davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

mense treasures in keeping of the museum
will be Housed as art collections never
were before, and entirely in a way to make
them most accessible to the American pub
=.
The modern art museum is much more
than a collection Of painting and sculpture
gathered at random. 1t covers so wide a
range, both in time and place, that it's
collections become an epitome of ancient
and modern civilization as revealed in art
There are Objects for example, in the
Boston museum which were fashioned when
the ancient civilization in the valley of the
Nile was still at its dawn Visitors see
statuettes in limestone and wood which
were carved and painted nearly 5000 years
before the birth OF Christ. OF later date
is a recent accession, the sarcopnagus Of
King Thothmes l, who lived from 15lO to
1915 B. c. The great stone, one OF the
first to be so used, which was followed
out to receive his remains and was COW
cred with quaint carving, was found in
1884 in the tomb OF his daughter Queen
HaJshepsut, in the valley of the Kings at
Thebes.
Nearly everybody IS, in way, familiar
with Egyptian art as seen in the architec-
ture of temples and burial places Less
familiar are other evidences of the skill
Of the Egyptians. Included in the Boston
collection is a gazelle skin robe, myster-
iously and wonderfully wrought, that has
been surmised to ba an earlier form of
the ephod of the Bible, a garment which
has heretofore puzzled the learned. Al
first glance tho robe seems to be made of
woven meshes, but closer inspection shows
its main portion to consist Of a single
gazelle skin, the effect of the meshes being
obtained by piercing the interior with
minute cuts, about forty TO the inch and
perhaps a hundred thousand in total num-
ber Nearly $500 years have come and
gone since an Egyptian artisan made from
this skin a fabric almost as delicate as
lace work, yet the fragile hair still clings
to several spots missed by the workman's
knife and very few Of the meshes are
broken.
The Egyptian department Of the museum
had its beginnings in 1872. when Mr. c
Granville Way presented a number Of in
teresting antiquities, and since that tint
has been in steady process Of develop
ment until it has become 30 large that il
the present building only a limited mum
Der OF the possessions can be shown. Man!
Of the objects, such as two great mastaba
or stone tombs, have necessarily beeI
stored outside the building. Ample provi
sion for the proper display Of such work
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02
Million Dollar Home for American Art Collection

has, Of course, been made In the plans
for the new home of the institution.
Together with the treasures discovered
in excavations on the banks of the Nile
are others which represent the art of China
and Japan from early times to the present.
The collections of Chinese and Japanese
art which the Museum of Fine Arts has in
its keeping are equalled only in the i'm
perial museums of Japan, while the collec-
ton of Japanese pottery made by Prof.
Edward S. Morse, is more completely rep
resentatiye of the pottery of the island
kingdom than the acquisitions of all the
other museums of the world combined. The
japanese, who at the time of the recent
war with Russia overran and took pos
session of COrea, the hermit kingdom, were
studying modes of artistic expression more
than 1000 years ago under the tutelage Of
the now despised Coreans. Thus the Japa-
nese potter derived certain methods Of
technique from these people and for that
reason there has been included in the Japa-
nese collections a small collection of
COrean pottery, the objects ranging in age
from Loo years and more to the present
time.
In the cabinets devoted to Chinese and
japanese art are objects which are of
Ames gifts is the celebrated Fei-Tsui jade
tree, present made to Emperor Tung Che
when he assembled the throne in the eight
zenith century and by him given TO Chung
How, minister to Russia. A flask-shaped
jade, said to be the largest single piece in
the world, is mounted upon a pagoda of
pure gold and bears tree OF twisted gold
branches and leaves Of jade of various
colors.
Several of the paintings in the Chinese
and japanese departments are as important
I'm oriental art as so many Raphaels, Titians
and Rembrandts would be in a collection
OF European paintings. Back in the year
118 Chinkai, a celebrated japanese monk
painter, repaired painting which was then
800 years old. Chinkai placed an inscription
upon the picture stating that he had re-
can museums have often been obliged to
paired it, and it is through this inscription
that he has been introduced to the art
lovers of the America of the twentieth
century This little picture, painted a
dozen centuries ago, is extremely valuable
for japanese paintings of the eighth CEN
fury are rare, there being perhaps, only a
dozen extant, besides certain wall paintings
1t is half a millennium older than the re,
vival of European paintings in Italy. Some
time after the monk Chinkai had repaired
the old picture a set of three rolls was
painted depicting battle scenes Of the He'll
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

