New-York tribune., 1919-05-28
Nearly 100000 Have Left
Through Port Here Since
Armistice Was Signed,
Keen to Display Wealth
Majority Plead Illness
If Not That, a Wife Awaits
Them or Have Estates to
Settle as Result of War

~ VIC euI Oh tnelr Clothes and the
thickness of their wallets they are
Americans. But by their mustaches-
long and silky, twirled and scragelv
black shot with gray, short and stubby
but for the most part sandy and droop
ing at the ends-by their musta ches
and the way they meekly huddle to.
sether IN the passport line at the Gus.
toms building, they are aliens.
Every morning, tarting as carly as s
O'Clock, a motley line forms before the
door of the customs building near the
battery. 1t is the lowly counterpart TT
OF winters nights line at the Metro
politan when Caruso sings, and the
tenor's countrymen likewise predomi-
mates here
with tickets clutched in work.
fngers, passports bearing cheap pho-
tographs, and visees from consuls the
emlgrant waits to receive a slip which
VIII admit him to his ship on sailing
day. And no amount of waiting seem
TO discourage him. He can get his slip
only by coming two days before his
snip sails; but he frequently comes a
week ahead of time Even then. ;f
told to go and return later, he will
hold his place in line.
Near 100000 Mark
The demand for passports TO Eurone
since the armistice has nearly reached
the 100000 mark, it was said at tho
customs building Yesterday This in
cludes requests from thousands of
american wouldbe tourists. But the
oulk or the emigration business bust
ness involving nearly 1,400 persons a
day. comes from immigrants of short
residence In this country who are will
ing to accept any sort of transporta-
ton to return to the old country.
asked If he is taking much monev
back the emigrant smiles, shakes his
mead and either says he has had work
only part of the time. or has had doc.
tor bills to pay.
But customs officials tell q different
story When emigrants find thew MAY
take no gold with them. nor more
than $3.50 in bank notes or subs;diarv
SILVER to neutral countries, nor more
tnan $1,000 to Allied countries. they
resort to last-minute expedients
"Frisked" for Concealed Money
"" hen they ART. about to board
SNIP, customs intelligence officer
SAID yesterday, I'VE 'frisk' them for
concealed money. We usually find.
next to the mans skin, some sort of
belt carrying as much as $4,000 in GOLD
and bills
A federal Reserve Bank man is ON
'he pier. we require the emigrant to
exchange his gold for notes, and if he
: insists taking his whole pile with
MIN he must carry it in the form of a
draft, or he does not sail on that boat.
nese men are taking back fortune
with them. 1t is a common occurrence
to see them with sample pay envelope
to display before their friends over
there. This will frequently amount to
$50 or s6o.' The most frugal of the
emigrants, it was said, are the Greek
and Serbs.
Another proof of the cmigrant's
prosperity is the fact that circulars
recently have been issued by certain
steamship companies urging emigrants
to book round trip passages in order to
escape cxorbitant income taxes.
Circular Called Misleading
Revenue officials have branded thu
circular as misleading and probably
designed to sell tickets 1t declares
among other things that "a non-resi
dent alien or person, whether marie d
or single, who has resided in the
United States only temporarily and
VINO goes back to his native country
with the intention OF not returning ta
the United States has no exemption
whatever and is required by law to
pay ~ per cent income tax on his O,
her gross earnings in the United States
before leaving the country'
The circular then explains that resi-
dents who show satisfactory proof that
they intend to return to this country
escape this tax.
Where have you been working?" the
migrant is asked
"Chicago; on railroad" Or it NAV
be in the Pittsburgh steel mills. the
copper mines of Arizona. the Pullman
shops of Peoria, the textile mills of
New England, or the coal mines of
Pennsylvania. And those VINO have the
sickness are often section hands with
ruddy faces and gnarled hands.
Italians Predominate
italians greatly predominant among
the cmigrants, with Serbs, Czecho-
Slavs, Jugo- -Slavs, Greeks, Albanians
and other Southeast European peoples
next. few scandanavians and Firms
appear, but very few Russians
Yesterday an American citizen of
Russian birth, who had come all the
way from San Francisco, found the
English Consul would not wise his
passport to Russia
"lt seems to me-" he said angrily,
that England has more to say here
than America"
The emigrants' clothes arc of uni
formly good quality and fully 80 per
cent of those in line wear neckties
and collars. The majority are under
forty.
Many OF these will be met at the
pier when thew reach Eurone and in