Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1892-11-24
A Serious Question for Congress.

A Serious Question for Congress.
The fact that nearly 1000 steerage
passengers from Europe have been ad-
mitted to this port within week past
does not show that the restrictions i'm
posed upon immigration by President
Harrison's order of the 1st of Septem-
Der have been removed, or that the
order is not hereafter to be enforced.
The several steamships that have land
ed their passengers on Ellis Island
were authorized to do so by the Treas
ury Department, which has granted
the same privilege to a number of other
ships that are now on their way here
with clean bills of health and laden
with passengers who had been booked
before the issue of the Presidents or
der. But that order, which imposes
a quarantine of twenty days upon all
immigrant-carrying ships, has never
been rescinded, and Surgeon-General
Wyman has informed our Washington
correspondent that it will be enforced,
except in special cases, as long as there
is any danger that the cholera will be
brought here from foreign ports.
The stoppage of immigration for a
period of more than ten weeks, under
order of the President, is an incident
without precedent in our history. 1t
took place at a time when the volume
of immigration was extraordinarily
large. The number of immigrants who
arrived at our port during the eight
months of this year ending with Aug
ust last was twelve thousand greater
than the number who arrived during
the whole of last year, 1859 against
43o. 1874. 1t is very certain that, but
for the restrictions imposed by the
Presidents order, fully 100, ,000 foreign
ers would have been added to our pop
ulation within the current year. When
the bars were put up, the steerages of
the whole fleet of immigrant-carrying
ships were crowded to their utmost;
and we had abundant evidence from
Europe that this state of things would
continue for an indefinite period of
time.
The steamship companies are now
anxious to resume the i'm
migrant traffic, in which they have
found profit. They are restive under
the restrictions to which they are SUBJ
jected, and are striving to bring about
their removal at the earliest possible
The question of the regulation of
is of vital Importance to
the American people, and must be
tBken up in serious way at the OPEN
ing of the coming session of Congress.
It was trifed with all through the last
session. Bills about it were intro
1uced debates upon it were held !; |
to investigate it were |
appointed; and commissioners were |
sent abroad to gather facts regarding |
It. The Senate adopted a bill to |
which the house would not agree; the |
House adopted bill to which the SEN
.te did not agree; and thus the enact |
nent of any measure of any kind re- |
'pecting it was prevented. Some of |
he members, both Republican and |
were afraid to range them |
elves upon the question in the year of
! presidential election.
1t is not question for party divis-
on or for partisanship. It is a ques
io1 of craftsmanship, and of patriot
SIN, and OF the public welfare. It is a
question of exceeding gravity.
Our patriotic citizens of foreign
firth are not averse to intelligent leg
Station for the better regulation of i'm
nigration. It is as much to their in
crest as to the interest of native ,
americans that there should be prac- ]
icable and proper laws against the
Omission of undesirable immigrants"
uch as have come here without re- {
friction during the past few years.