The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1923-02-08
BILLS TO LOOSEN
UP IMMIGRATION
Senate Committee to Consider
Measures Changing Present
Quotas of Aliens.
FOR RELAXED RESTRICTIONS
Manufacturers Insistent for Them.
Reed and Colt Bills on Program
for Hearing-Armenian ReTu-
gees May Be Admitted.

NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. of the
effect of present immigration restric-
lions on the labor situation will be
taken up by the Senate Committee on
immigration which will hold a hear
ing on bill introduced by Senator
Reed of Pennsylvania.
The Reed bill increases the percent
age of alien immigrants admissible
from 8 to 5 per cent Instead of
using the number of aliens Of the diff
ferent nationalities resident in this
country under the census Of 1910, as
is the case in the present law, the bill
provides that the census Of 1880 shall
be the basis. The effect of the proposal
is to increase quotas from Northern
European countries and to decrease
those from some of the Southern Eu-
rOpean nations.
Senator Reed will appear before the
committee in behalf of the bill.
The Senate Committee also will hold
a hearing at an early date on a bill
introduced by Senator Colt of Rhode
Island, the chairman of the committee.
This bill embOdies the recommends
lions of the National Association Of
Manufacturers for relaxing immigra-
ton restrictions as a means Of reliev-
ing the labor situation. The bill does
not change the present quotas but pro-
vides that in computing the quotas
consideration shall be given to the
number of aliens of a particular ma
tionality who may have left the Unit
ed States. The bill also authorizes the
Secretary of Labor to admit immi-
grants in excess of quotas when EVIL
dence is presented to him that there is
a shortage Of particular type or class
OF labor.
The bill further permits the Secre-
tary Of Labor to authorize contracts
with alien labor, which are prohibited
under the present alien contract law.
The Colt bill adds the following pro-
viso to the section Of the present law
relating to quotas:
Provided further, That for the pur-
pose of determining the annual quota
Of each nationality of otherwise ad-
Missile aliens due consideration shall
Be given to the emigration of aliens OF
such nationality during that year, and
such calculation shall be made and an
nounced at the end OF each three
months period by the Secretary Of
Labor"
The bill also adds the following new
section:
"The Secretary of Labor may, upon
submission to him of satisfactory evil
dence that there is continuing short
age of labor of a particular type or
class which, after reasonable effort,
has not been found unemployed in the
United States, authorize contracts
with and the admission of otherwise
admissible alien labor 20 such extent
as will in his judgment meet such es-
tablished shortage, Notwithstanding
that such aliens % authorized to be
admitted may exceed the quotas of
their respective nationalities now ad-
MISSILE under this act. The secre-
tary may prescribe reasonable rules
and regulations for the presentation
of evidence under this section"
There also is pending before the
Senate immigration Committee a reso-
luton by Senator Ransdell of Louisi-
ana providing for the appointment of
a committee of three Senators to in
vestigate immigration problems, par
ticularly with view to relieving the
labor shortage. The committee, which
! would be appointed by the president
of the Senate, sets forth that under
the existing percentage system there
are now being admitted to this coun-
try immigrants unsuited to employ
ment in the fields of labor in which
shortages exist.
The resolution provides that the
committee shall seek to devise a sys-
TEN by which those best suited for
employment may be admitted in pref
erence to others. The" committee
would make a final report to the Sen
ate not later than Jan. l, 1924
an KIIIEn IN OOEccA PI0r