Bonners Ferry herald. [volume] (Bonners Ferry, Idaho) 1904-current, 1914-06-19
IMMIGRATION TOPIC
HAVE THE MANY CHANGES IN
PAST FEW YEARS IN OUR
LAWS BEEN HELPFUL?
FROM AN INDUSTRIAL VIEW POINT
Effect Upon Wages Largely Depends
on Two Main Factors: Standard
of Living and Efficiency-Com-
mon Labor to Be Protected.

The change in the character OF our
European immigration, the proposed
literary test, effects of the Chinese ex-
clusion law, the Pacific coasts Japan
csc problem. CALIFORNIA; anti-alien
land law and the effects of the Pan
ANA canal are some of the interest
ing developments of recent years af-
fecting the immigration movement
into this country. But, before en-
deavoring to discuss any of these spe-
cific problems, it is well to briefly out
line the general Industrial, political
and social effects OF immigration and
in so doing the writer will simply set
down fundamental principles of more
or less general application, without
reference to any special classes or ma
tionality of immigrants or to any
special economic conditions.
One of the most important ques-
tons to consider in discussing immi-
grafton is, what is the average i'm
migrant worth to us commercially?
The amount of actual money he brings
with him is probably of least import
ance. 1t is rather a question of main
tanning or securing a properly bal
anced population; it is a question of
their earning capacity or industrial
fitness and of their expenditures or
standard of living. The immigrants
expectancy of life is very high be-
cause, as a general thing, only the
strong come and at an age when this
expectancy is high. So immigration
is of economic advantage provided we
have, and so long as we have, the ma
terial and opportunity of setting the
immigrants to work.
Only small per cent of immigra-
ton can be classed as professional or
skilled. Approximately rs per cent is
unskilled or common labor and a
large part of this has not had the edu-
cation and training that our native
born common labor has Naturally
these laborers compete more or less
with our own laborers, so the effect
of immigration upon the standard of
wages is a vital consideration.
1t is evident a modification of wages
must come through any change in the
relation between the supply of labor
and the amount of work to be done
But any modification in wages also
depends considerably upon the amount
of land uncultivated. So long as there
is available uncultivated land, the
general standard of wages cannot be
pressed materially below what the av-
erage man can make from the soil
Therefore, so long as land is abund
ant, immigration will not affect wages
and undoubtedly contributes to the de-
velopment of the country.
But in this country the tillable land
is nearly all taken up and we are ap
preaching a time when we may seri
ously consider the effect of immigra
ton upon wages and whether we
should, on that account, place greater
restrictions upon immigration, even
European. OF course, the absence oil
land will, of itself, tend to check i'm
migration and this accounts partly fol
the change in the character of immi
grafton during recent years.
Provided the foreign laborers come
in the right proportions as to skilled
and unskilled labor, so they may be
properly distributed and assimilated
the effect upon wages depends upor
two main factors-(1) standard of liv
ing, and (2) efficiency-and under this
head there are three possibilities:
First, where the immigrants hav,
the same standard of living and same
degree of efficiency as our own labor
In this case there will be no effec
and the nation is enriched in labo
power and indirectly in wealth if thu
labor is utilized.
Second, where the immigrants hav
a lower standard of living and tn
same efficiency. Provided this condi
ton were to continue we would III
doubtedly face a displacement o
American labor, but the almost iney
table result in the case of European
immigration has been in raising tn
immigrants standard of living. Blu
this result does not follow in the cas-
of oriental immigration.
Third, where the immigrants have
lower standard of living and lower e
ficiency. This is the actual case 70
the most part and this will not affeC
the jobs of laborers of higher eff,
iency, on the accepted principle ths
high money wages are the cheapes
wages"
In the three above possibilities,
is supposed that there is a proper pr,
portion of the different kinds of labo
as skilled and unskilled, etc. If tn
preponderance of unskilled is to
great, we have dumped upon us
class with which we can do nothin
They compete with our own unskille
labor with two results: % To fore
some of the unskilled into the skille
class, and (2) to force down tn
standard of living of the unslxilled