Blue-grass blade. [volume] (Lexington, Ky.) 188?-19??, 1892-01-09

Jessamine Warns Against to
Much "Foreign Immigra-
tiOn."
To THE EDITOR OF THE BLU
GRASS BLADE.-The first settler
of our country, while it was
mighty wilderness, considered
themselves in voluntary exile
After the close of the Revolution
ary war. this feeling extensively
prevailed in all the colonies.
They seemed to want nothin.
80 much as inhabitants even aftel
they had grown so numerous a
to feel no fear of the Indians
Still there was an almost bonnd
less continent before them. They
felt the want of people on all ac-
counts; to clear off the woods. tt
cultivate the lands, to carry OF
the manual arts, to promote the
liberal sciences, and, in short
form all the grand objects ofpeact
and war.
When the present Federal Gov
ernment was formed it could moi
but SAVIOR of those notions of gov.
eminent which were co-extensive
with the early inhabitants of our
country, and had been coeval with
their first settlement in this coun-
try in 1907 to 1920.
To increase the population OF
our extensive territories, provision
was made for the encouragement
of immigration.
A writer at that period says
"The warm benevOlence of many
individuals prompted them to in
stitute societies for the aid of all
poor immigrants. and legal pro-
vision was made that in short
time, and with little trouble, they
might become our fellow citizens
and partake of all the privileges
and immunities of our country.
Nor did our zeal to promote the
cause of foreigners stop here.
Many of them, in various parts,
were elevated to high and import
ant offices, and were allowed to
share largely in the honors and
of government.
1t is not unlikely however that
the future historian will be COM
PEELED to say that our government,
in relation to foreigners, commit
ted great error through excess of
an error that will some
day give our people another civil
war which will be ten-fold more
severe and destroying in its
ravages than that of 1861.
In general, l have long believed
that the incentives to immigration
to this country ct this time are
needless and decidedly unsafe.
From the natural progress b of
our population fifty or sixty years
ago, our increase was great; almost
without a parallel.
Far distant from the dessolating
wars of Europe, our early settlres
we're from the best blood of Eng
and; dwelt in the bosom of peace
and plenty, and under the smiles
Of Providence, had yearly acces-
sions of strength more to be relied
On than the mercenary wretches
who are flooding our country, by
hundreds of thousands every
week.
1 have not here the time to
fully the significance of
this great question of foreign inn
migration. But none can fail to
see that an annual irruption into
this country of half million of
people is from the most degraded
class of the population of European
people. They are, as every intel
ligent man knows, twice as ignO-
rant as we are, and seven times as
lawless, and seven times as help
less; and, in nine cases out Of ten,
more degraded than our negroes.
l feel certain that the results are
evil, and that nothing good can
come out of such movement of
the European population to seek
homes in our country. Let any
intelligent man visit our large
cities and new states. and see the
in our Western cities
and territories. If he be an
by birth he will often
be- insulted with the utmost con
tempt by the ignorant Swedes and
Norwegians of Minnesota and
Nebraska end Wisconsin.
In these states the Scandinavian
population is very great, and they
are much opposed to the free in
stitutiOns of this country. They
read their own newspapers and
hate the English language. With
in the last few years any man OF
common observation can see at
once an ominous change in the
demeaner of our foreign popula-
ton. They seem to be steadily
seeking to overthrow our institu-
tions, whenever those institutions
happen to conflict with their
prejudices or hatreds engendered
in their own minds in the darkness
of their native despotisms.
The wise Sunday laws which
were once SO general in our Com
monwealth are a living evidence
of the intimate connection O
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