Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1904-04-01
A Novel Proposition.

a Novel Proposition.
Solomon, who is generally considered
the wisest man that ever lived, once
said, There is nothing new under the
sum-" but the great king had no knowl-
edge of the vagaries of American con-
gressmen. Many persons have been
Fostering their heads, inducing insonl-
mia, in the vain endeavor to devise
some rational plan to stop in whole
or i'll part the vast immigration to this
country. Most of them desire to ad-
NIT good immigrants and to shut out
the Dad. The trouble has been, and is,
to construct law by which this dis
elimination OF differentiation cnn be
accomplished. Most people were in the
depths of Despair on the subject, but
Mr.. Adams of Pennsylvania has come
to the rescue with a proposition which.
with all due Difference to King Solo,
mon, seems to be brand new. The Adj
ans panacea for the immigration evil
is to pass law to the effect that not
more than $4,000 emigrants from any
one country shall be admitted in any
one year. Why $4,000 rather than 1OO,-
600 or 10000 or 10000 or 10000 or TO-
600? How are the $4,000 to be select
ed? By civil service examination, by
lot or by sex? Leave it to the Nor
mons and they would desire them ali
to be females. Leave it to the eastern
states, where the females are largely in
the majority, and the desire would be
for males. Shall the first $4,000 who
knock at our doors be welcomed or
shall we pick and choose? If we are
to pick and choose, on what basis shall
our picking and choosing be done?
What standards are to be set up, phys
ical, moral or intellectual? Some of
the most dangerous and undesirable
men in Europe are we'll educated. We
bar Chinese. Why not the Japs also?
They are as much alike as peas in
pod and no doubt are close kin. Shall
we insist OH six footers and bar the
midgets? Shall nationality have any.
thing to do with it? The truth is that
while everybody that thinks on the
subject would like to see reform in
our immigration law the how puzzles
the wisest. 1t would be easy to shut
them all out. 1t is easy to let them
all in. To draw the line Is the trouble,
and the Adams bill only makes confu-
sion worse confounded.
Major General Leonard Wood could
give some valuable pointers on the
veraciousness of the old saying, BET
ter to be born lucky than RICH" Won
der who was major of the rough rid
ers? The colonel and lieutenant colo
mel of that organization are doing fair
~ well, thank you-one in the White
House and the other in line for the
lieutenant generalship. Certainly some
thing ought to be done for the major,
The queerest thing done in politics
lately (and there have been many
queer ones) was the Endorsement, with
p string to 1t, for the vice presidential
nomination given by a congressional
convention in Nebraska to Hon. John
L. Webster. 1t Endorsed him provided
his candidacy in no way interferes
with the prospects of President Roose-
welt! John L. must be proud of that.
The Missouri Republicans In conven-
ton assembled have Endorsed ex.May.
or Cyrus B. Walbridge of st. Louis for
vice president. Personally Mr.. Wal.
bridge is very good man, but his
chances of nomination are nil-merely
that and nothing more. OF course, the
Republicans are talking glibly Of car
rying Missouri. They always talk that
way, and every four years regularly
they are walloped within an inch Of
their lives, and so it will be this time.
As near as can be now ascertained,
Senator Charles w. Fairbanks Of Indi-
ana will be nominated as Colonel
Roosevelt's running mate. Everybody
knows that Fairbanks wants to be
president, and many of his Hoosier
friends are advising him to let the vice
presidency severely alone, and to save
himself for the head of the ticket in
1908 instead Of playing tail to it this
year. Some very good men have been
elected to the presidency after serving
as vice president Adams, Thomas
Jefferson and Martin Van Buren,, for
instance.