The Connecticut labor news., 1925-02-07
tBOOTLEGGING' OF ALIENS TENDS TO
 NULLIFY THE LAW
By International Labor News Service.

Washington, Feb. 7.-Is 'bootlegging
 of aliens nullifying to considerable ex-
 tent the present strict immigration law
 Suspicion is growing in labor circles
 that certain interruptions business in-
 terests are encouraging the bootleg
 ging' of immigrants in large numbers
 It is known that immigrants, smuggled
 across the northern and southern bor-
 ders of the United States or landed on
 the seacoasts, have come in sufficient numbers to affect the employment situa-
 ton throughout the nation Much of
 the unemployment reported existing in
 industrial centers is ascribed to the pre- sence of smuggled immigrants. l Immigration Commissioner Husband | believes that the highest estimates are exaggerated, as he is confident that the border patrol established July 1, of last year has done much to decrease illegal entries. He admits, however, that dur ing the last fiscal year 34,0OO foreign sailors deserted their ships on arriving at American ports Of that number, he says, 6,OOO to 5000 very likely re- shipped. This would leave from 26,- GOO to 28000 seamen who entered the country illegally and who found their way to industrial centers and helped swell the number of unemployed.
 The seamen who entered illegally are only part of the number of "bootleg- ged" immigrants Thousands more are known to have been smuggled in at the seacoasts or spirited over the borders of Mexico and Canada The total, 1t is thought, is surprisingly large and even the most conservative estimates place the number at 100000.
 This constant influx of workmen is sufficient to have a decided effect on em- ployment and is big factor in depress- ing wages. Trade unions are alive to this danger and are cooperating with the immigration officials in helping to enforce the immigration law and in re- porting the presence of immigrants who have entered illegally.
 The immigration officials are deport-l ing "bootlegged" immigrants as fast as they are found but 1t is difficult to ap- prehend them and only fraction of those who enter illegally are sent back to their native lands Despite the diff culty in finding the ''bootlegged" imni- grants, more than 4,500 have been de- ported since July l, 1924.
 Reports from certain sections indicate that there is unemployment that would not exist except for the presence of of all types who have come into the country in defiance of the law. 1 Officials of the United States Depart | ment of Labor have investigated the | in several cities and their in vestigations have convinced them that there should be little unemployment and | that what does exist is largely due to the flooding of certain sections with ''bootlegged" immigrants This influx of aliens creates more workers than there are jobs, swelling the ranks of the unemployed and tending to re- ducc wages.
 Just what interests are behind the ! Of immigrants into the coun- try on a large scale is not known but 1t is suspected that interests that fought | the present law know something about the matter. It is felt that they would do all i'll their power to nullifX the ef- fleets of the law and that 1t Is to their interest that the "botlegging'' of human beings be continued.