How about the Chinese, Mr.. SARGENT
Are not they unjustly kept OutY'
Il think not, They are admitted accord
ing to lay and the laws are fairly enforced.
Both our government and that Of the enl-
pire Of China want 10 keep these labOrers
out Of the United States. Nevertheless. the
conditions are such that it is dihicult TO do
%. 1t costs US more To guard this class
Of improper immigrants than almost any
other The Chinese who wishes 70 come
here is usually able TO command the best
legal advice 20 help him, no can secure
witnesses 10 testify 20 anything and can
tempt smugglers by the payment OF large
sums Of money. He IS backed by organiza-
tons which are ready 10 help him TO al
most any extent and IL is dificult to keep
him out. II is not true that the Chinese
have been insulted by our immigration
officers and II is not true that we treat
them unfairly in any way. We merely
carry out the law"
How many Chinese came In last year2'
Less than 200, and we sent back 800
under the Chinese exclusion act"
What kind Of Chinese can come into the
United States?"
1.-The treaty provides for the admission OF
merchants teachers, students and travel
ers.. and the courts have said that the
wives and children Of merchants may also
be admitted. We had more than go
Chinese who asked permission as mer-
chants last year and about $50 were adj
Matted" FRANK q. CARPENTER
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

arts in Greece, but II is to them that every
Investigator and teacher in every branch
of Greek studies must turn for informa-
ton and illustration. Prof. Furtwangler
of Munich, perhaps the foremost historian
of classical art, has stated in a published
letter: 1.-The collection OF Greek vases at
Boston is worthy Of comparison with many
of the famous collections of Europe, such
as that of the Vatican, especially In its
examples Of the finest period of Greek vase
painting, of which it has specimens of the
choicest kind and of the greatest value;
the collection Of ancient goldsmiths' work
contains four pieces Of the very first quail
ity, each of them quite unique. all products
OF the greatest period Of art and of ex-
ceptional perfection" In the same letter
he says, referring to life-size terra Gotta
head OF a Roman: 'It is without blem-
fish and its like is not to be found in any
museum of Europe. The collection Of mar
bles IS also extremely choice"
Among the marbles thus referred to
three In particular should be noticed. The
first is a head of Homer. the only one in
this country OF these portrait heads which
have come down from antiquity. II is
believed by many critics to outrank even
the famous head in Naples, which high
school students are familiar with in text
books. This head reveals great beauty of
workmanship and it is probably only a
question Of time before it will replace the
Naples head in our text books and so be-
come familiar to a constantly increasing
number of students. The second, marble Is
a colossal head of Genus, found in Asia
Minor, and which may have been worked
by Athenian sculptors employed on the
famous tomb Of Mausolos (from whose
name we derive the word mausoleumO. To
US. however, its chief interest lies in the
fact that it is a copy, and the only one
now known in sculpture, OF the head OF
CONTINUED on Page Eleven.)
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

