Speech #600006397

In the early days of this Republic it threw open wide its doors and invited the oppressed of all the countries of the world to enter and enjoy the blessings of freedom. It called upon all whose brain and brawn might aid in the upbuilding of the nation to gather on our shores and cast their fortunes with ours. It provided a brief period of probation for those who might come before they could enter into the full possession of all the rights and privileges of citizenship through the process of naturalization. No prophets -vision pierced the future and foresaw that in the course of the years there would stream through the maritime gateways of the land millions upon millions of undesired and undesirable citizens. Could this result have been foreseen. let it not be doubted that the founders of our Government and the statesmen of that early period of the nations history would have guarded against the evil with which we now have to contend. The steamship had not made its advent in those days. and the longer. more troublesome. and very expensive voyage served as a check. Even when steanboat and railroad became the leading factors in the problem of transportation. the bulk of immigration came fronm countries close to the sea. and the cost of travel kept thousands upon thousands in their native towns and villages. From the multiplication of railways and stealllship lines and. in the case of the latter. the resulting competition and consequent reduction in transportation charges. can be dated the beginning of that increase of immigration which today has assulmed abnormal proportions and which is daily growing more and more menacing. It is high tiule. Mr. Chairman. that we should call a halt for the sake of civilization. for the sake of the preservation of American citizenship. for the sake of all who earn their bread by the sweat of the brow. for the sake of our workingmen. that they be not brought into direct and immediate contact with the pauper labor of other countries. who are accustomed to living in hovels and subsistin g on a crust of bread. Nothing could be further from my purpose than to close the doors against -all immigration. We should not do that if we could. we could not do it if we were so inclined. I am just as much in favor as anyone of giving a hearty greeting to those illnligrants. whose habits of living andliay I not saywhose habits of thinking. are more nearly akin to those of our people.