Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-05-19
IMMIGRATION BILLS
Four Measures Presented to the
House for Discussion.
The DEBATE IN THEIR FAVOR BEGUN
Mr.. Barthodt Favors the Act Pre-
pared by Himself.
IN THE SENATE

VI l.
In the Senate today a joint resolution
vas passed authorizing the Secretary Of
War to have repaired the damages done by
recent fre5hets on the Kennebec (Me) river
out of appropriation on hand.
Mr.. Bacon (Ga) offered a resolution.
which was referred. for the loan of ex-
hibits from the various government de-
partments and Smithsonian Institution to
the southern states exposition at Chicago
fl ON August to November 1896.
The House amendment fixing the pension
of the widow of Gen. Thomas Ewing at $15
was agreed to.
The District of Columbia appropriation
bill was then taken up.
THE HOUSE.
Before the debate on the immigration bills
began in the House today some minor bus
mess transacted. The resolution re-
ported by committee on elections No. 1 d.
recting the sergeant-at-arms to summon
the clerks of the courts of the counties in
the sixteenth Illinois district to appear in
Washington with the ballots Of the last
congressional election, for the purpose Of
recount in the Misunderstanding contested
election case, was adopted.
The report in the case of Denny vs..
Owens, from the seventh Kentucky dis
tric. confirming the sitting members title
to his seat, was also adopted.
The immigration Bills.
At 1890 pm the debate on the immigra
ton bills was opened by Mr.. Bartholdt
(Mo), chairman of the immigration COM
nlittee. undec the special order adopted
veS do foSo orl
row for their consideration The bills were
the Bartholdt, Mccall or Lodge bill, pro-
vided an educational test. 1t excluded all
male persons between sixteen and sixty
years of age who could not read and write
English or some other language Another
the Stone bill, provided for the inspection
of immigrants by our consular officers and
their certifcation that the immigrants do
rot belong to any of the classes of i'm
migrants excluded by existing contract
labor or other immigration laws. This bill
was offered as an amendment to the Bar
tholdt-McCall bill.
The CorlisS bill, offered as substitute
applied wholly to the Canadian border and
made it unlawful for any alien to enter the
United States except to teach new arts or
lndllstries) and engage in any mechanical
trade or manual labor The provisions of
the bill do not apply to sailors on the great
lakes. The Mahany bill, also offered as a
substitute, made all contracts by aliens to
1t also makes it misdemeanor for any
person TO perform labor in the United
States who has become citizen of the
United States and returned to foreign
country to make that his home These
provisions strike Ill the conditions on the
canadian border. The bill also provided
Tor more vigorous enforcement of the ex-
isting immigration laws and provided for
head tax Of 10 cents on every alien enter
ing the United States.
Mr.. Mahany's substitute was ruled out on
a point of order. Mr.. Johnson (Cal) then
offered a sweeping measure to absolutely
exclude all foreign born laborers, skilled
or unskilled. and TO make captains and
masters of "sssG.s responsible for the char
acter OF their passengers. This was also
ruled out.
The Debate Opened.
Mr.. Bartholdt opened the debate in favor
of his bill He argued that there was no
question much talked about and so little
understood as the problem of immigra ton.
There was. he thought too much passion
and prejudice in the demand from certain
quarters in favor Of the exclusion of for
eigners. Good immigration. he urged, was
desirable. His bill was a moderate measure
for the exclusion Of illiterates. An edu-
cational test, he pointed out from the fig
ures. would demonstrate that such test
would not materially affect immigration
from Great Britain, Germany and other
countries of northern Europe. The per-
cent: Poland, SO; Greece, 25; Wales, 10;
Russia, SO; Austria, 80; Hungary, 81; SPAIN
8; Ireland, I; France, 3; England, 3: Scot
land. 2; Germany, 2; Norway, /, and Den
mark, one-half
He warned his republican associates that
as the advocates of the educational test
for immigration. they could go to the coun-
try. but consular inspection that would
cut off all immigration. save Of the most
undesirable sort. from Germany and Scan
dinavia, could never be successfully de-
Tended
Favored All the Bills.
Mr.. Tracewe1 Qnd), who followed Mr..
Bartholdt, prefaced his remarks by stating
that he was not an A. P. A. and then de-
clared himself in favor of all the bills re-
ported by the immigration committee.
They were not inconsistent, he argued. and
could all be passed with benefit to the
country.
Mr.. w. A. Stone Pa.), the author of the
Stone bill, explained its provisions and ad-
Vocated its passage. The country, he
argued, had long suffered from unreason-
able immigration.
CAPITOL TOPICS.
House Ways and Means Committee,