note that Europeans who come to
this country often express surprise at the
excellence of our art collections. of which
nearly all of any consequence have been
gathered within a generation The great
galleries of Europe represent in many in
stances the growth Of centuries, while the
really important permanent exhibitions OF
works Of painting, sculpture and the ap-
piled arts in this country have been made
since 1870. In that time so rapid has been
the advance that predictions are already
heard Of a day when European students
VIII visit American galleries for the pur-
pose Of becoming acquainted with some Of
the most important Of the worlds master
pieces. Such institutions as the Metro
politan Museum Of Art in New York, the
Art institute OF Chicago, the Corcoran Art
gallery in Washington and the Museum
Of Fine Arts in this city have already
gained international reputation, while Phil
adelphia, through the consolidation Of the
John G. Johnson William L. EllSins and
p. A. r. Widener collections, is destined
very shortly to have one of the most nota-
BILE museums Of the country. At the same
time, in smaller cities, there has been a
similar awakening, so that the place Of
10000 inhabitants without some kind Of
oAN '~1AA1SAhoh bRNLA " the pubic Is e2Cep-
tional
While American museums have neoes-
sarily drawn largely upon the treasures Of
the old world in building up their collec-
lions, 1t has remained for this country to
take the lead in providing a suitable set
ting for art treasures. A new point Of
view in the housing of the great collections
forming in this country appears in plans
which have recently been adopted i'm BOs-
ton for a group Of buildings to accommo-
date the Museum of Fine Arts, founded in
1870, and situated for many years past ia
an ornate structure fronting on Copley
square, hard by the famous Boston Public
Library The new museum will, IL is said,
be the most perfectly designed institution
OF its kind In the world, for the plans
are based upon elaborate studies made
among European and American art
museums by a special committee Of ex-
perts. At the same time exhaustive in
vestigati tons into the proper lighting and
arrangement Of objects OF art have been
conducted with the aid OF specialists from
the Massachusetts, Institute Of Technology,
When, three years hence. removal from
the present oyercrowded and unsuitable
building has been made possible. the Inn
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

landsin New York. They often fall into the
hands of employment agencies and are mis-
led.
THE national government might present
the opportunities offered by different sec
tions of the United States to would-be i'm
migrants abroad and also have bureaus OF
information at our chief ports TO show
them where TO go upon landing. The states
which so much need immigrants should
send agents to foreign countries to drum
up the best classes of settlers, and they
might publish their inducements in the
language Of the countries from where the
immigrants come Each such state should
have a representative at New York to meet
immigrants as they land at Ellis island
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

Copyright, 1906, by Frank G. Carpenter)
-AsHINGTON, Nov. 29.-(Special
EW Correspondence of The Bee.)-
The invasion Of Goths and Van
49, dals destroyed the Roman en-
49, pre. VIII the invasion of the
nordes Of ignorant Europeans destroy our
republic? This question is beginning to
stir the minds of our schoolgirls. Our
immigration is increasing by gigantic
leaps From the beginning of our govern
ment until now just about 100000 for
egners have come into this country. The
time covered is about 100 years. During the
last twelve months the immigrants num-
bered more than 100000, which was 20 per
cent more than we have had in any year
before. We have now in round numbers
100000 people, and last year we added one
foreigner to our every eighty souls.
1t behooves us to know who these people
are, where they come from and where they
are settling. To find out I called on Mr.
Frank p. Sargent, the commissioner gen
sral OF immigration, and asked many ques-
lions. In reply he brought out records and
papers, and at the same time showed me
photographs recently made Of some of our
new immigrants.
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

Brought Twenty-Five Million Dollars.
what is the cause Of this great increase
in our immigration, Mr. Commissioner Cen
eral?'
cit is largely due to the era of prosper
ity which this country is now having and.
the great demand for labor arising there
from. If you will look over a table show
ing the rise and fall of our immigration
since our beginning as an independent
government you will see that we have a
big influx Of foreigners when times are
good, but that the flow stops when they
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02
Contract Labor.

Are not many of our immigrants
brought in by the owners Of mines and
factories? Are they not furnished with
money and imported In violation Of our
laws as to contract labor?'
at seems natural to think So said the
commissioner general Of immigration, but
it is difficult to prove it. Take, for instance,
such a case as frequently occurs in which
100 men, more or less, each supplied with
the same amount of money start at the
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

become bad. Indeed. immigration is one
of the best of thermometers to test our
financial condition. From the beginning
up to 1856 the rise was comparatively
steady Then came the panic of 1867 and
the civil war, and the number of immi-
grants fell from over 100000 10 less than
100000 per anuum. AS the war closed the
stream rose and gradually approached
100000, when the panic of 1873 sent It
down again 1T rose to almost 100000 in
1852. and then. because Of another hard
times season, again dropped, 10 fail still
further down after 1898. The present in
crease began with 1899, when 1t was little
over 100000. The immigrants we adj
mitted in 1906 were 1,O2G,49S If we
should have a season of financial troubles
l have no doubt our immigration would at
once fall off and that we should lose many
of the men who are coming now"
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

