The Hawaiian gazette., 1908-08-25
IMMIGRANTS DO
NOT LIKE AGENTS

What awaits ]. D. Trenor special
agent of the Territorial Board of Inn
migration, when he arrives at Ellis
Island to recruit labor for Hawaii, re-
mains to be seen. What the experience
of other special agents has been is
shown in the following from the New
Times of Sunday, August .. The Times
SAYS
Land agents who have tried to turn
the tide of immigration through the
port of New York from its accustomed
channel to the South, where land is
cheap, have come to be looked upon as
bunko steerers by thousands of immi-
grants landed here in the last few
months The immigration officials say
that foreigners coming here look upon
every one with suspicion and that many
amusing mistakes have been made by
them at Ellis Island.
During the last few months several
dozen land agents from the southern
States have appeared at Ellis Island,
trying to get the newly.landed foreign
ers to accompany them to the South,
either to buy land or to work for the
agriculturists there. Some few hpn-
bred immigrants have listened to their
stories of wealth to be made in the
South, but comparatively few have gone
there.
Most of the immigrants entering this
port have come after already choosing
the place where they will cast their for
tunes, the immigration officials say.
They have friends or relatives living
in some part of the United States and
come either to join them or 20 to some
locality advised by persons whom they
know and can trust. Hence the false
light of bunko steerer under which some
of the Southern land agents have
fallen.
DR.. Leander Trowbridge Chamber
lain, Vice Chairman of the Immigra
tion Department Of the National Civic
Federation, discussing the subject OF
e distribution >of the immigration to the
;. United States few days ago, said:
, "Only one man in 400 arrives AT
Q Ellis Island who does not know exactly
where he is going And if you under
take to tell the Italian of the advan
tages of the South, of its climate, OF
its fruits and flowers, and he is bound
to Montreal, for instance. it is a useless
task to try to dissuade him. Not long
ago an interpreter asked one immigrant
if he would not like to go South to 10
cate. The immigrant said he was 60
: ing to Montreal.
"'But,' said the interpreter, Mon
treal is frozen half the year, and yol
= are from Italy, And then he describ
d ed the South and compared the Soutl
I and Montreal, and what do you sup
pose was the impression he made9 Why
r the Italians took him for bunk'
e steerer
d eff the South or any other place
wants immigration, it would be wis
q to take few families and convince
e them that they can get employment
!. throughout the year at good wages
They do not come here for climatic
reasons. They come here to bette
themselves
4 "These people know the general sit
uation. About rs per cent. of then
90 to six States, the large majority go
ing to Massachusetts, New York, New
Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. Blu
why do they go there9 Because Z
= per cent. of the demand for labor is i
y those States, and 76 per cent. of tn
excellence of the relations of labor an
capital is in those six States.
$. 'fIn the decade from 1890 to 400
le the population of the United States il
Id creased 100000, 100000 in tn
81 cities and suburbs virtually urban.
10 GIN single month of 1907 the in
III migrants that came to Ellis Islam
he went to every State and Territory {
90 the United States, Hawaii and I'll
n Philippine Islands. The governmer
- has no occasion to interfere with til
"a distribution of immigrants. They al
to distributed according to natural laws.
tx