Influence Of Chinese And Irish

Want to read the rest of this paper? Join Essayworld today to view this entire essay and over 50,000 other term papers

They came from different ends of the world to end up at a common destination: California. The Chinese were dreamers when they came to California; they hoped to profit from the Gold Rush. They left a feudal system that restricted many aspects off their lives (Daley 14-15). The Irish had visions of a more stable future, coming to California in search of steady jobs (Potter 621). They left Ireland for America to escape the Great Potato famine.
Long before the Gold Rush of 1849, the Chinese had known about the wealth that lay in America, or “the Mountain of Gold” (Sung 1-4; Howard 225). Legend told of a place where the precious metal was bountiful. They dismissed this until a few daring men found wealth in America. Many were drawn to the prospect of easy money and by 1850 nearly 25,000 Chinese had immigrated to California (Sung 5; Daley 26-27). Some searched the deserted land claims for overlooked gold, while other Chinese were hired by successful gold miners as cooks, houseboys, ...

Get instant access to over 50,000 essays. Write better papers. Get better grades. Already a member? Login

cases, white men imported Chinese laborers in crowded ships, much like the African slaves, and “hired” at auctions (Hogg 72-73). The Chinese were also looking for a way out of poverty and slavery and saw the transcontinental railroad as a means of escape. During the Civil War, the wealthy were able to buy their way out of the draft, leaving the poor to fight. The Irish made up a large portion of those in poverty and were often drafted. They saw this a way for the government to justify unjust social distinctions (Moynihan 64). As a way to avoid the draft, the Irish signed up to work to build the transcontinental railroad.
The Chinese had a valuable asset that would contribute to the ...

Succeed in your coursework without stepping into a library. Get access to a growing library of notes, book reports, and research papers in 2 minutes or less.

CITE THIS PAGE: