The Portland daily press., 1897-01-28
IMMIGRATION Law.
Conference Report Agreed to In the
House.
MEASURE GENERALLY OPPOSED
BY WESTERN MEMBERS.

The Nicaragua Canal the Text for the Or.
| Charges Interference by Crest Britain
Senator sherman Hints at Possibility
of New Treaty.
| Washington, January 27.-The House
today after the reading of the journal,
entered upon the consideration OF the i'm.
migration bill as sgreed upon by the con.
ferees of the House and Senate.
| Mr.. Bartholdt, Republican Of Missouri.
chairman of the HOnse committee of i'm.
migratioa, refused to sign the report.
| Mr.. Danford, Republican of Ohio,
opened the debate. Re explained the
changes made. A significant statement
had been made in the newspapers recent
| ly 90 the effect that If every industrial
wheel in the country was started, and
the mills fully manned, there would be
| 200, O0U or 800, 900 men still unemployed.
He did not speak for the s'weary
Watkinses, who did not want work at
any time, but for those who did want to
labor, and who were pleading for legisla-
tion for their protection.
The provisions of the bill known as the
Corliss amendments and intended to deal
with that class known as "birds OF
passage Mr.. Danford said. would
doubtless be found difficult to enforce,
| moIe difficult probably than was
| imagined: but that something should be
| done to prevent the predatory forays of
those people who come in the summer
| apd flee in the winter was generally con-
cedeu.
MIR. Dolliyer, Republioa of Iowa,
asked what WAS the purpose OF departing
from the educational test fixed by the
House and the Senate bill and providing
that the immigrant should read and
write the constitution of the United
States in the language of their native
or resident oountry?"
Mr.. Danford replied that it was to
reach, the Russian Jews, who being
driven from their homes, and having
drained the charity of western Europe,
were being thrown upon our shores in
great numbers. For the first time in
charities of New York wero compelled to
appeal for aid to those outside their own
race for the relief of their people in that
oity. He concluded with an earnest plea
for the passage of the bill, which would
IN some small degree relieve the country
from the menace to which it is exposed
under the present laws.
In opening the debate in opposition to
the adoption of the report, Mr.. Bartholdt,
said be had refused to sign it for two
reasons: First, that by it's provisions
families wouli be separated; and. lsacond,
that it forbade the entrance of tmmi-
grants who could not read the language
Of their native or adopted country.
Mr.. Bartholdt asserted that the bill
would defeat the purpose nominally
urged by it's advocates, of establishing
tho educational test. It would shut out,
for instance, a class of Germans who had
for three hundred years made their
homes In Russia, the language of which
they did not speak also many residents of
Alsace- Lorraine who had not yet acquired
the German language.
Many members interrogated Mr.. Bar
tholdt with view to demonstrate that
the language of the bill would not work
such disadvantages as he imagined, to
all of whom he said that his object was
to perfect a measure so as not to expose
desira BILE Immigrants to the jeopardy in
vol red in the present form Of the bill.
Several suggestions were made as to tha
best manner in which to secure this end,
but the friends of the bill found none of
them acceptable.
G. W. Stone, Republican of Pennsyl-
vania, advocated the adoption of the CON-
ference report, saying if 1t were not
adopted, Congress would do nothing at
this session toward the restriction of i'm
migration. The demand for the passage
of the bill he said, was made by the
National conventions of the Republican
and Dem ocratic parties. The immiRra-
tion of recent years had entered into
disastrous competition with the working
Of he f0rainC than n Qi5hap
take low wages or abandon their labor.
If the test proposed in tho law had
been in effect the past year it would have
kept out Is, 1853 Immigrants from Russia,
Italy aud Austro- Hum gary, from which
countries generally the undesirable class
came, and only 4146 would nave been re-
turned to Germany, Sweden, NORWAY,
desirable immigrants. Speaking of she
distribution of immigrants Mr.. Stone
said that of 843, 600 who came in last
year, 224, SO remained in Massachusetts,
New York, and Pennsylvania.
"It is no wonder,'' he said with great
earnestness, ''thas the gentleman from
Missouri (Mr. Bartholdt> and other
pose the passage of the immigration bill,
because it does not trouble them"
Mr.. Stone said it was useless to pass
tariff laws intended to benefit this work
inemen Of the country unless they were
protected against the invasion of paupsr
labor from abroad. (Applauss)
Mr.. johnson. Republjten of Indiana
said the bill proposed did not go far
enough. He wished one broad enough
and drastic enough to meet the evil
which the legislation WAS intended TO
meet. Macy immigrants could read and
write who were otherwise totally untitled
to become American citizens. The time
had come when American civilization was
In danger from the invasion of foreign
hordes.
Mr. Corliss, Republican of Michigan,
explained the necessity of the provisions
in the bill suggested by himself aimed at
"Hirds of Passage In Detroit alone he
said, there were 10, 600 citizens anxious to
work and unable to obtain it because OF
the presence of aliens there, temporarily
deira uding American citizens out OF their
rights.
Mr. Walker, Republican of Massaohu-
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