Speech #530023291

But before sketching the various decisions of the Supreme Court. if you will bear with mefor afew moments. I shall endeavor to state succintly and briefly the. Federal legislation on this Chinese exclusion question. It will not be necessary for me to go back to the Cushing treaty of 1844. or refer to the Read treaty of 1858. or to the Burlingame convention of 1868. for those treaties do not touch the question of immigration. But in 1878 the growing evil had become so marked in California that the people arose in their might. and the constitutional convgntion of that State memorialized Congress. and in consequence of that memorial and of the petitions then presented Congress made an appropriation in 1879 and sent commissioners to China who. on the 17th day of November. 1880. negotiated the famous AngellSwift treaty. That treaty inaugurated a new policy. It gave notice. in its first article. by the statement that China agrees that the Government of the United States may regulate. suspend. or limit the immigration of Chinese laborers to this country whenever in its opinionthat is. whenever in the opinion of the United Statesit should endanger the welfare of any locality of this country. or affect the country itself. That was due notice to the Chinese Government that we intended thereafter to adopt. when we saw fit. a. policy of exclusion. The first Federal legislation was in 1882. when the coming of Chinese laborers was prohibited. two classes of persons being exempted. that is. the Chinese laborers who had been in this country on the 17th day of November. 1880. the time of the enactment of the AngellSwift treaty. and those Chinese laborers who should come into this country within ninety days after the passage of the act of 1882.