New-York tribune., 1902-05-29
WOULD BAR THOUSANDS.
COMMISSIONER WILLIAMS ON THE Eff
Feet OF THE SHATTUC IMMI-
GRAFTON BILL

The application of the educational test proposed
| in the Shattuc Immigration bill passed by the
| House on Tuesday by a large majority would
shut out a quarter of the great flood of immi-
grants now streaming toward the shores Of the
United States and prevent the landing Of half
the Italians and Poles Commissioner Williams
of the Bureau of immigration at this port who
returned from Washington on Tuesday night,
said yesterday:
"A large number of Italians. Slovaks and
others coming from Southeastern Europe would
be unable to land here if this bill should become
a law The immigrants who come from this
part of Europe more illiterate than those
from any other part. Moreover they now con-
stitute great part of the immigration. While
cannot say how great the effect would be,
can say that one-half the Italians and Poles
would certainly be shut out"
When asked regarding the effect of the bill
on the labor market, which, as mentioned in
The Tribune. is seeking all the unskilled i'm
migrant labor il can. find to carry on the great
building operations in this country. he said:
THAT is a serious problem which 1 am not
yet prepared TO discuss. This much might be
said however: If the immigration laws are TO
be regulated by the labor market it would not
be unreasonable on the part of capital when in
need of labor to ask that Chinese labor be ad-
mitted also"
Had the law been in effect i'm 1901 Of the 49,
G1S immigrants who obtained admission to the
country. HEST would have been sent back
home, that the number of those who
could neither read write. This is nearly %
per cent of the whole number. OF the total 3O6.-
Sl3 were Crotians, Slovenians, Greeks Hebrews
Italians. Poles Ruthenians, Slovaks and Lithu-
anians. who provided 10I,999 of the illiterates
This bill would have prevented more than one
third of these from landing. OF the 115, ,104 from
Southern Italy, 5S.493, or more than one-half.
would have been debarred. More immigrants
came from Southern Italy than from any other
section of Europe. The proportion is not being
decreased this year. OF the &c, coo or moro i'm
migrant who will in all probability land in New
York this week. nearly 1900 will have come
from Italian ports. Two other races besides
those mentioned sent large numbers here last
year. These were the Scandinavian and the
German. The percentage of illiteracy among
these was small
The month of May will be one Of the record
months in the history of immigration 10 this
port. Mr.. EiChler the statistician on Ellis Isl
and, said yesterday that 81 GIG had arrived up
TO last Saturday, and that the number would
De increased this week by more than % 900 now
on the way already here. He expects that the
total for the month will not fall far short of
10000. He said that there had come no such
number In one month since 1882. when the rec
ord for year, ISS. 902. made. In 1893 be-
tween T2.UO0 and $1,000 arrived here in MAY.
This is the largest number for May that any one
on Ellis Island can remember II the estimate
for May proves correct the total for the first
I'VE months OF the year will be 269. lii. as com
pared with 1S9594 for the same period last year.
As may be imagined, the officials on Ellis ISL
smined 1851 Yesterday they inspecteS e
These came through the ports of Bremen, Ham
burg, Genoa and Naples