St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1913-01-29

| the merchant does his wares! 10
the average farmer the idea is SO
strange that he hesitates to take the
advantage of it. 1t might have been
useless expense in previous years,
although occasionally We hear of
farmer who has made comfort
able fortune and built up good
trade IN some speciality such as
eggs, butter, sausage, ham and
spring broilers. With the establish
ment of the parcel post the objec-
ton to advertising farm products
I disappears, an opening being made
to sell the same direct to the city
consumers. We believe there is mon
ey, good money, in this direction
for the farmer-[News and Citi-
I zen.
The immigration Bill
The immigration bill, which COM
bines the chief features of the Dill
bingham bill and the Burnett lit
I eracy test bill, has been sent back
I to conference at just the time when
it was supposed that this legislation
was practically completed and would
soon be in the hands of the pres1-
dent. The trouble was over the in
sertion IN the House bill of a clause
requiring immigrants to present a
certificate of character, and the
senate, without a dissenting vote,
rejected the conference report and
sent it back in order that this re-
quirement might he striker out.
The clause that the senate found so
Objectionable was not in the first
draft of the measure as passed Dy
either the house or the senate, but
fnc cd n annfoTQn1R at the
suggestion of Secretary Nagel, who
had in view the exclusion OF Italian
criminals 1t excludes from admis-
sion to the United States citizens
or subjects of any country that is
sues penal certificates or certlncates
of good character, who do not pro-
duce to the immigration officials
such certificates The American
Jewish Committee of New York sue
I ceeded in convincing the senate that
this provision might help exclude all
political refugees, particularly those
from Russia, and it was pointed out
that before a certificate of character
could be obtained in Russia the
emigrant would have to pay for
Russian passport. These passports
are never issued until the applicant
has proved that he has complied
with the military-service law, and
even then the granting OF pass
llport is dependent upon police ap-
prevail.
Secretary Nagel believed, appar-
/ emily, that none but emigrants from
Italy would be affected by this
clause, but Senator Root of New
York expressed the view held by
most senators when he said that the
| a.,hin0ffn0 tho ami
grant from a European country to
the regulation of the local sovereign
ty. might open the door to a limit
| alton of the right of emigration from
/ that country" Mr. Root sees as
clearly as anyone the evil of Grim
inal immigration, which, as he
says, is most deeply felt in his own
state and city, but he knows that
thousands of men who came here
as political refugees and proved
their capacity for good citizenship
would have been excluded IL the
clause inserted in the immigration
bill at the request of Secretary Ma
gel had been in force. That clause
will undoubtedly be eliminated, as
| it should be.
The principal changes in the ex-
listing immigration laws which are
provided for in the bill that is
| likely to go to the president have
been. summarized as follows
+ 1. An increase in the immigrant
head tax from 81 to IS.
2. Exclusion of aliens not elig1-
BILE for naturalization.
8. Adoption of a reading literacy
test.
4. Making it permissible for the
| secretary of commerce and labor to
| decide beforehand as to the necessi-
ty of importing such skilled con-
tract labor as now is admissible I'M
der the existing contract labor law.
5. Providing heavier penalties for
transportation lines that violate the
law against advertising for 1mml-
grants and which bring to the United
States aliens who are ineligible to
enter.
6. Providing machinery for COM
pelling the attendance and testimony
/ of witnesses before immigration au-
thorities.
q. Providing for matrons, in
'spectors and surgeons on immigrant
! ships at the discretion of the secre-
Ltary Of commerce and labor.
8. Providing for the deportation
of aliens who become criminals
! three years subsequent to entry.
8. Providing for interior immi-
| grant stations.
10. Providing against illegal en-
| try of seamen and stOwaways.
/ IL. Permitting aliens to be repre-
sented by counsel in appeals from
decisions of boards of special in
quiry.
r. Providing experts in insanity
in large ports of entry.
Next to the clause requiring GER
tificate of character, which the SEN
ate refuses to approve, the feature
of the bill open to most serious OBJ
lection is the provision for o. literacy
| test for the admission of alien i'm
migrants. The provision for writ
ing test, which was included in the
senate bill, hes been eliminated, the
compromise measure providing mere
| ly that an alien immigrant over 16