The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-05-18

Scotch birth or ancestry; / am OF Scotch
ancestry myself but am more proud that
my great grandfather came over and en-
listed in Washington'3 army and proud
that my line of Anderson's have become
Apericans of Americans. While, as in
the beginning of the settlement of(this
land we welcomed the Puritapsf from
England. the covenantess from Scotland,
the Presbyterians from the north of Ire
land, the Dutch. Reformed from Holland
and the HugueEot3 from France, so new
would we welcome such immigrants from
any country on the globe. Even John
Chinaman we would welcoms, coming
without his pigtail and opium and COM
ing to stay and become citizen. The
idea brings many hither that we are a
rich nation. We are, with sixty-eight
billion of wealth: enough to give a $1,000
TO every man, woman and child OF our
population. But aIasl how much misery,
want and vice we have. In New York
city in one square mile of dense popula-
tion are 100 saloon, 500 brotbels, where
5000 girls are kept for vilest purposes "to
whom absinthe and other polsons bring
death at last" In that city are more Irish
than In Dublin, more Germans than in
Berlin and more Italians than in Florence.
The bohemian qusrter in Chicago has
80. COO Bohemians who speak their foreign
tongue and keep up their foreign GUS
toms, boding no good TO US. In 1880 we
had 219 cities; now 315 cities, with one
third of the population in them. What
government is in the cities of the land,
the government of the nation will be
soon. While our population has increased
20 per cent, crime has increased q per
cent. OF the 1900 paupers in the United
States three-fifths are immigrants. OF
300 criminals, 1000 were males; 100 fe-
males. Truly we better be with the wo-
men in the prayer meetings than with
the men in the jails. New England is
becoming New France. 1t ia serious
question then, what class is going to gov
orn this nation. Why allow this unre-
stricted immigration? Why allow so
much pauperism, unskilled labor and
nihilstic elements to pour in upon US.
Let Congress see to this. Let us keep our
Sabbath, which from holy Day is be-
com ing a holiday and Is likely to become
a work day soon. Let us keep up the
free common school. Make 1t more what
ii was when 1t was begun In Massachu-
setts In 1864; truly religious, though not
sectarian school. Let no money go for
sectarian schools. If some will havo
them, keep them open to inspection of the
government. And surely the Bible is
not a sectarian book. The foes of the
common school or of the Bible in them
would not want to say that or they would
would not want to. Japan, the England
OF the Orient has taken great strides in
three decades past by adopting our COM
mon school system. Freedom to worship
and common schools have made this land
one that people think is worth coming to-
But unless they will accept what they
find which made US great, and conform
thereto, we do not want them among
the governing element of the United
States. AS Christianity settled this coun-
trv. so may a glad, progressive, educating,
refining Christianity still be dominant
AS II. b. Hayes, the beloved ex.presi-
dent said: "The country is in better
hands than mine; 1t is in Gods hands" 4"
So let us all believe. And then can we
take up John q. Whittier's hymn:
''The good ship Unions voyage 10 o'er,
At anchor safe she swings"