# Arrest in Chinatown, San Francisco, Cal

This film shows the arrest and conveyance of a Chinese man in Chinatown, watched by a crowd of onlookers. The precise date of this film and the arrest charge are uncertain. It is possible that the arrest was connected with the smuggling of illegal immigrants from China. By mutual agreement between China and the United States, a small quota of merchants and students was allowed to immigrate yearly, but few legal immigrants actually were of these professions, and illegal immigration continued. One of the San Francisco residences for new arrivals was located at 830/832 Washington Street, the general location from which the arrest party ascends at the start of the film. A second possible cause for the arrest is tong activity. Chinatown at this time was plagued with warfare between various tongs (gang associations of rootless and under-enfranchised immigrants and non-family members). The murder of tong kingpin Fong Ching - called "Little Pete" - in January 1897 set off a flurry of tong violence that continued for months. The practice of tying the queue up on the head, a fashion supposedly confined to tong "hit men" called "highbinders" was in fact common among laborers. The arrested man has followed this practice and his rough canvas jacket suggests he is a peddler or shophand by (legitimate) profession. A third possible arrest charge may involve illegal gambling. Stout's Alley was lined with gambling houses, many owned by the late Fong Ching. Pawnbroker shops were nearby. The…

- Kind: Documentary
- Year: 1897
- By: Paper Print Collection (library Of Congress)
- Genres: Documentary, History, Silent
- Archive: [Library of Congress](https://www.loc.gov/item/00694412/)
- Licence or status: Rights statement at the Library of Congress (as the archive states it)
- Credit: Library of Congress
- Who can watch: Tweens profiles and older (the archive gives no rating; placed by Invisible Network from its collection and subjects)

[Watch now](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/watch/archive/loc/00694412?play=1)