The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1892-08-26
ALIEN IMMIGRATION.
England Suffering from an Unwel-
come Influx.
victims of Persecution IN Continental
europe Taking Refuge IN Great Britain
Their Damaging Effect ON the
Working Glasses.

The immigration of foreign working
men and women into England in
past times has been of the very highest
service to the economical and social
progress of the country. Silk manu-
facture, so important branch of the
national industry, is only one of the
many pursuits that have been estab-
lished by aliens, who by religious or
political persecution had been forced To
leave their own country and follow their
own industrial pursuits in England.
Practically the descendants of these I'M
migrants have become English. and
their origin is lost sight of, for in
large number of cases they have Angl-
cized their names; the lie Roys nave
become Kings, the BoulangcrS Bakers,
and so on. Immigration of this kind
was most valuable To the prosecuted IN
dividuals who were forced into exile, and
To the country W hich received them and
benefited by their knowledge, thrift
and industry. But the London Queen
saws there is another kind of immigra-
ton which possesses none OF these adj
vantagcS and this i going on 10 an in
furious extent at the present time
that of the paupers from the eastern
countries of Europe, who have no
special knowledge, and, therefore, on
arriving in this country, have to com
pete with the lowest forms of unSllliled
labor and, consequently, lower the rate
of wages among the most destitute of
our working people. During the last
four months nearly $4,000 aliens have
arrived from the continent at the east
ern ports of Great Britain. OF these,
over 10. 600 expressed their intention OF
remaining in this country, and of the
81. 900 who declared themselves en- route
for America il is believed that n very
large proportion remained in this coun-
try. A considerable number of these
were Russian and German Jews, driven
away by the relentless persecution to
which they have been exposed.
That our own laboring poor should be
subjected to the competition arising
from such an influx of unsllillcd labor
is not to be contemplated with com
placency. The question of paupcr inn
migration is growing in urgency, and
its consideration cannot be much long
er ignored by the legislature. The ne
ceSsitv of an organization for the emf
grafton of our own redundant pOpula-
ton is recognized by all, but il would
be Il national calamity if we sent away
the best, the strongest and most skilled
of our worllingmen and women TO seek
their fortunes in our colonies, and per-
mitted the introduction Of an alien pop
ulation, unskilled, many Of them with
habits that are repugnant TO English
people, capable of living on such mcagcr
fare that they reduce the rate of wages
to the lowest possible point Yet this
is being done at the present time. The
prosecuted jews have during the last
four months arrived in England in
numbers greatly exceeding those of pre-
vious years and this during the time of
the passover and Eastertide, when the
poorest jew, if possible, refrains from
travelling. Nevertheless, 1.5OO q month
has been the excess over those that ar
rived during the year 1891, and ut the
present time we are not only threatened
with, but are suffering from, an influx
of anarchists from the continent. who
are fleeing from the courts of justice in
their own country.
1t is sincerely To be hoped that parlia-
ment viii not rise until avery stringent
measure for the suppression Of obnoX-
ious immigration has been passed. Our
transatlantic cousins, with unlimited
land requiring n large supply of labor,
decline 10 permit the Introduction Of
unsllillcd paupcr lahorcrs. With our
greatly redundant population. it is in
hnitcly more necessary that such a re-
striction should be carried into effect in
this country.