The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-01-24
IMMIGRATION LAW CHANGES


amend the immigration laws Of this
country by the present Congress.
Various means TO strengthen tho
clauses that will allow OF the exclusion
of undesirable emigrants have been pro.
posed. The Senate has been insistent
| upon imposing a test of Iiteracy which
would require the exhibition Of the
ability both to read and to write in
some known language. The House, how
ever, prevailed in its contention with
| the Senate on this matter, and the bill
as finally agreed upon leaves out the
writing test. The two Houses have com
bined the Senate Dillingham; bill with
the House Burnett bill, and, as agreed
| upon, the enactment as il went to the
President carried the following changes
| in the law:
/ An, An inarssTo &c ga in the immigrant head
9. Exclusion OF aliens not eligible for
naturalization.
| 3, Adoption OF a reading llteracy test.
4. Making Il permissible for the secre-
tary of commerce and labor 10 decide be-
forehand as TO the necessity Of importing
such skilled contract la Dor as now is ad-
law
.. Providing heavier penalties for trans
portation lines that violate the law
against advertising for immigrants and
which bring to the United states aliens
who are ineligible TO enter.
6. Providing machinery for compelling
the attendance and testimony of witnesses
before immigration authorities.
Z. Providing for matrons. inspectors
and surgeons on Immigrant ships at the
discretion OF tho secretary Of commerce
s. Providing for tho deportation Of
aliens who become criminals three years
subsequent TO entry
Q. Providing for interior Immigrant sta
tions
10. Providing against illegal entry OF
sesmcn and stowaways.
II, Permitting aliens 10 be represented
by counsel In appeals from decisions OF
boards OF special inquiry.
12. Providing exports IN insanity in
large ports Of entry.
H. new definition OF the meaning
OF the word alien where It appears in
the law.
The great contest between the two
Houses on the passage Of the bill was
on tho writing test but the House pre-.
vailed at the last. striking it out. The
general tendency of tho changes made
in the law rs above set forth make it.
country. At the Same time, the Law
will make IL extremely difficult for the
immigration officers. The law as passed
requires that the immigrant must he
able TO ''read in some known and used
language not less than thirty nor more
than forty words in ordinary use
printed in plain type Bnt what
languages are in ordinary use? The
Boston Globe, in referring 20 this por.
tion of the statute, has the following
sweeping list Of languages that the i'm
migration officers must know something
about, ard be able to pronounce au.
thorltatively upon the proficiency of the
emigrant in from any one of which he
may choose his reading:
At all the principal ports OF entry there
to read Italian, French. Spanish, Basque,
Portuguese. Danish. Norwegian. Swedish,
lcelandic. Eskimo. Gaelic. Welsh. Dutch,
High German, Plattdeutsch. Bohemian
Slovak and whatever other Czechlsh dIa-
lects there may be, Polish. Finnish, Let
tlSh. hungarian, Ruthenlan. Lithuanian.
Great. Little White and Red Russian
and Russia Leather Rumsuian Bulga-
rian, Serylan, Albanian (thc only living
specimen OF the prmeval Language OF
Southern Europe). Greek and Turkish, not
to mention Armenian, Persian, Arabic and
whatever other living or picked tongues
may be used by any one OF the varie-
gated linguistic th-ongs that are con-
stanOy arriving.
And a different slip for each alien,
Twenty languages and as many dialects
may be spoken in the steerage OF an Inn
migrant ship by the 1000 OF 1900 passen-
gers The inspectors will have TO keep
their pockets full OF slips ana be sure al
ways 10 hand out the right one. How
many hundred thousand slips Will have
to be kept on hand at the immigration
offices?
Surely that is list to stagger the
oflice-seeker, and the immigration
officer; and the immigration officer who
should pass civil service examination
in reading and understanding thirty To
forty words in all these languages would
be marvel indeed.
IT is POOR POLITICS.