The Spokane press. [volume] (Spokane, Wash.) 1902-1939, 1904-09-15

crime are of foreign birth. The cost
to the state is 100000 a year.
E. Fellowes Jenkins. superintend-
ent of the New York Society for the
Prevention of Cruelty to Children.
tells a horrible story of the vice,
crime and wretchedness Of the chill
dren of aliens, due largely. he says,
to shiftless poverty and inherent lack
of character.
Where LIS emigrants arrived in
America in 1899 it is estimated that
nearly 100000 will have come in
the current year unless something
happens to stem the tide.
Persons of foreign berth constitut-
ed In the census of 1909 about 1876
per cent of the entire population Of
the United States. In all great cities,
except in the south, persons Of for
eign parentage constitute more than
, one-half of the total, and in New
York, Chicago, San Francisco, De-
troit. Cleveland and Milwaukee they
form rs per cent of the population.
For II years all the transatlantic
Steamship lines have been systemati-
cally organizing the steerage bust
ness and have established Mediter-
ranean ports especially for the en-
barkation of emigrants. Today these
regular lines, all having three or
more steamships, are engaged in the
trade: British-Cunard, Anchor and
Prince lines; German-Hamburg-
American, North German Lloyd and
the Levant; Italian-La Veloce, Nav
| agazione, General Italiana, Fabre;
French-F'rench line; Spanish-Span-
ish line. Normal steerage rates range
from s29 to 1872 from Italian ports,
s34 from Sicily S43.75 from Mar
| settles and s35 from Havre. The
| commission paid to the steamship
agents averages about 81 per head,
and the Fabre line is notable as
bringing more degraded aliens than
any other.
AS showing the workings of the
steamship system, United States In
spector Braun visited the Poor Jews"
temporary home, at No 81 Leman
street, Whitechapel, London An
agent of one of the steamship COM
panies is superintendent Of the place,
and here weekly, Braun says, some
500 Russian Polish and Roumanian
Jews are schooled in the subterfuges
that are intended to pass them
through the inspection lines in Amer
lea.
In Italy, the inspector says, the
italian government considers the
United States the best safety valve
for the discharge of it's overpopula,
ton.
A consular report shows that 40
per cent of all the emigrants sailing
for the United States from Hamburg
have prepaid tickets for America
Consul General Skinner at Paris re-
ported: 1.-THE largest proportion of
emigrants gathered together at Mar
settles are Syrians and Armenians.
These are frequently encouraged to
leave for America by missionaries
and teachers. They usually become
itinerant merchants. They are gen.
orally ignorant and uncleanly, and
our theories of government are ut
terly incomprehensible to them.
Filthy diseases. usually maladies of
the eye, are commend among them,
and their poverty and negligence of
the first principles of hygiene pro-
duce an undesirable physical aver
age"
Consular reports show that thou
nlc
from villages where the entire popu-
lation of able-bodied men leave for
America, while the women remain
to till the soil and attend the fiocks,
pending the return of the men with
American-made fortunes.
The heinous traffic in fallen women,
the immigration officials declare, has
not been entirely stamped out. Many
unfortunate creatures arrive with
American passports and are received
by men who represent them as their
wives. Agents from New York visit
Berlin, Paris, Vienna, Budapest, Lem
berg, Warsaw and wilma at stated
intervals to procure this class.
Inspector Braun openly declared
that even the rulers of European
governments were in league with the
steamship companies to free their
countries. at Americas expense, of
INDECENT or otherwise undesirable
subjects. He cited the case of the
Hungarian government, which threw
of tho mask of secrecy. which still
shields the others, and contracted to
supply the Cunard line with 10000