretty good knowledge oí
" our language, are they able to compete to any great
" degree with Americans, and to what degree ? A. That
" would be done under the management of foremen.
" Q. It can only be done in gangs with foremen r
"A. Just the same as a foreign vessel trading in China.
" will employ Chinese crews with an interpreter.
^ s —
^ Rep. Ch, Im,, p. 544. ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 438.
CHINESE NOT EQUAL TO AMERICANS. 325
" Q. They could not engage as individuals to work
"separately? A. No, sir."
Mr. John Mellon, a farmer, testified ;—^
" Q. You can obtain white boys and girls cheaper
"than Chinese? A. Yes, sir. I had a boy from the
"city on my place. He was twelve or fourteen years
"old, somewhere along there. I paid that boy twelve
"dollars a month, during the summer, and I would not
" give that boy for any Chinaman I ever saw. I will tell
" you why. That boy would go into the stable, put the
" harness on my team, hitch them up to the wagon and
" take them to the field. I would send a man over and
" he would pitch the grain up to him. The boy would
" act as a man, he would drive the team home, and get
" on the stack, and the man would go with the load and
" pitch it off, as he was the strongest. The boy on the
" stack would pack away the grain equal to a man.
" Q. In other words, the boy could do many things
"the Chinese could not do, and you could utilize him in
" other things as well as picking berries and fruit ? A.
" I have not any berries and fruit, but I have seen any
"quantity of the work done. I am speaking of what
"has been done on my own place. The boy, of course,
" if I told him to go to any part of my ranch and fix
" the fence, he could take his hatchet and nails and fix it,
"or if I would tell him to go and look after such and
" such stock, he would go and look after it.
" Q. Could you do that with a Chinaman ? A. No,
" sir.
" Q. Even if he understood you thoroughly ? A.
"You cannot make him understand you thoroughly. If
" you send him to drive home some of the stock from
" the field he would drive them all home, and you could
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 300.
326
FAILING DEMAND IN FARMING,
" take out such as you wanted, but if you sent the boy
"he would do just as you would tell him.
"Q. You have employed both classes of labor .í* A.
"Yes, sir ; all countries. I can take one white man and
" he will bind more grain than any two Chinamen I have
" ever seen. I have had Chinamen binding, Germans,
" English, Americans, and Irish. It is the same way with
" digging and sacking potatoes. ^ * Of course we
" are obliged, sometimes, to employ Chinese, but we do
" not consider them any companions. When you have
"got a good white man, you can take him into your din-
"ing-room or kitchen, and sit down and talk to him. If
" you want to go off to the eity, or on business, you can
" tell him so and so, to see that this and that is done,
" and he will attend to your business ; but a Chinaman
" says ; ^ I no sabe.' ^ ^ j one year paid $40 a month
" to a white man, and had him two months, to cut at
" about the rate of two acres of grain a day for me. That
" man was cheaper to me than four Chinamen. He cut
"it with a cradle out of the sides of the hills. You can-
" not run the reaper every place, and then you have got
" to cradle it or mow it."
We have seen that the farmers of California, as well as
other employers of labor, have found white laborers un¬
certain and unreliable, as compared with those of other
districts. But even under such circumstances we have
found that they employ the whites for all the more diffi¬
cult parts of their work, that in point of fact, the Chinese
are generally employed only during exceptional rushes of
work. This fact implies very strongly the correctness of
my proposition that the Chinese do not show adaptability
to the miscellaneous demands of the farmer. This
proposition is fully sustained by the direct evidence
which" r have quoted, but its perfect bearing will be ap¬
preciated more perfectly when I point out with precision
SHORT SUPPLY OF LABORERS,
327
the difficulties which Californian farmers have had to
meet resulting from the short supply of laborers.
The shortness of the supply may be indicated in three
ways ; first, by the statements of farmers ; second, by the
census enumeration of population and production ; third^
by the rates of wages paid.
In the chapter which I have devoted to the Chinese in
agriculture, and elsewhere, I have presented with sufficient
fullness the declarations of the farmers on this head.
The following tables exhibit the conditions shown by
the census. First, the proportionate number of persons
engaged in agriculture ;—
All
Agriculture,
Agricutural
States.
occupations.
total.
laborers.
Alabama
365,258
291,628
208,811
California
238,648
47,863
16,231
Connecticut
193,421
43,653
18,934
Georgia
444,678
336,145
264,605
Illinois
742,015
376,441
133,649
Iowa
344,276
210,263
69,821
Louisiana
253,452
141,467
97,783
Maryland
258,543
80,449
48,079
Minnesota
132,657
75,157
20,277
New York
374,323
134,562
Oregon
30,651
13,248
3,126
Pennsylvania,
1,020,544
200,051
68,897
Texas
237,126
166,753
81,123
California then has about one person in five of her in¬
dustrial population engaged in agriculture, and one in
fifteen as agricultural laborers.
In Alabama, about four-fifths are on farms and some¬
thing less than three-fifths are laborers.
In Connecticut, about one-fifth are on farms, and
about one-tenth laborers.
In Georgia, three-fourths are on farms, and more than
one-half are laborers.
í^28
SHORT SUPPLY OF LABORERS.
In Illinois about one-half are on farms and about one-
fifth are laborers.
In Iowa something less than two-thirds are on farms
and about one-fifth are laborers.
In Louisiana something less than three-fifths are on
farms and about two-fifths are laborers.
In Maryland something less than one-third are on
farms and one-fifth laborers.
In Minnesota more than half are on farms and less
than one-sixth are laborers.
In Oregon something less than one-half are on farms
and one in ten are laborers.
In Pennsylvania one-fifth are on farms and one-fifteenth
are laborers.
In Texas two-thirds are on farms and one-third
laborers.
In New York about one in four are on farms and one
in eleven are laborers.
California has fewer farmers and farm laborers, then,
in proportion to her industrial population, than any
other State, Pennsylvania exeepted. The Southern purely
agricultural States have the largest proportion of farmers
and farm laborers, the laborers ranging from two-fifths
to three-fifths of the whole. The Western agricultural
states have the next largest proportion, the laborers
averaging about one-fifth of all, the Eastern manufac¬
turing and mining States giving a proportion of one in
fifteen in Pennsylvania, one in eleven in New York, and
one in ten in Connecticut.
The proportion between farmers, (including in this
designation all concerned in agriculture, laborers as well
as proprietors,) and farm laborers is as follows ;—
In Alabama two-thirds are laborers, in California one-
third, in Georgia more than two-thirds, in Illinois more
than one-third, in Iowa about one-third, in Louisiana
SIZE OF FARMS IN CALIFORNIA.
329
about two in five, in Maryland more than one-half, in
Minnesota something less than one in three, in New
York about one in three, in Oregon one in four, in Penn¬
sylvania one in three, in Texas one in two.
The average size of farms in the same States in 1870,
was ;—
Alabama 222
California 482
Connecticut 93
Georgia 338
Illinois 128
Iowa 134
Louisiana 247
Maryland 167
Minnesota 139
New York 103
Oregon 315
Pennsylvania 103
Texas 301
While thus California has fewer farmers and farm
laborers than any other State, Pennsylvania excepted,
her farms are larger than those of any other State ; from
fifty to one hundred per cent, larger than those of the
Southern States, nearly four times as large as those of
the Western States, and nearly five times as large as
those of the Eastern States.
Taking the same States the outturn of all farm pro¬
ductions, as compared with the number of persons^ en¬
gaged in agriculture, was as follows ;—
States. Persons engaged. Produce.
Alabama 291,628 $ 67,522,335
California 47>^^3 49,856,024
Connecticut 43,653 26,482,150
Georgia 330,145 80,390,228
Illinois 3 76,441 21 o, 860,5 8 5
330
jFA/^m productions.
States. Persons engaged. Produce.
Iowa 210,263 $i 14,386,441
Louisiana 141,467 52,006,622
Maryland 80,449 35.343>927
Minnesota 7S,iS7 33,446,400
New York 374,323 253,526,153
Oregon 13,248 7,122,790
Pennsylvania 200,051 183,946,027
Texas 166,753 . 49,185,170
The produce for each pérson engaged in each State, is
about as follows ;—
In California $1,050
^ Pennsylvania 920
^ New York 680
^ Connecticut 600
^ Illinois, Iowa, and Oregon 550
^ Minnesota and Maryland 445
^ Louisiana 360
^ Texas 300
^ Alabama and Georgia 240
The production per capita in California is, therefore,
more than twice as great as the average of the States
east of the Rocky Mountains.
The census estimate of wages paid in some of these
is as follows ;—
State. Persons engaged. Wages.
California 47,863 $10.369,247
New York 374,323 34,451,302
Illinois 370,441 22,338,767
Georgia 33^,145 19,787,086
The rate for each individual engaged would be then ;—
In California, about $214
" New York, " 92
" Illinois," " - 60
" Georgia, " 59
EARNINGS IN CALIFORNIA.
331
The average of California is more than three times
that of Illinois and Georgia, and more than twice that
New York.
The monthly wages paid to agricultural laborers, as
stated in Dr. Young's book on Labor in Europe and
America, published by the treasury department of the
United States, in 1875, were as follows ;—
Summer. Winter.
In California,^ with board, $40 to 50, $25 to 30
" New York, " " $24.92, $10.50
" Illinois " " 19.45, 14.30
" Georgia, " " 10.00, 10.00
The supply of laborers, then, has been very short in
California, and all the consequent inconveniences must
have been felt, not only high wages, but an arrogant dis¬
position on the part of laborers, insufficient service, &c.
All this means simply that the farmers of California
have had every possible reason to employ the Chinese,
and that if they have not done so in large numbers, it is
because they have not found them suitable in all respects
to their requirements.
^ I understand that these are the rates paid to white laborers.
PART IV.—CHAPTER III.
FEARS OF AN OVERFLOWING IMMIGRATION OF THE
CHINESE. FURTHER REMARKS IN REGARD TO
THE FAILING DEMAND FOR THEIR LABOR.
The demand in fruit raising. As the population increases and the younger
generation comes forward, the Chinese in less demand. Fruit raising
will become less special. The demand likely to fall off in manufac¬
turing enterprises. Testimony of Governor Low, Mr. Heynemann,
Mr. McLennan, and Mr. Gallego. Industries in which the Chinese
do not take part. Testimony of Mr. Scott. The manufacture of
shoes and cigars. Tendency to employ whites instead of Chinese and
the reasons. Testimony of Mr. Buchanan and Mr. Muther. The
Chinese as domestic servants. Testimony of Mrs. Swift. The de¬
mand for Chinese labor not continuous throughout the year. Testi¬
mony of Mr. Bryant. The ebb and flow of migration.
I have spoken in the last chapter of the prospects of a
continued demand for the labor of Chinamen in railroad
building, swamp land reclamations, mining and agri¬
culture. It remains to speak of the prospects of such
demand for Chinese in fruit raising, in manufactures,
in special industries and in domestic service, and to
show how the general demand for them is being affected
and will be affected by the growth of population in
California.
Fruit raising would appear at first sight to be an in¬
dustry in which the services of a small and light-fingered
people like the Chinese would be in special demand, and
this is the case certainly at the season of gathering fruit.
But while this is true of the fruit gathering season,
there is no reason why the Chinese, under normal condi¬
tions of labor in California, should be employed in orch¬
ards and vineyards excepting at that season. In the
FAILING DEMAND FOR CHINESE.
333
preparation of the ground for planting, in planting and
in the cultivation of the soil, the experience of farmers
generally shows that the white man would be preferable
because of his greater skill in handling horses, and his
superior adaptability as a laborer. The same may be
said of the grafting of improved scions on native stocks,
and of pruning. It is safe to say that for this kind of
work white men are even now generally employed, and
that, if Chinese are employed, they must be carefully
looked after by the proprietor or his overseers, at the cost
of more or less time and money.
As years pass, again, there will be a supply of boys
and girls to do more or less of the gathering of fruit,
supplementing the labors of men, and enabling the grower
to dispense with the necessity of going away from his
own place, or out of his neighborhood, to engage extra
assistance. Heretofore the number of boys and girls, of
women and persons generally, not Chinese, who could
be called upon to aid at the fruit picking season has been
extremely limited. This condition of things is changing
rapidly, and the result will affect materially the interest
in question.
It may be, again, that fruit growing will become here¬
after, in California, a less special industry than it appears
to be at the moment. As farms are broken up, and
varied husbandry takes the place of wheat growing, each
farmer is likely to devote some portion of his land to
fruit. This happens elsewhere in our country, and in
other countries, and the consequence is, that the labor
which in general farming is needed in one direction at
one moment, and somewhere else at another, becomes
available for the busy season of fruit growing, and the
occasion to seek for outside labor falls away. This may
hold in the production of wine, as, if I am not mis¬
informed, the grower of the grape is not always, or even
334
FRUIT CULTURE.
generally, the wine maker. The growers confine their
interest often, as I believe, to the production of the fruit,
and sell it, when gathered, to the larger proprietors, or
tQ persons whose sole avocation is the treatment of
the fruit in wine making. The same subdivision occurs
in the labor of drying or preserving other fruits. The
work is not devolved upon the grower, but upon a
specialist, whose establishment is located in or near a
town, where he is able to procure assistance in the busy
season, and whose control of approved appliances is such
as to enable him to work advantageously.
In manufacturing industries of the larger sort, the
tendency of whites to displace the Chinese, by whose
assistance the given industries were established, is very
marked. I cannot do better than let the managers of
these enterprises speak for themselves upon this point,
prefacing their statements by a significant declaration
made to the commission by Governor Low, as follows ;—
" My view in regard to Chinese labor in the manufac-
" tories here, is a good deal as it is in regard to manu-
" factories generally in the United States—that a tariff is
" essentially necessary in a new country to build up manu-
" factories, to give them protection while they are young.
After a manufacture gets firmly established, after they
"get skilled labor, and get apprentices who have learned
" the trade, perhaps the tariff may then be lessened, or
"taken off altogether, because it can then successfully
"compete with manufactures from abroad. So with
" manufactures here. But for the Chinese I doubt whether
" we would have had any manufacturing, or it would have
" been small, as compared with the present. The very
" fact of the Chinese being here, and that their labor was
"procurable at a moderate rate, has induced the opening
" of manufactures ; and, perhaps, now, or shortly, as they
^ R^p. Ch. Im,, p. 90.
MANUFA CTURING.
335
" can get apprentices at work, Chinese labor can be dis-
"pensed with.
" Q. Do you think that that result would work out of
"itself, naturally? A. I think it is gradually coming
"about"
This language is fully sustained by that of Mr. Heyne-
mann, president of the Pioneer and Mission woolen
factory, and agent of the Pacific jute factory. The former
is said to be the largest incorporation for manufacturing
purposes in California ;—^
" Q. Are all the operatives in your factory, (the woolen
"mills), Chinese ? A. No, sir ; I have been listening to
" testimony here, of late, to the effect that a good many
"white laborers have been displaced by Chinese. Just
" the contrary has been taking place in our factory. For
" instance, white girls have taken the place of Chinese.
" As a matter of course, any superintendent will give the
"preference to people whom he can understand, rather
" than to people with whom he has difficulty to speak.
" That is an immense advantage in favor of the white
" labor.
" Q. Why do you employ Chinese in your factory ?
" A. Originally we could not get any other at all. At
" that time it would have been an absolute impossibility
" to run the factory upon white labor, simply because we
" could not get white operatives.
" Q. Would the factory have been established with
"white labor? A. No, sir; as a matter of fact, even
" with the Chinese labor, competition has been so active
" that we have had no dividends whatever.
" Q. Why do you continue to use Chinese labor ? A.
" We do not continue upon Chinese labor, or upon any
" labor ; we continue simply upon human labor, I do not
" make any distinction whether it is white or Chinese.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 533.
336
RELATIVE MERITS OF CHIMESE
You say that you employ a certain number of
Chinese. Have you the option of employing an equal
" number of boys and girls at the same rates? A. That is a
" very hard question to answer. If you have a certain num-
" ber of employes who know exactly what to do, you are
"not going to discharge them and take another number
" without knowing whether they can do the same thing ;
" but as labor is offering in this same particular factory
" every day the number of white girls is increasing, and
" the proportionate number of Chinese is decreasing. Of
" course that will take some time yet. I might say, in
"the course of time, as labor becomes more plentiful
" here, I have no doubt the Chinese will be displaced
" altogether, except where they amalgamate so that they
" would lose the distinctive name of Chinese.
" Q. How do the Chinese compare, as operatives, with
" American boys and girls ? A. I do not know that
" they are any better. I think American boys and girls
" would be fully as good. The Chinese have very great
" power of incitation, but very little power of invention.
" I think an American, or what would be called a white
" laborer here, especially those who descend immediately
" from native born Americans, have got an ingenuity that
" is not to be found in any other class of laborers. They
" will try to perfect their work ; they will study out some-
" thing. That quality is not to be found in a Chinaman.
" I do not think, for generations, the Chinaman will be
" the peer of the American laborer."
The evidence of this witness has no uncertain sound.
He is familiar with his business, and he states plainly
that the tendency in the woolen factory is to employ
white girls instead of Chinese, and he describes that as
the result not of mere sentiment in favor of white labor.
Chinese and Americans are all on a par in his estimation,
so far as the work he has to do is concerned. To speak
AND AMERICAN OPERA TIVES.
337
plainly, the white labor machine is tending, in an un¬
mistakable way, to prove its superior capacity to the
Chinese labor machine.
While this point is under consideration and Mr. Hey-
neymann's evidence is before us, I may as well cite what
he says further as to the merits of Chinese and American
operatives and artisans at large ;—
Q. Is it possible for the Chinese until they become
"Americanized to compete with the English-speaking
"artisan, or the German. A. When that time comes
" they will be English-speaking themselves, but I do not
"believe that up to this time any Chinaman is the peer
" of the American operative.
" Q. I ask about artisans, carpenters, masons, and that
" kind of skilled workmen A. That is the kind I am
"speaking of.
" Q. Can a Chinaman until he becomes Americanized
" compete with any of them } A. No, sir. It is a per-
"fect impossibility. It is not in the nature of things.
" Q. Are those trades and occupations intruded upon
" to any extent by Chinamen} A. If a Chinaman
"builds a house, wha does he employ.^ He does not
" employ Chinese. That is the best answer to that qués-
" tion."
