The Washington herald., 1907-03-03
TO STOP EMIGRANTS
Italy Planning to End Heavy
Drain OH Population.
LOSES PROVINCE EVERY YEAR
Country Has No Attractive Colonies
and Young Element Swnrms to
America and EurOpe-PaFis sud-
denly Opens War on Gamblers.
Heavy Snowfall I'm Switzerland.

London, March 1.-The question Of emf
grafton has been occupying public at
tentlon in Italy for some time past, and
the possibility of diverting Italian emf
grants to the Italian colonies, the best
means of cherishing the Italian language
in the families Of those who have married
and settled in America. and the almost
complete depopulation Of many parts OF
/ Southern Italy, are being constantly dis
cussed.
| Signor Nitti, southern deputy. who IS
an authority on economic and social sub
] jects, recently delivered a valuable lee
/ ture on the whole subject at Naples. He
/ pointed out that if the British Isles were
/ swallowed up by some great cataclysm
! tomorrow, the British name would still
be kept alive By Greater Britain; he
pointed out. too, that France has 10 need
| of a colonial empire, for she has a
! scarcity of younger sons, the pioneers Of
colonization In all ages. Italy. on the other
hand. occupies a position in this respect
between France and Great Britain; she
has a large surplus population which can
not find work I'm the Basilicata and in
Calabria; but she has only two. and
those not very popular colonies of her
-Erythraea and Benadir. According
ly. the Italian, when he emigrates. goes
either TO another European country or 10
/ TUnisia or across the Atlantic.
Signor Nitu calculates that the first
class consists Of nearly $4,000 persons an
nually. and the last class Of nearly half
Ia million, almost entirely from the south.
every year" as lie episrammltcaliy
puts it, "an Italian province is trans
feTFed to America The worst feature
OF this emigration is that the best tie
ments in the population 60 and only the
women, the aged, and the children re-
main. Signor Nitti urges the Italian gov
eminent TO prohibit illterates from emf
grating, 50 as 90 raise the standard OF
the emigrants. and points 20 the neceS-
sity Of developing hitherto neglected
home industries. Italy" he concluded.
should export more merchandise and
fewer men
The problem is really identical with the
southern question, which SignOr GiOltti
has made "a vigorous attempt 90 solve by
the law Of last year, which lie took over
with many other legislative fixtures from
the previous tenant of the treasury bench
Baron Sidney SOuninO. But the south can
not be made % blossom like the rose in a
few months, or even years. Still, public
opinion is thoroughly alive to the fact
that there are two Italles-the prosperous
north. which visitors saw at the Milan
exposition and the pOveTty-stTIcken
south, which lies Ia the rarely-visited re-
If.F 1,tfr
the deserted Basiucata.
The German government cOntcmplates
the construction Of "a fortified eoaling sta
ton I'm connection with the proposed great
harbor works at SWak0pmund. This idea
If realized. would considerably reduce the
value Of Waldsch Bay. and IL is rumored
that the British government would not be
disincHned 10 exchange this British port
incIosed on the land side by German ter
ritory. for adequate compensation. Il s,
however. possible that the wish is ia
ther TO the thought
The question OF the possibility Of CON
Meeting the German Southwest African
coast with the Cape 10 Cairo Railway is
also being discussed in the German press
1t is believed that Cecil Rhodes made the
connection Of the transverse lines from
German territory with the Cape 10 Cairo
Railway dependent on the express sane
ton of the Cape government. and it Is
stated that one of the objects of the re-
cent visit OF the governor OF Southwest
Africa TO London was to sound the Brit
ish government on the question Of arriv-
ing at an agreement on the subject
The Paris public is thunderstruck and
cannot explain the serious manner In
which the authorities. so lcnient for
many years. are now going after the gam.
blers. The three gambling clubs raided
recently are TO be prosecuted on two
counts: For holding gambling tables
open TO all corners, and for breaking the
law Of 1901. which concerns the member !
ship Of clubs If convicted. the pres-
dent and secretary and manager, or such
persons as are held responsible. may be
fined from So TO $1,000. and may also be
deprived Of civil rights The police have
raided the Cercle Charras a second time. !
The members had been warned, and no
gambling was going on. The tables. /
chairs. and counters we're seized.
The effect of the heavy snowfall in
Switzerland has been 10 entirely derange /
the train service. Two crowded expresses |
from Paris TO Milan we're blocked for |
two days I'm the Jura Mountains, near the /
frontier Four locomotives. with snow
pIoWs reached them only after many de- /
lays, and the passengers were suffering /
c,raa tTr- from Gold and hrruCpr The IN