The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1922-09-28
I'M CUT
Continued from page II

door against -four classes Of aliens.
others to the category of those deem
ed to be physically, mentally, NOR
ally or economically undesirable until
now there are some thirty legal roa
sons Of some sort or another why an
immigrant may not be admitted. The +,
first Chinese exclusion law was also
enacted in 1882 and subsequently
there has developed a policy of re-
StriCting, or in a large measure pro ,
hibiting, all Oriental immigration.
The peoples Of Europe and Asiatic
Turkey, however, continued to enjoy
unlimited access to the open door. |
provided they met the various tests /,
prescribed by law, and Europe always f.
furnished more than 80 per cent of
our immigrants. Following the ad
vent of southern and eastern Europe
as the chief source Of supply, our inn /.
migration grew to unprecedented pro
portions, and with this development
came a widespread and insistent de !
mand for restriction. Statistics show |
w iildI dDOul Ollc-IlllIl Ol TIE llll- q
migrants who come from these sources
were unable to read in any language =
and, accordingly, the s~o-called liter |
acy test became the f~avorite weapon
of the reStriCtionists The exclusion ,
of illiterate aliens was agitated in
and out Of Congress for twenty-five
years and three presidents, Cleveland,
. n, o. .nl NrH,-. ,.-AL.l :lI -. !
so provided, but in 1917 it was added
to the law over President Wilson's
veto.
Following the World War, the de.
mand for further restriction became
so intense and unmistakable that the
House of Representatives responded
by passing a bill suspending prac-
tically all immigration for a period
of fourteen months The Senate was
more conservative, however, and sub
stituted the Dillingham; per centum
limit plan, which finally prevailed and
the so-called quota law" which has
provoked such widespread interest
during the past year, went into effect
on May 10, 1921, and recent legislation
has continued its operation until June
30, 1924.
Briefly stated, the Dillingham; act
provides that the number Of aliens
Of any nationality who may be ed
mitted to the United States in auy
fiscal year shall be limited to three
per centum Of the number Of persons
of such nationality who were resident
in the United States according to the
census Of 1910. Nationality is de-
termined by country Of birth, and in
Asiatic Turkey. Persia, Asiatic Rus
STA, Africa and Australia.
The admitted purpose of the law :
is to limit immigration from southern
and eastern Europe. without interfer-
ing with the normal movement from
the northern and western European
countries, which in immigration par
lance include the British Isles, Scandi-
navia. Germany, France, Netherlands,
Belgium and Switzerland. Prior to
the war 750,000 or more immigrants
were admitted from the first named
sources In a normal year, but under
the Dillingham; Act only 155,2 eco may
be admitted annually from such
sources. On the other hand, the
normal actual immigration from the
older sources was only about $50, 900
prior to the war, but the per ntu
limit law will permit 1880 to come.
300 900 immigrants aliens were admit
ted, but ending June 80, 1922, south.
ern and eastern European countries
used more than 95 per cent of their
allotted quota. while the older sources
named sent us less thar so per cent
of the number allotted to them.
or course, it was inevitable that
the operation of a law which arbi-
trarily held back hundreds Of thou
sands of intending immigrants should
result in hardship to many individ-
uals, and a severe strain on the ma
chinery Of the immigration service.
However. the enthusiastically hui
name action of Secretary of Labor
Davis in temporarily admitting a total
OF $500 excess quota Immigrants as
a measure of humanity: the patient
and unremitting work Of our immigra-
ton officials at ports Of arrival, and
the splendid cooperation of American
consular officers In Europe. made a
humane and effective administration
Of the law possible, and while the
quota law has it's faults. 1t is doubt
full whether by any other method the
purpose Of Congress could be SO ef-