Author: Chinese Immigration.
Title: Petition. Arrest of Chinese Immigration. Laid upon the council table by the Honorable W.H.F. Mitchell ... 15th July, 1857. [with] Influx of the Chinese. Petition ... 7th August 1857. [with] Influx of the Chinese. Petition ... 7th August 1857. [with] Petition. Influx of Chinese ... 12th August 1857. [with] Influx of the Chinese. Petition ... 2nd October 1857. [with] Report of the Select Committee ... on the subject of Chinese Immigration, together with proceedings of the committee and minutes of evidence.
Description: Melbourne, Govt Printer 1857. Six papers foolscap, disbound; the petitions one page each, the report viii,28pp. ¶ The first petition, from the Local Court of Castlemaine, is the more verbose about the evils and dangers of the Chinese inundation but unspecific about remedies, calling only for more cogent legislation. The second, also from the Local Court of Castlemaine brings a memorial unanimously approved by "large and influential meetings". The third is from members of the Local Court of Fryer's Creek. The fourth, from the inhabitants of Geelong, is brief and firm, calling for a poll-tax and the outlawing, with severe penalties, of the Chinese passenger trade and the last is from some 1600 gold miners and residents of Campbell's Creek calling on the government to rid them of these Pagan idolaters.The committee, chaired by Pascoe Fawkner, examined a proposed bill to regulate the Chinese population and a number of witnesses, including a couple of detectives, the Chinese Protector at Sandhurst who was either the most ignorant or most honest of the witnesses, William Young, the missionary who produced a report on the Chinese of Victoria a decade later, and local merchant Kong Meng who spoke of some atrocious behavior by Europeans on the goldfields. The act, printed at the end, is recommended with a couple of amendments and consists of a hefty poll tax and punitive licensing system.

Keywords: history Chinese immigration emigration political economy government race Australia China c19th yellow peril law Asia gold racism