The Morning Astorian

SMUGGLING IN CHINAMEN

American and Canadian Officials Work in Conjunction to Prevent It.

MONTREAL, April 27.--The United States government and the Canadian government are combining in an effort to stop the smuggling of any unlawful influx of Chinamen into Canada and the United States.

Both countries have suffered within the last few years and Canada has unintentionally helped to break the United States exclusion law.

A representative of the United States customs department is in Ottawa at present acting in conjunction with the Canadian officers. From what has been discovered, the Canadian authorities are convinced that many more Chinamen than the law permits have come into Canada in bond for the last few years and have then mysteriously disappeared. It is to the interest of the transportation companies to see that the law is obeyed and, therefore, the authorities say, it must have been customs officials who, through neglect or otherwise, have permitted these men to disappear. It is stated that evidence has been secured against several of these officials and that a general shake up will soon follow.

On an average 2000 Chinamen have been imported into Canada for the last five years. Each year about 500 of these have gone through in bond to Jamaica and other places, under the padrone system. About 500 a year were entitled to stay here by paying the $100 a head tax and the remainder should have been deported to China, but only a small percentage were so deported.