THE HESPERIAN
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for tho concessions Chinti made. Citizens
of tho United States visiting or residing in
China, and subjects of China visiting or re
siding in the United States, were to enjoy
tho same rights and privileges as would in
these countries be enjoyed by tho citizens or
subjects of the most favored nation. Each
nation recognized the inherent and inali
enable right of man to chango his home al
legiance. To this principle of voluntary ex
patriation the United States had always hold.
Previous to this time no other nation had ad
mitted this right. China was the second to
recognize it.
Under the liberal provisions of this treaty
many American merchants and missionaries,
harbingers of civilization went to China.
Many Chinese laborers and merchants came
to the United States. These laborers did
much to develop California, aiding in the
construction of railroads and in tho reclaim
ing of waste lands.
Ar. time passed the white population of
the Pacific coast greatly increased. The
purpose for which Chinese labor was once
desired and sought no longer existed. Tho
white man now desired to do the work which
once he would not do. The American work
man could not compete with the industrious,
parsimonious Chinaman. Chinese immigra
tion had become an evil.
In 1SS0 the United States again sent com
missioners to China. They demanded for
our government, the right to restrict Chinese
immigration. China willing and desirous
to deal rightly with the United States, com
plied with their demand. A now treaty
was negotiated. It provided that whenever
the government of the United States believed
tlte coming of Chinese to be inimical to the
tfood order of our country, it might regulate,
limit or suspend such coming, but might
not absolutely prohibit it. These limitations
did not apply to the Chinese laborers then
in the United States. They were to come
and go of their own free will, and were to
be treated by the United States as she treated
the citizens of the most favored iration.
Accordingly Congress, in 1882, passed a
law which suspended tho coming of Chinese
laborers to this country for ton years. This
law worked no injustice to China. It was
according to troat.y stipulations. Tho Uuited
States so far had acted honorably.
It was belived, and tho workings of the
new law seemed to warrant such belief, that
the Chinese question had been settled in a
way satisfactory to both the United States
and China. But in 1SSS, Mr. Scott, a con
gressman of the Pacific coast, imbued with
a spirit of prejudice, introduced into Con
gress a bill which proposed to abrogate tho
treaty. Tt was proposed to prohibit the re
turn to the United States of those Chinese
laborers who had departed, and to whom
the treaty guaranteed the right to go and
come of their own free will. It was on the
eve of a Presidential election. The House
was democratic ; the Senate repulican.
Each of the political parties desired the vote
of the Pacific coast. On account of mis
representation, prejudice, and policy this
bill passed Congress, received the signature
of the President, and became a law. Many
Chinamen trusting to the treaty and to the
good faith of the United States, had left
their interests in this country for a visit to
China. Without warning they had been
prohibited from returning. The United
States had. without cause and for the first
time in her history, violated her plighted
faith with another nation. That distingu
ished senator from Ohio, Mr. Sherman, said:
"I believe the Scottlaw was one of the most
vicious laws that have been passed in my
time in Congress. I say it was a mere po
litical race between two political parties to
try and influence the vote of the Pacific
coast." The spectacle of tho legislature of
this mighty nation putting aside principle
for policy, is enough to make every patriotic
American blush with shame.
The law suspending Chinese immigration
would expire in May 1892. Some new leg
islation concerning it must be had by the
fifty-second Congress. When the Scott bill
was under discussion, it was claimed by
those who supported it, that Chinese immi
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