" Q. Does the Chinaman build houses 1 A. Cer-
"tainly. At the corner of Dupont street, near Califor-
^ nia, there are three such houses which have been
" finished within a month.''
The tendency of the whites to supplant Chinese, so
emphatically declared by Mr. Heynemann in regard to
the woolen factory, was not exhibited in the jute factory,
but on the contrary the Chinese had displaced there the
Scotch girls who had been brought from Scotland with
the machinery to, joperate it. The reason for this was
plain. The work in jute is described by Mr, Heynemann
V
338
TENDENCY TO DISPLACE
as SO heavy that " very few women can stand to run those
" looms." Having then to take on more robust help the
company employed Chinese, just as the woolen factory
had started with Chinese. It is safe to say, however, that
the same causes which are leading to the employment of
native girls in the woolen mills will lead to the employ¬
ment of native boys, or men, in the jute factory.
Donald McLennan, the superintendent of the Mission
woolen mills, confirmed Mr. Heynemann's evidence, as
will be seen from the following citation of his testi¬
mony;—^
" Q. How many white men and women do you em-
"ploy in your factory A. Three or four hundred.
" Q. Do you find them steady and industrious as a
"rule.?* A. Yes, sir.
" Q. You are gradually substituting them for the Chi-
" nese } A. I am gradually substituting them.
" Q. Do you find yourself able to compete after car-
" rying on that substitution } A. I do.
Q. You think the time may come when you may be
" able to make practically an entire substitution } A.
" It may come, but it will be a good many years.
" Q. How rapidly has this substitution been going on
"A. It has been going on for six or seven years, prob-
" ably.
"Q. You started with all Chinamen, and during that
" time you have employed how many whites } A. At
"least half.
" Q. Why not gain the other half in another six years}
" A. It is impossible to tell what another decade may do."
It will be seen that Mr. McLennan hesitates to say
that the tendency is so marked as Mr. Heynemann ap¬
pears to believe. It is possible sometimes for a by¬
stander .tQ estimate the forces which are at work with
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 609.
CHINESE OPEE ATIFES,
339
more precision than the observer who is upon the spot.
The supply of persons of our own stock who may become
operatives is rapidly increasing, Wages are tending
downward. The necessities which have drawn white
people to the mills in the past, will press more and more
closely as the conditions of industry in California ap¬
proximate more and more closely to conditions else¬
where. If then there has already appeared a marked
tendency for our own people to supplant the Chinese, the
causes which have produced it are not growing less, but
stronger.
In the chapter which I devoted to the question whether
the Chinese in California are displacing white laborers,
I gave a list of industries aggregating more than sixty
in number, in which no Chinese are used. It will be
interesting to inquire here what employers in some of
these departments of labor say of their reasons for tak¬
ing on our own people and not Chinamen.
Mr. Gallego, superintendent of Messrs. E. Detrick and
Company's bag factory, testified as follows ;—
" Q. Do you work white or Chinese labor in your
" factory ? A. We work all white labor, consisting of
men, boys and girls. * ^ I ßnd we can manufacture
"just as cheap with white labor as we can with Chinese
" labor, if not cheaper. I have never yet seen the time
"when I have not been able to get all the hands I
"wanted, and in fact, more. We employ, in the busy
" season, for over seven months, two hundred hands ; at
"present we employ seventy. We have to turn away in
" the busy season, v/hich consists of about seven months
" in the year, twenty girls on an average, every day, and
"nearly as many boys."
Mr. Scott, of the firm of Prescott, Scott and Company,
testified ;—
1 Rep. Ch, Im., p. 1063, ^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 1014.
340
NO CHINESE
" We have been employing, for sixteen years, a large
" number of men in the manufacture of iron goods. We
"carry on all branches. We employ 520 men and boys.
" They are divided into six classes ; blacksmiths, boiler-
" makers, molders, machinists, draughtsmen and pattern-
" makers, all organized, working a complete institution.
" With the boys from the public schools we have had a
"very gratifying experience. We have never less than
"sixty learning their trades. We think with those boys
" we can meet the question of cheap labor in any shape,
" form, or way that they may choose to make it. When
" a boy comes there he comes for four years—from sev-
"enteen to twenty-one. We pay four dollars a week for
" the first year, six dollars for the second, eight for the
" third, and ten for the fourth. After that whatever the
"man is worth. Our experience is that the boys of
"seventeen from our public schools reach the same posi-
" tion at the age of twenty-one as the boys we have oc-
"casionally taken in, on account of the necessities of
" their parents, at twelve, thirteen and fourteen years ;
" that the schooling prior to seventeen is of more advant-
" age to them than the trade. We have never found any
"difficulty in adjusting the prices of labor to meet the
"conditions under which we have had to manufacture,
"and competition from any section of the country,
"although we labor under three distinct disadvantages.
"We do not produce a pound of pig iron in the State ;
" we do not mine a pound of coal except for fuel pur-
" poses ; we do not produce a pound of hard wood in this
" State, it is all imported."
These two witnesses, Mr. Gallego and Mr. Scott, were
called by the counsel opposed to the Chinese.- No evi¬
dence which was given before the commission goes fur¬
ther to show how groundless are the fears that the Chi¬
nese are likely to win a victory over our people upon our
IN CERTAIN INDUSTRIES.
341
own soil, and doubtless if other witnesses, familiar with
the other sixty industries of San Francisco in which our
people are engaged, had been called, each would have
given similar testimony. Employers are not often con¬
trolled by sentiment, and not very many out of all those
engaged in these sixty industries would have failed to
use Chinamen if it would have advanced their interests
to do so.
The special industries of the Chinese in California,
those which deserve attention because they are largely
occupied by the Chinese, more or less for their own ac¬
count, are shoe-making, cigar-making, and laundry-work.
It is to be said at once, that if the Chinese have taken
a prominent part in these industries, and not in others,
it must be because of aptitudes in those directions, and
of favoring circumstances.
It will be manifest to my readers from what has been
already said, that whatever work is light, and requires
the imitative rather than the inventive faculty, is suited
to the Chinese. Whatever work again may be done by
the piece, by individual workers, requiring no great out¬
lay for the machinery or for materials in advance of
manufacture, is more likely to receive their attention.
Cigar- and shoe-making and the washing of wearing ap¬
parel answer all these conditions more or less perfectly,
and it is reasonable to expect that the circumstances
which have enabled the Chinese to take a strong place
in these industries will continue to operate in their favor,
and that if the tendency is to displace them from indus¬
tries generally, it will be felt later in these than in other
directions.
There are reasons, however, which tell against the Chi¬
nese, even in these special industries. In washing, for
instance, people who are in good circumstances, hesitate
to send their clothing to Chinese laundries, and their lies-
342
CHINESE LAUNDRIES.
itation is not to be wondered at. They have no assur¬
ance that the Chinese laundryman will deal with them
either carefully or cleanlily. He may do his work at
very low rates, but if he is not careful in handling gar¬
ments he will destroy the fabric so rapidly that the loss
thus occasioned far more than exceeds the economy in
price. The careful and fastidious person, and nearly all
people in fair circumstances, are careful and fastidious
about these matters, will not consent to have their un¬
derwear clothing torn to pieces. Still, less vdll they like
to think of it as being worn by the washerman or mixed
up with articles from no one knov/s what quarter. To
be entirely plain, this is just what must be expected
from Chinese laundrymen the world over. The Chinese
of the class in question have known no better system at
home than that of alternately dipping the garment in a
brook or pond hole, and slapping it on a stone or plank
placed conveniently above the water. I have seen del¬
icate foreign garments being treated in this way in China,
the washman wearing at the same time other articles be¬
longing evidently to his em.ployer. The laundrymen of
California have learned their trade of their own people,
some of the Hong Kong washermen having gone to
California in early days, and it is doubtful whether there
is one of them employed in the public wash .shops who
does his work carefully and properly.
Beyond this it may be said that the tendency is to use
steam appliances in laundries, and to cheapen the work
in this way while doing it thoroughly and carefully.
Such laundries, wherever established, are likely in the
longVun to do away with the Chinese system, which is
all hand work.
My readers will pardon my entering upon such details.
They are unsavory, perhaps, yet they go far to throw
light on the place occupied by the Chinese in California
and their future there.
MANUFACTURE OF CIGARS,
343
The evidence cited by me in the chapter in which I
dealt with the allegation that the Chinese have displaced
white laborers in California, showed conclusively that the
industry of shoe-making in that State was built up by
the aid of the Chinese, and that the tendency of late has
been to employ white men instead. The testimony of
Mr. Buchanan, of the factory of Messrs. Einstein and
Company, in this connection, was direct and positive,
showing that the establishment named was one of the
largest in the city, and that they had already effected
the change from Chinese to white journeymen without
detriment to their business. It contained also a state¬
ment that a white man's co-operative shoe-making estab¬
lishment had been started in San Francisco and had
made large profits.
The evidence in regard to the cigar trade and cigar-
making already cited by me, indicates that a considera¬
ble proportion of those used in California are made in
the Eastern States, and as a consequence that the Chi¬
nese in California have not been able to underbid East¬
ern manufacturers entirely. The evidence shows further
that the Chinaman is not as rapid a worker as the white.
Frank Mutlier testified on this head that a white man
working by the piece in San Francisco would earn about
eleven dollars a week, while a Chinaman would earn only
six dollars, " because they are slower workmen." ^ The
same witness said that boys and girls can make cigars,
" (for it is easy work,) just as well as the oldest man, in
" fact much better." If this is the case, and I find no
occasion to doubt the statement, there would seem to be
no reason why, as the supply of boys and gids increases,
or becomes more manageable, the latter should not dis¬
place the Chinese."
It is unnecessary to pursue this branch of our inquiry
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 313.
344
DOMESTIC SERVANTS.
further. All the testimony has gone to show that the
American operative, artisan or laborer is a more vigor¬
ous man physically than the Chinese, and that his apti¬
tude is greater than that of the Chinaman. The natural
and acquired qualifications of white men are undoubt¬
edly greater than those of their competitors, and when
the moment of keen competition arrives this fact will tell
upon the result in a marked way.
Of the Chinese as domestic servants I spoke fully in
the chapter which I devoted to that subject. While
according to them a high degree of commendation, I did
not hesitate to say that I do not believe an Asiatic serv¬
ant is likely to be as good as one of European or Amer¬
ican origin, for the reason that their education is not such
as to enable them to appreciate perfectly the wants,
wishes, or peculiarities of their employers. I added to
this, that I should be sorry to think that the moral edu-
cation of Europeans and Americans of this class is no
better than that of the Chinese. I might have said, fur¬
ther, that there is one overruling objection to the Chinese
as domestic servants. Such duty belongs naturally to
the female sex, and there is a great deal of it which must
devolve upon members of the family where a Chinese,
or Chinese only, are employed, which would be left to
female servants, if such were employed. There was sound
sense in what one of the witnesses, Mrs. Swift, stated to
the commission on this head ;—^
" The Chinese, when they work, work at one industry.
They are not like our girls. If a Chinaman goes into
a family to cook, he says ;— ^ Me do no chamber work ;
" ' me do cooking.' If a woman goes into a house she has
to do sewing, house work, take care of the little boys
and girls, and do the washing and ironing. Chinamen
do one branch. They do the cleaning, or else they do
the housework."
^ Rep Ch. Im., p. 249.
DOMESTIC SERVANTS.
345
I am sure that the women of the Eastern States, much
as they have occasion to complain of their servants, and
much as they may have wished for the patient, uncom¬
plaining Chinaman, will wonder, if they reflect about it,
how their sisters of California have been able to reconcile
themselves to men as servants. My impression is that but
few families employ them in California, except when they
are driven to it, as in the country, or where they need
only a single servant to supplement the labors of mem¬
bers of the family, or where they employ several servants,
the Chinaman in the latter cases, taking some one de¬
partment, as cooking or cleaning, while the general mis¬
cellaneous work of the household falls upon the female
domestics employed.
Beyond the consideratons thus far noted, it remains to
be pointed out here, that in many of the leading in¬
dustries in which the Chinese find employment, the de¬
mand for their services is not continuous.
Take, for instance, railroad building. Ten thousand
men may be at work for one, or two, or more, years, and
the completion of the given line may leave them without
employment. Take swamp land reclamations. In one
year, or a series of years, this kind of enterprise may be
pushed forward with great energy. In other years noth¬
ing at all may be done. It is work moreover which
can be prosecuted only in the summer season, when a
demand for labor exists also in the grain fields. Take
farming and fruit picking. The Chinese are in demand
for this kind of work only in the harvesting and picking
seasons. It follows, necessarily, that there must be many
of the Chinese idle for greater or less periods throughout
the year. How far this en "orced leisure extends may be
estimated from the following statement of Mayor Bryant,
of San Francisco, before the Congressional commis¬
sion ;—^
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. i8o.
346
THE DEMAND FOR LABOR
Q. What is your estimate of the number of Chinese
"resident in the city of San Francisco, and does it vary
" from month to month during the year ? A. I thought
" during the fall and winter months, last year, there were
" from 60,000 to 70,000, and by going through the quarters
" it seemed to me that there are not now more than half
"of what there was then.
" Q. So that the number varies from 30,000 to 60,-
" 000 ? A. I should say so.
" Q. According to the season; A. Yes; and busi-
" ness in the country. If railroads are building some go
" to the country, and when railroads are not building
" they come back to the city."
This evidence was given on the 24th of October. At
that date the rains have already begun as a rule, and the
gathering of grain, and of fruit may be presumed to have
ended.
Mr. Wheeler, to whose estimate of the Chinese popu¬
lation of California I have had occasion to refer with
commendation, gave the following evidence in regard to
the ebb and flow of immigration. Its pertinency to the
point under consideration will be evident ;—^
" I observed in getting these facts, that during six or
"seven months in the year, that is from February to
" October, there has been an increase of the arrivals over
"the departures; and from October to February there
"has been an increase of departures over arrivals. There
" is a flood-tide in and out, to and from California of
" Chinese in those two periods of the year, and that has
" always been the case. In noticing that fact from the
"figures I made inquiry of Mr. Otis, now dead, who was
"then mayor of San Francisco, as well as from other
"gentlemen in the Chinese trade, as to the cause. They
" informed me that the Chinese come to California at the
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 515.
VARIES WITH THE SEASON.
347
" season of the year when the greatest demand for labor
" exists, the harvest season, in the expectation of getting
work gathering in the harvest, that being the period when
" there is more demand for labor than at any other period
" of the year ; and that those who are about to return to
" China, always choose the period of the year when they
"can reach home and enjoy the Chinese New Year which
" comes in February, (sometimes in January,) and that in-
" duced by the desire to enjoy the New Year, they leave
" in our fail season when the weather is propitious, and
" the chief work of the season is over/'
PART IV.—CHAPTER IV.
FEARS OF AN OVERFLOWING IMMIGRATION. THE SUP¬
PLY OF OTHER LABOR.
The supply of labor in California tending to increase. The increase of
population. Comparison of the increase in different States. The
Northwest has outstripped California. The relative numbers of the
Chinese in the State at different periods. The proportion of Chinese
diminishing. The tendency of Eastern immigration. The tide a ris¬
ing one. The per centage of births in California. Conditions of life
in California attractive. Rates of wages for farm laborers in different
parts of the country. The ordinary laboror paid twice as much as the
Eastern laborer. Comparison with European rates. Rates in differ¬
ent countries of Europe. Cost of living in Europe, in the Eastern
States, and in California. A large immigration from Europe may be
expected. Farm laborers in Europe. Employment of Chinese in
Australia.
I have now shown, as I believe, that the Chinese in
California are not equal to other laborers, artisans, &c.,
bec9.use of their lack of acquaintance with our language,
of physical strength, of technical education, and of gen¬
eral adaptability to our wants and methods. I have
shown also that the tendency is to rely upon their assist¬
ance less than was done formerly. It remains to present
facts and considerations attending the increase of our
own population which will confirm the conclusion that
the demand for the Chinese is of continually failing
importance.
The total population of California as given by the
United States census, was ;—^
In 1850.
" i860.
1879,
92,327
379.944
560,247
^ U. S. Census. Pop., p. 3.
THE SUPPLY OF LABOR,
349
Mr. Brooks/ one of the counsel who appeared before
the Congressional commission estimated the population
in 1876, at 900,000
Accepting the latter estimate as more or less nearly
correct, it appears that the population of the State in¬
creased about four fold in the first period, about one and
one-half times in the second period, and about one and
three-fifths in the third period. The first two periods
embraced each ten years, the third only six years. The
increase from 18^6 to 1880 cannot have been large, for
the reason that a general depression in business has ex¬
isted in the State for several years past, which has
greatly affected the influx of immigrants from Europe
and the movements of our own people. It is not too
much to hope, however, that the population of Califor¬
nia in 1880 will be found to be about one million.^
The movement of population thus shown is very large,
but it is far less than that exhibited in the young States
of the Northwest.
Take for instance Iowa. In 1850 the population of
that State was 192,214
In i860 674,913
" 1870 1,194,020
Take again Minnesota ;—
In 1850 6,077
i860 172,023
" 1870 439)706
Take Wisconsin ;—
In 1850 305,391
i860 775,S81
1870 1,054,670
^ Br, Br., p. 130.^ informed, giving a total population
^ This estimate proves to be too of about 827,000 only,
high, the census of 1880, as I am
350
POPULATION OF THE NORTHWEST
Or Kansas ;
In 1850
i860
" 1870,
107,206
364,399
The explanation, of course, is not difficult to find.
The States of the Northwest, possessed of a rich soil, and
a climate not altogether inhospitable, although cold, have
been more easily accessible to European immigrants
and to our own people, and this one fact has more than
counterbalanced the advantages which California has
possessed in a more genial climate, in a greater variety
of soil and productions and in her immense stores of the
precious metals.
The tendency of the moment, to a superior increase of
population in the Northwest cannot long continue. The
means of access to California have been improved by the
completion of the trans-continental railway. Two, if not
more, other trans-continental lines will be in operation
within a few years. The lands of the Northwest are
gradually being taken up, and emigrants are each year
pressing further and still further toward the setting sun.
The beginning of the result is shown in the greater in¬
crement in California for the six years from i87otQ 1876,
than in the previous ten years, or the earlier decade, dur¬
ing which the search for gold called so many people of
all lands to that district.
