Fitzgerald leader enterprise and press. (Fitzgerald, Ben Hill County, Ga.) 1921-1964, 1923-11-08
Congress Should Act Promptly
On The New immigration Bill
We Get Limited Quantity of Workers
With No Thought to Quality Under
Emergency Act. Also Impose Hard
ships Upon Poor who Cannot Afford
to Gamble with Quota Rule

NOTE-Last week, the night of Oct
81, Ellis Island at New York was
jammcd with thousands of immigrants
awaiting entrance to the United States.
Dozens of big ocean liners were rae
ing to port carrying 10000 or more
all gambling their life savings that they
would be in time to be admitted und-
er our immigration laws. U. S. Com
missioner Curran estimated that at
least dozen national quotas would be
exhausted within an hour after mid
night, Nov. LIST. He expressed anxiety
over the situation, saying THE situa-
ton we face is by far the worst Ellis
Island has ever known The best we
can do is to examine 1000 day. Sew
eral staff men have broken down un-
der the night and day work Thous-
ande of immigrants will be too late
and must be sent back, their money
spent in a fruitless gamble for homes
here. Editor
Written Specially for The Leader
By DIRK p. DeYOUNG
(Thru Autocaster Service)
The present Immigration law, which
expires June 30th, 1924. is only an
emergency measure hurriedly jammed
through congress shortly after the
close of the world war. 1t was intro
duced at a time when the national
feeling against hypenatcs ran high, and
was railroaded through in a period
when unemployment was alarmingly
general throughout the United States
When the measure comes up in the
next congress, however, as it must,
clearer judgement is likely to prevail,
first because the passions of war have
died out to large extent and second
ly, because the supply of labor is now
not abundant and a saner influence
from larger interests will now make
itself felt.
This emergency immigration law
is piece of blanke.: legislation which
limits the annual immigration into the
United States to three percent OF GER
tain nationals on a basis of live ma
tionals already residing in this coun-
try in 1910. Moreover, it fixes these
quotas SO that any given nation can
only send twenty per cent of its an
nual allowance in any one month of
fiscal year.
Finally, the worst part of it is that
there is no way of ascertaining the
state of the various quotas until the
European emigrants are dumped at
Ellis Island
In its practical workings the law
serves principally as numbering ma
chine, operating in New York, where
as it should be in Europe, at the source
to eliminate the unjust and unneces-
sary expense and hardship on the i'm
migrants.
The other fundamental objection to
the present measure is that we are not
selecting our immigrants now at all on
a basis of quality. Quantity is the rig
orouS method of letting down the bars
to foreigners under our emergency
law.
The result of all of this has been
confusion abroad, irritation, diplomat
ic friction, loss of money to immigrants
and a gathering ill-feeling which can
have but one -trouble-trouble in
large doses internally and information
ally.
Moreover, the net residue of immi-
grants admitted, authorities state, is
much inferior to the class which came
before the quota law went into Ell
feet.
Many former American residents,
of excellent quality, temporarily So
journing in Europe before the law
went into effect and their children
born here, are also shut out under
this three per cent limitation clause
The United States wants the right
class of immigrants. We must have
them for the farms and the factories.
Under this quota law, in which the
standing of the different national en-
tries. cannot be determined until the
immigrant ships arrive in New York,
none except gamblers would risk their
savings on such slim chance. 1t is
question of numbers largely, and first
come at Ellis Island, first served
When congress takes up the matter
n f1nT