and he could if he would take them to see
an exhibitien Of the products OF his state
on show nearby. Such men as were espe-
cially desirable as settlers might be helped
on their way
To-day the south is suffering from a
labor famine" continued Mr.. Sargent
Nevertheless, of the million who came in
last year only ~ per cent went south OF
Mason and Dixons line. Maryland, West
Virginia and Florida each received only
about 5000 and Louisiana 5000. Texas
could use hundreds of thousands OF settlers,
but it got only 1900 out OF that million.
Tennessee did not get 800 and Kentucky
still less. What should be done Is to divert
the streams of immigration, II possible to
different ports. Why should not Louisiana
and Texas have immigrants landing at
New Orleans and Galveston instead Of New
York?'
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

same time from one small community in
Europe for the same port of the United
States, and upon landing all make their
way to one locality, where they go to work
for one factory or railroad-would you not
think that those men were imported under
contract? We do, but we find it almost
impossible to prevent it. Indeed l have
little doubt but that much labor is Inn
ported that way This may be the case
with the southern Italians, who are largely
worked here by contract after they land,
with padrones in charge"
.
Immigrants should he Scattered.
would it not be far better for the coun-
try, Mr.. Sargent If these people could be
scattered throughout the United states?"
Very much So and I am doing all 1 can
toward that end. Indeed, think it would
nav the national government and the indi-
vidual states to institute measures whereby
the immigrants might be induced to go
where they will do the most good for them
selves and the country This work should
begin in the localities from which the i'm
migrants come. AS it is now the immi-
grants who longest our big cities have
gone there because their friends who are
laboring in America have written them.
They go where their friends are and do not
know that there are better locations else
where. They expect to find good Jobs and
big pay waiting for them the moment they
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

yes. the majority had little or nothing.
Nevertheless the total sum brought in by
Their, in 1906 amounted to more than 49,,
100000
'I suppose the most of that sum came
from The English and Germans, did it not?'
Yes. proportionately so. There were So
OOJ English and they brought about 5000,
90 whereas nearly as many Magyurs
brought less than 100000 The 5000 Irish
had almost a million and half, while the
more than double as many Jews had only
about 100000 more The 5000 Germans
brought in 100000, and more than double
as many southern Italians had not as much.
Altogether there were less than u20QO
immigrants who had $50 or more each, and
about $4,000 who had less than that
amount The balance were children who
had none at ALL"
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02
Dealing In Immigration.

II suppose one Of the great forces causing
emigration from Europe is the steamships"
Eyes. They make from so to $50 out OF
each man they bring across the Atlantic,
and some single steamers carry 1000 or
more at a time. This means receiving from
$4,000 to $4,000 from that source for a sim
gle voyage. Every steamship company has
its agents scattered throughout Europe
drumming up such custom. School teach
ers and local preachers may receive a
small per cent of the passage money for
each person they induce to go abroad and
there are also runners in eastern and south
ern Europe who go from city to city and
from village to village for this purpose.
They tell fairy tales about the prosperity
OF the many immigrants now in America
and of the opportunities we offer to aliens.
1t is by such means that paupers and dis
eased persons are induced TO make tho
journey, only 20 hnd that they are shipped
back upon landing.
"As to the importation Of undesirable
characters" the commissioner general con-
tinued, that is largely prevented now by
our law. We make each steamer pay 800
fine for every person brought to our shores
who does not correspond with the regula-
tons Of admission, and at the same time
we force the companies to carry persons
back free Of charge. The result is a steam
ship company will sometimes refuse TO take
an immigrant without he deposits 800 with
it TO cover the danger of his fine"
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02
Uncle snm,s Biz Bite.

