BEE, His Imperial Chinese Majesty’s Consul to Chen Shu Tang , His Imperial Chinese Majesty’s, December 8, 1880

Report of F. A. Bee, Chinese consul.

Sir: I have the honor to report to your excellency that in accordance with your instructions given me to “visit the city of Denver, State of Colorado, and investigate the acts of a mob that destroyed the lives and property of Chinese subjects residing there on the 31st day of October, 1880, and communicate the result of such investigation to you.”

In conformity therewith, I left this consulate on Tuesday, November 23, arriving at Denver at midnight of the 27th, having been detained en route twenty hours by snow storms. Returning, I left Denver December 1, arriving here on the 5th, having been delayed twenty-four hours by extreme cold weather and snow storms.

The city of Denver is distant by rail from San Francisco 1,530 miles; the city proper has a population of nearly 40,000 souls, including about 450 Chinese.

Immediately upon my arrival, I called a meeting of the resident Chinese and made known to them my mission as well as your instructions, requesting that they should promptly furnish me a true and correct statement of their losses by the mob of October 31, 1880. In due time and in compliance with my request I received one hundred and forty-one vouchers of losses in detail, each article lost or destroyed, as well as money, being given, and value carried out. To obviate and condense this large number of claims I caused to be made a balance-sheet of the true total of each claim, requiring each one to make oath to its correctness after signature. I herewith transmit to your excellency these sworn statements, numbered respectively from 1 to 141.

That you may see what the property lost generally consists of, I refer you to claims No. 1 and from 136 to 141; the articles being specified will give you a good idea of all.

To further carry out your requests, I called upon prominent citizens of Denver to obtain information as to the cause that led to this mob violence against the Chinese, its origin, &c.

For a full and correct (as I was informed) history of the outrage, I call your excellency’s attention to Document A, consisting of four pages of printed matter, extracts from the press of Denver giving full details published the day following the riot. Also Document B, containing the statement of M. M. Pomeroy, esq., a prominent citizen of Denver, to whose endeavors may be credited what action was taken to quell the riot, however weak and unsuccessful.

To enable you to judge as to the action of the city and county authorities towards the punishment of the leaders in this riotous proceeding, I procured after considerable delay the evidence of several witnesses, taken before the coroner’s jury at the inquest over the dead body of Look Young. (See Document C.) Page 1 contains the verdict or findings of the jury. I call your attention therein to the strong language used towards the authorities.

Your attention is respectfully called to my letter to their excellencies, the Chinese ministers, giving the particulars in reference to the deceased Chinaman, place of nativity, age, &c.

I desire to call your attention to the case of Wong Tan Chung, whose claim for losses is numbered 86. He received most brutal treatment from the mob; a rope was placed about his neck, and he was dragged through the street, at the same time being beaten and bruised in a most cruel manner, and would no doubt have been murdered had not a citizen cut the rope and thus enabled him to escape from his would-be murderers. Many other cruel deeds might be enumerated. I was informed that seven Chinamen were temporarily stopping in Denver over Sunday (the day of the riot), intending to leave on Monday for China; that they came from the Black Hawk mine, where they had been engaged in mining; each one had from $700 to $1,000 in money, all of which was taken from them by the mob, as well as having their personal effects destroyed. These men had left Denver when I arrived, and I could not get such information as would enable me to present to you their loss. I would suggest that efforts be made to find their present place of residence.

I learned from an officer of the city government of Denver that upwards of 400 Chinese were placed in the county prison and kept there for three days as a measure of precaution. In fact during the prevalence of the riot 150 were taken out of their houses by citizens and placed in jail. As no guard was placed over their property or places of business the mob had free access to rob at their leisure.

The utter incompetency of the authorities to put down the mob was evident, and such was the opinion expressed to me by all.

I took occasion to call upon the mayor of Denver (Mr. Sporis), with the view of obtaining further information in this connection. In this I failed, as the whole interview was taken up by the mayor in describing to me how he dispersed the mob by the use of water. To quote his words: “When I found that they were determined to kill as well as rob, I ordered the firemen to throw the water upon them, which made them scatter.”

Thus you can judge what protection the Chinese residents of Denver had from its officials when they were being robbed and murdered by a drunken mob.

In this connection I call your attention to the fact that the entire police force of the city consists of only 15 men, with no discipline or organization to cope with an emergency; but the facts show that the mob had no opposition from 2 o’clock until 10 p.m., when their murderous work was complete.

I also called upon his excellency Governor Pitkin, but found him engaged with the State board of canvassers, and therefore failed to see him.

In reference to the cause that brought about this riot, there was but one opinion among all classes of good citizens—that the Chinese residents had given no cause for the outrage, but, on the contrary, were law-abiding and peaceable. My attention was directed to the fact that not one of the 400 resident Chinese had ever been before the courts of Denver for the crime of theft; therefore the only object the mob had was rapine and murder.

I have, &c.,