The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-12-11
TO CLOSE OUR FLOOD GATES.
Senate Substitutes the Lodge Immigration

Senate Substitutes the LOuse Immigration
 Bill.
 Washington, Dec. 1O,-In the senate, this afternoon, the bill to amend the immigration laws was taken up as the unfinished business, MT, Gibson, dem., of Maryland, favored the postponement of consideration of the bill till after the holidays.
 MT. Lodge, rep, of Massachusetts, in charge of the bill opposed any post ponement, saying that the measure was extremely moderate, and that the only opposition to it came from certain steamship companies interested in the immigration business.
 Mir. Gibson made the formal motion that the bill be postponed till the first Monday in January. He did not know, he said, what might be the interests of the steamship companies. He did not represent them. But the state of Maryland was never in it's history more opposed than it was now to restrictions on immigration, believing that the re- strictions in the existing law were pre- judicial to her interests.
 MT. Chandler, rep, of New Hamp- shire, opposed the motion to postpone and argued in favor of immediate &C., ton on the bill.
 A colloquy arose between Senators Gibson and Lodge on the subject of the last report of the commissioner of in- migration, MT. Gibson having read a paragraph in which the commission says that immigrants who are not able to read and write are not always the most undesirable and MT. Lodge hav- ing intimated that the word always" had been omitted in the reading.
 The motion to postpone the bill was negatived-yes, 19; nays, 57,
 The senate substitute for the house bill was agreed to; and then the sub stitute was open for independent amendments
 MT, Sewell, rep, of New Jersey, nov ed to amend the first paragraph so as to make it exclude "all persons over fourteen years of age who cannot read and write the language of their native country, or some other language, except that of an aged or minor person, not
 
 parent, grand parent, child or wife of an admissible immigrant may accom- pany or be sent for by such immi- grant"
 MT. Vest, dem, of Missouri, protested against the application of the test of il- literacy to women and girls He as sumed that really at the bottom of the whole question was the restriction of immigrant voters. He did not see how the workmanship or labor of man who could not read or write debased the labor or workmanship of anybody ] else. But certainly the argument ] against illiterate immtaT could not apply to domestic servants. | Mr. Lodge replied to MT. Vests com- 1 ments. There was no question, he said, but that all the workingmen of the | cities were to-day united in feeling that l the unrestricted competition of the un- | employed of other lands should be pre- vented. Something should be done to 1 check it. The amendment offered by | the senator from Missouri should net 1 be adopted, as it would take away from the force and scope of the bill now | none too great.
 MT. Chandler. rep, of New Hamp- shire. also opposed MT Vests amend ment and said that there was greater 1 danger in the illteracy of women than l in the illiteracy of men. He reminded i the senator that the national conven- tions of both political parties had de- | clared in favor of the restriction of inn migration. If he was wrong in that l Js-to . 1 to correct him than the present occu- pant of the chair-Mr. Hill, dem., of New York-who was thoroughly famil- jar with those platforms. Daughter | Without action on either of the pend- | ing amendments the senate proceeded to the consideration of executive busi- ness and at 3;55 adjourned till Mon- | day.