[1][2] The commissioners heard from 51 witnesses who submitted their testimonies to 27 questions regarding Chinese immigrants in Canada, and what policies should or should not be implemented to restrict them.
[1][2] In the 1880s, around 15,000 labourers from China came to Canada to work on the western section of the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) in British Columbia.
When the railroad was completed in 1885, Chinese labourers entered other industries like fishing and agriculture, or worked as domestic servants, among other things.
[2] A majority of their interviews were concentrated in Victoria rather than in the countryside where Chinese men competed for jobs, and many felt that this lost credibility for the report.
William Babcock, a resident of San Francisco, gave an overall positive testimonial citing that Chinese labor was cheaper, and that they do not get involved with politics as they are intending to return to their own country after amassing some wealth.
In Gray's personal report titled, "Respecting Chinese Immigration in British Columbia", he outlines the three distinct categories of public opinions on Chinese immigrants:[8] An intelligent minority conceived that no legislation whatsoever was necessary—that, as in all business transactions, the rule of supply and demand will apply and the matter regulate itself in the ordinary course of events.
A large majority thought there should be moderate restriction, based upon police, financial, and sanitary principles, sustained and enforced by stringent local regulations for cleanliness and the preservation of health.”[9] Despite anti-Chinese sentiments growing in Canada, Chapleau and Gray did not see Chinese immigration as a hindrance to British Columbia, instead viewing their labor as necessary.
They did not suggest the outright exclusion of Chinese immigrants, rather they opted for the consideration of a $10 head tax upon arrival in Canada.
[1][11] Following the Royal Commission was the passing of the first Chinese Immigration Act on 20 July 1885, which looked at the recommendations made by Chapleau and Gray.