Speech #600091992

Mr. Speaker. I believe that the immigration laws of this country can best be administered by having a comparatively few Immigrant stations. There is no question about the fact that In times past the immigration laws have been administered In a very lax and loose sort of way. I think that to limit the number of stations would bring about the better administration of the laws to the end that the requirements of the Immigration laws of this country be strictly administered. � I know. as does every other gentleman on this floor. that hundreds of thousands of people come into this country every year who under a strict administration of the law are not entitled to come. I believe In a strict enforcement of the immigration laws. I regret that they are not more onerous in point of qualification for immigrants than they are. If I had my way. the Gardner bill providing an educational test would be on the statute books in this country today. I would exclude mixed and colored races. If I had my way. immigrants coming to this country would possess the qualifications necessary to make good citizens. But the law is not as I would have it. Mr. Speaker. the real reason for the demand made on Congress to enlarge and equip the various Immigrant stations throughout the country is that the number of immigrants has greatly increased during the past twenty years. The immigration laws in this country should I)e so framed as to exclude all persons who have not the necessary qualifications to make good American citizens. America has become the dumping ground for the world. It Is probably true that more lmimigrants came into the United States during the last fiscal year than all other countries received during the same time. It is the standard of citizenship that makes the United States the great country it is. and when the bars are let down. as they are in the present immigration laws and the loose and lax administration of those laws. we find that several hundred thousand undesirable immigrants came to this country last year. The time has come for the American people to consider this great question and to deal with it In a proper way. No fault has been found with the class of immigrants we received from France. Germany. Switzerland. and Great Britain in the early days of the Republicand. in fact. the great majority of innigrants coming to the United States came from those countries. These people and their descendants are the ones who laid the foundations. and by their continued efforts have made this country great. But these countries no longer furnish the proportion of immigrants they did formerly. In 1887 the number of immigrants from France numbered 5.034. in 1894. 3.150. and in 3896. 5.578. In 1S87 Germany furnished .06.865 immigrants. last year. 37.807. In 1887 Switzerland. 5.214. last year. 3.748. Sweden in 1887. 42.836. in 1907. 20.589.