The sun. (Jacksonville, Fla.) 1905-1908, 1906-05-26
May 26, 1906

DrOftsW and declares InaC Che n0AV AA"AAA'""AS
LEGISLATURE has plain duty to discharge. 1t must
follow in the track of the New York Legislature
and make it a penal offense for anyone employed by
a nerson or corporation to discharge particular
duty to accept any graft or gratuity which influences
their action in the discharge of this duty. rail
road official paid by the railroad to distribute coal
cars, when he takes a gift to influence their dstr
button, has broken faith both with the railroad anu
the public He is in the same despicable position
"a the architect who levies the plumber, and the
phvsician who divides with the druggist the clergy
man who gets a commission on funerals from the
undertaken and all the various spotted cattle OF one
sort and another, who, discharging duty for one
person corporation, make money out Oh Che GUS
toner or patron by graft"
After discussing the Hepburn railway rate bill
since February 49, when it reported to the Senate
from the House, the measure overloaded with amend.
ments passed the Senate last Saturday by vote of
II to 3-SenatOrs Morgan and Pettus of Alabama
and Foraker of Ohio voting against the bill Accord
ing to the expressed sentiment OF the Republican
leaders of the House, there will be difficulty over
concurrence and the bill will become law.
The matter of immigration laws and proper dis
elimination concerning the character of those who
seek to become inhabitants of the United States is
of deep interest to every citizen of this country. On
this subject the Philadelphia Press contributes the
following able opinion:
"When fully one.third of the immigrants who
come to this country return, carrying back their
earnings it is rather ridiculous, as in the debate
immigration Monday before the Conference on
Charities and Correction to lay stress exclusively
either the qualifications for entrance or on the
necessity of keeping this country asylum of the
oppressed, as was done by the defenders and OPP
ponents of restriction.
"The conditions of immigration are radically
altered. Onethird, 35 per cent of those who come
sooner or later return Many who labor cross back
countries, Italy, Hungary and others, swarm with
those who have made enough here to live there.
What good do they do the United States?
1.-The overwhelming mass of the immigrants no
longer seek the soil and settle on farms They
always did less of this than people in general mag
ned. BUT today the vast bulk of immigration goes
to Cities to contract labor and to the rural factory
The record-breaking immigration now in progress is
u direct result of the issue in the past eighteen
months of some $2OOO,OOOOOO or more of railroad
bonds and shares whose proceeds have gone into new
railroad improvements calling for labor on a great
scale.
"Ths labor is needed Every obstacle to mmi
grafton makes it dearer Much of it will return. II
II could not, we should have an explosion in the next
depression. But twO-thirds of the Immigration re-
mains The level of its character and quality needs
10 DE raised. A stiff iteracy test is the ONLY fair
means OF excluding the unfit 1t will not eyclude
criminal or anarchist but it will shut out ignorance.
IL Will check the steady tendency of our immigration
10 driit from countries with an efficient school sys
TEN 10 countries without one because the former are
internally prosperous and the latter are not.
inns country spends $273OOOOOO annually To
euucate its children. Why let any adult who cannot
read ana write entery Congress should impose tb;s
requirement Al,