1908 - Royal Commission Appointed to Inquire into the Methods by which Oriental Labourers Have Been Induced to Come to Canada

Sikhs burning body as funeral ritual, Donald, BC. [Howson Collection.] image courtesy of Revelstoke City Museum and Archives, Revelstoke, BC. HOWS 02

This Royal Commission occurred because there had been a large influx of Asian (Japanese, Sikh and Chinese) immigration and many of the white population were concerned that the Asian workers were taking white peoples' jobs. As well, the Oriental population increased substantially despite the 1904 increase in the headtax to $500. The Commission aimed to discover why the population had continued to increase, and to decide what can be done to remedy the 'situation'.

The man in charge of the Commission was named W.L. MacKenzie King. He later went on to be the longest serving Prime Minister of Canada. In 1923, while MacKenzie King was in office, the Chinese Exclusion Act came into effect. The act banned Chinese people from entering Canada and stayed in place until 1947.

From: Ludwig, Emil, MacKenzie King: A Portrait Sketch, Toronto: The MacMillan Company of Canada Limited, 1944.

W.L. MacKenzie King concluded that the immigration of Chinese during the past year has been due largely to the interest taken by those already in this country in their friends and relatives in China. Among the Chinese the family bond is a close one, and in their recognition of its obligations they set an example to other peoples. The number of Chinese in this country being so considerable, it is not surprising, all things considered, that their relatives and friends should be coming in the numbers they are. - - page 73, 1908 Royal Commission

Excerpt from a letter written to the Honourable W.J. Bowser, K.C., Attorney General, Victoria, B.C. from Charles Wilson, December 9, 1907 - page 3

The Chinese who had all paid the head tax, were not of the coolie class, but rather belonged to those who hoped for employment as clerks, domestic servants and waiters, and some few students, who of course expected to earn a remission of the head tax. The wages of domestic servants having since the imposition of the head tax nearly doubled, it is easily understood that they can repay the $500.00 in from two to two and a half years, and still receive a good monthly wage.

July 1 parade, Cranbrook Dragon Dancers, Cranbrook, BC. (195-) image courtesy of Fort Steele Heritage Town Archives FS 455.12

The situation for Chinese people did not improve following the 1908 Commission, in fact it worsened. The Chinese Exclusion Act was the final exercise that expressed the true and terrible feelings white people in Canada held for Chinese people. Chinese people were not permitted to vote, buy Crown land, work at certain professions, nor were they welcomed into the country. Following WWII, after Chinese had fought for Canada, the situation changed and Chinese were given the franchise and allowed to enter the country. White prejudice, however, in many forms still remained a large part of the lives of Canadian Chinese.