Evening star., 1925-08-02
FINES PROVE EFFECTIVE
AID In NEW ALIEN LAW
Steamship Companies Careful About
Furnishing Passage Where Eligibility
of Foreigners Is in Doubt.

TO q nDe Oh S1,VVO. ana long ana
heated are the arguments which en-
sue between the medical authorities
of the Public Health Service and
those of the steamship companies
over some doubtful immigrants.
Imagine, for instance. the learned
differences of opinion over a case Af
constitutional psychopathic inferi-
ority, Strange as it may seem, many
immigrants have become afflicted
with disease on a seven day trip
over the salty blue ocean en- route
to the United States, although doctors
in the Public Health Service swear
earnestly that the same immigrants
bore every evidence of having suf-
fered from the disease for months,
perhaps years, before they ever
thought of coming to the United
States.
Diseased Aliens Found.
Cases have been found where
tubercular immigrants were aboard
vessels and armed with beautifully
engraved certificates giving them
clean bills of health and stating that
they had been specially examined
for tuberculosis.
They have come here with every evil
dence Of trachoma. the dangerous eye
disease, although the ships doctors
had certified, after examination, that
they were healthy specimens. Immi-
grants find special treatments avail
able in European ports which "flx
them up" temporarily for passing the
transportation company's medical ex-
aminations, but they find it hard to
convince the Public Health officials.
When the Public Health officials are
not convinced, the steamship compa-
nies must pay fine of $1,000 for
each immigrant brought over, take
him back and pay his way to the place
from which he started, after refunding
the cost of his ocean passage. Such
fines tend to make the doctors much
more careful.
Races Are Abolished.
The visa system and the heavy fines
for bringing over immigrants who lack
the proper yisas have abolished the
dramatic and oftentimes tragic races
between the steamship compa MES so
much in vogue over a year ago. Now
the consuls give their visas to quota
immigrants up to the specified num-
ber and refuse any more. That pre-
vents race such as occurred year
or so ago between two rival steamers,
one of which left the Azores with the
last $50 immigrants admissible under
that years quota. Two days later an
other steamer took immigrants on
board and reached New York one min
ute ahead of the steamer which de-
parted first. The latter steamer had
to take back it's batch of immigrants,
all Of whom lost the price of their
transportation, while the faster vessel
reaped the profits of it's greater speed.
This is no longer possible. That ves-
sci, under present laws, would be fined
$1,000 for each immigrant brought
over.
Steamship lines which are made the
victims Of fraud often are subject
to fines because they failed to take
proper precautions to protect them
selves. Immigrants from South Ameri-
ca are subject to admittance to this
country without quota, when they can
prove their residence in one municipal
ity for a period of five years.
Buy Way In.
There have been scores Of cases.
where immigrants have purchased
from the South American municipal
tiles certificates of such residence at so
much per certificate without regard to
their length of residence. They thus
secure their entrance unless the i'm
migration service finds fraud in the
issuance OF the certificates. Such fraud
has been openly admitted by some
municipal authorities and the steam
ship companies suffer. Fake birth
certificates, fake passports. fraudulent
documents of one sort and another, in
cluding counterfeited visas, are made
use of by the immigrant to enter the
United States. One large and estab-
lished headquarters for fixing it up"
for the immigrant Is known to exist
in Marseille, France. But the steam
ship company which accepts the fraud
ulent papers is placed in the same
position as the man who accepts a
"phony" dollar bill They have to pay
the price of their carelessness.
The steamship companies, officials
declare, differ as much as individuals
in the manner of accepting penalties
for mistakes. Some of them protest
strongly and to the end. Others offer
no protest when they are caught in
error. There are very few cases of
deliberate intent on the part of the
compa MES to evade the law. Most of
the mistakes come from failure to
make examination thorough enough.
The Greek quota, at present, has been
exhausted for the next eight years.
An official of a steamboat company,
therefore, should exercise extraordi.
nary vigilance when a Greek bearing
quota Visa presents himself for
transportation. Thorough investiga-
tion probably would show that another
Greek bearing this same visa number
passed the examination at Ellis Island
months ago. But the second Greek.
who paid as much as $500 for his
fraudulent papers, is well schooled in
what he must say when he is uues-
toned. While it may be difficult to
prove he is taking his entrance pa.
pers. it is worth the steamship com
panys time to make sure. There is
81 900 fine in the off1ng.
All of the fines paid to the immigra-
ton service are turned over to the
Treasury and appropriated by Con-
gress as miscellaneous revenue. None
of 1t is placed to the credit of the La
Dor Department. No credit attaches
to the Labor Department for levying
the fines. Its sole object is to enforce
the law. That is why this court of no
appeal functions efficiently.
France Has Problem