Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1911-12-31

Io,,Sr in Mr.. Nagel, secretary of COM
merce and labor, to Mr.. Williams the
commissioner of immigration at Ellis
Island. The letter requested that l be
shown all the processes and given all
information as to how the foreigner
breaks into this country. Uncle Sam is
adopting into our national family more
than 600 new brothers and sisters
each year. lie keeps rushing them in at
the rate of 1000 or 1900 day, or of more
than 100 an hour from midnight TO mid
night ali the year through
How do these people get in?
Who are they?
What are they?
Where do they come from?
Where do they go?
Can we digest them? Or will they lie
like lump OF sour dough on Uncle Sans
stomach poisoning our national family"
The Experience of One Immigrant.
l shall answer the last question first,
and that by my experience as an i'm
migrant. The first chapter of It is imagi-
merry. You must suppose me Il peasant in
some little town in southeastern Europe.
My wages are less than % cents a day,
and the chief part Of my diet is brown
bread and water. One morning a smooth,
well dressed man comes and offers me
all sorts Of inducements to so across the
ocean. He paints the Un.Ied States as q
country where sold dollars can be picked
UP I'm the streets, and finally persuades
me to pay enough out OF my savings to
buy a steamship ticket to New York
The ticket Is for the steerage and It costs
me So. Armed with it / go to Fiume,
which is my nearest port and, after being
examined and fumigated am hurried with
2.0c0 others into the hold of steamer
1t is the steamship company that causes
my going. My passage helps TO pay its
Cie.dends, and that Is the reason their
agtnt has called upon me. They get the
worth Of their money. | pay them one
third or one-half as much as a first cabin
passenger, but / sleep in n bunk away
Gown below decks in a room with hun
Cleds of others. I eat my meals out OF
I N pots and pans and have a luxurious
l)sfing place, between rains, on the bare
floor Where seasick men, wcrlcn and
Oh ere n. my fel ov-passeI gers, lie sprawl
iIi around
After fifteen Gays of fairly good sail
irs / have passed out Ct the Mediter-
ranoaD, have crossed the Atlantic and
have steamed by the great statue Of Lib
erty to the docks Of New York. There
the cabin passengers have been landed,
and have been showed with the rest Of
my fellows into a barge and carried to
the little archipelago consisting OF three
Its OF land surrounded by water called
Ellis island. The islands are covered with
buildings which seem to float on the hsr-
l,Or They are fOined nv hridPes and o1Ir
barge floats right up to the doors.
Number 25-GrOup .'F."
In the meantime the 2,vUO OF us have
been sorted and herded in groups. This
was done on the steamer and each was
given a card showing his group and his
upmber. am No. 25, group ''F." This is
printed ON a white card which is pinned
10 my breast. the officers having eau
toned me to keep II in sight. have also
Lad to sign a long paper of answers 20
all sorts OF questions. have given my
full name and my age. have stated
whether l was a man or a woman, was
married or single and whether l could
read or write. l had to give my ma
tionality, race and last residence. had
10 state where I was going. and whether
my passage was paid by myself or any
other person. corporation. society munic-
ipality or government. had 10 tell what
money / had or whether Il was as much
Gs $50 and II / was going TO join friends
On this side. l gave answers to the ques-
lions whether l had been in prison. or
tbs poor house. or in an insane asylum.
npd also whether / was mentally or