The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-12-26

STRAIGHT AMERICANS.&

remarkable speech on "Americanism
in Politics" has just been delivered by Theo-
dore Roosevelt OF New York Mr.. Roosevelt
is The scion of one of the oldest Dutch set
tiers Of New Amsterdam. His family has
been American for ever so many genera
tions. If any man is fitted by origin to say
what constitutes the typical American he is
the man.
He plants himself at the start on plat
form broad enough for the most liberal. He
says:
Ii Is all right to admit and welcome foreigners
TO this county, but We have the right 10 demand
that they shall leave their native politics at home
and become real Americans. Ii is an outrage for
people living here citizens TO mix up foreign
politics with our politics. Americanism is not
matter of birth place or creed. Ii Is matter OF
spirit OF character, and OF loyal citizenship.
On this latter proposition lie dilates at
some length with excellent common sense.
ITO be foreign born" says he, does not
stand in the way of a man becoming
straight American" Some of the straight
est Americans he ever knew had first seen
the light in foreign lands. He instances
Mr. Lind If Minnesota, who was born in
Sweden; Mr.sMcAdoo Of New Jersey. who
was born in Ireland, and DIR. Lehlbach. also
of New Jersey. who was born in Germany. He
declares that the country contains no truer
Americans than these. Indeed, there are many
native Americans whom Mr.. Roo levelt think,
the country could far better afford 10 spare
than such adopted citizen as Carl Schurz.
This is snuDd doctrine 1t is not the acct
dent of birth Which stamps a man as a
straight American or otherwise. Ii is the
bent of the mind, the spirit and the honest.
loyal and exclusive devotion to American
ideas and American principles. The CON-
monwealth of the United States demands
of all its members an undivided allegiance
and faithful performance OF all the duties
of citizenship. If these are Forthcoming it
cares nothing about the fortuitouS chance
which has determined their birthplace.
The hostility to f0reign-born persons
which exhibits Itself in sporadic eruptions of
native American organizations, aud which
is occasionally reflected in the vote for can
didales of foreign birth. was the natural
consequence of attempts to induce voters
of foreign birth to cast solid vote for can
dldates OF their own race. When an asplr-
ing politician coerced a convention into
nominating him on the ground that he could
command the entire vote OF his former
nationality, citizens who were not members
of that nationality accepted the offer to
Wv iut NOtt> dCCpluIIS W III II, anu WcIe
sometimes as solid against the foreign born
candidate as his old countlymen were solid
in his favor. When it was explained that so
and so was nominated to conciliate the Pata-
gonian influence or to catch the vote Of the
Andaman Islanders native-born citizens
thought it was good time to show that the
American influence and the American vote
were also worth considering. Not that the
Patagonian or the Andaman Islander might
not be as good citizen as one racy of the
soil, but that his selection as such implied
that he was not wholly and entirely an
American, and that there still fingered in
his soul some remnant Of Patagonanism
which was inconsistent with the exclusive
allegiance this country expects of its citizens.
The platform which is occupied by the
Eastern opponents OF immigration from
Europe is so narrow that large party will
find ii difficult to stand upon it. Regula-
lions and restrictions, based on substantial
grounds, are proper enough. Thus the New
York Commissioners were quite right the
other day in remanding to Italy 400 Italians,
who were all paupers. with several diseased
persons and cripples among them and only
one trunk of clothes for the whole lot.
These were obviously undesirable immi-
grants and the existing statutes provide law
enough for their exclusion. But when at
tempts are made to shut the doors in the
faces of all, or all but few, a copsiderate
person will be likely to inquire whether the
country would have been gamer or a loser
by statute which had excluded Carl Schurz,
William McA1nO and John Conness