The Washington herald., 1908-02-01

JecI IS at last receiving at the hanuS OF
our people the attention which its serious
Importance merits. \ few days ago a
bill appropriating S250,O00 for an emigranJ
station at Philadelphia reviewed the whole
range of the question, and Congressman
INDUCED In expressions showing the pc
culiar variety Of views they entertain.
OF late years there has appeared TO be a
growing sentiment in favor Of restricting
immigration to the utmost. Radical op-
pOnents Of immigration have conjured up
all sorts of fears of the bringing Of
hordes of cheap labor TO compete with
our native labor, and this view has taken
no account of the worthiness Of the pros
pective citizen. Others iuimieal 10 the
increasing presence of aliens have dis
trusted them because some Of them have
turnd out 90 be undesirable citizens.
The exclusion OF the 'undesirabes' is
avowed as the purpose of all parties. Just
about a year ago a general immigration
law was enacted repeating the act of
March g. 1893 and all prior acts ,or parts
of acts inconsistent with the new law.
Under the new act Notwithstanding its
increased stTiCJness and its numerous
safeguards against undesirables, there
came To the United States during 1901
the greatest immigration shown in any
year of the countrys history. 2S5. .349
souls, all pronounced desirables under the
law.
These immigrants were taxed 81 a head.
They came from all over the world. They
ranged from the fairest of Europe 10 the
blackest of Africa. and included brown
men and yellow men from the Orient and
the islands of the Atlantic and Pacific
oceans. They brought with them i'm
mcHey shown" according to the annual
report of the Commissioner General of
Immigration. $3.50. SaS. or an average Of
nearly $50 "a person. The race or people
furnishing the largest number OF immi-
grants i'm 1901 were the Italians 2N OPP
strong. The Southern Italians brought
Sl3.A a head; the Northern Italians $24
There came 1912 Hebrews. bringing
Sl31s each. The race ranking next IN
number of immigrants was the Polish
l3S.033 with $ll-14 per capita. from Ger
many came 92,s26, averaging S36.Il each.
The race or people having the highest
average amount of money for the immi-
grant furnished was the French. although
the total number was but 992. the per
capita OF money shown being }5i51. Next
30 the French in possession OF money
were the EngIish-5I,116 OF them. with
StS22. From the scandinavian countries
of Norway and sweden there were 53i25
immigrants. bringing au average OF S2095
The LithUuiaus of Southern Russia
.5SSf I'm number-brouSht the lowest peg
capita OF mcrey-$l05o Other countries
sent Russians. ROumanians. RUthenia0s.
Firms Masyars. BUgari3ns. ServiaHs,
and MOuteuegrins. D0hemiaus or M0rJE-
ians Slovaks, Greeks. Spania-ds, Syrjans,
and Portuguese. The per capita amount of
money shown by them ranged from S}.g7
for ,hc Spaniards, of whom there were
9495. to Sli3S for the Eu;honians. of
whom there were 2L05l
Tie first year ia which immigration
statistics were compiled by the United
States was 1890. Since that tire the total
immigration has been over 25,O90Go0. The
proportions coming f~om the principal
countries during the period were. United
Kingdom. so per cent; Germany, q per
cent. Scandinavia Denmark. Norway,
ana Swedem, Z per cent; Italy and Aus
'ris-HungaTy, 10 per cent each; Russia.
s per cent. France. , per cent: Switzer-
land. / per cent, countries not specified.
3 per cent For a long while the leu
tonic races led in numbers. and loaveued
the immigration lump with all the ele-
Wents that make Tor good CitiZ-nry.
Within the present decade. succeeding tho
census of 1900. nearly 10000 people from
The races Of Southern Europe have
brought a sometimes questionable addi-
tjon TO the population. for they are more
alien 90 our natives than are any other.
and &c has excited some apprehension as
20 the result of their admXjure with our
own people.
An American observer OF immigration
more than ten years ago. after having
travelled extensively i'm Europe 10 study
the question. said. "A stream Of emigfd-
tioH once started never stops The flow
OF money from the prOspering immigrant
i1 the new country pays the way for an
other one, while returning relatives and
friends help 10 keep the subject alive
Perhaps the most interesting phase of i'm
migration is lis very perceptible falling
on IN periods of financial depression i'm
the United States. Looking over the last
nlty years. and passing over the four
cars on civil war. it Is seen there was
marked decrease i'm immigration for
1t time after the panic year of 1872
total immigration from all coun-
IN M was #4N6; by 1870 the fun
set OF the panic began TO be felt and
immigration had dwindled IN less
an half that many The decrease con
ued, and in 1878 was smaller than any
year in the last fifty years. except in
1852. during the civil war II did not re-
cover the highest previous figures-those
for lS72-untf 1880. when it reached 457 q57
The high tide of the next decade was
reached in 1882 when the immigration
was 1892 In no year thereafter did
it exceed these figures until 1905 when
il was 974.273. The panic and hard times
Of 1888 had marked effect on immigra-
tiOn figures. From 579.663 in 1892 il
dropped to 2S5,631 in 1894 The panic Of
October 1907, has already made itself felt
upon immigration. Ii is marked i'm the
great number of returning immigrants re-
corded in November and December. 1t
IS true that as winter approaches many
immigrants return 10 their former coun-
tries with the intention Of coming back
70 the United States in the spring when
work begins. Yet the exceptional num-
Der noted as shipping recently for the
old world clearly denotes the financial
depression and the consequent lapse in
the demand for labor.
About fifteen years ago a commission
of experts for the United States travelled
in Europe, having been sent thither in
response to the demand that something
should be done to stop the alarming in
crease Of pauper and otherwise unde-
undesirable immigration. 1t was found
that the greatest stimulus 10 immigra-
iton was in the eXtravagant blandish- |