Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-08-18
CASTLE GARDEN ABUSES
SOME INTERESTING FACTS
 FROM SUPT. JACKSON.
irving in This Country of Late Years An ImnrnNmcni-Thelr .,innnces.

An nImprovmcnt-TheIr finances.
 NEW YORK, Aug. lS.-Mr. Henry J. Jackson, Superintendent at Castle Garden, was the first witness examined yesterday | by the Congressional Immigration | Committee at the Westminster Botel. | Generally speaking, he said, the imml- migrants had of late years becn of better class moro intelligent and better fitted to | succeed in their newly adopted country | than the immigrants in earlier times. |
 He, of course, excluded therefrom the l Italians, Bohemians, and Polish and Rus sian Hebrews who had been coming over l in such large numbers the last two or | three years. Mir. Jackson detailed to the | Committee at length tho methods in vogue | at Castle Garden in handling tho Immi- i grants, and the precautions taken to pre- vent improper persons being allowed to land permanently and Do admitted to the Country. He said 354 persons were returned last year; tn at was all who ought to have been returned so far as the examination by tho Castle Garden authori- ties disclosed The witness thought the law governing the Castle Garden authori- ties was defective, the time allowed the officials to determine whether an immi- grant should be admitted was to short; they could only detain an immigrant until the return of the steamer on which he or she came out, generally about a week.
 Mir. Jackson said he should not consider an able bodied farm hand, man able to support himself by his labor, but who had no money, as pauper; he would prefer such a man to an ordinary. and perhaps physically weak clerk with $lOO in hls pocket; he though the latter would be moro likely to become public charge than the former; on the average, he thought the immigrants arriving in this country of late years were better and more intelligent class than in formery tears ;he immigrants did not bring on the average, as much money as formerly, particularly tho Germans; the immigrants had, however, brought on an average total of SS, COX, 900 in money into the country annually; the Slavs, Hungari- ans, and Poles were not us desirable immi- grants in some respects as the people of other nationalities; but there was this to be said about them, they never became charge on the Castle Garden authorities after their arrival; they found Il refuge and living somewhere with their COLI patriots.
 In regard to the baggage express scandal the witness said the prices were very ex tortionate, considering the amount of busi- ness monopoIiZed under the contract; the witness thought that the average amount received by the contractors for each piece of baggage handled should be 40 cents; the number of pieces handled last year was 240, 600. The contract was revokable at the pleasure of the Com , missioners.
 i The money changing or brokerage privi- ege at Castle Garden was next inquired into. The sum of $1,SN year is paid to the Commiss ion at present for this privi- lege Mir. Jackson said that the rates of l exchange are posted up in four places in the Garden, and the agent IS expected to charge the current rates in accordance with the fluctuations of Wall street and to change the quotations the bulletin i boards in accordance herewith from day 1 to day.
 The Castle Garden Railroad pool affairs were next inquired into. Mir. Jackson said that under the new arrangement existing in the Garden an immigrant could go by any route he desired, and he was not coN- 1 pelled to be separated from his family, as was sometimes formerly the case. There was railroad rate war now in existence, l and immigrants to-day could go to Chicago | for s, to Detroit for $S1, to St. Paul for S10, to San Francisco for .25, to New Or leans for S19. .75, to Milwaukee for S7. 5, and to Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo, or Pitts burg for s.
 Mr. Jackson said he did not know of any 1 baggage men, weighers, and others, de- manding fees from immigrants; if any were found doing so, they would be dis charged; tho rules were very strict on that point.
 l Superin tendent Jackson next told the Committee what had been done by the 1 Emigration Commss toner's and himself in the endeavor to enforce the provisions ot the contract labor law. Now the Castle 1 Garden authorities do nothinS i'll that di' rectiGn as they have not the means to en- force the law. They do not oven ask the immigrant If he has come out under con.
 tract; he did not believe any immigrant
 would admit that he had come
 out here and was attempting
 to land in violation of
 United States law; the Castle Garden au
 thorities could ask immigrants the Ques 1 tion without incurring extra expenses
 the expenses were incurred on follow | ing up what mightarise from those ques 1 tions. Tho witness said that the United
 States District Attorney had done
 nothing to enforce the law, hold
 ing that the remedy was by civil suit; aa
 appropriation had been made by Congress: ! to enforce the law, and there was no money ! to pay witnesses.
 Continuing his testimony, and in reply tt
 Congressman Guenther, Mir. Jackson said
 he was of opinion thai the express agen ! made greater profits now under the exist  l ing reduced prices and reduced rent thar 1 under the old arrangements. He also gav' l utterance to an opinion that seemed t. strike the Committee with favor, and thar
 was that immigrants should be afforded every accommodation at the lowest possi ble cost that could be obtained for them he did not believe the great State of New \ York wanted to take money from the i'm 3 migrants through tho privileged con. t l tractors.
 MT. Jackson made some valuable sugges } ! tions to the Committee based upon his OK } | periehce, among others one that the pass I ing upon the fitness of immigrants so ia
 as deciding whether they belonged to tn | criminal classes or not should not be lei g to private society, but to the police wA = were properly Chargeablc with such 8 \ duty.
 }, He thought as rule criminals were nor @ likely to come to this country in the cabl @ than in the steerage. The only way h d knew of to stop their laading was b ,- obtaining information of their coming i l. time from the police of Europe. The pass