Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1855-07-20
!. Foreign paupers and cr,mnal..,,

munlty or less popular fengl0uS denomination. By
the frequency of its repetition and its nyariabe use
in all cases when reference is made to emigrants OF
naturallzed citizens, evident intention is betrayed
to convey the impression that of such are these
mainly composed. That such is not the case the |
common sense of every observer as we'll as the stats.
Tics of the country, will bear abundant testimony
That OF the coming before the judicial tribunals
an undue proportion is furnished by foreigners we
fully admit-that the proportion of pauperism among
them is greater than among native citizens is equally
certain. This is assuredy the view at first sight,
and the showing is therefore unfavcurabe to the emf
grant But we think that further consideration
is necessary to full understanding and appreciation
OF the case in all it's bearings, and that when this
consideration has been bestowed the outcry raised
against foreign BON citizens will be found possessed
of much smaller foundation in fact than most PEG.
pie aware Of.
in the Northern Cities as New York, Philadelphia,
Boston, ETC.. there are Thousands of the aboring COM
munty hanging, and always hanging, upon the very
verge of want, living from hand to mouth barely
able, when in full work. 10 support their families,
and when thrown out of employment by some Of the
evulsions of trade, disabled by sickness OF &C
ciden, without any capital to fall back upon Unless
y
be assisted by the public The friends or connec-
tons OF the emgrant generality the same sphere
OF AZ with himself, and however strong the will,
the power to ,ist him wanting. Now, every
body who has travelled North knows that the most
laborous and unremunerative employmentS filled
by emigrants-they must work and they do work at
mere labo:, for which the compensation is not suf6
Gent to support them, and provide fund to meet ac-
cidents contingencies. They form the great labor
ing class that class from which the step absolute
want is smallest, and their pauperism is in nine
GU. of ten involuntary If they were taken away
and their plan as hewers of wood and drawers of
water supplied by the natives of the soil, it is
tremey doubtful whether the case would be materi-
ally changed. Ii is the nvariabe result of the rea
tions of labor and capital subject to the fluctuations
OF trade, and unregulated by any definite system,
it is at the South. By labor or abor-work we have
meant, of course mere unskled, labor not mechani
cal ingenuity although even that is more or less af
fected.
Now, as for criminals and criminality. There are
several kinds and degrees of these. AS for eXelu-
ding the hardened sinner, the regular Jail bird by
any civil disabilities, of that is nonsense since
he don't care q straw about any such thing Nor
would heavy capitalon tax keep such out. The
fancy man can always get or steal money enough to
pay any tax imposed. But, we have said there are
several kinds of criminals. There is Tim Rooney
who piled spade and wheel-barrow at building the
New Haven Railroad, for, perhaps, five dollars
week. Well Tim. perhaps, gets small portion of
whisIey down his throat, and knocks somebody down,
Or somebody knocks him down, and he becomes
"toreign criminal" The President or Agent of that
Cd fob anH 1voc
in style-he swi1 dies the widow and the orphan--he
destroys public conference.-the makes panic, the
effects of which are felt throughout the country, and
which we, here feel even panic which para
yses Internal Improvement throughout the land
which throws the honest Woodworking sons of toll
out of employment and deprives their wives and
children of bread There are other criminals in this
weld besides I i'm Rooney, and those like him. There
aye those who, if not foreign pauperso live in great
style by making paupers Of others-by beggaring the
widow and the orphan, AID spreading panic and dis
tress throughout the land. The Schuy lers and the
Tuckermans and hundreds Of others like them, would
no doubt have taken great pleasure in faWning upon
an English Lord French Count, or their Wallets
passing as such, while they would sheer in choice
phrase at Tim Rooney, foreign pauper and GRIM
jnal, even though their own operations had created
the crash that threw the said Tim ont of work
made him pauper, or induced him to take the drink
under the influence of which he knocked somebody
down and became criminal,
/ What then! Are we to denounce the whole body
! of American merchants and business men because
some monstrous villanies have been discovered Of
men who have figured largely in their ranks Are we
to sci them all down as Schuylers and Tuckermans,
and so forth. By no means. BY no means. We
! know that the body Of the country is sound. Its
business men honest, conscientious and enterprising.
1t will not do to denounce classes because some
are bad Not even the apostles Of our Saviour
could stand that test, for one of them was traitor
| and betrayed his master, Neither shoulI citizens
of foreign birth be denounced class for
the faults OF few. Even among emigrants their
peculiar faults and faings much the result
of circumstances Of anything else Nor after all
Go we think that naturalzed citizens will be found
universally or even generally, the foolish, ignorant
persons that some self sufficient people would repre-
sent them.
Unfortunately, there is too much OF pain, and pow
erty, and want, and wjckedness in this imperfect
world of ours. We all have failings and our
shortcomings, and a sense of this ought to be suf
| cient TO make us judge chariably of others. A
proud and generous people will deal fairly IN this
matter They will see exactly to what this talk
about foreign paupers and criminals amounts. They
will see that crime is not confined TO the poor labor
ing emigrant but is one of the ailings of weak hu
man nature. If Tim Rooney, the lrishman, knocks
somebody down, Mr.. Schuyler the ''great fnancier,
cheats thousands. There great many ways Of
L A. H. 49, Ii