A great deal has been said by anti-Chinese partisans
of the more ready access to California enjoyed by the
Chinese. This existed prior to the completion of the
Pacific railway in a more marked degree than it has
since, but the results of the census do not show that they
availed of it more than our people availed of their less
satisfactory opportunities.
The relative numbers of our own stock and of the
RELATIVE INCREASE IN CALIFORNIA. 351
Chinese in the State of California at different periods, is
shown in the following table ;—^
1850. i860. 1870. 1880.
Whites 9i>035 323,17/ 499,424 900,000
Colored 962 21,884 11,513 ii,5i3
Chinese 34,933 49,3io 75,ooo
92,597 379,994 560,247 986,513
The figures for 1880 are of course estimates. Assum¬
ing that they are correct, we find that the proportionate
number of Chinese to the total population was ;—
In i860, about one in eleven.
In 1870, about one in eleven and a half.
In 1880, about one in thirteen.
We find also, that during the period up to 1870, the total
immigration and increase of the whites was.... 499,424
And of Chinese 49,310
So that the immigration of whites exceeded
that of the Chinese by 450,114
And assuming again, the correctness of my estimates,
that up to 1880, the total increase of whites,
has been, say 900,000
against a total increase of Chinese of 75,ooo
the excess of the white increment is 825,000
The proposition of anti-Chinese partisans, as we have
seen, is that the Pacific coast is to become, to use their
own expression, ''Mongolianized." How very little basis
there is for this opinion is shown by these figures. The
Chinese are not holding their proportion in the general
^ At the moment of going to press, in California is as much in excess of
I have not received the complete re- the fact, proportionately, as my es-
sults of the last censyis. I am in- timate of the total population has
dined to believe, however, that my proven to be.
estimate of the number of Chinese
352 THE DECLINE IN CHINESE IMMIGRATION
population. At the present moment, so nearly as we
may judge, there is no increment whatever on their part,
while the increment of the whites is going forward with
steadiness and certainty. Two years ago the friends
of fair dealing, and good faith, pleaded vainly in the
two Houses of Congress for time to discuss the ques¬
tion whether a révisai of our treaties with China intended
to secure the restriction of immigration, is necessary, and
they were refused. A law was enacted by Congress
directly in contravention of our treaties with that em¬
pire—knowingly and deliberately enacted in the face
of all remonstrances—on the plea that the necessity of
the case was such, that no delay whatever could be
permitted. The law failed, because of the good sense
of the President, but the humiliating lesson which it has
taught cannot be forgotten. The Congress of the United
States was not in this instance, at least, wise in its com¬
prehension of the situation, nor true to the plighted faith
of the nation. It cannot afford to make many such
mistakes if it deserves to be well thought of among the
nations, or to present a fair record in history.
It is very desirable to bear in mind carefully the fact
that the recent more rapid growth of California is not
abnormal, but the result of causes which are working in
an entirely natural way. The fact that population is,
year by year, pushing westward, is an unmistakable one.
It has not stopped in the districts skirting the head
waters of the Mississippi and Missouri, but it has mounted
the elevated regions of the Rocky mountains, and poured
in upon the great plateau between them and the Sierra
Nevada. It is not necessary to recite the facts in this
connection, as they are known in a general way through¬
out the country. Dakota, Wyoming, Utah, New Mex¬
ico, Arizo-na and Idaho, are all filling up with population.
Even Washington territory, beyond the Sierras, is receiv-
WESTWARD COURSE CE EMPIRE,
353
ing a considerable population. If Congress shall be as
liberal in the future as in the past, another decade will
see the galaxy of stars in the national banner increased
by a half dozen or more ; and there will soon be no dis¬
trict or part of the Union without its own government,
independent of the national executive administration. It
is the gradual rise, surging forward, and overflow of a
tide. It is the same phenomenon which has been wit¬
nessed from the earliest period of our colonial history.
It is not to be checked by a handful of people of a less
vigorous stock coming from beyond the Pacific.
The greater portion of the increment of the popu¬
lation of California is derived from abroad, of course,
from the older States and from Europe, but some portion
of it is due to natural increase. And here a curious fact
is to be noticed, which has occasioned me a degree of
surprise, and which tells much in favor of the State.
Every one of my readers will know, of course, that in
the earlier and later movements of population to Cali¬
fornia, the tendency has been for men to go rather than
for women. The following table will exhibit the result
with precision ;—
Year. Males. Females.
1850 85,580 7,017
i860 273,337 106,257
1870 349,479 210,768
How great the devergence is from the normal propor¬
tionate numbers of the sexes will be more or less per¬
fectly shown by the following table for the State of
Delaware ;—
Year. Males. Females.
1850 45,955 45,557
i860 56,689 55,527
1870 62,629 62,387
W
354
JVA TUR AL INCREASE IN CALIEORNIA.
The divergence from the standard of the Northwest by
the following, for Iowa ;—
I suppose there is no one who would not expect, under
these circumstances, to find the birth rate of California
lower than in these other States. The fact is, however,
that the birth rate in California, for i860 and 1870, was
42 for each 1,000 of the total population, while in Dela¬
ware and Iowa, respectively, it was, in i860, 34 and 28,
and in 1870, 37 and 30. The average birth rate through¬
out the country, in 1870, was about 35 in 1,000.
Not less singular and significant is the fact that in the
year 1870 the persons of both sexes in California over
five years of age and under eighteen was 336 in each
1,000 of the population, while the average throughout
the nation was 311 in each 1,000.
California would appear then to be a region where
greater ease in living, joined perhaps with the superior
vigor of her population and favorable climatic consider¬
ations, have occasioned a very much larger increase by
births than elsewhere in the nation. I say a very much
larger increase by births, because these should be esti¬
mated not in proportion to the whole population but in
proportion to the female part of it, which, as we have
seen, is much below the usual proportion in our country.
The circumstances which have occasioned this condition
of things are calculated in a marked degree to promote
an influx of population.
The conditions which will attract working people more
particularly to California are the high rates of wages pre¬
vailing' 'there and the low cost of living, comparatively.
The following statements are taken from Mr. Young's
Year.
Males. Females.
1850
i860
1870
101,052 91,162
354,493 320,420
625,917 568,103
J^ELA TIVE RA TES OF WA GES.
355
work on "Labor in Europe and America." Not to en¬
cumber my pages too greatly, I shall make the compari¬
son of farm wages with which I shall deal first, refer only
to the year 1874 and to the average of the Western
States on the one side and California on the other.
FARM WORK.
Experienced hands. In California. In West'n States.
DAILY WAGES.
Summer, with board $ 1.50 $ 1.15
" without " 2.50 1.58
Winter, with " i.oo 93
without " 2.50 1.35
((
MONTHLY WAGES.
Summer, with board 25.00 22.12
" without " .... ....
Winter, ^ with " 25.00 17.86
" without "
Ordinary hands.
DAILY WAGES.
Summer, with board.. i.oo 88
" without " 2.00
Winter, with " 75 65
without " 2.00 96
((
MONTHLY WAGES.
Summer, with board ^ I7«53
" without " ....
Winter, with " 13.37
" without "
• • • • • •
COMMON LABORERS AT OTHER THAN FARM WORK.
DAILY WAGES.
With board 1.50 1.07
Without board 2.50 1.44
MONTHLY WAGES.
With board... 20.02
Without board
356
RELATIVE RATES OF WAGES
The rates stated above are taken from the general
tables given by Dr. Young at pages 739-744. At pages
783-784 he gives a special table for California for
1874, prepared by Mr. W. H. Martin, "general agent of
"the California Immigrant Union." According to the
latter farm laborers in 1874 received in winter, with
board, from $2 5 to $30 a month, and in summer, with
board, from $40 to $50 a month. These rates appear to
be about the same as those given in the testimony of the
witnesses who appeared before the Congressional com¬
mittee. Mr. Bryant, for instance, testified as follows
" Q. How do wages compare with former years ? A.
" Wages are about the same. Men here, ( in San Fran-
" cisco,) get $2 and $2.50 a day.
" Q. Does not that indicate about the same relation
"between supply and demand ? A. Our labor is kept
" up. Laborers keep up the price at about that ; farm
" hands at about $30 to $40 a month. That has been
" the rule of prices for the last two or three years."
I understand that the quotation for laborers in the
city is without board, and for farm laborers with board.
Mr. Brier, it will be remembered, testified that he paid
in California, in 1876, $i a month more than he paid in
1857, for permanent hands employed the year
around, $25 to $50 were paid in California, while the
same class of laborers received in the older States from
$12 to $i5 a month.^
Mr. Mellon, again, it will be remembered, paid $40 a
month to a man who used the cradle upon his place.^
Mr. Evans stated that in building the Mendocino rail¬
road, he started the men in at $40 a month and board,
" and that if a man was found to be worth more he paid
" it to him." ^
^ Rep. Cli. Im., p. 180.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 572.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 300.
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 720.
IN CALIFORNIA ANN THE EAST 857
Mr. Hollister said ;—" With the minimum paid for
"farming work, say $25 a month and board, I find that
" it is impossible, &c."'
The rates paid for farm laborers in the Western States,
as shown in Dr. Young's book, and cited above, were cur¬
rency prices. Ten or twelve per cent, must be added to
these rates in comparing them with California rates, as
an allowance for the difference in the currencies of the
two regions.
The relative rates in the Western States and in other
districts east of the Rocky mountains is sufficiently ex¬
hibited in the following tables ;—
Ordinary farm hands, monthly wages, with board, in
the summer ;—
Averages.
i860.
1870.
1874.
New England States,
$1370
$20.68
$18.60
Middle
971
1675
16.93
Western " .
13-12
18.33
17-53
Southern " .
9-23
12.43
11.58
In the Winter ;—
New England States.
$16.38
$14.42
Middle " .
7.33
12.45
12.20
Western " .
11.04
14.48
13-37
Southern " .
8.19
10.04
12.71
It seems clear from
the foregoing data
that in
the year
1874, the wages paid to white farm laborers east of the
Rocky mountains, was not much more than half what
their confreres were receiving in California at the same
time.
The testimony given before the Congressional com¬
mission shows further that the wages paid to the Chinese
in California were higher than those paid to our own
people in the East The lowest price paid to them as
^ Rep. Ch. Im., p. 768.
358
J?BZA TIVE RA TES IN AMERICA
permanent laborers appears to have been $15 a month
and board, but they seem to have received usually $i a
day, they boarding themselves. A fair allowance for
board is perhaps $6 or $8 a month, so that for twenty-
six working days the Chinaman received in California,
the equivalent of $18 to $20 a month and board, or in
currency, from $20 to $22 a month.
The wages paid in San Francisco in 1874, in various
employments are shown in the following table. It is
from the report of Mr. Martin, already referred to.
Statement showhig the wages paid m San Erancisco and vicinity in the year
i8y/j.,for the following kinds of labor.
Occupation. Wages in 1874.
Bakers per month, with board $40 00 to $60 00
Blacksmiths per day 3 00 to 4 00
Book-binders do 3 00 to 5 00
Brick-layers do 4 00 to 5
Butchers per month, with board 40 00 to 75 00
Carpenters, house per day 3 50 to .4 50
Cabinet-makers do 3 00 to 4 00
Coopers do 2 50 to 4 oo
Copper-smiths.... : do 3 5*^ 5
Engravers do 4 50 to 6 00
Gas-fitters do 3 00 to 4 5®
Harness-makers do 2 50 to 5 00
Machinists do 3 00 to 5 00
Masons do 4 00 to 5 ^
Masons, foremen do 6 00 to 7 50
Millwrights do 3 00 to 5 00
Painters, house do 3 50 to 4 00
Painters, ship do 3 00 to 4 00
Plasterers do 4 00 to 5
Plumbers do 4 00 to 5
Saddleis do 3 00 to 5 00
Sail-makers do 3 00 to 4 00
Shoemakers do 2 00 to 4 00
Stone-cutters do 4 00 to 5
Tailois, pants each 3 00 to 5
Tailors, vests do 2 00 to 3 5^
Tailors, coats do 6 00 to 10 00
Tinsmiths per day 2 50 to 3 5®
AND IN EUROPE. 359
That these rates are very high will be apparent at a
glance. The following table, taken from " Labor in
Europe,'' published by the State Department in 1879,
will show how they compare with rates elsewhere;—
Statement showing the weekly rates of wages paid to the following trades in Eng¬
land aiid the rates paid to similar trades in New York and in Chicago.
Occupations.
England.
New York.
Chicago.
Bricklayers
|8
8
12
|I2
00
toi
^15
00
1 6
00
to$io 50
Masons ...
16
12
00
to
18
00
12
00
to
IS
00
Carpent'rs. Joiners
8
25
9
00
to
12
00
7
50
to
12
00
Gasfi tiers
7
25
10
00
to
14
00
10
00
to
12
00
Painters
7
2.-5
10
00
to
16
00
6
00
to
12
00
Plasterers
8
10
10
00
to
I.S
00
9
00
to
IS
00
Plumbers
7
7.S
12
00
to
18
00
12
00
to
21
00
Slaters
7
90
10
00
to
15
00
12
00
to
18
00
Blacksmiths
8
12
10
00
to
14
00
9
00
to
12
00
Bakers
6
50
.S
00
to
8
00
8
00
to
12
00
Bookbinders
7
3.3
12
00
to
18
00
9
00
to
20
00
Shoemakers
7
12
00
to
18
00
9
00
to
18
00
Butchers
7
2.3
8
00
to
12
00
12
00
to
18
00
Cabinet-makers ...
7
70
9
00
to
13
00
7
00
to
I.S
00
Coopers
7
30
12
00
to
16
00
6
00
to
15
00
Coppersmiths
7
40
12
00
to
15
00
15
00
to
21
00
Cutlers
8
00
10
on
to
13
25
no
Engravers
9
72
15
00
to
00
9
00
to
30 00
Horseshoers
7
20
12
00
to
18
00
i.S
00
to
21
00
Millwrights
7
.SO
10
00
to
I.S
00
12
00
to
21
00
Printers
7
7.S
8
00
to
18
00
12
00
to
18
00
Saddlers
6
80
12
00
to
15
00
6
00
to
12
00
Sailmakers
7
30
12
00
to
18
00
12
00
to
IS
00
Tinsmiths
7
30
10
00
to
14
00
9
00
to
12
00
Tailors
I5 00 to 7
30
10
00
to
18
00
6 00
to
18
00
Brassfmishers
7
40
10
00
to
14
00
8
00
to
IS
00
Labor'rs,port'rs &c
5
00
6
00
to
9
00
5 50
to
9
00
From this table, and the preceding one, it appears,
then, that the bricklayer who receives $8.12 in England,
$12 to $15 in Nev/ York, and $6 to $10.50 in Chicago^
for a week's work, receives in San Francisco from $24 to
$30 a week ; that the blacksmith receives, in England,
$8.12 ; in New York, $10 to $14 ; in Chicago, $9 to $12 ;
and in San Francisco, $18 to $24. The cabinet-maker,
in England, $7.70 ; in New York, $9 to $13 ; in Chicago,
360
RATES OF WAGES
$7 to $i 5 ; in San Francisco, $i8 to $24. The millwright,
in England, $7.50 ; in New York, $10 to 15 ; in Chicago,
$12 to $21 ; in San Francisco, $18 to $24. The saddler,
in England, $6.80 ; in New York, $12 to $15 ; in Chicago,
$6 to $12 ; in San Francisco, $18 to $30.
And it appears, further, that very generally wages in
trades are at least fifty per cent, higher in New York
and Chicago than in England, and from seventy-five to
one hundred per cent, higher in San Francisco than in
New York and Chicago.
In placing the average rate of wages in England at
least fifty per cent, higher than in New York and Chicago,
I am certainly within the mark. Trades-unions have
become universal in England and they sustain the nom¬
inal wages at rates v\^hich appear high. These must be
largely reduced in making a comparison with rates in
our country to allow for half and two-thirds time work in
England, which has become very common. The opera¬
tives and artisans there prefer to sustain rates and to work
less time rather than to work full time at lower rates.
Nothing of this kind is seen in the United States. Tak¬
ing this into consideration it is perhaps safe to say that
wages in trades, &c., in England are not more than half
as high as they are in our New England, Middle and
Western States.
Wages in England again are much higher than on the
Continent. The differences are exhibited in the follow¬
ing table, which I have taken from " Labor in Europe,"
and extended by putting down also the wages paid in
San Francisco as reported in Mr. Martin's table.
Statement showing the weekly rates of wages in the principal cities of Etirope compared with rates in San Francisco,
Occupation.
Bricklayers
Carpenters and joiners
Gasfitters
Masons
Painters
Plasterers
Plumbers
Bakers
Blacksmiths
Bookbinders
Butchers
Cabinet-makers
Coopers
-Coppersmiths
Cutlers
Engravers
Millwrights
Printers
Saddlers and harness-makers,
Sailmakers
Shoemakers
Tailors
Tinsmiths
Laborers, porters, etc
<U
C/3
u
pa
^6
5
5
6
X
D
oJ
o
'd
)h
O
PQ
OO
40
40
00
I4 80
5 00
5
6
6
6
6
6
4
6
6
5
6
40
00
00
00
00
00
80
00
00
50
00
6
4
6
6
6
4
3
00
80
00
00
00
80
50
5 40
6 00
4 80
4 80
4 80
6 00
0
<u
"0
tfl
o
o
I3 75
3 75
8 00
4 20
3 00
4 80
4 20
4 80
4 80
3 50
4 00
2 00
4 00
4 75
4 00
2 00
3 00
3 00
2 50
<u
s
o
I3 00
3 00
3 00
3 30
3 60
3 60
pj
a
o
1—I
<u
o
Ui
pj
pq
40
5 00
6 00
7 00
7 00
5 40
4 50
3 60
4 20
5 50
4 80
3 60
3 60
4 00
pS
>
o
tí
O
o
o
&
(U
>
8019
00 9
60 7
80 8
60 8
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4 60
6 00
4 60
4 60
4 60
4 80
60
60
80
So
60
4 60
4 60
4 60
4 80
4 80
3 00
9
9
's'
8
25
00
80
70
50
72
00
90
00
8
8
8
00
75
90
IG
70
50
30
8 75
7
5
50
82
San Francisco.
