Daily camera., 1900-05-31
THOSE IMMIGRANTS.
Localities Preferred by Many Of the
New Arrivals.
FOur-Fifths of the Whole Number
Make the North Atlantic States
Their Destination-SOme In
terestinK Facts.

Foreign immigration into the United
States, the volume of which was dimin-
ished after the financial difficulties of
1893 and 1894, has resumed its former
dimensions and is now about 300 600 a
year. The number of immigrants who
arrived at the port of New York dur
ing the quarter ending January l, 1900,
was 1882 OF this number four-tifths
declared their destination to be the
states composing the North Atlantic
division, of which the state of New
York received the largest number. OF
these AZ per cent. intended to settle in
New York state, 10 per cent. in Pennsyl-
vania, 6 per cent. in New Jersey, per
cent. in Massachusetts and per cent.
in Connecticut.
1t has been supposed generally that
the great flood Of immigration into the
port f>New York has for its ultimate
destina ton the great states of the west
or northwest, in which land is cheap,
the returns from agriculture almost
immediate and the existing homestead
and naturalization laws particularly
favorable to newcomers. AS matter
of fact, however, and notwithstanding
the great extent of Scandinavian immi-
grafton to the United States, recently
REINFORCED by considerable number
of Firms, the agricultural states of the
west get comparatively little of the
new immigration. Thus Iowa, which is
the most distinctly agricultural" state
of the country, and which has long Of
fered many favorable opportunities to
farmers from nor hern European coun-
tries, was the destination of only 300
of the $4,000 immigrants who arrived
during the last quarter of 1899 and 600
only declared their destination for
Minnesota, a state which has a larger
proportion of Scandinavian population
than any other and in which the de-
mand for farm laborers for several
years has been considerably greater
than the supply. To the big agricul-
tural state of Kansas only 26S immi-
grants went, to Idaho only IS, and to
Oklahoma, mo Mans Land" only re-
Gently opened to settlement under
fixed agricultural title to land, only II.
That distance from the Atlantic sea-
board and the delay and expense in
reaching such places is not the true
reason of the scanty immigration to
such places is proved by the fact that
to California, much farther away from
the point of entry than either of them,
1000 immigrants went, while the num-
Der to Colorado was 61S. TO Delaware,
near a hand, only As immigrants went,
to Vermont so, to New Hampshire So
and to Maine onl y 61.
In one particular, irrespective of the
character and origin of foreign immi-
grafton into the United States,
whether the newcomers be skilled me-
chanics or unframed laborers, whether
they come from eastern or western
European countries, uniform rule
has prevailed among them for many
years. 1t is this: They have, as all
their predecessors appear to have had,
an ninsurmountable repugnance against
settling in either one of the two states
of Arkansas and North Carolina. To
Arkansas during the last quarter only
eight Immigrants went from New York,
and to North Carolina only five. 1t has
been so for many years, nOtwithstand-
ing the fact that North Carolina is
reached with comparatively little eN-
pense, and that the climate is salubri-
Gus, living expenses small and the COM
petition of cOlOred labor not serious in
the western counties of the state,
where there is such good farming land.
But Notwithstanding all this, Arkan-
sas and North Carolina remain, as
here e.ofore, at the foot of the list Of
American states and territories in the
preference of immigrants from foreign
countries and all efforts to make them
more attractive to newcomers have
failed. Of the last quarters arrivals,
21 declared their destination to be the
Indian territory and two were on their
way to Hawaii, 4,0OO were going to Lii
nois, 4,4OO to Massachusetts, 1869 to
Michigan and 81 to Utah.