Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1924-05-08
dfction Of the oil lands to the Depart
ment of the Interior.

Q1ct1On OF the oil IAuQS ~ eAO |CpoAC-
ment of the Interior.
Alien Law Provisions.
It was the unexpected which hap
pened in the United States senate
when endorsement came to the house
provision in the immigration bill TO
make the appointment OF those TO be
admitted per cent with the basis On
the census Of 1890, instead of 1910
as several of the senators seemed de-
termined should be the case.
If this bill shall become law
through the signature Of the Presl-
dent 1t will mean that only about
10000 aliens each year, for three
! years at least, can be admitted to the
United States. This is less than one
half of the number admitted during
the present year, a number which rep
resents marked decrease from the
numbers of former years.
The debate In both house and SEN
ate on the immigration bill was not
only sharp but in some cases bitter.
/ There were representatives and sch
ators who declared openly that the in
tention of the legislation was to dis
criminate against immigrants from the
south and east of Europe in behalf
of the immigrants from the north of
Europe. Racial and religious preju-
dices were charged and prediction
freely was made that the bill would
cause resentment in several countries
over the sea, one or two Of which are
powerful countries whose resentT tent
ought not to be incurred.
Good Reasons for Restriction.
The causes for the endorsement of
drastic restrictive provisions in the
immigration bill are not far to seek.
Census returns show that hundreds of
thousands of the aliens who have been
admitted have refused to become nat
uralized Americans and that the ten
dency has been for the incomers to
/ cOngregate together and to form ra-
cial groups in this country, declining
in many cases even so much as to
lean affairs or to take any part in
| American life as Americans pursue 1t.
Before the immigration bill was
| passed 1t was apparent that in Italy
the press and the public were resent
| full because Of what they interpreted
to be an anti-Italian feeling in the
provisions Of the measure. For some
years Italian immigration into the
United States was hoOd-like. It is
said today that there are more per-
(, sons Of italian birth or Italian parent
age in New York city than there are
in Rome, Italy. Next year, If the
present bill shall receive the Presi-
dents signature, only about 21,000
Italians can come to the United
States. In the present year 1t was
understood that $4,000 were given adj
mission. A few years ago there was
no limit and the Italians came as they
/ willed.
The immigration measure, as it has
been endorsed, will prevent many
Jews from entering the United States
The Jews of America actively we're
/ opposed TO the drastic restriction pro-
visions, holding that many Of their
race who had looked to America as a
home for the religiously oppressed
might be compelled to face persecI.
ton In other lands. There. was a
good deal of sympathy, and there still
/ Is a good deal, for this plea of the
Jews, voiced as 1t is by the leading
men of their race In this country in
Guiding scores Of scholarly rabbits Of
the Jewish congregations.
Our Right to Act unquestioned.
It has been noted, however, that in
all the comment In the foreign press
adverse to the restriction features of
the immigration measure, no sugges-
ton has been made that the United
States has not perfect right to set
tie for itself the question at issue.
Even the japanese, who are now very
much disturbed because Of the prob
ability that there will be an actual
exclusion provision against their race,
have not suggested that this country
has not a right to decide the question
of who shall be admitted and who
shall not be, but Of course the Jap
anese case is different from that Of
any other country except China.
There IS nothing in the immigration
bill which says that no man of this
nationality or of that nationality shall
be allowed to enter the United States
to become a citizen thereof, except
in the case of the Japanese who, I'M
der the Constitution, are not eligible
to citizenship. 1t always has been
believed that If this country should
insert q provision in an immigration
bill that no subject or citizen Of this
or that European country should be
admitted into our ports, war almost
instantly would result. No white ma
ton of course would be likely to ac-
cept an intimation that It's whites
were not as good as the whites of any
other country.
This year immigration legislation,
therefore, so far as Europe is con-
cerned, makes no direct discrimination
as between white races. It simply
provides a basis upon which the per-
centage of admissions are to be COM
puted. It happens that this percent
age will allow more men Of some ma
lions to come in than men of other
nations, and this Is all there Is to it.