$24 00
21 00
r8 00
24 00
21 00
24 00
24 00
40 00
18 00
18 00
40 00
18 00
15 00
21 00
27 00
i8 00
21 00
15 00
18 00
12 00
9 00
15 00
25 00
o I30 00
o 27 00
o 27 00
o qo 00
o 24 00
o 30 00
o 30 00
o 60 coa month with board
o 24 GO
o 30 GG
o 75 GG a month with board
o 24 GG
o 24 00
o 30 GG
o 36 GG
O 30 GG
O 24 GG
O 30 GG
O 24 GG
O 24 GG
O 6G 00
O 21 GG
O 50 GG a month with board
§
§
b
it.
§
g
CO
05
362
RA TES OF LIVING
It will be seen from this table that wages in Liverpool
are nearly fifty per cent, higher than in the cities named
of Belgium, France, Spain and Switzerland, and fully
one hundred per cent, higher than in Dresden and Rome,
and taking the wages of Dresden in comparison with
those of San Francisco, the former are only one-sixth of
the latter.
While so great discrepancies exist between the wages
paid in Europe and America, it is still true that provis¬
ions are generally higher in Europe. The following
table taken from " Labor in Europe" shows the retail
prices paid in the principal cities of Europe, and in New
York and Chicago,
Statement showing the retail price of the necessaries of life in the principal cities of Europe, compared with same
in New York and Chicago. (In cents, U. S. Currency.)
Articles.
Bread per pound
Flour.- do... .
Beef : 'Roasting per pound
Soup do..
Rump do..
Corned do..
Mutton: Fore-quarter per pound
Hind-quarter do..
Chops do..
Pork: Fresh per pound
Salted do..
Bacon do..
Ham f do..
Lard do..
Butter do..
Cheese do..
Potatoes per bushel
Rice per pound
Beans per quart
Milk do....
Eggs per dozen
Tea per pound
Coffee do... o
Sugar do
Coal per ton
Brussels.
4 to 5
20
20
20
16
18
16
16
18
20
16
16
18
20
20
to 50
to 25
56
20 to 25
30
15
to 40
to 20
Bor¬
deaux.
3 to 4
20
16
18
16
16
20
20
T2
14
20
25
60
10 to 15
Dres¬
den.
Rome.
Barce-
lon.
Ge¬
neva.
Liverpool.
New York.
Chicago.
7,
6
4
si to
4
4 to
4i
4 to
4Í
6
10
6i-
7
3} to
■ 5
3 to
4
2 JtO
4Í
24
20
20
30
22
12 to
16
8 to
12Í
18
12
15
18
16
6 to
8
5 to
8
19
15
18
25
18
14 to
16
8 to
I2Í
18
12
18
16
8 to
12
4 to
7
12
15
12
• • « •
14
9 to
10
5 to
I2Í
18
18
15
18
20
12 to
14
5 to
15 i
18
18
18
# • • •
20
14 to
16
ID to
15
18
15
20
18
16
8 to
10
4 to
8
18
18
20
20
16
8 to
10
6 to
12
30
25
30
• * • •
20
8 to
10
7 to
12
35
30
40
28
24
8 to
12
7 to
15
20
25
19
• • • •
16
10 to
12
6 to
10
16
30
40
36
24 to
36
25 to
32
16 to
40
33
28
25
23
12 to
20
12 to
15
5 to
16
48
I 20
$i 00
60
$i 20 to $i 50
$i 40 to $i 60
60 to
80
10
5
• • • •
4 to
10
8 to
10
5 to
10
14
15
12
7 to
10
5 to
Q
y
A
12
5
20
6 to
8
8 to
TO
3 to
10 to
6
*\
20
20
14 to
18
25 to
30
24
75
60
50
40 to
85
50 to
60
25 to $I
00
36
40
40
30
24 to
40
20 to
30
15 to
40
12
8
10
8
5 to
8
8 to
10
7 to
10
$3 10
II 00
$9 00
• • • •
$3 65 to $4 38
$3 00 to $8 25
$3 00 to ^6
75
S
O
¡i.
b
§
g
CO
o
CO
364
J^BLA TI VE COST OF LIVIANO.
Table shozmng ike average retail prices of provisions^ and other leading
articles of consumption, with prices of house-rent, hoard, âr^c. (
Articles.
California.
PROVISIONS.
Flour, wheat, superfine per bbl.
Flour, wheat, extra family do..
Coin-meal do..
Beef, fresh, roasting-pieces per lb..
Beef, fresh, soup-pieces do..
Beef, fresh, rump-steaks do..
Bet f, corned do..
Mutton, foie-quarters do..
Mutton, leg do..
Mutton chops do..
Pork, fresh do. .
Pork, corned or salted do. .
Pork, bacon do..
Pork, hams, smoked do..
Lard do..
Cod-firih, diy do..
Mackerel, pickled do. .
Butter do..
Cheese do.,
Potatoes per bus.
Rice per lb.
Beans per qt.
Milk do..
Eggs per doz.
GROCERIES, ETC.
Tea, Oolong or other good black per lb.
Coffee, Rio, green do..
Sugar, good brown do..
Molasses, New Orleans per gall.
Fuel, coal per ton.
DOMESTICS, DRY GOODS, ETC.
Shirtings, brown, 4-4, standard quality, per yaid.
Cotton-flannel, medium quality do, ,
Tickings, good quality do .
Prints, Merrimac do..
M ousseline de laines do..
Satinets, medium qualities do..
Boots, men's heavy per pair.
HODSE-RENT.
Four-roomed tenements. per mo.
Six-roomed tenements do..
BOARD.
For men (mechanics, &c.), per week.
For women in factories do..
$ 5 00
5
6
33
go
08
10
10
10
11%
12
16
17
20
17
09
11
43
22
12
id
03%
07
37
73
26
10%
I 00
16 25
20
26
10
21
87
4 75
17 go
31 go
Averages
for
Western States
5
6
33
go
$
5
6
3
90
91
58
11%
g8
11%
oS%
09 ,
11%
12
III/
11%
nyi
15K
isK
09>¿
loYz
24/
17
78
ii
09%
06%
19
27%
10
89
6 30
12X
18
2()%
^0%
19
72
5 40
9 12
18 90
4 14
3 25
EUROPEANS, NOT CHINESE, COMING.
365
The foregoing table from Dr. Youngs' book, shows thé
retail prices of various necessary articles, in San Fran¬
cisco in 1874, and the average prices for the same articles
in the Western States in the same year.
An examination of this list of prices will show that
provisions are as cheap, practically, in California as in the
Western States, but that groceries and dry goods are
higher. There is no reason, however, why groceries
should remain higher, for San Francisco is near to dis¬
tricts which produce sugar, coffee and tea, The transpor¬
tation of cotton goods is not a very large item in their cost
to the consumer. Woolen goods should be as cheap in
California as in Chicago. Coal will probably remain
high, and rents will only fall as capital becomes less
dear. Rates for board appear to be very high in Cal¬
ifornia. There is no reason, so far as I can judge, why a
woman should pay more than a man. When I was a
boy at college very many students were boarded for
$1.75 a week, and $2.50 was considered full price for a
satisfactory table. A fall of one-quarter at least in board
and rents will take place probably in the next decade.
It has been urged vehemently that the Chinese will
come to our shores in overwhelmdng numbers, because
of the great attractions which they find here in high
wages, in opportunities for enterprise and in ease of life.
The result has not yet justified the fear. The same at¬
tractions allure the people of Europe. They are in point
of fact greater for the European, because he is educated
to wants which he cannot supply at home, and which
form an ever present incentive for him to go abroad, in
the hope of bettering his circumstances. While, then, we
have not found the fears of a large immigration from
China supported by the event, there is every reason to
expect a large ,immigration from Europe. During the
thirty years since the Chinese, attracted by the discovery
366
WAGES OF FARM LABORERS
of gold in California, began to move toward our shores,
they have rolled up no greater population among us than
100,000 souls. In the same period the immigration from
the British Isles alone has aggregated more than 3,000,-
000 of persons, and that from Germany more than
2,500,000. In 1870, out of our whole population num¬
bering 38,558,371 persons, no less than 5,567,229 were
born abroad.
How insignificant beside these aggregates appear the
number of Chinese then in our country. Out of 38,558,-
371 of population, 63,199 Chinese. Out of 5,567,229
foreign born residents, 63,199 from the Middle Kingdom.
Verily, "our fears do make us traitors," traitors to our
manhood, traitors to our high destinies, traitors to our
duties as a nation, traitors to our solemnly plighted faith.
In looking back over the preceding pages I find that I
have failed to notice two things which deserve to be
stated ; first, the wages paid to agricultural laborers in
Europe, and second, the fact that the Chinese in Aus¬
tralia have taken no part as agricultural laborers.
Statement showing the weekly rates of wages paid to agricultural laborers in
various countries.
Occupations.
Men, without board or
lodging
Men, with board and
lodging
Women, without board or
lodging
Women, with board and
lodging
France.
Germ'ny
1
Italy.
United Kingdom.
Engl'd
Irel'nd
Scotland.
I315
I2 87
$3 50
$3 60
I3 40
I4 25
136
I 48
I 80
2 60
I 30
|l 50 to 2 40
I 10
I 08
I 55
I 80
2 16
I 80 to 3 25
75
60
M
M
75
60 to I 00
It will be a long time, I hope, before women come to
do farm work in our country, in the region at any rate
that has always been dedicated to free labor, but it is not
Dut of place to call attention here to the fact that women
m EUROPE AND AMERICA.
367
do work in the fields in Europe and to the wages which
are paid to them. In Germany, with board, 75 cents a
week or $3.00 a month; in England $1.15 a week or
$4.60 a month. Let those women who earn at house¬
work in California from $20 to $3 5 a month with board,
and in the factories from $24 to $40, without board, re¬
member how different is the recompense of their sisters
beyond the Atlantic.
Nor will it do any harm to laborers in California, very
many of whom are of foreign origin, and who are yet so
illiberal as to cry out against the Chinese, to bear in
mind that while they are earning from $25 to $40 or
more a month with board, their brothers in France and
Germany are paid less than $6 a month, and in England
less than $7.50.
The reference to Australia I may best make in the
language of the observer himself ;—^
"No Australian capitalist employs Chinese in any
" manufacture or in any agricultural industry. Out of
" the 50,000 in that region, 40,000 are supposed to be
" engaged in gold mining. A considerable number have
established themselves as market gardeners, and oth-
" ers in bizarre branches, as butchers, bakers, hands in
" back country stations, cooks on tripang boats, furniture-
" makers, and sometimes as contract road laborers ; but
"their employment by masters other than their own
" countrymen, is quite inappreciable, and quite inappre-
"ciable their employment even in tropical Queensland
" in any domestic capacity."
A more pertinent and forcible commentary upon the
views which I have put forward could not be imagined.
^ Report on the Chinese in Aus- M's. consular service. Sept. 1877.,
tralia, by J. Dundas Crawford, H. Mss.
PART IV.—CHAPTER V.
FEARS OF AN OVERFLOWING IMMIGRATION OF THE
CHINESE. THEY ARE NOT A MIGRATORY PEOPLE.
The question of the disposition of the Chinese to move out from their own
territories considered. Their habits in this respect unchanged. No
change can occur without a warning. Their occupation of other terri¬
tories has been the result of slow growth and not of migrations. They
are not migratory nor aggressive. The history of their conquests.
The surrounding petty states. Nature of the relations between them
and China. Corea, Lew Chew, Annam, Siam, Burmah. All of these
might have been overrun by the Chinese, but nothing of the kind has
occurred. The outlying districts belonging to China have not been
settled up. The facts regarding Formosa. Unsubdued aboriginal
tribes in the heart of the empire. The Miau-tsz. Manchuria.
The south of Manchuria long ago settled by a gradual movement of
the Chinese. The central and northern parts scarcely touched by the
hands of men. The vast region of Inner Mongolia. It is still unoc¬
cupied although suitable for cultivation and adjacent to China proper.
The Chinese have made no military conquests in the last hundred
years. The indifference of the Chinese in the recent famine.
It will be instructive to consider, in connection with
what has preceded, the question of the disposition of the
Chinese themselves to go out from their own country.
We have in China, as has been said so often, an im¬
mense aggregation of human beings. If they choose to
move, the result may well cause uneasiness. It matters
not whether the population of the empire reaches to
400,000,000, or does not exceed 200,000,000, the num¬
bers are so great that if they are once set in motion,
whether for purposes of war or of peace, the fact cannot
fail to make a difference upon the earth.
Will they-move I Is there a spirit latent within them
which is being aroused and which will induce them to
THE CHINESE NOT MICE A TOE Y,
369
throw off the lethargy of all their history and start for¬
ward in a career of development within and conquest
without ? They have vast numbers. They are one
people under one goverment. They are not deficient in
physical or intellectual capacity. Is there to be a resur¬
rection of buried activities ?
It is idle to speculate upon this subject. To one per¬
son one result will seem inevitable, to another quite a
different result. I have no desire to indulge in mere
speculations. From the beginning to the end of what I
have written I have examined evidence and stated con¬
clusions based upon it. All that can be said now is that
no such revival or outburst of national spirit has taken
place as to cause any sensible difference in the habits of
the people of our trans-Pacific ally.
China is not unmindful altogether of what is going on
in the world, but down to this moment she stands like an
old and infirm person in the midst of a younger genera¬
tion, appreciative of the fact that their ways are different
from her own, appreciative of the vigor which they ex¬
hibit, but too far wedded to old habits to make a change ;
dreading a change as an innovation upon secure and
comfortable ways, and dangerous to her peace.
It is this China with which we are dealing. It will be
time enough to deal with the new China when it has
arisen. All friends of that great people, all friends of the
human race, hope for their uprising ; but there is no need
to anticipate the result when one is considering ques¬
tions of the moment. It may be through internecine war;
it may be a result of combat with neighboring powers ; it
may be by the downfall of one dynasty and the peaceful
but progressive teachings of another; it may be by the
overthrow of the nation and the substitution of foreign
rule, that the change will come. There is only this one
thing certain about it. It will not be a change unseen,
X
370 THEIR PROGRESS, NATURAL GROWTH.
nor without premonitory indications. If it threatens us
ever, we shall have the opportunity to care for it. It
may never threaten us at ail, but add just so much to
our opportunities. We are not less, but more rich and
strong, because Europe is rich and strong. The fructi¬
fying streams of commerce, which flow between us and
Europe, may hereafter find their analogy in our com¬
merce with Asia. And when that time comes, there
may be as little danger of an irruption of Asiatics upon
our soil as there is now of their pouring themselves down
upon the gates of Berlin or Rome.
And what, then, is the China of to-day. The whole
world knows what she is, if they will but stop to think
about it. It would seem almost a work of supererogation
to say what she is. Yet, when people allow their fears
to run away with them, when the danger that China,
false to all her traditions, is to make a peaceful invasion
of our country, is seriously apprehended, it is time to
recall attention to at least some of the characteristics of
the country.
In doing this, I shall not travel outside of my proper
subject. I shall not give expression to any general obser¬
vations in regard to the actual number of the population,
nor in regard to the character of the government and the
qualities of the people. I shall adhere strictly to my
inquiry, showing, in the first place, that the Chinese, what¬
ever else they may be, are neither migratory nor aggres¬
sive, that they have passed very little beyond their strict
boundaries ; and, second, that when they have done so,
their progress has been a natural extension of their fields
of operation, not a migration, excepting when the circum¬
stances have been extraordinary and exceptional.
I have said that the Chinese are not migratory nor
aggressive. The one expression is not synonymous with
the other, and yet it may be said that no people are
RELATIONS WITH NEIGHBORING STATES. 371
aggressive whose instincts are not in some measure mi¬
gratory, and that no people are migratory who do not
become, by the fact, aggressive. It is inevitable when
conquest comes, that the conquerors shall, in some way,
occupy the region. It is inevitable, when migration takes
place, that the new element shall, in some way, come into
collision with the old—become aggressive as a very means
of defence.
What, then, is to l^e said, first, of the conquests of the
Chinese.
This vast empire is not the creation of a day. It had
assumed, practically, its present proportions long enough
before our government was formed, but in all this time,
during which we have spread out from a narrow fringe
of population scattered along the Atlantic until we cover
the richest portions of the continent from sea to sea, what
has China done in the way of conquest or aggression.
Has Corea, a petty state of five to eight millions, whose
capital is scarcely a fortnight's journey on horseback from
the capital of China, fallen a prey to the ambition of her
great neighbor ? Have the Lew Chew islands, forming a
petty kingdom off her coast, lost their independence ?
Has Annam, or Cambodia, or Burmah, or Siam, been in¬
corporated into the body politic ? Has there been made a
single movement by China calculated to threaten the
safety of those states, or have they had any reason to
regard her with any other feelings than those of respect,
confidence and friendliness ?
There is to me a great attraction in the fact that this
vast empire has stood for generations, nay centuries,
regardful of her neighbors' boundaries and their rights.
Whether this has been the result of her weakness or of
her virtue matters little for the purposes of our argu¬
ment, but who cari'say that it has been the result alto¬
gether of weakness. Her civilization has been superior
372
COREA, LE IV CHEW AND ANNA M,
to theirs, her resources have been overwhelming, her
power has been consolidated. And yet, despite of all
the allurements of dominion, the ambition of princes,
the encroachments of individuals, they have retained
their territories and China has remained their steadfast
friend and ally, exacting no tribute, interchanging offices
of friendliness, presenting to the world a spectacle of
moderation and good faith the like of which has scarcely
been seen elsewhere in any age or in any quarter of the
globe.
We may well pause a moment to regard the facts more
carefully.
Corea, the most northern of these petty states occu¬
pies a fair region, and geographically speaking is naturally
a part of China. Her northern boundary touches Chi¬
nese territory from sea to sea. The waters which lave
her coasts are seas in which China has an interest. Her
territory is a peninsula jutting into the ocean from a
mainland which is owned by China. Her population
does not exceed a third of the average population of the
several provinces of the empire.
Lew Chew is a petty state with a handful of people
only, adjacent to the middle coast of China, possessed of
a fertile soil and genial climate, with some resources
within herself, rich in fisheries, and holding a situation
which might be considered of political importance to
her great neighbor.
Annam which includes, or has generally included, Ton-
quin, Annam proper, and more or less of Cambodia, and
stretches away from the southern boundary of China a
thousand miles, is in great part a rich champaign coun¬
try, occupied by races which are of Mongolian origin.
