Mr. Wu to Mr. Adee.
Washington, August 20, 1902.
Sir: I have had the honor to receive the note of your Department of the 22d ultimo, in which you embody the views of your honorable colleague the Secretary of the Treasury regarding the suggestions made by me as to the spirit in which the laws of the United States for the immigration of Chinese should be enforced, in view of the recent action of Congress.
In my note of May 19 last I set forth the reasons which induced me to make the suggestion, and I have no desire to elaborate them more fully at this time. I shall, therefore, as briefly as possible notice the points of the letter of the Secretary of the Treasury, which seem to call for some reply on my part.
I beg to assure that high official that I was not laboring under any misapprehension as to the authority by which the regulations as to Chinese immigration were issued. I was quite aware that they appear by the authority of and in the name of the Secretary of the Treasury. I merely followed the common language in use in referring to them as regulations of the Immigration Bureau. But at the same time I suppose I am not in error in believing that these regulations are drafted by the Bureau, and that in passing upon them the Secretary is greatly controlled by the views and information which he receives from the Bureau officials. Hence I deemed it opportune to make the suggestion I did, in view of the change in the head of that Bureau, which the President had found it necessary to make.
Neither do I think the honorable Secretary is warranted in the inference that I was misled as to the significance of the debate in and the action of the Senate on the Chinese immigration bills before that body. It was clearly understood that the bill reported by the Committee on Immigration was drawn up in consultation with the officials of the Immigration Bureau, and it certainly did seek to enact into law the regulations of the Treasury Department against which I have had so much occasion to remonstrate and which are briefly specified in my note of May 19.
Each one of the sections of the bill containing these objectionable regulations was openly attacked by Senators as unjust or violative of the treaties, and the Senate by a distinct vote refused to incorporate [Page 221] them into laws. Under such circumstances I still think I was justified in asking that they be not further enforced, and it is a great disappointment to me to learn that the Secretary of the Treasury insists that they shall not only continue to be enforced, but that he sanctions the adoption of additional regulations equally as objectionable as those cited.
I have additional reason for regret at the letter of the Secretary because of the unfavorable influence it must have upon the negotiations which are so soon to take place, in view of the early expiration of the immigration treaty.
Accept, etc.,