Omaha daily bee., 1908-12-03

the bureau OF corporations thus far has
been directed to this end, and the results
have demonstrated its value. II has been
shown in many cases that the mere publ
cation of improper business methods has
led to the immediate abandonment of those
methods. But the scope of this work ana
its beneficial results could be greatly eX-
tended by the establishment of a general
federal system of supervision OF Interstate
corporations.
In the portion devoted to the Bureau Of
Labor. Secretary Straus says;
The law granting compensation to gov
eminent employees, passed at the first ses-
sion of the present congress, should be eN-
tended in scope so as to embrace classes
of employees not now included, and should
be made more liberal in its terms. The COM
pensation at present paid-one years earn
ings-is pitifully inadequate where total dis
ability results from an Injury, or where
death leaves a dependant family.
We are probably the richest nation in the
world. and in the amount of compensation
provided for in this bill we are, particularly
niggardly In comparison with the provisions
I'm this regard made by the poorest coun-
tries Of Europe.
Death of Frank r. Sargent.
Secretary Strauss refers to the loss Of
Commissioner General of Immigration
Frank p. Sargent as a serious one for the
causes for which he labored. Upon the
subject Of immigration and emigration the
report says:
During a portion of the last fiscal year,
and extending into the present, this couu-
try has suffered ar industrial depression
due to Il number of causes, among others
to ovcrproduction, which were worldwide,
but perhaps for the time being more ac-
centuatcd in this than in the other COM
mercial countries.
The effect upon immigration to this
country and emigration therefrom was al
most immediate. While the immigration
to this country for ten years and more had
in each year increased considerably over
the preceding year, the fiscal year 1903,
as compared with the fiscal year 1907,
shows a falling off of about SO per cent,
and as compared with the fiscal years 1906
and 1905 there were approximate decreases
OF - and "a per cent, respectively. The
total number of immigrant aliens who en-
tered the country in the last fiscal year
was 1880, being 500, 479 less than in the
fiscal year 1907.
Deducting the total departures of aliens
from the total arrivals during the fiscal
year, the net Increase Of alien population
has been 2O9,S67. Even this net increase
is further reduced by the departure from
the United States Of naturalized American
citizens, concerning which latter class no
method is provided by law for collecting
data. While the number perhaps is not
large, it is still appreciablc.
Age of Aliens Admitted.
It is worthy of note that of the $3.50
aliens admitted, 630,67l were between the
ages Of 4 and A, and ll2,l4s were under
the age of IA; only 40,05l had reached or
passed the age of 10. OF those admitted,
exclusive Of aliens under II years OF age,
l72, 23 could neither read nor write, and
2.3lO could read but not write. About %
per cent Of those admitted II years of age
and over we @ illiterate, as compared with
50 per cent for the year 1897. The total
amount of money actually shown to immi-
gration Officers by arriving aliens was ST.
79l, 226. an average Of almost S23 per capita.
But il is well known that the amount aC-
tually brought over was considerably
larger.
Much greater success has attended the
departments efforts to enforce the alien
contract labor law during the last year
than i'm any preceding year. One reason
Is the increased scope Of the law already
mentioned; another, the fact that the last