The states which compose this district have at different
times fallen more or less perfectly under Chinese control,
but for a century, nearly, the Chinese have not interfered
S/AM AND BVRMAH,
373
with them. They have been torn, however, by rivalries
between themselves and with the more western states of
the same region, and have offered to any aggressive race
opportunities for easy conquest. The population of the
whole region, including the districts lately occupied by
the French, does not exceed 10,000,000.
Siam, a second great division of Farther India, touches
Annam on the east, China on the north and Burmah on
the west. Her people are more nearly allied to the In¬
dian stock than to the Mongolian. Her territory is level
and rich in the south, but mountainous in the north.
Her population does not exceed 7,500,000.
Burmah, a third great division, touches China on the
north east. The population is probably about 3,000,000.
Her territories on the north and east are rough and un¬
profitable, but an extensive region in the south and west
is well watered and fertile.
These several states, hardly less than Corea and Lew
Chew, would have offered to an aggressive neighbor, of
the immense resources of China, a tempting field for
conquest. They were not banded together. Their pop¬
ulation was not homogenous. They were frequently pit¬
ted one against the other in war, They were rich in
various resources. Their peoples were less vigorous than
the Chinese. They were more or less connected with
the Chinese by earlier relations and by commercial en¬
terprises, yet there has been profound peace between
each and all of them and the Chinese for nearly a cen¬
tury.
It may be said that the relations existing have been
more than simply peaceful. It has been usual for each
of these states to send to the court of Peking at given
periods, envoys bearing complimentary presents and let¬
ters of a congratulatory sort. In some if not in ail cases,
each new ruler has'requested the confirmation of his au-
374
FRIEND L Y RE LA TIONS.
thority in the form of a patent of investiture issued by the
government of China. The Chinese have sent back
complimentary missions and presents. These relations
have been in the main those which might be expected to
subsist between petty Asiatic states and a greater power
whose capacii}/ to injure was manifest, but whose dispo¬
sition to draw closer the bonds of friendliness was con¬
stantly exhibited.
It might be expected that the greater state would at
least demand that the allied lesser states should receive
her people and afford them normal opportunities for the
prosecution of trade and of such enterprises as might be
agreeable to them. But China does not seem to have
asked even this from her neighbors. She neither sought
to defend her people in going out among them, nor took
measures to prevent their going. They were constantly
going in greater or less measure, but they accepted them¬
selves all the risks attending their movements. Into
some of the petty states, at least Corea, the Chinese
were prohibited from coming. The prohibition remains
to this day, and China makes no complaint. In Lew
Chew no Chinese are resident, but whether this is the re¬
sult of prohibition or not I am not in a position to state.
In Annam the Chinese have been received for the
most part, in a friendly manner. They wander into the
country wifeless, and intermarry freely with the native
women. Rakel says that they are regarded and treated
almost like natives, and Crawford, who had been much
among the Annamites, said that the best means which
Europeans can command there for the promotion of
whatever ends of commerce and intercourse they enter¬
tain is the assistance of Chinamen.
Under these circumstances we should expect to find a
large population of the Chinese in Annam. Her rich lands,
her miñeral wealth, her thinner population, the inferior
THE CHINESE IN ANNAM.
875
vigor and energy of her people, would all seem calcu¬
lated to invite the practical, industrious, enterprising
and money loving Chinese to find their way thither
in great numbers. The facts, however, do not bear
out the expectation. Ritter estimates the Chinese
population of Cochin China, (lower Annam,) at 40,000
souls, and of Tonquin at 25,000. French authors
estimate the Chinese who were resident in the Sai¬
gon district at the time of their occupation at about
5,000. All these estimates are vague and more likely, as
I believe, to be above the mark than below it, for the rea¬
son that authors who deal with Eastern questions appear
to be disposed to exaggerate the influence of China upon
the surrounding populations. Those at least who are
not acquainted with the Chinese and who judge from the
European stand-point naturally conceive that a popula¬
tion <of 300,000,000 cannot fail to have made itself felt
in a very positive manner among surrounding inferior
populations.
I cannot but dwell a moment here to indicate the very
good impression which the Chinese in Tonquin and Co¬
chin Chinahave made upon European observers. Crawford,
as I have stated, declares that they are the people most
likely to promote there the objects of Europeans. He
adds that while we must depend upon them for informa¬
tion, they exhibit a degree of sound judgment which is
seldom found among the natives and that he had seldom
been deceived when he followed their advice. Finlayson
remarks at some length in the same sense, and the
French appear to have received equally favorable im¬
pressions and to have decided that Chinese immigration
to their lately acquired territories should be encouraged.
In Tonquin, a considerable portion of the Chinese
element is engaged in agriculture, and another part in
gold mining. - In Cochin China, the Chinese seldom be-
376
THE CHINESE IN SIAM.
come workers in the fields and their population is con¬
fined almost exclusively to the towns, in which they are
for the most part traders and money lenders.
In Siam the Chinese have taken up a more prominent
position than in Annam and Burmah. Crawford, fifty
years ago, estimated the whole population at 2,735,000,
and the Chinese part at 440,000. Pallegoix, writing more
lately, set down the general population at 6,ooo,oooxand
the Chinese at 1,500,000, and MouhoCs report is the
same. The occasion for this larger intercourse between
Siam and China than between the other southern dis¬
tricts and the northern empire is to be found in the facts
that for a long period rice and sugar, staple articles of
food among the Chinese, have been produced there in
quantities admitting of exportation to China, and that
Siam abounds in valuable woods which have been in
great demand for exportation. In this way, long ago, a
large trade sprang up, the Chinese bringing in various
wares and merchandise and taking out food supplies,
timber, &c. They were even permitted to build junks in
Siam and to have these enrolled in China upon the same
terms as home built vessels. It would appear also that
they were not limited as residents to trade and the ordi¬
nary lines of enterprises, but were largely employed by
the government in the collection of its revenues and as
farmers of government monopolies. One cannot wonder
that under these circumstances they have obtained a
strong position in the state.
In estimating the Chinese population at one and a half
millions, it appears likely that not only the immediate
immigrants have been counted, but also the children and
descendants of immigrants who have retained the national
dress and habits of their fathers. The Siamese and the
Chinese are very unlike in physical characteristics, in
habits of life and in dress, and it would be only a natural
THE CHINESE IN BURMAH
rn
thing for the Chinese, although they marry native women
to rear their children as members of the favored class to
which they themselves belong.
The Chinese in Burmah are few in number. The dis¬
tance by sea is so great that the rude junks have not
often essayed the voyage, and, practically, all intercourse
has been conducted landward with Yunnan, the south¬
west province of the empire. The country which inter¬
venes between the richer portions of Burmah and Yunnan
is mountainous, and it remains in great part in possession
of half savage tribes.
It appears from this recital that Chinese settlers have
gained no foothold at all in Corea and the Lew Chew
islands, that in the eastern states of Farther India and
in Burmah, their numbers are inconsiderable, and that to
Siam only, of all the petty states named, they have gone
in numbers calculated to attract attention. In this in¬
stance, it is to be said that the circumstances have con¬
spired to attract them thither. There have been wants on
the one and the other side which the other could supply.
A good disposition has prevailed between the two gov¬
ernments. The Chinese are superior in mental and phys¬
ical energy. The voyage from Canton to Bangkok, in
junks, under favorable circumstances, would not exceed
a fortnight.
But if stress be laid upon this instance as one which
shows a tendency on the part of the Chinese to emigrate
when opportunities are favorable, it may be said that
their failure to enter and to overrun Corea, the Lew Chew
islands, and the various states of Farther India, exhibits
in a more marked degree their unwillingness or ina¬
bility to force themselves into districts where the very
most favorable opportunities do not exist.
I shall not dwell upon this proposition, because there
are other examples of the failure of the Chinese, as pio¬
neers and colonists, which are in point.
378
THE CHINESE IN FORMOSA.
The facts in regard to the Chinese occupation of For¬
mosa are very pertinent in this connection. This island
lies immediately opposite the richest and most populous
provinces of the empire. It is 250 miles long and 90
miles broad in its widest part. The strait which separates
it from China is 60 miles wide. It is rich in mineral
resources and the productions of the soil. The Chinese
made their conquest, (if it may be called such,) of this great
territory so long ago as 1683, but down to this moment
they do not occupy one half of the island. The rest of
it remains in the possession of aboriginal tribes who are
not thrifty, not vigorous, not even warlike.
The facts in regard to certain aborigines who occupy
parts of the soil of China proper are also pertinent.
They are called Miau-tsz, and consist of forty or fifty
tribes scattered over the mountains of Kwantung,
Kwang Si, Hunan and Kweichau, provinces of southern
central China. They live in mud hovels, or in huts con¬
structed upon the branches of trees. Their agriculture
is rude, and their garments are obtained by barter with
the lowland Chinese, or coarsely woven by themselves.
They appear to be savages who are in more or less con¬
stant strife among themselves, and who instead of taking
up from the Chinese any part of their civilization, seize
all good opportunities to plunder them. They have been
able, nevertheless, to hold their mountain homes free
from the encroachments of Chinese settlers, and in spite
of all attempts of the government to subdue them.
It has been generally believed that the large Chinese
population of Manchuria affords evidence of the migra¬
tory character of the Chinese people, but the facts, as I
understand them, tend in the other direction. This dis¬
trict, extending from the gulf of Pechihli to the Amoor
river, a distance of 800 miles, and averaging 500 miles
in breadtF, is a region fit for an empire. It is fairly well
THE CHINESE IN MANCHURIA.
379
watered, the soil is capable of producing large crops of
such grains as flourish in our Northern States, and the
climate is not unlike that of New England. It is said
that tobacco grows from one end of this region to
the other, and the fact demonstrates its resources
as an agricultural country. It has a central plain run¬
ning the whole distance from the gylf to the Amoor,
the water-shed of the southern part looking to the
south, that of the north toward the Amoor. This
plain, or valley, is bordered on the east and west by
mountains which are rich in mineral wealth. The pop¬
ulation in earlier centuries was given to agricultural pur¬
suits, to hunting and fishing, but was not nomadic like
the Mongolian population occupying the great elevated
arid plateau west of Manchuria. It was never densely
inhabited, and to this day the central and northern valley
is a region of tall, waving grass and dense forests broken
in upon by occasional towns and hamlets.
The Manchus conquered China nearly 250 years ago,
and since then the two countries have been under one
rule, and the result is seen in the fact, that the Chinese,
who are given to settled ways of life and industry, who
are more industrious, and more shrewd than their north¬
ern neighbors, have gradually pressed forward, until the
southern part of Manchuria has become in fact, and in
%
name, a Chinese province, with a population of ten or
twelve millions, nearly all of whom are of Chinese stock.
Into central and northern Manchuria they have pene¬
trated, but not to anything like a similar extent, the
Manchus retiring before them, as the Indians of our
continent retire before the white man, or keeping up a
semblance of their national habits and traits in separate
quarters of the towns, or in detached villages of their
own.
It is somewhat difficult to ascertain the numbers of the
380
MANCHURIA.
native and Chinese population in central and northern
Manchuria ; that of southern Manchuria I have already
given. The population of the former may reach 2,500,-
000, and of these one-half may be Chinese by birth or
origin.
In speaking of southern Manchuria, and of the large
Chinese population there, it must be remembered that
this region borders upon Chihli, the north-eastern of the
Chinese provinces proper, and the seat of the imperial
government for the last 500 years. It must be remem¬
bered also, that a considerable portion of this region, that
bordering the Liau river, has been occupied from the
earliest historical periods by a Chinese population, with
the settled habits of their nation. " Although situated be-
" yond the great wall, it has always been a part, though
" a very exposed, and often politically separated part of
^Xhina proper."^
We see then that the Chinese population of southern
Manchuria must be considered native to the soil as much
as the populations of the more southern districts, and that
its growth, which has been rapid, has been entirely a
normal growth, proceeding from the natural increase of
the people, and the influx of persons from neighboring
provinces attracted thither, as the people of our Eastern
States are attracted to our northwest country by the ex¬
cellence of the soil, and the abundance of unoccupied
land.
Liautung or southern Manchuria embraces a district
of 60,000 square miles ; Kirin or central Manchuria,
135,000 square miles, and Tsitsihar or northern Man¬
churia, 195,000 square miles. The latter districts as I
have indicated, are hardly touched by the hand of man.
Situated so near to densely settled parts of the empire,
possessed of an excellent climate, fertile soil, mineral
^ Williamson; Korth Chiiia., Vol. II., p. 77»
INNER MONGOL/A.
381
resources, and fair water communications, what has hin¬
dered the Chinese from occupying them ? Kirin and
Titsihar have a population of less than ten persons to the
square mile. The average in China may be 300 to the
square mile. How is it that the " incalculable hordes "
of the latter have not passed over and occupied this
region ? The answer is to be found in the simple propo¬
sition that the Chinese, whether of the north or of the
south, and those of the north, less even than those of the
south, are not aggressive nor migratory.
Stretching away from the western boundary of Man¬
churia along the northern boundaries of the provinces of
Chihli and Shansi lies the vast region of Inner Mongolia.
It is an elevated plateau, where grass grows, and which
in some part is fit for the cultivation of the more hardy
cereals. Further north it shades away into arid lands
and the desert, and beyond these again are the fertile
and more low-lying lands of Siberia. Throughout this
whole region the slow-moving, phlegmatic Mongolian
tends to his flocks, living in tent-like huts, and preserv¬
ing everywhere the nomadic ways which have character¬
ized the race throughout all the generations of its his¬
tory. For more than a century this region has been
under the sway of the Middle Kingdom. In the south¬
eastern part it presents many analogies to the physical
features of Manchuria. Added to Manchuria, Inner Mon¬
golia makes a district half as large as China proper. The
capacities of this immense region are thus described by
Dr. Williamson ;—^
" The soil of Mongolia appears to be much more capa-
"ble of cultivation than is generally supposed. The
" countless years during which it has lain fallow, and the
" numberless flocks and herds which have pastured upon
its natural grasses, cannot but have enriched the soil.
^ North China., p. 14.
382
INNER MONGOLIA.
" The frost retains the moisture in the earth during the
" winter, and so when the summer comes the ground is
" fit for produce. I found not only in the valleys of the
mountainous districts, but on the plains, excellent crops
of millet of all kinds, several varieties of pulse and bar-
" ley in many quarters, also indigo and the poppy for
"opium in the large level districts on the northeast.
"Judging therefore from the known to the unknown, I
" should say that by far the larger part of Inner Mongo-
" lia may be laid down in crops. Some tracts are sterile
" and sandy ; but it seems obvious that a land which
"yields such luxuriant crops of tall prairie grass, capa-
" ble of sustaining countless flocks and herds, would also
" abundantly respond to the farmer and the plow. And
" though the season is limited, yet the power of the sun
" is such that it rapidly brings the crops to perfection, (as
" the saying is, you can almost see them growing,) and
"thus provides for all the labors of husbandry being
" completed before the frost sets in. There is, therefore,
" reason to believe that Mongolia will not always con-
" tinue a sea of grass.''
It is possible to suppose that since the Mongols have
proven in the past incapable of becoming agriculturists,
the patient, labor loving, agricultural Chinese will invade
this region, and gradually push the Mongols back toward
the desert. I presume that they will do so, but the length
of time which will be consumed in the process will not
be short. I am not sure, indeed, that the prospect is not
as good that the Mongols will become agriculturists as
that the Chinese will dispossess them by means of agri¬
culture from the broad plains which they have so long
held. For whatever reason the Mongols seem to have
lost the valor, or at least the warlike temper, which
characterized" them when Attila styled himself "the
" terror of man and the scourge of God when Genghis
INNER MONGOLIA.
383
subdued China and the whole of northern Asia ; and
when Tamerlane carried his victorious arms to the Gan¬
ges. The change, if one of fact and not of appearance
only, may indicate a disposition to take up with a more
settled life. However this may be, there is now nothing
to prevent the Chinese from passing over the border into
the grass region, and by a natural extension of their in¬
dustries making there homes and communities like those
which they leave. It would be idle to attempt to esti¬
mate, with any exactness, the population of Inner Mon¬
golia, or to compute the numbers of the Chinese who are
resident there. The opinion of Dr. Edkins, reaffirmed
by Dr. Williamson, is that the Mongols maybe taken at
about 10,000,000, but neither one nor the other make any
calculation of the Chinese. My own conversations with
various travelers in that region, and examinations of the
statements of those who have written about it, lead me
to believe that not so much as one per cent of the lands
of Mongolia have been taken up yet by the Chinese.
It would be idle to pursue further the evidence in re¬
gard to the outward movements of the Chinese into the
surrounding districts belonging to them, or inhabited
by races of more or less affinity with them, in order to
demonstrate the proposition that they are not aggressive
nor migratory. The facts indicate conclusively that the
"incalculable hordes" of China have rested very con¬
tentedly within their own borders for the last one hun¬
dred years.
One has need to take these broad views in order to
estimate the nature of the movements of the Chinese
toward our shores. There are three hundred millions of
Chinese. What have been their achievements during
the last century ? Have they fought a single battle in
^ —
that time on foreign soil .^ Have they annexed or over¬
run any new district ? Have they planted any great
384
THE IMMOBILITY OF THE CHINESE,
colonies ? That they have sent abroad many of their
people may be admitted. That these have proven them¬
selves, invariably, far superior to any of their neighbors
is quite true. Their movements would, indeed, attract
great attention if they were those of a less numerous race.
If China numbered twenty-five or fifty millions only,
they would be worth speaking of and inquiring into.
But it is three hundred millions of people who have done
so much and no more. If they had martial spirit they
would have carried their arms long since, as did their
Mongol neighbors, to the shores of the Black Sea, and
to the Persian Gulf. If they had commercial genius,
their fleets would have sought the coasts of Europe and
America, to offer to us their products and to take up
ours in return. If they had mechanical genius they would
construct mills and workshops, and flood the world with
their manufactures.
I do not deny to the Chinaman the capacity for war,
for commerce, and for mechanics. Long acquaintance
with the race has served to convince me that their capa¬
cities are so high that the white man and Chinaman may
very well look one another in the face recognizing that
they are brothers, endowed by a common Creator, and
with a common destiny. But, at the moment, there are
failures in their ethics and education, in their polity and
organization, which hold them back as individuals and
as a nation, and which, as the result of many centuries
of unquestioned acquiescence, have developed traits of
character that cannot be thrown off readily.
