Speech #550049157

They possessed a low order of intelligence and an inferior standard of life. and had no adequate conception of the marvelous significance of our institutions. Tis fact has awakened the people to the necessity of some protective measure. If it be said that in further restricting immigration we are depnrting from the traditional policy of our Government. we answer that conditions have changed. and with new onditions the policy of the Government must change to meet them. N~o policy should stand against the best interests of our countrymen. native and foreign horn alike. * It will be instructive to observe the number of immigrants and aliens arriving since the close of the Revolutionary war. There are no statistics prior to 1820. but it is estimated by generally accepted authority that the number between the close of the war of the Revolution and 1820 was 250.000. Since 1820 the arivals by decennial periods was: Decade ending with1830. aliens --------------------------------------------------------- 143.M 1810. aliens -------------------------------------------------------- 599.12:: 1850. aliens ------------------------------------------------------ 1.713.251 1860. aliens to 185. immigrants.185 to 0 180------------.- 2.598.214 1870. immigrants --------------------------------------- 2.814.2 1880. immigrants -------------------------------------------- 2.812.191 1892. immigrants ----------------------------------------------- 5.24.13 3891 to 1897 (seven years) ----------------------------------- 2.741.899 Total immigrants and aliens ----------------------------------- 18.169.056 The foregoing came chiefly from the countries and in the numbers following: Germany ------------------------------- -------------- 4.97.776 Ireland ------------------------------------------------------------------ 8.781.013 England ------.-- ....------------------- ------------------- 2 M.598 Norway and Sweden _. -------........................... 1.12.783 AustriaHungary --------------------------------------813259 Italy --....----------------------------------------------------------- -: 789 Russia and Poland --------------------------------------------------- 714. 9 F rance .................................... ...... 393. 5M Scotland --------------------------------- ------------------------------- U 7. 041 Switzerland ----------- --------------------- ------------------- 199.246 Denmark ---------------------------------- ------------------------------- 185.654 The radical change which began in 1880 in the nativity of the principal arrivals. may be conveniently observed by forming two principal groupsone embodying the -western and northern and the other the eastern and southern parts of Europe. The per cent of immigration from these groups to the total immigration was as follows: From From United AustriaYer.Kingdom. .unsra K Hngary. Year. Itan ay.1 Poand Scandinavia. Bussa. IM ---------------------------------------------------- 6.5 8.5 1890- ---------------------------------------- 57.T 31 3.89 --------------------------------------------.-.-----... 51.4 39.7 165 -----------------------------.. --------------- - 37.6 52.1 1897 ------------------------------------------------------ 3.7 51.7 A rise in the ratio of immigration from eastern and southern Europe from 8.5 to 51.7 per cent in seventeen years. and a fall in the ratio from the western and northern counties from 64.5 to 36.7 per cent in the same period. may well lead us to pause and inquire whether the change is in the national interest. One of the most noticeableincidents in this remarkable change in the source and nativity of the immigrants is the marked addition to our illiterate population. The decrease in immigration has been from countries which have hitherto sent us but a small per cent of illiterates. and the increase is from countries where the ignorance is greatest. Thirtynine and ninetenths per cent of those above 14 years of age coming from AustriaHungary. Italy.