asked Mr.. Sargent: Don't you think
Uncle Sam Is biting of more than he can
chew? A million in the raw is a big mouth
full. Can the country masticate and digest
it?"
Yes" replied the commissioner general
OF immigration. THE teeth OF our nation
are strong and the stomach capacious If
the immigrants are of the right character
and they can be carried to the right To-
callties, we shall have no trouble whatever.
The chief difficulty Is that many of them
are ignorant and that they show a tendency
TO congest our big cities. They are not
like the immigrants OF the first three-Quar-
tcrs of our century, who came with the
ambition to be farm owners. They set
tied upon our homesteads and other cheap
lands and scattered themselves out over
the United States. Such foreigners changed
and we're transformed into Americans
Their children learned our Language and
all were quickly absorbed into the body
polite Those immigrants came from
northern Europe and especially from Ger
many and the United Kingdom. They
formed the bulk of our immigration untl
wen up into the eighties. The most OF our
immigrants are now coming from Austria
Hungary, Italy and Russia, and they are
day laborers rather than farm settlers
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

Hundreds Of Thousands Cant Write.
How do these immigrants compare with
those Of the past as TO ilhtoracy?' 1 asked.
"They contain many more who cannot
read or write. The immigration from
northern Europe from 1880 to 1885 was eN-
trnordinarily well educated. OF those from
Denmark. Norway and Sweden we rarely
found one who could not read and write;
only about g per cent Of the Scotch IrIsh
and English were uiterates and only per
cent Of the Germans In contrast take our
immigrants from 1890 10 1895. or The Rus
SLAMS and Austro- Hungariaus, one man in
every four OF more was lliterate, and OF
tho Itaiiads as per cent could not read OF
write. During thai time over 10000 Ital-
i,ns landed here and moro than 5000 Of
them were totally uneducated. Our Scam
d.navian immigrants are on the whole the
best educated.
Whore are these immigrants now going,
SIR sergentg' 7 asked.
,~rhe majority seek the large cities ana
the various factory, mining and Industrial
centers They are, as l have already said,
largely lsborers. who have come here TO get
an easier job and better wages, New York
state acts more uan any other II swat
lowed up a per cent or almost one-thri.
~ last years million. PennsylVan!a came
next with s00oo, and after that Illinois,
Arsssachusetts and little New Jersey The
south which needs labor 20 develop is
farming lands. got almost nothing, and the
great Agricultural west comparatively little
A large part % Fennsylvanis' immigration
went into the osal ulines. Ohio bad also a
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02
A Million New Relatives.

can American citizens are called the
nephews and nieces of Uncle sam. Tell mo
something about this new million OF ra"
immigrants who have become our cousins
in 1867"
Most Of those immigrants are not pah
and they will make good members OF our
national family" replied the commissioner
general OF immigration. still there are rare
birds among them and some are so bad that
we have shipped 10000 or so back TO the
countries whence they came. Take the
Italians. There were more Of them than
there are people In the city Of Genoa ana
$4,000 Of them came from southern ltaly'
rbare vyere about 10000 Hebrews, 10000
Poles and a large number OF other Russians
ana Austro- Hungarians We admitted over
5000 Germans and something like 10000
English, Irish and Scotch AS to our peo-
pie from southeastern Europe. we brought
IN 70 OOO slovalxs. 5000 Magyars, 5000 Gro
tians and Slavonians, 1000 Bohemians ana
Noravians aud 1900 Greeks"
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02
Russians Coming to America.

Are the Russian troubles affecting our
immigration"
Eyes. We have had q big increase from
that part OF the world, and # The troubles
continue we will have more. We got 10000
from Russia and Finland in 1904 and about
$4,000 last year, showing an increase OF
Just about 10000 The increase in our num-
Der Of Hebrews is largely due TO the trou-
bles in Russia We got 10000 OF them last
Near"
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02
our Pauper Immigrnnts.

but do we not admit many paupers into
this country
I'VE try TO prevent It." said Mr.. Sar-
gent. And we do send many such back
TO Europe. Last year just about 5000 were
refused admission and more than ZOO were
kept out because they had contagious dis
eases. AS It is now a large proportion OF
the inmates of our penal and charitable
institutions are foreigners. We have more
than 1900 aliens in such places, and OF
these about 10000 are over q years old.
The most Of them came in through New
York, although they are scattered all over
the country. As it is now more than g
per cent Of all the members Of such institu-
tions are of foreign birth and more than
II per cent have never been naturalized.
Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-02

JSToN. Dec. 1.-lwith THOUSANDS
OF ArnSFisans going abroad every
year to visit the art galleries Of
the old world, it is interesting to