It will not be amiss to call attention here to the stolid
indifference of the Chinese to their surroundings as shown
by facts attending the famine of 1876-78, in the northern
provinces of the empire.
It is believed that in this terrible visitation of Provi¬
dence, a district embracing a population of sixty millions
THEIR INDIFFERENCE TO SUFFERING, 385
of people, was more or less affected by distress conse¬
quent upon total or partial failures of the crops. All of
the province of Shansi, and portions of Chihli, Shan¬
tung, Shensi, Honan and Sechuan were in a state of dis¬
tress. Not less than five millions perished from starv¬
ation.
During the three years of this famine I was resident
at Peking. The crops in the immediate neighborhood
were not good, but they were sufficient for the wants of
the people. Not more than one hundred miles distant,
however, was the edge of the famine district, and its
worst places were not more than three to five hundred
miles distant. One would have supposed that, under
such circumstances, the people affected, as day after day
the extent of the affliction became m.ore apparent and
the certainty of their doom became more appalling,
would have moved out into the surrounding fruitful dis¬
tricts, and that many refugees would have pressed in
upon the great cities accessible to them, where they
might expect to procure relief. Perhaps fifty thousand
of them did enter Peking, and twice that number the
city of Tientsin, which was nearer to the scene of a part
of the desolation. Some few thousands were found also
in other cities to which foreigners resort, as at Nankin
and Chinkiang upon the Yangtsze, and Shanghae.
It is of course true that if a famine should occur in
Europe or our own country, an effort more or less com¬
mensurate with the extent of the distress would be made
to feed the starving in their own homes. But it is no
easy matter to feed fifty millions of people, or thirty
millions, or ten, or five millions, To feed the starving
in the given case was more than ordinarily difficult for
the reason that a large portion of the famine districts
was inaccessible by water communication and the land
carriage had to be made by pack animals that would
Y
386
THEIR A VERSION TO MIGRA TI ON.
consume in their journeys almost as much grain as they
could carry. The only alternatives which remained to
these people were those of perishing upon their own
hearth stones or of moving away to the better districts,
taking the chances of finding relief. With such alter¬
natives staring in the face an immense mass of people of
our stock, an exodus from the afflicted region would
have taken place which would have been felt far and
wide. Every highway and by-way would have been
crowded with refugees. Every city and town beyond
the famine limits would have been filled by them. But
no such thing occurred in China. The people submitted
to their terrible fate, as if there was no possible hope in
an outward movement. They perished often in their
own homes, one after the other, as strength failed, and
they lay there unburied, a prey to whatever four footed
beasts or birds of the air chose to feed upon them.
It is idle to call such a people aggressive or migatory,
They would have poured out long since from the region
of affliction into safer districts, if they had been so, those
going improving their own opportunities, and the oppor¬
tunities of those left behind. It is idle to call them an
enterprising people, in one sense, for if they had been,
they would have established the means of communica¬
tion with other districts, of supplying their wants in times
of distress, and of fleeing from them. Look at the ques¬
tion as one will, there is no escape from the conclusion
that whether as a result of stolid indifference, or of pre¬
judice, of religious training, or whatever other influences
may affect them, the Chinese are not given to leaving
their proper homes. It is as idle to argue that because
they are three hundred millions they will overrun the
world, or any given part of it beyond the seas, as that
the gréât ocean itself will pour its waters upon the dis-,
triçts which surround it and overlook it.
PART IV.—CHAPTER VI.
FEARS OF AN OVERFLOWING IMMIGRATION OF THE
CHINESE. THE QUESTION OF THEIR DISPO-
SITON TO EMIGRATE CONTINUED.
The facts in regard to the more distant emigrations of the Chinese. The
southern Chinese more active than those of the north. Their more
distant emigrations have been to countries under European domination.
A new element brought into play. The inducements held out by the
more enterprising races. History gives no instance of a spontaneous
movement of an inferior race into districts occupied by a superior.
The native races in the Asiatic colonial possessions of Europe, inferior
to the Chinese. The Chinese in the Spanish Philippine possessions.
Those in the Netherlands possessions. Those in the British posses¬
sions near the straits of Malacca. Active assistance given to the
Chinese immigration into those districts. Control of the Chinese at
Singapore. Secret societies, Chinese members of the colonial govern¬
ment. The Chinese in Labuan. The French possessions in Cochin
China.
I dealt in the last chapter with the facts bearing upon
the disposition of the Chinese to move out from their
immediate homes, exhibited in their migrations to the
outlying districts belonging to them, or to the petty states
bordering upon the territories of the empire.
It will have surprised persons who have not directed
their attention to the subject to find that a nation of
three hundred millions of people have passed so little out
of their own proper habitat into the districts immediately
surrounding it.
The facts now to be adduced relate to their more
distant migrations.
It should be said at the outset, that I am not attempt¬
ing here to write a history of Chinese migrations, nor to
388
MORE DISTANT MIGRA TIONS
enter into circumstantial details about them. My only
purpose is to illustrate the proposition which I enunci¬
ated in the last chapter, that the Chinese are not ag¬
gressive nor migratory. It would be unnecessary in dealing
with this proposition, to go far back in the history of the
Chinese, for they may have changed their habits in recent
times, and it is the habits of the immediate period, and
of the last hundred years with which we are concerned.
I may say, however, in a general way, that the people
of south China have always been more active in foreign
enterprise than those of the central and northren parts
of the empire ; that the former are less purely Chinese
in stock, and mental bent than their brothers of the north,
and that there is reason to believe, that they have lost
some part of their wandering tendencies with the more
perfect spread of northern influences, and their own more
perfect amalgamation with the northern stock.
It would be very interesting, indeed, in this view of the
subject, to consider the outgoings of the southern Chi¬
nese one, two, three or more centuries ago, and I am not
unmindful of the fact that their earlier history in this
respect would not be devoid of significance in our present
inquiry. It is too remote, however, to be dealt with at
the moment, and I have not the space nor the time to
devote to the inquiry.
The migrations of the Chinese to other regions than
those I have described in the last chapter, are confined
practically to districts which have been subjected to
European domination. These include the French terri¬
tories in Cochin China, the Spanish Philippine posses¬
sions, the English colony of Singapore, the Netherlands
East Indian dominions, Australia, Peru and Cuba.
It is manifest that a new element is brought into play
when we ^consider the emigration of the Chinese to coun¬
tries which are under European control. If such a
TO COUNTRIES DOMINA TED B Y EUROPEANS, 389
country is occupied by people native to the soil, as is the
case in the Philippines, French Cochin China, Singapore
and the Straits settlements, and the Netherlands Indian
dominions, all of which are ruled by white men, the Chi¬
nese may be imported to supply an additional labor ele¬
ment, or they may be encouraged to come, in order to
enter upon enterprises and industries which are fostered
or created by the dominating race. If the given coun¬
try or district, again, is thinly populated, and laborers
are in demand, as in California, Australia, Peru and
Cuba, they may be imported to supply the demand, or
if not imported encouraged by the opportunities pre¬
sented to them there, to flow in and take part in the in¬
dustries which are being carried on.
In either of these cases the way is made easier for
emigrants, and a different result may be expected from
that which is found when the emigrants have to pour
out as pioneers to occupy lands where the stimulus of
the presence of a more enterprising race is not felt, where
there may be less safety for persons and property, and
where the influence of antagonism is not checked by
more settled conditions of government.
It is not necessary to enforce this statement by argu¬
ment or by reference to the instances presented in his¬
tory. One notable but extreme case may be quoted.
We have a population of four millions of negroes. These
men are the descendants of an imported stock, and it is
safe to say that not one of their progenitors found his
way to America of his own motion. They were all im¬
ported in order to satisfy a demand for labor which had
been brought into existence by the recent occupation of
a virgin region by our people.
This instance gives, as a result, the existence upon our
soil of a large n-um.ber of persons who, as may be said
without offence, were inferior to our own people at the
390
INFERIOR RACÉS DO NOT
moment of their introduction, and who, whatever their
future may be, still remain a less active and ambitious
class than ourselves.
But if we should seek for instances of the immigra¬
tions of a less vigorous race into territories occupied by
a superior race, which immigrations were due to the
unaided movements of the incoming class, I believe that
history would not reward our search. In all ages slavery
has been known. In all ages dominating races have
used inferior races to advance their purposes. But the
spontaneous outward movement of a less vigorous peo¬
ple for the purpose of winning bread in lands not only
controlled but occupied by a more vigorous race has not
been witnessed in any quarter of the globe where politi¬
cal and industrial conditions have been normal. We
have seen in our own day the Chinese moving out spon¬
taneously into districts owned by the white man, but this
has only occurred where the masses of the local popula¬
tion are Asiatic, or where the population is insufficient to
meet the ordinary demands for labor.
It seems to me that the view of the question thus indi¬
cated should be full of consolation to Anti-Chinese par¬
tisans. The homes of the less vigorous stocks have been
Asia, Africa and America. None of the races of either
of these continents, within their historical periods, have
made any industrial inroads upon Europe, and scarcely
any warlike invasion. Asia remains to-day practically
Asiatic, save where European domination extends. Africa
remains African, and the American continents are the
confirmed inheritance of Europe. Speculations may be
indulged in as to what may occur hereafter, but the ex¬
periences of the past are certain, and there has never
been a moment in the history of the world when the su¬
premacy of the Caucasian has been more positive than
it is now.
INVADE THE TERRITORIES OF THE SUPERIOR. 391
The facts and considerations which I have set forth
in earlier chapters in regard to the prospects of the Chi¬
nese in California, do not seem to me to point to a differ¬
ent result there. Their immigration is an incident, an
episode only. The facts and considerations to be ad¬
vanced now in regard to their emigrations to other dis¬
tricts controlled by members of the Caucasian race, will
confirm this conclusion.
I shall deal very briefly with the movements of the
Chinese to the European colonial possessions bordering
upon the Asiatic continent, for the reason that they are
not at most of great significance for us. The people of
the several districts in question are less vigorous than the
Chinese, and it has been natural that the latter whether
as the result of direct inducements held out to them by
the governments concerned, or of those extended by
members of the ruling classes, should go thither. But
even under these circumstances, the facts sustain the gen¬
eral proposition which I have advanced that the Chinese
are not migratory,
The number of the Chinese in the Spanish Philippine
possessions is small. Yagor says that in 1867 the entire
Chinese population was about 18,000. I have no doubt
that it would have been far greater if more liberality had
been exhibited toward them. Two centuries ago many
thousands of them were killed in different massacres,
and strenuous efforts were made to keep down their
numbers by extreme measures, which could not be
justified even by the weakness of the Spanish rule, and
the vigor shown by the Chinese. The repressive meas¬
ures then taken have been succeeded by others, which,
while more regular, have not been less effective. Dis¬
criminating taxes have been laid upon them which so
far handicap their struggles in the different fields of com¬
petition that they find but little inducement to place
392
THE SPANISH POSSESSIONS.
themselves under Spanish protection. It is difficult to
decide how far these taxes are imposed with a view to
discourage immigration, and how far the Spanish are
controlled merely by the desire to realize revenue from
every quarter from whence it may be drawn.
The Netherlands possessions have afforded to the Chi¬
nese very different opportunities. No colonists are so
successful as the Dutch in realizing large pecuniary re¬
sults from their enterprises of this sort, and in retaining
at the same time the good will of the subordinate popu¬
lations. They have encouraged the influx of the Chinese
almost uniformly, and they have accorded to them some
exceptional privileges as residents, such as the right to
acquire landed possessions, and to control their own so¬
cieties in great part. They have a well selected and care¬
fully educated corps of interpreters and of officials,
charged with the more immediate supervision of the Chi¬
nese. Some of these I have known personally, and they
were uniformly men of high education and general qual¬
ifications.
The island of Java contained in iS/t, 181,2^2 persons
who were classed as Chinese. The Dutch possessions in
Borneo had about 50,000 ; those in Sumatra, 30,000 ;
Banka and Biliton about 18,000 ; the islands of the Rio-
Liuga archipelago, 25,000, and the rest of the archipel¬
ago, perhaps 5,000. This would give an entire Chinese
population in the districts named of 310,000. In this
number perhaps something less than one-third were men
who were either born in China, or who, if born in the
region of their domicile, were of pure blood, or remained
attached to the Chinese element because of their pater¬
nity and the affiliations to which it gave rise. The oth¬
ers were women and children of more or less mixed Ma¬
lay and Chinese blood.
It will be seen that the larger part of this population
THE NETHERLANDS POSSESSIONS,
393
is in Java. The estimate of 181,732 follows simply the
Dutch census of 1871. The earlier censuses gave the
following results ;—1856, 135,649; 1845, 105,983; 1838,
100,987. This amounted, in 1871, to one per cent, of
the entire population. The population of 1856 consisted
of men, 29 per cent; of women, 28 per cent; and of
children, 43 per cent. ; the women and children and some
part of the men being of mixed blood.
The possessions of the Netherlands are distant from
Canton, for steaming vessels, not more than from eight
to ten days ; for sailing vessels, in the favorable mon¬
soons, not more than from ten to twenty days. They
are, therefore, very accessible to the Chinese. The
Chinese are described as uniformly far superior to the
natives, intellectually and physically. They are enabled
to buy lands. In 1856, eighty per cent, of the lands be¬
longing to private individuals in Java were in the hands
of Europeans, and eighteen per cent. Chinese owned.
They find some industries which are peculiarly their own,
such as tea planting and fruit culture. They are very
much employed by the government and by individuals
as overseers of the native field hands. They are in great
demand in the tin mines of Banka and Billiton, and in
the gold mines and the search for precious stones in
Borneo. They deal largely in certain exports to China,
peculiar to those regions, as trepang, birds' nests, &c.
In view of all the attractions indicated, the fact that they
do not exceed 100,000 men in the Dutch possessions,
affords a very pertinent commentary upon the question
of their disposition to leave their native country. The
Dutch occupations of Java and of New York were con¬
temporaneous. It is a long period in history which has
intervened. There were Chinese in Java when the Dutch
acquired their foothold. They were feared and hated
by the natives, they were distrusted by the Dutch for a
394
SINGAFOjRE.
season, but soon came to be appreciated and encouraged.
While Europeans have changed the face of America, the
Chinese, in this fairest of all the lands of the Orient, have
made a lodgment merely. They have not " Mongolian-
"ized" Java. They are there as diligent traders and
patient workers, docile and faithful in all the relations of
life, appreciative of good government, and a source of
strength to the government.
The British colony of Singapore, and the neighboring
British colonies of Pulo Penang and Malacca, have been
the scene of much activity on the part of the Chinese.
The town of Singapore is situated upon an island of
the same name. The town and island were taken pos¬
session of in 1819. At that time the English found there
a sparse population of Malays, who were mostly pirates.
The town became at once a center of trading interests.
In point of fact, its situation is a rarely favorable one.
Every steam vessel which passes from Burmah, British
India, and Europe, toward the eastern portion of Asia,
the Malay, and Philippine archipelagos, and Japan,
takes the route by the Straits of Malacca and the colony
of Singapore. It is a way-station, therefore, of great im¬
portance, and its central position, as respects Farther
India, and the Malay and Philippine archipelagos, give
it importance as an emporium of trade for those regions.
In 1827 the population of the town and island was
14,000, of which the Chinese numbered 6,000 ; in 1836 it
had mounted to 30,000, of which the Chinese were 13,-
749 ; in 1849, 59,043, Chinese 27,998 ; in 1859, 81,792, of
which 50,043 were Chinese; in 1871, 97,111, Chinese
54,572. The European population in 1849 was 360; in
1859, 430; in 1871, 1,946.
It will be seen that the Chinese in this virgin region
have proven the most satisfactory settlers under the
British fiile. The English would have encouraged the in-
CONTRACT SYSTEM IN SINGAPORE,
395
flux of any class likely to prove useful. They had the
neighboring mainlands and islands, and not least, their
own Indian empire, from which to draw laborers and set¬
tlers, but it was the Chinamen who were found most
available and most satisfactory.
The latter came at first largely as agricultural laborers,
but as the lands of the island became exhausted, and as
trade increased, the tendency on their part has been to
abandon such work and to enter upon trade in the city.
Nine-tenths of the traders in Singaporeare now Chinese,
and it is said that no vessels from the islands reach
Singapore which are not boarded by them as they ap¬
proach, and that all the products of the Malay archipelago
which are brought to Singapore for sale pass through
their hands. Their merchants are not only esteemed upon
change as they are in San Francisco, but they may be
met at the council board of the colonial government, and
in the social entertainments of the city.
Owing to its central situation, many of the Chinese
who go there as emigrants from their native land, are dis¬
tributed from thence to the neighboring settlements of
the English and of the Dutch. It is said that as many
as 15,000 frequently arrive in the course of a single year.
This movement on the part of the Chinese is spon¬
taneous in one sense, but it is actively assisted and
encouraged by native agents, and by dispositions made
by the authorities of Singapore. Bands of from fifteen
to twenty men are gathered in different parts of the
province of Kwangtung by these agents, who advance, if
necessary, the money needed to pay for their outfits and
passages, and who are reimbursed at Singapore for these
advances, and in addition receive a commission in pay¬
ment for their own expenditures and their assistance.
Upon arriving iii Singapore, the passengers are allowed
to enter into contracts with planters, or with other agents
396
PROTECTION OF CHINESE.
who take them to more distant points, and the original
agents are reimbursed by the planters or by these latter
agents. If arrangements are not voluntarily entered into
at once, and without the intervention of the colonial
authorities, the passengers are removed to houses provided
for the purpose, where their wants are carefully attended
to, and they remain in these until employers are found
who will satisfy the claims against them, and with whom
they are prepared to contract for their labor.
It will be seen that this system of dealing with immi¬
grants is entirely different from our own. Our policy
has been to discourage contract immigration, that of the
colony of Singapore to encourage it. The colonial
authorities recognize perfectly the fact, that Chinese labor
becomes in a sense servile under these circumstances, but
they found the advance system existing, that the sums
advanced were very small, usually not exceeding twenty
dollars, and they thought it wiser to take the business
under their own surveillance in the interest of the laborers
and of the employing class, than to let it pass unnoticed.
