The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-12-05
SEEKS RIGHT KIND
OF ALIEN INFLUX
Raise No Unfair Race Bar to I'm
migration, but Require Fit
ness, Says President.

The question Of immigration is of
vital interest to this country. In the
year ending june 80, 1905, there came
to the United States 100000 alien
immigrants. In other words, in the sin
)gle year that has just elapsed there came
to this country greater number Of
people than came here during the l69
years years Of our colonial life which inter.
Jamestown and the Declaration Of In
dependence. It is clearly shown in the
report Of the commissioner general of
immigration that while much of this
enormous immigration is undoubtedly
healthy and natural, considerable pro-
portion is undesirable from one reason
or another; moreover, considerable
proportion, including most of the IN
desirable class, does not come here of
its own initiative, but because Of the
activity Of the agents Of the great
transportation companies. These agents
are distributed thruout Europe, and by
the offer Of all kinds Of Inducements
they Wheedle and cajole. many immi-
ests, to come here. The most serious
obstacle we have to encounter in the
effort to secure a proper regulation of
the immigration to these shores arises
from the determined opposition Of the
foreign steamship lines, who have no
interest whatever in the matter save
to increase the returns on their capital
Dy carrying masses Of immigrants
h1ther IN the steerage quarters Of their
ships. - -
Influx of Right Sort.
AS I said in my last message to
congress, we cannot have too much i'm
migration Of the right sort, and we
should have none Whatever of the
wrong sort. Of course it is desirable
that even the right kind of immigra-
ton should be properly distributed in
this country. We need more of such
lmmi grafton for the south; and special
effort should be made to secure it. Per-
haps it would be possible to limit the
the number allowed to come to the
IN any one year to New York and other
northern cities, while leaving unlimited
the number allowed to come to the
south; always provided, however, that
a stricter effort is made to see that only
immigrants Of the right kind come to
our country anywhere. In actual prac-
tice it has proved so difficult to en-
force the immigration laws where long
stretches, OF frontier marked by an i'm
ag1nary line alone intervene between US
and our. neighbors that I recommend
oAAe~o Az oAtb NC dllOW6u TO come
IN from Canada and Mexico, save ma!
tlves OF the two countries themselves.
AS much as possible should be done to
distribute these immigrants upon the
land and keep them away from the
congested tenement-house districts Of
the great cities. But distribution is
palliative, not cure. The prime need
IS to keep out all immigrants who will
not make good American citizens. The
inn QNr %L~
undesirable immigrants should be
strengthened. Adequate means should
be adopted, enforced by sufficient
penalties, to compel steamship com.
panles engaged in the passenger bust
ness to observe in good faith the law
which forbids them to encourage or So
llclt immigration to the United States.
Moreover, there should be sharp linn
itation imposed upon all vessels COM
immigrants in ratio to the tonnage
which each vessel can carry. This ratio
should be high enough to insure the
coming hither Of as good a class Of
aliens as possible. Provision should be
made for the surer punishment of those
who induce aliens to come to this coun-
try under promise or assurance of en-
ployment. It should be made possible
to inf1ict sufficiently. heavy penalty
G Gete any him Smp feym g{b this ssk law t.
seems to me wise that there should be
an international conference held to deal
with this question of immigration,
which has more than merely national
significance; such conference could,
among other things, enter at length into
the methods for securing thoro in
spection of would-be immigrants at the
ports from which they desire to en-
bark before permitting them to embark.
Stick to Tradition.
In dealing with this question it is
unwise to depart from the old Ameri-
can tradition and to discriminate for
or against any man who desires to come
here and become citizen, save on the
ground Of that man g fitness for citt-
zenship. Tt is our right and duty to
consider his moral and social quality.
His standard of living should be such
that ne will not, by pressure Of compe-
tition, lower the standard Of living of
our own wageworkers; for it must ever
keep their high standard of living. If
the man who seeks to come here is
from the moral and social standpoint
OF such a character as to bid fair to
and value to the community he should
be heartily welcomed. We cannot af-
ford to pay heed to whether he is Of
one creed or another, of one nation or
another. We cannot afford to consider
whether he is Catholic or Protestant,
Jew Or gentle; whether he is English
man or Irishman, Frenchman or Ger
man, Japanese, Italian, Scandinavian,
Slav, or Magyar. What we should de-
sire to find out is the individual quail
ity Of the individual man. In my iudg-
ment, with this end in view, we, shall