America 1881: They Call Me Legend

Chapter 256 A Bill

Nov. 1881, 3

Washington, Capitol.

The weather is not very good, the sky is covered with dense clouds, and occasionally there will be sunlight, passing through the gaps in the clouds, and shining on the white dome in the middle of the Capitol, reflecting a pale light.

A gust of cold wind blew by, blowing the young shoots that had been pulled out on the tree, and rolled them up again.

In the early spring of the United States, it was warm and cold.

Compared with the cold outside, in the House of Representatives inside the Capitol, the quarrels were in full swing.

"Dear Mr. Speaker, please allow me to state my point of view again. The issue of immigration of Chinese laborers along the Pacific coast has reached a time when it has to be resolved."

The person who spoke was a middle-aged man with his hair neatly thrown back, waving a newspaper in his hand and showing it to everyone.

"Ten days ago, that is, on March 3, a large-scale mass rally took place in San Francisco, California. More than 4 people gathered inside and outside the venue, and they were looking forward to the passage of this bill!"

He unfolded the newspaper and recited the content recorded in the newspaper to everyone.

"...the entire rally was conducted in a peaceful and calm order, and all sectors of society sincerely expressed their views. Whether it was a business or a government agency, the work was suspended for a day, as if observing a statutory holiday..."

"This is the voice of the people, and we should choose to listen!"

His spittle was flying all over the place, and his expression was contagious.

"When did Page become so eloquent?"

In the corner seat of the House of Representatives, a younger congressman asked an old man with a white beard beside him, "What do you think of this?"

"There is probably no suspense. The Senate voted to pass this bill a few days ago." The old man with the white beard was obviously an old fritter.

He is one of only fourteen non-Democrats or Republicans in the House of Representatives.

The old man leaned back on the chair, which would make him more comfortable: "The people who support the bill are mainly the Democrats in the western and southern states, while the Republicans in the central and eastern states who are vocally opposed to the bill are not willing to Offend the labor group and do this kind of thankless thing."

It's all about votes!

The old man smiled: "Their advantages after the war have been exhausted in the economic crisis of the past few years."

"So, we can only see if anyone is willing to say something in good conscience."

Representative Horace Page of California continued his speech:

"On the other side of the continent, they have [-] million people, a third of the world's population, and that's a huge cloud hanging over the virgin land of the Pacific coast."

He looked around: "I believe that many of you have the same opinion as me. If you don't control it, her people will swarm like locusts. This is no different from aggression!"

There was a lot of discussion in the House of Representatives, and the members began to discuss with each other. Obviously, most of them agreed with him.

Page's voice became louder and more serious: "They are philistine and cunning, and they will usurp our resources! They will make our workers lose their jobs..."

"Rep. Page! This is an inflammatory accusation. I don't think it's a glorious thing to use this to accuse a vulnerable group. This kind of speech is inappropriate in the House of Representatives. .”

A man in a black suit with a long black beard stood up and walked to the table opposite Page.

His eyes are piercing, and his figure is as tall and straight as a pine tree.

Everyone's eyes followed him, and at the same time they saw a thick report in his hand.

George Hoar, a congressman from Massachusetts.

He raised the stack of reports in his hand and showed it to everyone.

"This is a survey report in 1876. The report clearly pointed out that the Chinese population in the United States is only 10, and the vast majority of them are adult male laborers. They did not consume public education, medical care, etc. resource."

Hower paused and continued.

"Most of the witnesses in the investigation report used the words 'hardworking', 'quiet' and 'reliable' to describe the Chinese workers they had contact with."

"Among them, the railway tycoon Crocker pointed out that the Chinese are doing jobs that others are unwilling to do; the farmer Hollister also said that the Chinese farm workers he hired are rare 'agricultural experts'". "

"At the same time, he also reminded the investigative committee to pay attention to the outstanding contribution of the Chinese to California agriculture." Hall closed the report and glanced at Page, "As a Californian, you shouldn't be ignorant of this. "

"But the salary they can accept is too low, which greatly crowds out other people's opportunities to work." Page was a little anxious.

"Ridiculous! Isn't this our own problem? If only based on this point, it is untenable to say that the Chinese have robbed the workers of their jobs!" Hall took a breath.

The flesh on Page's face was jumping, but he quickly changed the subject: "I would like to emphasize that those Chinese cannot be assimilated, they have no beliefs, and they have never planned to settle here. Every penny is sent home."

"They are here to plunder wealth." Page emphasized the word "plunder".

Hall shook his head: "The Chinese have been severely discriminated against. If the Chinese cannot be assimilated, it is because they have never been given such rights. Can their experience in California make them accept assimilation?"

"The Constitution tells us that everyone should be free and equal, and this should not change because of the color of the skin or race."

Hall turned to face the majority of Republicans in the House.

"The Republican Party, being the party of Lincoln, the party that freed black slaves, and the party that fought for the rights of black people, now supports a racist bill. Aren't you ashamed?"

There was a lot of discussion in the parliament again, with accusations, disdain, and silence.

"Howl is crazy." The young man whispered to the old man beside him.

The old man sighed.

"Quiet!" The speaker of the House of Representatives spoke. He was a little tired of the atmosphere of today's meeting, and he only hoped that Hauer would step down quickly: "Do you have anything else to say?"

Hall nodded to the Speaker of the House of Representatives:
"I know that maybe what I said today was nothing more than Don Quixote rushing towards the windmill. However, I think it is still necessary to speak out."

"This is a battle between wolves and sheep. The sheep are the ones who suffer. The wolves are the ones who should be changed. The wolves have been attacking and the sheep have been punished and slaughtered. We really want to end this situation in this way." Is it a wolf-sheep conflict?"

"It's over, Speaker."

Howl picked up the report on the table and walked to his seat.

He was expressionless and didn't look at the others present.

"Okay, let's vote then."

In the final result, the House of Representatives passed the bill with 167 votes in favor (66 votes against).

Soon after, the bill was placed on the table of President Chester Arthur, who argued that skilled labor should not be subject to the treaty, and that the 20-year period was too long and should be shortened to ten.

On May 1882, 5, the President signed the amended and passed bill, and the bill came into effect.

And it was almost the same day that the bill came into force.

Chen Jianqiu appeared in San Francisco.

　You may not like to read this chapter, and you may not be happy, but I really want to write it. Let me write a chapter that is self-willed. It does not represent any tendency, and it is only restored based on the data.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)