The duty of managing these houses for the detention
of immigrants who arrive in debt, is committed to an
officer who is called the protector of the Chinese, and
whose general work and that of his associates, is to make
themselves in all ways familiar with the wants of the
Chinese in Singapore, to teach them to rely upon the
government rather than upon their various societies and
organizations for protection, and to act generally as medi¬
ators between them and the government. The need
of such a bureau was recognized long since. I find in
Mr. Laurence Olyphant's report of Lord Elgin's Mis¬
sion to China and Japan, written in 1857 or 1858, the fol¬
lowing remarks, which are pertinent to our general subject
as well as to the history of Chinese immigration to the
immediate district ;—^
^ Lord Elgin's Mission, p. 29.
IN SINGAPORE.
397
" There is a population of 70,000 Chinese in Singapore
" and not a single European who understands their lan-
" guage. The consequence is, that in the absence of any
" competent interpreter, they are generally ignorant of
" the designs of government and are apt to place them-
" selves in an antagonistic attitude whenever laws are
"passed affecting their peculiar customs. No effort is
"made to overcome a certain exclusiveness arising
" hence ; and this is fostered by the secret societies,
"which exercise an important moral influence upon the
" minds of all, but more particularly the ignorant por-
"tion of the population. Were Chinese themselves put
" into positions of authority under government, and al-
" lowed to share to some extent in the responsibilities
" and duties of British citizens, which^ intellectually con-
"sidered, they are quite competent to undertake, the
" barrier which now exists between the two races would
"be partially removed and the natural distrust and sus-
"picion engendered by our present system would, in
" all probability, quckily disappear. Nor is this mere
"speculation. We have fortunately in their own em-
" pire 'a perpetual proof before our eyes of that rever-
"ence for authority, when judiciously enforced, which is
" one of their chief characteristics, and which has for so
" many centuries been the preservation of its union, and
" one great source of its prosperity. That the most ac-
" tive, industrious and enterprising race in the Eastern
" world should be regarded as a source of weakness
" rather than of strength to a community, implies, prima
^^facUy a certain degree of mismanagement."
The views thus expressed in regard to the carelessness
of the government in the matter of interpreters appears
to have been remedied later on, for I find in a report
made to the governor of the colony in September, 1876,
by the colonial secretary, the colonial treasurer and the
398 RESULTS REA CHED A T SINGAPORE,
inspector general of police, who had been appointed a
committee to take evidence and report " upon the condi-
" tion of Chinese in the colony and whether any legislation
" is needed for their protection and control,'' a statement
that the colony then possessed two competent interpre¬
ters. The commissioners were not content with this,
however, and their first recommendation was " that Pro-
"tectors of Chinese be appointed in Singapore and Pe-
" nang, (probably later on in Malacca,) who should be
" European gentlemen conversant with the Chinese dia-
" lects, and that they should be assisted by respectable
" Chinamen, belonging to the different provincialists who
" resort here."
This advice was acted upon promptly and on the 23d
of the same month a colonial ordinance was passed, pro¬
viding, among other things, that ;—" It shall be lawful for
the Governor to appoint at each or any of the settle-
"ments a Protector of Chinese Immigrants, and such
"number of Assistant Protectors and other officers as
" may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this
" ordinance."
Since that date the protector, appointed for the Chi¬
nese of Singapore, has made regular annual reports to
the colonial government, and throughout these I find
abundant evidence of the improvement effected among
the people in question. The subject of the character and
influence of secret societies among them was grappled
with, the difference between certain of them which may
be styled as friendly and having the same general pur¬
poses as the six companies of California, and others which
existed for nefarious or illegal purposes, like the Hip Ye
Tung in San Francisco, being established by evidence, and
measures taken to do away with the latter. Attention
was also given with good results to the importation of
prostitutes and to other special evils.
NATIVES ADMITTED TO GOVERNMENT 399
While speaking of this part of the subject, I may allude
to the fact that not only in Singapore, but also In the
British colony of Labuan, Chinese have been invited to
act as members of the colonial council. I have known,
personally, one of the Chinese members of the Singapore
government, and can confirm the universally favorable
way in which he has been spoken of throughout the East.
And not only is this true, but the great Indian empire
has found it desirable to take up the same policy. The
Queen's viceroys, acting under the approval of the Eng¬
lish government, have not only thrown open the public
services to natives having the education and capacity to
be so employed, but in the lists of those forming the coun¬
cils of successive viceroys, will be found the names of
distinguished native gentlemen. The approval of these
gentlemen is as necessary before any laws or regulations
for the immense masses of the Indian empire, can be
enforced, as that of the other members of the council.
In Penang, Wellesley and Malacca, other districts under
the Singapore government, there were, in 1871, probably
50,000 Chinese. Labuan has also a small number of
Chinese residents. Taken altogether, their numbers in
the several British dependencies named exceed 100,000,
and may, at the present moment, run up to 125,000.
These, taken with those residents in the Dutch domin¬
ions, make the whole number in the Malay archipelago
and the Straits settlements not much more than 400,000.
There are, of course, some Chinese outside of the districts
under the control of the Dutch and English, but their
numbers are few, and there is no estimate of them which
can be relied upon.
The French occupation of Cochin China is of recent
date, but it is already well established, and it bids fair to
become prominent in the annals of European conquests
in the East. There is no more fertile region in the world,
400
FRENCH POSSESSIONS.
as we have seen, than Farther India. The position oc¬
cupied by the French is a commanding* one for the whole
district between the China sea, the gulf of Siam and
the boundary of China. The French are certainly good
colonists, although they have been unfortunate in losing
all the colonies which they have founded on both sides
of the globe. There is a prospect that they will succeed
better, however, in Farther India, and that they will gradu¬
ally extend their rule, until they have built up an eastern
empire which will not seem insignificant in comparison
even with that of England.
The number of Chinese who are settled in French
Cochin China is not yet great, but it increases yearly.
In the absence of detailed information, I shall not at¬
tempt to estimate their actual population.
PART IV.—CHAPTER VIL
FEARS OF AN OVERFLOWING IMMIGRATION OF THE
CHINESE. THE QUESTION OF THEIR DISPOSITION
TO EMIGRATE CONTINUED.
Emigration to Australia, Peru and Cuba. The emigration to the first of
these deserves especial attention, because the conditions there are simi¬
lar to those in California. The population of Australia. The num¬
ber of Chinese in Australia. Australian immigration tainted by the
contract system. Proposed regulations for contract emigration. Con¬
tract emigration to Singapore. Contract emigration to Australia.
Share-system among the Chinese. The contract system promotes
emigration. Difficulties of Chinese miners in Australia. Protection
of miners. Earnings in mines. Other occupations. Exclusion from
general industries and the causes. Opportunities in California and
Australia compared. Remittances to China. The mercantile class.
Sanitary regulations. Women. Arbitration of disputes. Legislation
against the Chinese. Agitation. Peru and Cuba. No voluntary move¬
ment to these districts. Commerce in laborers. Atrocities attending
this commerce. Numbers in Peru and Cuba. The future of Chinese
emigration to all parts of the world. They will find their most appro¬
priate theatre in their own hemisphere.
I have now presented the salient facts in regard to the
outflow of the Chinese to the districts immediately sur¬
rounding them, and to the not distant dominions of Eu¬
ropean powers in the Asiatic quarter of the globe. It
remains to speak of their emigration to Australia, Peru
and Cuba.
Australia is the only one of these regions which de¬
serves more than a passing notice. The conditions there,
indeed, present so many points of resemblance to those
in California that it is worth while to study them in de¬
tail, as well as in^a general way. It is an immense re¬
gion, a continent, with large areas of fertile lands, an ex-
z
402
THE CHINESE IN A ITS TE A LIA.
cellent climate, and great mineral wealth. The aborig¬
inal population at the time when the English occupation
began, was scanty everywhere. In some parts it was
composed of an inoffensive and degraded people who
were incapable of being raised to an appreciation of the
ways of civilization or of being utilized in the industries
of the settlers; other parts were occupied by ferocious
savages with all the traits of North American Indians.
Into this region settlers from different sections of the
British islands have been going in large numbers for
the last thirty years. The whole population in 1871 was
divided between the several colonies as follows ;—
New South Wales« 501,611
Victoria 729,868
South Australia - 188,995
Queensland . . . 115,567
Western Australia 24,785
Northern " 201
In the year 1854 attention began to be directed to the
great richness of the alluvial and quartz gold mines of
certain districts, more particularly to those of the colony
of Victoria. Reports of their wealth were carried at
once to China, as had been the case already in the in¬
stance of the discovery of gold in California, and the
Chinese of the same parts of the empire as those from
which the immigrants to America come, began another
but less important exodus to the new gold hills, as they
were called to distinguish them from those of California.
It is not necessary to detail the successive stages of
this emigration, as it is only in its broader aspects that
we have occasion to study it. It has proceeded generally
like that to California, at intervals moderating, at other
moments, exhibiting a magnitude which has occasioned
alarm. We find, however, that at the end of 1876 the
CONTRACT SYSTEM,
403
numbers of the Chinese in the several districts were as
follows ;—^
Victoria 16,000
New South Wales 6,000
Queensland 20,000
New Zealand 6,000
Other colonies 1,000
49,000
At the same period I have estimated the number of
Chinese in the United States at about 100,000, so that
their number in Australia and New Zealand is about
half that of those in our country.
I find at once a radical difference in the character of
the two emigrations. That to our country, as I have
already demonstrated has been free and voluntary in all
respects, but that to Australia has been tainted in some
degree by the contract system. The reason for this is
manifest. So long ago as the early part of 1862 the
Congress of the United States, freed from the presence
of members who had an interest in maintaining the in¬
stitution of slavery upon American soil, moved by the
abhorrence of it which had long been generating through¬
out the free States, by the great struggle with its uphold¬
ers in the South who had precipitated upon the country
a civil war of unparalleled magnitude, and by the reports
of the horrors attending the exportation of coolies to
Peru and Cuba and their employment there, passed an
Act to prevent the coolie-trade so called. The purpose
and scope of this Act are sufficiently indicated in sections
2,158 and 2,162 of the Revised Statutes of the United
States ;—
^ For many of the facts detailed in 1877, and reported his observa-
in this chapter, I am indebted to Mr. tions in regard to the Chinese to H,
Dundas Crawford, of H. M.'s con- M.'s minister at Peking,
sular service, who visited Australia
404
UNITED STATES LEGISLATION
"2158. No citizen of the United States, or foreigner
" coming into or residing within the same, shall for him-
" self, or for any other person, either as master, factor,
" owner, or otherwise, build, equip, load or otherwise pre-
" pare any vessel, registered, enrolled or licensed in the
" United States, for the purpose of procuring from any
"port or place the subjects of China, Japan, or any other
" Oriental country, known as ^ coolies,' to be transported
" to any foreign port or place, to be disposed of, or sold,
" or transferred, for any time, as servants or apprentices,
" or to be held to service or labor.
"2162, Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to
"apply to any voluntary ernigration of the subjects speci-
" fied in section twenty-one hundred and fifty-eight, or
" to any vessel carrying such person as passenger on
" board the same, but a certificate shall be prepared and
"signed by the consul or consular agent of the United
" States residing at the port from which such vessel may
" take her departure, containing the name of such per-
" son, and setting forth the fact of his voluntary emigra-
"tion from such port, which certificate shall be given to
" the master of such vessel ; and the same shall not be
"given until such consul or consular agent is first per-
" sonally satisfied by evidence of the truth of the facts
" therein contained."
It will be noticed that this law provides very rigidly
against what is generally called contract-labor, and makes
it difficult for any person in China to engage Chinese to
labor for a period in America, or to transport them hither
under an engagement that they shall refund their passage
money by service rendered for a period after their arrival.
The different views held by English representatives in
China is indicated by the fact, that in 1866, the British
minister,^ in company with his French colleague, prepared,
and procured the approval of the Chinese government
REGULATIONS FOR EMIGRATION.
405
for, a set of regulations in regard to contract emigration.
These consisted of twenty-two articles, intended to as¬
sure regularity and fair dealing in the engagement of
Chinese to labor in foreign districts. The nature of the
engagements proposed is exhibited with sufficient fullness
in the seventh article, which is as follows :—
The contracts shall specify ;—
" ist. The place of destination, and the length of the
" engagement.
" 2d. The right of the emigrant to be conveyed back
" to his own country, and the sum which shall be paid at
" the expiration of his contract to cover the expenses of
" his voyage home, and that of his family, should they
"accompany him.
" 3d. The number of working days in the year, and
" the length of each day's work.
" 4th. The wages, rations, clothing, and other advan-
"tages promised to the emigrant.
" Sth. Gratuitous medical attendance.
" 6th. The sum which the emigrant agrees to set aside
" out of his monthly wages for the benefit of persons to
" be named by him, should he desire to appropriate any
" sum to such a purpose.
"7th. Copies of the 8th, 9th, loth, 14th, and 22d
" Articles of these Regulations."
These regulations were based upon a set of rules which
had been in force under local sanction for several years,
and affected the engagement of Chinese at Canton to go
to British colonies.
The British and French governments did not approve
the proposed regulations but neither the one nor the other
has enacted any general law such as our own, providing
406
ENGLISH AND AMERICAN
for the examination of proposing emigrants, with a view
to determine whether they are voluntary emigrants in
the broad sense of our law. The colony of Hong Kong
has made certain regulations, but as these do not extend
so far as our law, and are not supplemented by legislation
in the colonies, the effect intended by our law is not ob¬
tained.
A commentary on this condition of things is afforded,
by the facts cited in the last chapter regarding emigration
to Singapore. The act creating the office of protector
of Chinese has been so amended, that he is not at liberty
to detain a passenger against his will, in order to force
him to enter into a contract by which he may provide
for a refund of advances made by his importer, but depots
are established by the importers at Singapore under
license, and to these the immigrants are generally con¬
ducted upon arrival. Once there, the protector visits
them and tells them, in the language of a report made
by him under date of January I2th, 1878, "that while
" no coercion or fraud wall be permitted against them, it
" is only reasonable that, in return for passage money
" and maintenance, they should be willing to repay to
" the importer a fair remuneration." It does not appear
in any of these reports that the importer may bring suit
to recover the amount of his advances to the immigrant,
and may imprison the debtor to enforce payment, but
this is to be inferred from the general character of the
legislation, and more particularly from Section 9 of Ordi¬
nance No. Ill of 1877, which is as follows ;—
" Any emigrant who shall have received any sum of
" money by way of advance on a contract to labor with-
" out the colony, or for w^hom, on his entering into a con-
" tract to labor without the colony, any sum of money
" may h-ave lawfully been expended by a person with
" whom the contract is made, or by any person in his be-
SYSTEMS COMPARED.
407
"half, who shall not leave the colony in terms of his
" contract, shall be liable on conviction to a penalty not
"exceeding one hundred dollars, or to imprisonment,
"which may be of either description, for any period, not
" exceeding three months. Provided, always that if the
" intending emigrant shall pay back, or cause to be paid
" back, to the person with whom he may have contracted,
" all sums lawfully advanced for him, and all expenses
" lawfully incurred for him, under the said contract, such
" intended emigrant shall not be prosecuted criminally
" under this section."
It is evident that the results which would follow the
two systems, the American and English, would be radi-
ically different. No American citizen would advance
money to persons proposing to emigrate from China to
the United States, in contravention of the law which I
have quoted, or relying upon his ability to enforce a con¬
tract to labor in our courts. It is conceivable that Chi¬
nese may do so, but if such is the case I have failed,
as shown in the earlier chapters, to find any evidence of
the fact. It is the part of wisdom to provide against such
attempts on the part of the Chinese, and I have pointed
out the means which may be adopted to this end. In
the English colonies, at least in Singapore, the case is
otherwise, for legislation there favors the importation of
coolies under contract, and contracts for their labor to
be carried out even beyond the limits of the colony.
How far the same conditions exist in Australia I am
not in position to know. I find, however, a state¬
ment in Rakel's " Wanderings of the Chinese," that in
1874 great efforts were made to attract the Chinese to
Queensland to enter into the culture of sugar and cotton,
and that offers were made at Shanghae, the center of a
cotton growing district, to contract for such laborers at
seven dollars a month, expenses of passage both ways
408
CO-OPERATIVE LABOR.
and rations ; that similar offers were made at Swatow
and Amoy, ports adjoining the sugar-growing districts ;
but both essays failed. An earlier attempt made to in¬
troduce Chinese under contract into North Australia
appears to have been more successful as Rakel speaks of
the first two hundred who settled there as having been
imported via Singapore," under agreements to work at
specified wages for a period of two years. Mr. Crawford,
referring to the same incident, says that these Chinese
"were experimentally introduced by the government,
"from Singapore, under agreement."
I do not learn, and I do not believe, that foreigners
have entered upon the business of exporting coolies to
Singapore or to Australia excepting in very rare in¬
stances, and this would not be necessary as Chinese
agents enter upon it with avidity when enabled to do so
with safety. As nearly as I can learn, the coolies who
arrive at Singapore are in large part taken there by such
agents. Those who go to Australia on the contrary are
more frequently voluntary emigrants, that is to say, they
pay their passages themselves in advance, and are free
to labor where and with whom they like. Others, how¬
ever, come in bands of ten to thirty or more, under a
captain, who goes with them to the mines and directs
their labors there, and these men may be either under
contract with the captain, working for a stated price per
mensem and repaying the amount of their passages and
other expenses out of their wages, or they may be mem¬
bers of societies or companies co-operating together, the
captain being only one of their number and given prom¬
inence by the voice of the company as a person of more
experience in mining enterprises. The Chinese habit of
co-operative work is a marked feature in all their indus¬
tries. The farm laborer sometimes, and in certain em¬
ployments,- as sugar-growing, almost invariably, receives
CONTRACT SYSTEM IS VICIOUS,
409
a share of the crop, for his services. It may be sup¬
posed under these circumstances that these bands are
co-operative to a very great extent, but on the other
hand it is not unlikely, in fact probable, that the laborers
of such bands are sometimes, if not often, under contract
to the captain and to the persons with whom he is asso¬
ciated.
It may be presumed that the employers of contract-
labor in Australia have the power to enforce their con¬
tracts in the courts, and if such is the case the disposition
of Chinese to introduce contract-laborers would be so far
sustained by their ability to hold their men that they
would enter upon the business to the extent that it may
be made profitable.
The situation is very different in the United States.
