The evening times., 1900-02-14
THE qIDG OFlMMlGRA2I0N
~ 2
A Perceptible Decrease in Arrivals
From Foreign Countries.
Testimony Given Before the Indus
trial Commission Compiled and
Published in Pamphlet Form
Value of Restrictive Legislation
Steamship Companies More Careful

Testimony before the Industrial Com
mission on October u, 1899, in which the
relation of immigration TO crime and
wages, and the tide and character Of i'm
migration to the United States are en-
bodied, is the subject of a pamphlet that
has just been issued by T. " Powderly,
| Commissioner General of immigration. The
testimony was that given by DR.. Joseph
! r. Senner, former Commissioner.
The statements in the paper open by
saying that the immigration TO this coun-
try for the year ending June 80, 1899, was
81, ,707, while it was 10 per cent greater
| in 1896, and from 1880 TO 1893 very much
| larger. IL is claimed that the almost
! unprecedented business prosperity follow
| ing a successful war should have brought
to this country almost twice as many i'm
| migrants as actually landed. The large
decrease is accounted for by the restrictive
force of the law of 1898, which not only
prevents the landing of immigrants, both
desirable and undesirable, but operates SO
as TO deter them from taking passage for
this country. This is done by the imposi-
| tion on the steamship companies of heavy
! responsibilities, such as to compel them
not only TO incur the risk OF having to
maintain deported immigrants and return
them TO their port of departure, but TO be-
come sponsor for them should they be-
| come public charges within one year OF
| their landing in the United States. On the
| other hand, the companies compelled their
| agents to assume personal liability Tor
! those TO whom they sold tickets, the re-
| suit of which has been that ticket Will
not now be sold TO any possible deportee
| unless sound guarantees are forthcoming
| or deposit made 10 cover any loss. Thou
| sands of intending immigrants have been
refused tickets by the Italian agents, that
| country during the past few years supply
| ing the far greater portion OF the foreign
! population of this country. This Is con-
sidered a wholesome and beneficial Ie-
striction, but OF the other, Dr.. Senner
| says
Quite different however. is the second
! more indirect and harmful effect Of re-
| striction caused by the law of 1893. and |
! can speak OF it SO much more freely as 1t
| is universally recognized that during the
| four years and four months Of my terms as
Commissioner of immigration at the prin-
cipal American port, | have faithfully en-
forced the law
And II the admission OF any immigrant
be in any way questionable, it has become
quite usual that one or more weeks pass
before the migrant, whether male or fe-
male adult or child, is landed. This fre-
quently extended period Of detention. dur
ing which the immigrant is practically
treated as a prisoner, and by no means as
well as an inmate of a modern and humani-
tartan prison. brings forth so many and
manifold hardships 10 the immigrant that
people belonging to nations Of higher civil
lizations keenly resent It, | have called
these vexstions unequalled. and as mat
ter OF fact they have no equal in any civil
lized country in the world.
The principal objections against the
Lodge bill rest in the necessarily enormous
-
ural influence on immigrants from nations
OF higher civilization. Il has been repeated
ly stated with some pretence OF surprise
that Americans Of German, or Bohemian,
or Scandinavian descent are unanimously
opposed to the Lodge bill although they
are with hardly any exception fully able TO
pass its examination.
Il wish to state that our opposition TO
the same is principally based on our con-
viction that the proper place for such an
educational test is at the naturalization
and not at the admission to the country
We further regard its application to women
not only generally unjust but practically !
also as a severe aggravation TO our much |
vexed servant girl question. We believe !
that its introduction for immigrants stands |
in a rather curious contrast with the pres |
ent policy of expansion and its consequence /
as TO wholesale reception of illiterate. il |
not savage co-citizens. And finally. as a |
protective measure for American working |
men. the Lodge bill would be simply |
farce. because the skilled laborer whose |
competition organized labor wishes to re- I
strict. could at any time pass any such ex-
animation.
The report says that the Italian immi-
grants rapidly become Americanized and /
add to the consumption of home goods as
well as their native born competitor and |
as class. they are much preferable TO |
the Chinese whose places they have taken |
in the building of Western railroads. 1t |
mentions the city of Buffalo as a Polish
centre, and declares that these people are
very desirable class of immigrant and !
says:
LAS people. they pay their taxes more
promptly than any other nationality not
excepting the Americans They take great |
interest in Informing themselves as to
American institutions. particularly as 10
American politics. and for foreigners they
are remarkably well informed as to our
election laws. II is a well-known fact that
when the political organizations estab-
lished schools in the various localities for
the enlightenment of voters as to the prac-
tical workings of the new ballot law, the
Poles were found to be the best informed
as to the subject of any nationality. not
excepting the Americans. They had been
study and we're very we'll posted AS re-
CARDS the matter of general education, |
think they surpass many people now flock
ing to our shore. They are industrious and
frugal and fill an important place among
the army of unskilled labor. Socially.
and as regards drink, they are as
good as the generality of mankind"
The widespread opinion that the scale
of wages has fallen with the tide of i'm
migration is contradicted in the paper
the author asserting that an exhaustive re-
port of Senate committee as far. back
as 1891 had stated that wages have been
highest during the times of heaviest i'm
migration, and that they have steadily in
creased during the past three decades He
does not say that the influx of immigrants
was responsible for this increase, but that
1t was occasioned because the country was
in a state Of prosperity at the time. The
morale of the whole community is not, the
report says, lowered by immigration. the
new citizens making generally as good
record as those born on the soil.
In conclusion. he says THE danger
from immigration to the welfare of our
country is actually decreasing from year
to year. ] freely admit that the immense
new law of 1893 created quite a number of
difficult problems for the United States,
especially on the political field. but no
new law on immigration would or could
assist in solving the problems of old AS
stated before American civilization will
work them out successfully. We may help
1t by strictness in the admission of for
eigners TO the privilege of voting, but it is
absurd to protect the ballot box at the |