Speech #620198646

Mr. Chairman. the purpose of the bill is to provide for the sale or exchange of the site that was purchased for an immigration station in the city of Baltimore. The last publicbuilding bill made provision for the purchase of a site for an immigration station at Baltimore. The present conditions there -are very bad. they are very much cramped. and the former Congress thought there ought to be a new site acquired and a building constructed. There was an authorization of $130.000 for this purpose. and the Supervising Architect. or some one representing the Treasury Department and some one representing the Department of Commerce and Labor. visited the city and selected the site which was purchased. The agent of the Secretary of Commerce and Labor acted with the agent of the Treasury Department because immigration stations are under the supervision of the Secretary of Commerce and Labor. I have been informed by the former Supervising Architect. Mr. Taylor. that their understanding was that the selection was only for a temporary detention station in case there should be sickness among the immigrants. or something of that kind. I do not think that the bill authorizing the purchase of this site would bear that construction. because it is for the purchase of an immigration station. This bill was introduced by the gentleman from Maryland in -view of the fact that it has become evident that the place selected was a most unsuitable place for the location of an immigration station. I believe every member of the committee who went and looked over the place was of that opinion. It is located six or seven blocks from the waters edge. so that the immigrants landing would have to march through the city for quite a distance before they arrived at it. Not only that. but it is in a very insanitary location. There are fertilizer factories near by. and we were Informed that when the wind was coming from � 8359 the direction of these factories the odor from the acid and the lime was almost intolerable.