No adequate means are now employed in China to de¬
termine whether the emigrant will land upon our soil
free to labor as he likes. I have shown that the con¬
sulate at Hong Kong is not so constituted that it can be
expected to exhibit great efficiency, and beyond this,
that the necessary examinations can be thoroughly made
only with the assistance of Chinese officials. But the
examinations afford, at any rate, a considerable check,
and the further check afforded by the fact that no con¬
tract can be enforced among us by imprisonment of the
laborer violating his agreement, has been sufficient, as it
would appear, to discourage perfectly the contract system.
I have taken so much pains to speak upon this subject,
because it would be easy to argue that a given condition
of affairs in Australia affords strong presumptive evidence
that the same conditions exist among us, and it is desir¬
able to remove all the obstacles which prevent a fair con¬
sideration of the situation of the Chinese among us.
The facts advanced have a further and very direct bear¬
ing upon our immediate subject—the question of the
410
CHINESE IN AUSTRALIAN MINES.
prospects of a large immigration of the Chinese. It is
the presumed ability of the persons proposing to emi¬
grate to our country to procure the means to do so from
persons who repay themselves from the laborer's service
in our country that has led many persons to expect a
large immigration. Just that ability would seem to exist
in Australia, as it certainly does exist in the British and
Dutch settlements at Singapore, Java, &c. ; but the
results have not been grave. The fifty thousand Chinese
in Australia are insignificant in number when compared
with the white population, and with the magnificent re¬
sources of that vast region ; yet it is a place where the
conditions favorable to a large influx of Chinese exist in a
marked degree.
While the Chinese were attracted to Australia at first,
as to California, by the reports of the discovery of gold,
they remain in Australia, unlike those in California, en¬
gaged chiefly in the search for gold. It is said that four-
fifths of them are in the mines.
Their enterprises in mining appear to have been at¬
tended by many of the difficulties which their confreres
in California have met with. There have been per¬
sistent efforts made by the Australian miners to prevent
them from working in the better grades of alluvial soil,
and it is only when the former have left their work in
given places, to hurry away to newer and richer districts
that the Chinese have been allowed to take peaceable
possession. They have entered very little into quartz
mining, and for whatever reason the hydraulic system
does not seem to have been introduced into Australia to
any great extent.
Greater efforts have been made apparently to protect
Chinese miners than in California. Each mining district
is placed in charge of a warden, so called, and a corps of
constables and detectives, whose duty it is to maintain
EARNINGS IN MINES.
m
order in the mines, and to defend the miners, when neces¬
sary, from the depredations of the natives. Some of the
staff so employed are Chinese, and the evidence shows that
a great degree of confidence in the authorities is exhibited
by the Chinese miners. At Cook town, the metropolis of
the Queensland district, the Chinese waited recently upon
the magistrate with a number of complimentary presents,
in order to indicate after their fashion, appreciation of his
fair dealing in their affairs. In some instances the regu¬
lations of the mines, and ordinances of interest are printed
and circulated in Chinese as well as English.
The placer mining of Australia like that of California,
appears to have passed its period of greatest production.
In Victoria, for instance, 14,000 Chinese miners were em¬
ployed in 1872, and in 1876 their number had been
reduced to 11,000. In the Queensland mines a great
rush was made in 1875-77> but already in the latter year
there were indications that more men were at work than
could continue to find profitable employment. Out of
14,452 men engaged in the quartz mines of Victoria in
1876, 106 only were Chinese. In alluvial work the whites
were 15,497, and the Chinese 11,061. In the Palmer
river districts in 1877, 1,500 Australians were engaged in
quartz mines, monopolizing that industry, and perhaps
15,000 Chinese in alluvial work, monopolizing it.
The earnings of miners in Victoria are officially - esti¬
mated as follows ;—•
1872. 1876.
. 1 • ) Alluvial mines. 65 ^45
Average annual earnings, I
The earnings of Chinese in alluvial mines in Queens¬
land in 1876, were estimated at £yo a year, for each man
engaged.
Their employment by Australians as miners appears
tobe far more limited than is the case in California. We
have seen that very few are engaged in the quartz mines
412
OTHER INDUSTRIES.
of Victoria, and none at all in Queensland. In New South
Wales, however, more are employed. In New Zealand
they have been used as sluicers, and to remove the sur¬
face earth of claims, the miners not trusting them after
reaching "wash dirt."
The greater part of the ten thousand or more Chinese
in Australia who are not engaged in mining or as mer¬
chants have opened stores, entered into fishing and
established market gardens. Others are employed as
bakers, butchers, hands on back country stations, cooks
on trepang boats, furniture makers, and sometimes as
contract road laborers. As storekeepers their enterprises
are not confined to supplying the articles in demand by
their own people, but they are running a competition
with local retailers in supplying necessaries of a cheaper
kind to the Australians. As fishermen they are rivals of
the Italians, who have largely engaged in this avocation
there as they have in California. As market gardeners
they are said to have conferred great benefits upon the
public, by reducing the cost of vegetables so that they are
no longer a luxury to be indulged in by the better classes
only, but a cheap and universal article of diet. Their
employment by masters not of their own nationality is
inappreciable, and as domestic servants they appear to
have found no favor. They have not entered into shoe-
or cigar-making, and not even upon their favorite indus¬
try as launderers. As artisans they appear to have de¬
veloped even less capacity than in California. As farm
laborers they are not employed at all.
The exclusion of the Chinese from many industries is
due probably to two causes, the lower rates of wages
which prevail than in California, and the efforts of the
trades-unions. Wages are high, however, in compari¬
son with the rates in England. Artisans expect to earn
from two to' three pounds a week, say ten to fifteen dol-
CALIFORNIA AND AUSTRALIA'.
413
lars, or about New York and Chicago wages. Domestic
servants receive from thirty to fifty pounds a year and
rations, which is rather more than New York rates.
Laborers are paid six to seven shillings a day beside
rations, which also is more than New York rates, and
much more than the average earnings of the Chinese in
the mines. At these rates they would no doubt take
employment among the Australians, but the wages for
which they would work could not, probably, be so far
reduced below these rates as to compensate for their
lack of acquaintance with the requirements of the em¬
ploying class and lack of adaptability. The trades-
unions, again, exert a very powerful influence in Aus¬
tralia, their members having taken with them the
methods familiar to them in England, and by their
organization and unity discouraged any attempts by the
employing class to free themselves from their influence.
There are some circumstances, then, which are more
favorable to the influx of Chinese into Australia than
into California, and others again less favorable. It is
possible to use the contract system, and the distance
from Canton is considerably less than to San Francisco.
There is probably better order maintained in the Aus¬
tralian mines than in those of California. There is far
more unoccupied land, and there are whole regions to
which the Chinese may go where they would tread a
virgin soil, free, practically, from competition with white
men. In California they have a greater variety of em¬
ployments open to them, and may expect higher wages.
The tendency toward a fall in wages in California is very
marked, however, and it becomes doubtful whether Aus¬
tralian inducements will not soon outweigh those which
are presented in that State.
The Australi'an customs authorities have made an
effort to ascertain the amount of the remittances made
414
SANITARY REGULATIONS.
by the Chinese to China in the form of gold dust, and
their reports indicate that about ;¿'5o,ooo are so exported
in each year. I find no other data regarding the sums
which are sent out of the country by them.
Their expenses in Australia do not equal, probably,
those of their compatriots in California, excepting in the
newer and more distant gold diggings where they have
often to pay for an expensive carriage of goods from the
coast to the mines. At Cooktown a miner may live at a
good inn for ten shillings a week, having three meals a
day of rice with the usual adjunct of chicken, dried fish,
beans and vegetables.
Their tendency to increase expenditures as their in¬
comes augment is remarked in Australia as it is in Cali¬
fornia. There is an imperceptible bettering of dress and
personal accessories, of the style of living and of gratifica¬
tions of the senses. The love of play characterizes them
there as everywhere else and old hands in Australia as
in California may be known by a certain jauntiness, and
knowing manner, as well as the improved dress which
they affect.
Chinese merchants are well spoken of in Australia as
they are in San Francisco, but their operations, as I
should judge, are more limited, and are more directly
connected with the mining interest. Some of them are
credited with being directly concerned with the mining
captains in the importation of contract laborers and the
proceeds of their work.
No difficulties have been met with in enforcing the
observance of sanitary regulations by the Chinese in the
towns. There are not very many congregated in any of
the cities. The merchants live in houses which present
no external indications of their occupation, and as there
are no trades followed extensively by the working men,
which attracts them to the towns, their presence is not
CONTROL OF THE CHINESE,
415
felt as an evil as it has been in the crowded Chinese-
quarter in San Francisco, Breaches of the peace in Syd¬
ney and Melbourne are said to arise generally from the
disposition of sailors to overbear them in the shops.
Offences against sanitary regulations require, as a rule,
only occasional warnings from the inspectors of nuis¬
ances. Gambling is not much interfered with excepting
in the rare instances when young Australians are lured
into the houses, or when it assumes larger proportions.
Fan-tan, a favorite Chinese gambling game, has been
suppressed in Cooktown. The simpler games, as cards
and dominos, are played so quietly by little bands in the
clubs and tea-houses that they scarcely attract attention.
Mr. Crawford is authority for the statement that in
1876 there were only a score of Chinese women in Aus¬
tralia, and that all of them were wives or maid servants
and of good repute. He is authority for the further
statement that there are many marriages between Chi¬
nese and Irish women, that the husbands are attentive
and very frequently join the church of the wife. The
children appear to be brought up differently, the boys
retaining the dress of the fathers, the girls those of the
mothers.
There is no complaint made in Australia in regard to
secret societies of the Flip Ye Tung class, nor of the in¬
stitution of an imperium in imperiOy to use the language
of Mr. Pixley. Exactly the same procedure for the set¬
tlement of disputes is found there, however, as in Cali¬
fornia. On this point Mr. Crawford uses the following
language ;—
" Wherever they have settled for any length of time in
"Australia and become known, they are considerately
"treated. Their judicial cases are conducted v/ith care,
"and no better^proof of the general acknowledgment of
"the justice of the English law could be given than the
416
UNFRIENDLY LEGISLATION
fact that they look to the colonial law courts as courts
" of appeal from the informal decisions of their clubs or
" guilds. Petty as these disputes usually are, the arbitra-
" tion of head men may fail, and they are then referred to
" a general meeting of the particular organization to which
" the defendants belong, where the evidence is freely can-
"vassed and a verdict given by acclamation. Fines vary
" from the payment of the evening's score to a substantial
" contribution, but any party who is not satisfied carries
"his case into a colonial court."
I have no doubt that more difficulties are met with in
the control of the Chinese at large in California than in
Australia, and especially in San Francisco. A summary
of the facts presented in Mr. Crawford's report satisfies me
however that the colonial governments deal more carefully
and wisely with them than the people of California have
done, and that they have succeeded in preventing many
evils by the simplest administrative measures honestly
executed.
I find nothing in Crawford's report in regard to the
taxation of the Chinese in Australia, and I am inclined
to believe that at the date of his visit no restrictions were
placed upon the influx of immigrants. At a later date,
a deposit fee was required in Queensland for each Chi¬
nese landing, the amount of which was to be held in de¬
posit to provide for the immigrant in case he should be¬
come a burden upon the colony, and to be returned to him
upon his departure if unused. My impression is that the
the law in question was enacted as a measure of precau¬
tion only, the rush of immigrants having become so
great, and the work in the mines being so uncertain on
account of the lack of a regular rainfall, that grave appre¬
hensions were entertained of a famine among the miners.
I have taken no trouble to learn what restrictive meas¬
ures, if any, have been recently enacted in the Australian
PERU AND CUBA,
417
colonies, because they are not of consequence in our pres¬
ent discussion. The salient facts are, that until lately no
restrictions have been imposed, and that immigration
has not been large.
I have said, in the opening part of this chapter, that
there is no occasion to inquire, with particularity, into
the facts regarding Chinese emigration to Peru and Cuba.
The correctness of this statement will be appreciated
when I repeat the declaration that there has been no
voluntary movement of the Chinese to those countries.
This is a matter perfectly well known throughout the
civilized world, but it will not be amiss to describe the
methods by which the Chinese have been taken thither,
and held to a service which has differed but little from
slavery.
The immediate object of the importers has been not
to obtain laborers for their own use, but to make a com¬
merce in laborers. In nearly all instances they were
white men, actively assisted by Chinese. It was the
business of the latter to spread reports of the wealth of
the region for which men were sought, of the opportu¬
nities to grow rich there, &c. By these means, and often,
as it is believed, by more nefarious agencies, the assistance
of lewd women, pressure for debts, often contracted by
gambling into which the coolie had been enticed, threats
of prosecution, drugging with opium, and kidnapping
outright, the unsuspecting, timid, or despairing country¬
men were lured into the barracoons and induced to sign
contracts to labor, for a term of years, at four or five
dollars a month. The contract once made, the trader
could demand, at Macao, at least, the assistance of the
government of the colony to guard the coolies until the
ships were ready to receive them, while being embarked,
and until out of-port on their way across the sea. At
the port of destination, Callao or Havana, the trader sold
418
JENORMITIES.
his contracts to the highest bidders. Each man may
have cost him forty dollars, fifty, or even more, and the
contract for his services would command readily four,
five, or six hundred dollars. The courts and authorities
in Peru and Cuba stood ready to enforce the contracts
by physical restraints and punishments, and the power
to apply these was often directly delegated to employers.
Thus, under cover of a form of contract, from the beginning
until the end, the greatest enormities were perpetrated.
In October, 1855, the American ship, " Waverly," laden
with coolies for Callao or Havana, put into the port of
Manila to bury the captain, who had died of dysentery.
Some of the Chinese asked to go ashore, and an alter¬
cation resulted in which one Chinese was shot and the
others forced below, and the hatches battened down.
These were not opened until the next morning, when
two hundred and fifty-one coolies were found dead.
In a case of an outbreak on board an Italian ship, the
"Napoleon Cañavero,^' in 1865, the coolies were similarly
driven below, and the hatches battened down ; but un¬
willing to perish by suffocation, they set fire to the ship.
The crew escaped in boats, and the ship, with her cargo
of human beings, was consumed by the flames.
Nor were these tragedies exceptional ones. In March,
1871, Chief Justice Smale of the Supreme Court of Hong
Kong, delivered a decision in a case in which the ques^
tion of the character of the Macao coolie trade was dealt
with at length. Speaking of its extent and the horrors
by which it was attended he said ;—
" It seems to me that if cause and effect have their full
" operation, this abominable traffic will find for itself a
" terrible and appalling end. I have endeavored to make
" up a list of ships in which there have been coolie ris-
" ings and -destruction of the ships, and the voyages have
"failed. That list is not complete, but I believe that
NUMBERS IN PERU AND CUBA,
419
"within a short period some six or seven ships carrying
" about 3>ooo coolies have been burnt or otherwise de-
" stroyed, with an immense loss of life, including cap-
" tains and a relatively large proportion of the crews."
This iniquitous traffic has been put an end to by the
government of China co-operating with the government
of Portugal, which latter was slow to awake to the enor¬
mities practiced under its flag in Macao, and with it
has ended all emigration of the Chinese to Peru and
Cuba.
It is difficult to learn how many Chinese there are in
these districts. They have been estimated as high as
one hundred and forty thousand in Peru and nearly as
many more in Cuba. It is probable that there are from
fifty to sixty thousand in each.
If I should be asked now to state the prospects of
Chinese emigration to all parts of the world, I should re¬
spond that there will be a slow but continued movement
from the northern provinces into Manchuria and Mon¬
golia, and from the northwest into Hi and Kashgaria>
should those regions remain free from disturbances and
confirmed to Chinese rule. In the central provinces the
ravages of the great rebellion have not been repaired,
and there appears to be no tendency on the part of the
people to leave their homes, nor any pressure of necessity
urging them to do so. From the southern districts the
Chinese will move toward the fertile plains of Cochin
China and Further India, generally, as they find encour¬
agement. Their exodus will be accelerated vastly if the
French extend their dominions, as they are almost certain
to do. They will go also to the English and Dutch
settlements in the straits of Malacca, and the Malay
archipelago. The Dutch are constantly pressing forward
their territories,--and there is an irrepressible, though
resisted tendency toward an extension of the settlements
420 PROSPECTS OF CHWESE EMIGRATION,
of England. There will be also a continued stream of
emigrants to Australia and California, but it is not a
growing stream in either case, and causes are at work
which will bring about a diminution of the flow in both
directions, irrespective of legislation or restrictive treaties.
It will be seen that I do not limit the scene of the future
activities of Chinese to their own immediate territories,
but that I do expect that they will find their most ap¬
propriate theatre in their own quarter of the globe. It
is then among populations which are less vigorous and
worthy than themselves, in districts which hardly know
the industrious hand of man, and which are not less rich
in natural resources than the most favored lands of the
earth, that these people may work out their manifest
destiny. Whether the empire stands or falls, the race is
an enduring one, and its destiny will be accomplished.
I have no less faith that our own will be*
APPENDIX.
The following statement in regard to the number of the
Chinese in the United States has been given to me by the
Census Bureau, and shows the results of the enumeration of
June, 1880 :
Alabama 4
Arizona
Arkansas 134
California 755O25
Colorado 610
Connecticut 124
Dakota 238
Delavvaie i
District of Columbia 13
Florida 18
Georgia 17
Idaho 3,378
Illinois 210
Indiana 33
Iowa 47
Kansas 19
Kentucky 10
Louisiana 473
Maine 9
Maryland 5
Massachusetts 237
Michigan 27
Minnesota 53
Mississippi 52
Total ..
Missouri 92
Montana 15 7^4
Nebraska 18
Nevada
New Jersey. 176
New Hampshire 14
New Mexico.. 55
New York State 919
Noith Carolina
Ohio 114
Oregon.... 9,513
Pennsylvania 160
Rhode Island 27
South Carolina 9
Tennessee 26
Texas 141
Utah 501
Vermont
Virginia 6
West Virginia 14
Wisconsin 16
Washington Territory.... 3,182
Wyoming 914
105,448
Aes'f epate Chinese
Poj>. Pop.
San Francisco 233,953 21,745
California (mcluding San Francisco)...... 864,686 75>o25
It will be seen that these figures do not differ materially
from the estimates given in Part 1. of this book.
January 26, 1881.
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