William Hepworth Dixon, White Conquest: Volume 2

“ [279] attention of Congress to the generally-conceded fact that the great proportion of Chinese immigrants who come to our shores do not come ostensibly to make their homes with us and their labour productive of general prosperity, but they come under a contract with head-men, who own them almost absolutely. In a worse form does this apply to Chinese women. Hardly a perceptible percentage of them perform honourable labour; they are brought for shameful purposes, to the disgrace of the community where settled, and to the great demoralization of the youth of those localities. If this evil practice can be legislated against, it will be my pleasure as well as duty to enforce any regulation to ensure so desirable an end.”

In Californian eyes, such words seem poor and weak. “ If you compare this Message with the actual facts, what can you call such words but drivel?” the Senator proceeds: “Here, in Sacramento, we have no illusion on the subject of this coming in of Asiatic scum. The mandarins are emptying all their cesspools on our coast. You doubt! I tell you China is an overcrowded country, where people ”