The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-04-15
WELCOME
 IMMIGRANTS
THEY MUST BE GIVEN THE GLAD
 HAND.
cmnissioner Rsss c. Smith Talks En- couragingly-Gratify increase shown in the Volume of De-
 sirablc ImmiGration.

6lrlIpnkhdm NeWS.
 money" pithily remarked Ross z. Smith. Commissioner of the lmmigra- tion and Industrial Association or Ala bama, to Birmingham News reporter
 aCapital is waiting on labor. We want immigrants, and you newspaper
 How?' inauired the reporter.
 By impressing the people of the State with the wisdom of receiving i'm at home. in other words A little kind home-sick Italian or swede or German, fails to. mention the fact in his letters across the water. By all means we should let the immigrant know that he Is welcome and VIII get a square SsSieaa deal that every immigrant who receives a fair amount of consideration organizes himself at once into an immigration that. For instance. little over year ago, the Republic Iron and Steel Com pany secured a handful of Italians and The officers of the company dealt with them on a-human-be being basis, and they began to write home The re- dred and twenty-five contented Italians at Thomas, with assurance of more coming So you see, this matter of hands of the people of Alabama them selves. They can do a great deal to assist the railroads in this ail-import- t sh s w9rf pv hsy sswna lan sn our f ns ference or intolerance to foreigners.
 We need every good immigrant we can get; Immigrants are q direct supply of labor, and their presence makes the negro stick closer to work. There is 10 doubt about that last p-op- osition."
 Uncrcase Shoxvu
 "Is the volume of immigration into Alabama showing any increase?" was asked.
 "A very gratifying increase indeed" replied Mir. Smith. "A few years ago there was scarcely a trace of immigra- tion into Alabama. Today it is an appreciable quantity. and its enect upon the agricultural and industrial development of the State is marked. The railroads are still doing the great migration, but some of the corpora tions are beginning to take an active interest and few planters and other lending a hand. But, as I have said, the railroads have the laboring oar, and they are entitled to great credit forts or sneh5 alons this line They are induc ing ing merfcans-Middle West people especially--to come into Alabama. and are turning some ,pi Of the side Tdr or TOT ir stances:
 'The, Alabama Great Southern, through Major Frank Yi And Andersosn; sst families along the line of that rail- road in Alabama within the past seven months ,bs sss mhsss ps9pe Eoms sass rom and M some few from the Southern States.
 MT. G.. A. Park. general immigra- tion and industrial agent of the Louis report fer this year will show over ten thousand people located among the lines of that system-more in Alabama than any , ether State. Th;rI The Louisville huma seekers excursions into this State every two weeks. and has succeeded in settling a large number of people in Rd%a sa pne fGny sbey has aaas bsea ou These lands, by the way. are excellent for truck farming, and as, they have al- labor labor of % preparing them for the blow is reduced to the minimum.
 "The Southern. the seaboard and ing as actively as those which l have mentioned, but I haven't the fig. ures at hand to show you just what they have done during the past year.
 Since the first of December the Im- migration and Industrial Association flee. has brought in good deal of for eign labor for iron industries, saw mil and railroad work ,at.sns t has seat- sad- wah, coosa, St. Clair. Talladega, and Clay countfes-Swedes. Germans. Aus trians and some few Italians As that the association has secured 175 men for the Birmingham Railway, Light and Power Company, and they
 SThe Association is working along practical lines. am much interested in Federal and State Legislation which share of foreign immigration. Our association is working with the Ma tional Civic Federation to secure , the ing the United States Government to afford to the separate States and Terri tories opportunities to furnish to in- coming Immigrants mig at as t1e p1rs @ay be found practicable, before their arrival in this country, trustworthy informa- tion regarding the matHFiai fSr e resonr6os iabos which % @ @coneSsnt the followers of differ ent occupatfons in the various States anu TO Improve Facilities.
 "At the national immigration confer -.ce held under the auspices of the National Civic Federation hioh ,n nttendeS SeI a resolution was adopted recommend- ing to Congress that it furnish sur ficfent means to the commissioner gen. eral of immigration to improve the facilities for handling. immigration at the South Atlantic and Gulf ports, Tn Sistribution of immigration over the undeveIoped lands of the South and Southwest. ,-, .... 4he crea ton of a State Bureau of Inn migration, with sufficient funds to per init of the placing of Alabama agents in European countries. These agents could do very effective work. as the Federal foreign contract law does not