The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1910-02-16
.HOWS DETECTS IN
IMMIGRATION LAW
Commissioner Keefe Says That
Many Chinese LabOrers Are
Struggled Into Country

WASHINGTON. Feb. 15.-Not further
restriction. but merely to make pos
sible such restriction as the existing
law intends but has not accomplished.
is the object of proposed new immi-
grafton law recommended by Daniel j.
Keefe the commissioner general of
immigration, in his annual report for
the fiscal year 1909 Some OF the prin-
cipaI suggestions are:
So defining the word allen" as to
leave no doubt that ii includes all
persons not citizens: extending the con-
tract labor provisions to forbid and
penalize the inducement of immigration
by false as well as genuine promises of
employment. penalizing an attempt 10
import foreign laborers and permitting
the importation of alien skilled labor
ers If labor Of like kind unemployed can
not be found here only if the consent
/ Of the secretary of commerce and labor
is obtained in advance; increasing the
me against steamship companies for
taking on board dangerously diseased
aliens from 500 to s20o.
PHYSICAL TEST PROPOSED
Keefe suggests that a proposal
worthy OF careful thought is that all
male aliens between Is and so be re-
CURED TO pass a physical examination
equal to that observed for army re-
cruits.
Touching the white slave" traffic. the
report sets out that special 1nVes-
tigation conducted throughout the
country and the general experience of
the year make il apparent that an
enormous business is done in importing
and distributing foreign women for i'm
moral purposes. including the seduction
and distribution Of alien women and
girls who enter regularly and also to
some eXtept OF American women and
girls"
In some cities, II is declared. the
traffic is connected with local political
conditions and some OF the municipal
authorities are Implicated or otherwise
helpless to assist in graduating the
evil The federal governments powers.
II is stated. are so limited as to make Il
essential. If any marked progress is to
be expected, that the states and cities
shall awake 10 the seriousness of the
situation and exercise their undoubted
authority TO put down the evil
JAPANESE INFLUX REDUCED
Qualification is expressed as a result
Of the experiment in immigration con-
tuted by law. proclamations and regu-
lations following the anti-Japanese agi-
tation in California several years ago
There has been a material reduction
in both the number of japanese ad-
mitted and deported In 1908, 9,544
japanese were admitted to continental
United States and S.694 to Hawaii. while
for 1909 the corresponding figures are
2,f32 and 1893.
Contrary to the general impression,
, Chinese admitted 10 the United States
have increased during the last four
years. and K eefe is pessimistic regard
ing the operation Of the law. He con-
cluded that the system OF exclusion and
expulsion afforded by IT was made
qUate, and said:
DESPITE all that is said and all
that is done, the bureau is always
confident at the close OF any year
that many Chinese of the excluded
classes have evaded the border Off
GERS, however vigilantt they may
have been, have smuggled them
selves or been smuggled ashore in
seaports as sailors or stowaways,
or have by fraud and perjury man
aged to land in an apparently regu-
lar manner. There are doubtless
now in this country at least as
many Chinese not entitled to resi-
dence here as Of the lawfully resi-
dent class, and they have entered
in every way that can be ina ined.
1t is urged that the exclusion laws
be merged into the general immigra-
tion law, so that the administrative
! process of expulsion therein provided
may be used
CHINESE EVADE THE LAW
There are also a number OF other
/ recommendations which the commits
sioner says may be considered revolu-
! tionary. but are regarded as necessary
! IL the law Is TO be effective and salts
/ factory.
During 1909. s,ses Chinese were regu-
larry admitted against 4.624 in 1908.
/ 1886 IN 1907 and 2,T32 in 1906. The
worst feature. the commissioner says.
/ is that the Increase is almost confined
/ to classes the members of which are.
or soon become, Iaborers and whose
residence here violates the spirit of the
/ law.
AS to occupations. 174,Se0 unskilled
! laborers OF the immigrant class entered
and 1895 of the emigTant class de-
parted in 1909 OF the 751.TS6 inmi-
grant aliens who entered the United
States during the year $685. were un-
der IA and 3s,51T were 40 or over; of
those over 13 years of age, 1909
could neither read nor write, an in
/ crease in the ratio of illiteracy to %
( per cent, as against 90 per cent in
1908 For various reasons, i0,411
aliens were deported.
Reference is made again to the in
! teresting and important economic
problem arising from the fact that a
/ large proportion OF immigration is
coming from southern and eastern
/ Europe those countries furnishing
about G. per cent of the immigrants.
I The continuance Of this preponderance
! is declared to be a question concerning
every patriotic citizen. for it is stated
there can be little homogeneity between
people of that section and the real
American.
Twenty Hindus Deported
The Chiyo Maru carried away 20
Hindus for the orient yesterday. OF
these. II were deported for having the
I eye disease of trachoma. and the re-