Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1905-12-05

) partment Of commerce and labor, I
/ supervise the administration OF IN
! naturalization laws and to receive n
turns of Naturalization pending an
accomplished,
/, Second. Uniformity of naturalist
/, lion certificates, fees to be charged
and procedure,
Third. More ~eyactlng qualification
for citizenship.
Fourth. The preliminary declara
lion of intention to be abolished AM
no alien to be naturallzed until a
least ninety days after the Ming o
his petition.
Fifth. Jurisdiction to naturalizt
aliens TO be confined to United States
district courts and to such STATE
courts as have Jurisdiction In civil &C
lions In which the amount In contro
vorsy Is unlimited; In cities OF over
100, 900 inhabitants the United States
district courts TO have exclusive iu
.risdlction In the naturalization of tie
ailen residents OF such cities.
Pubic Lands Law.
Once again ! call your attention Il
be condition Of the public land laws
Recent developments have given new
urgency TO the need for such chang
- as will At these laws TO actual pre-
sent conditions. The honest disposal
and right use Of the remaining lands
Is of fundamental importance. The
iniquious methods by which the non
| opolIzing of the public lands IS being
| brought about under the present laws
are becoming more generally known.
but the existing laws do not furnish
| effective remedies. The recommends
| tons of the public lands commission
| upon this subject are wise and should
be given effect.
The creation of small irrigated
farms under the reclamation act Is a
| powerful offset TO the tendency Of GER
| tain other laws to foster or permit
T, monopoly Of the land, Under that act
| the construction Of great irrigation
| works has been proceeding rapidly
| and successfully, the lands reclaimed
| are eagerly taken up, and the prospect
that the policy of national irrigation
| will accomplish all that was expected
| of It Is bright. The act should be e x
tended TO include the state Of Texas.
The reclamation act derives much Of
| It's value from the fact that 1t tends
10 secure the greatest possible nLsi-
| Der of homes on the land and to Gre
| ate communities OF freeholders, In
part by settlement on public land, in
| part by forcing the subdivision Of large
| private holdings before they a get
| water from government irrigation
works. The law requires that no right
TO the use Of water for land In pri-
waite ownership shall be sold for a
tract exceeding 100 acres to any one
land owner. This provision has ex.
/ cited active and powerful hostility,
but the success of the law itself de-
ponds on the wise and firm enforce
ment OF II. We can not afford to sub
stitute tenants for freeholders' on the
public domain.
In dealing with this question 1t 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 a citizen, save
on the grooilhd Of that mans fitness
for citizenship. It is our right. and
duty to consider his moral and social
quality. His standard of living should
be such that he will not, by pressure
of competition, lower the standard Of
living of our W wage-workers; for
1t must ever be a prime object Qf our
legislation to keep high their standard
of living. II the man who seeks to
come here is from the moral and
social standpoint Of such a character
as to bid fair to add value to the com.
munity he should be heartily welcom'
ed. We can not afford to pay heed to
whether he Is of One creed or another,
Of one nation or another. We can not
afford to consider whether he is Cath
Ollie or Protestant. Jew or Gentle;
whether he is Englishman or Irish.
man. Frenchman or German, Japanese,
italian. Scandinavian, Slav or Magyar.
What we should desire to find out Is
the individual quality Of the individ-
ual man. In my judgment, with this
end in view, we shall nave to prepare
through our own agents a far more
rigid inspection in the countries from
which the immigrants come. 1t will
be a great deal better to have fewer
immigrants, but all Oh the right kind,
than a great number of immigrants,
many of whom are necessarily of the
wrong kind. AS rar as possible we
wish to limit the immigration to this
country to persons who propose to
become citizens Of this country, ana
we can well afford to insist upon ade-
quate scrutiny OF the character of
hose who are thus proposed for fu-
ture citizenship. There should be an
increase In the stringency Of the laws
to keep out insane, idiotic. epileptic,
and pauper immigrants. But this is
by no means enough. Not merely the
anarchist, but every man of anarch-
istic tendencies, all violent and dis.
orderly people. all people of bad char
acter. the incompetent. the lazy, the
vicious, the physically unfit, defective,
! or degenerate should Ire kept out.
The stocks out Of which American
citizenship Is to be built should be
strong and healthy, sound In body,
mind and character. II it be objected
that the government agents would not
always select well, the answer is that
they would certainly select better
than do the agents and brokers of for.
eign steamship companies, the people
who now do whatever selection is
done.
The questions arising In connection
with Chinese immigration stand by
| themselves. The conditions In China
are such that the entire Chinese
(! coolie class. that is, the class Of Chin.
csc laborers, skilled and unskilled
legitimately come under the head Of