CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



" Oh ! It la excellent 



To have a giant'* Ktrcngth ; but it u tyrannous 

 To use it like a giant. 



" Now I want to invite the attention of the 

 Senate to the true condition in which this 

 question is presented to us for our considera- 

 tion and our action. I have no hope of affect- 

 ing a single vote, but I wish to state the rea- 

 sons of m\ own conclusion. 



" We negotiated a treaty with a friendly and 

 a foreign power. We, in connection with oth- 

 er governments, forced that treaty upon that 

 power. It is as patent and as true as anything, 

 it is as certain as mathematics, that in securing 

 that treaty there was no section of our coun- 

 try so earnest, so forward, as that which lies 

 upon the Pacific coast. We negotiated the 

 treaty, we battered down a wall of commercial 

 restriction that had surrounded the Chinese 

 Government in the long ages of the past, al- 

 most as restrictive as that Chinese wall that 

 preserved that empire from the Tartar hordes 

 of the north. We accomplished, however, the 

 negotiation of a treaty which secured to us 

 the right of trial by jury of our own citizens 

 in that empire, which opened up a given num- 

 ber of ports which should be accessible for the 

 commerce of our country ; and we granted in 

 return the immigration of Chinese subjects to 

 our own country. Why, sir, who does not 

 remember with what welcome, with what re- 

 joicing, that treaty was hailed upon the Pacific 

 coast 1 To say that they honored it, is hardly 

 adequate. That they did homage to the men 

 who negotiated it is nearer the truth. Now, it 

 is affirmed that that treaty is injurious to our 

 friends on that coast, that from its effects they 

 desire to be relieved. We are asked to secure 

 a modification of the treaty thus negotiated, 

 which allows an unlimited immigration from 

 the Chinese Empire to this country. That is 

 the precise question, and it is sought in direct 

 contravention of the fifth article of the treaty 

 to limit that immigration. Is it a desirable 

 thing to do ? I wiU not stop to consider that; 

 but, conceding it Co be a desirable thing to do, 

 what is the mode in which it should be done ? 

 And that brings us directly to the division 

 which we have here upon this question. I 

 would proceed by the ordinary rules of nego- 

 tiation ; I would treat that empire as I would 

 treat every civilized nation upon the earth, 

 and I believe that there are few Senators on 

 this floor who would be willing to treat a war- 

 like power of Europe in the summary manner 

 in which this bill proposes to treat the Em- 

 pire of China. I would first make the distinct 

 proposition to that empire to treat. Failing 

 to treat, coming within the scope of the amend- 

 ment which has been submitted by the Senator 

 from New York, after full and ample notice, 

 I would say then that we might take the mat- 

 ter into our own consideration, and apply the 

 remedy which in our own judgment should be 

 demanded. 



" At the last session of this Congress there 



were a variety of subjects submitted to the con- 

 sideration of the Committee on Foreign Rela- 

 tions : one a bill almost in the term* of this 

 now presented to us, differing indeed. I be- 

 lieve, only in that hut ten citizens of that em- 

 pire should embark upon any one vessel, this 

 extending it to fifteen. There was another 

 bill proposing to place a capitation tax upon 

 every Chinaman immigrant to this country. 

 There were two or three other propositions. 

 After mature consideration, the Committee on 

 Foreign Relations, believing it just and right 

 and the proper solution of this problem, di- 

 rected my honorable friend from Wisconsin 

 [Mr. Howe] to report a resolution to this body. 

 Perhaps it is not inappropriate to say that I 

 drew that resolution. It met the approval of 

 the committee, and in my absence the Senator 

 from Wisconsin was kind enough to report it 

 for the consideration of the Senate. It was 

 adopted by the Senate. It has been read ; still, 

 you will pardon me for again presenting it, in 

 connection with what I am saying, to the at- 

 tention of the Senate : 



" That the provisions of the existing treaty between 

 the Empire or China and the United States, allowing 

 the unrestricted emigration to this country from China, 

 might wisely be modified so as to subserve the best 

 interests of both governments ; and the attention of the 

 Executive is respectfully invited to the subject. 



" That was a simple invitation on the part 

 of this body, inviting the attention of the Ex- 

 ecutive to the consideration of this subject, 

 the committee deeming it and believing it to 

 be the precise and best mode in which the re- 

 sult aimed at should be accomplished. It is 

 but a few months since the Senate adopted 

 that resolution. I would leave this question 

 upon that resolution to-day, if I could have my 

 way. I would have no action in this body 

 now. I would leave it there ; I would trust 

 it to the Administration in the firm belief 

 and I do not speak unadvisedly that if there 

 were not this hot haste to override and to su- 

 persede the duties that justly and appropriate- 

 ly belong to the Executive, there would a so- 

 lution come of this question satisfactory even 

 to our friends upon the Pacific slope." 



The Vice-President : "The question is on 

 the amendment of the Senator from New 

 York [Mr. Conkling]." 



The result was announced, as follows : 



YEAS Messrs. Anthony, Bruce, Burnside, Butler, 

 Cameron of Wisconsin, Cockrell, Conkling, Conover, 

 Davis of Illinois, Dawes, Edmunds, Ferrv, Garland, 

 1 lam liti. Hill, Hoar, Howe, Jones of Florida, Kernan, 

 McCreery, McMillan, Mcrhereon, Matthews, Maxey, 

 Me trillion, Merrill, Ogles by, Randolph, Rollins, Saun- 

 ders, Withers 81. 



NAYS Messrs. Allison, Bailey. Barn urn, Bayard, 

 Beck, Blaine, Booth, Cameron of Pennsylvania, Coke, 

 Dennis, Dorsev, Eaton, EustU, Gordon, Grover, 

 Hereford, Ingafls, Jones of Nevada, Kirkwood, La- 

 mar, McDonald, Mitchell, Morgan, Patterson. Plumb, 

 Ransom, Sargent, Sharon, Spencer, Teller, Thurraan, 

 Voorhees, Wallace, Windom 84. 



ABSENT Messrs. Chaffee, DavU of West Virgin- 

 ia, Harris. Johnson, Kellofi, Paddock, Saulsbury, 

 Shields, Wadleigh, Whyte 10. 



