Speech #620312871

I will answer the :Senatores question as I proceed. I had intended to discuss that -question. We must .remember that from *1900 to 1911. a period of about 12 years. 72 per cent of this ne . immigration came from .southern and western Europe. Of that72 per cent ofthe entire im.migration. 82 per cent went into the Atlantic division of States. where the manufacturing Industries are so fully developed. .and of this number substantially 60 per cent were farm laborers in the countries from which they came. And yet this 82 per cent .have avoided our farms and have gone to these great manufacturing centers and have taken possession of the unskilled branches of labor and receive .the lowest wages of any of those who are engaged .in the manufactures. About onethird of our -Present immigration is of the Old .type. and they are almost wholly skilled laborers. and take the higher and betterpaid branches of labor .in the industries of the country. The change that has come about since 1882 is shown in the last -census. which speaks of the old -element of .immigration.and. the new -elementthat is. the foreign born still living in this -countryin this way: .According to ithe last census It appears that in the 10 years preceding 1910 there has been a decrease to tileextent of 300.000 in foreignborn residents coming -from Great Britain. Ireland. Scotland. Germany. and the Scandinavian States. while the increase of those coming from southern and western Europe has gone :from 1.800.000 -to -5.000.000. or an -increase of 3.200.000 in the 10 years. I stated. in an interruption that .I made while the Senator from Missouri was speaking. that the Immigration Commission made an investigation of 37 of the principal industries of Ithe United States east of the Rocky Mountains. They came in contact with 620.000.individual operatives.in these industries. They ifound that .taking -.them all together 59.9 per cent. almost 60per cent. were foreign born. but -they alsofound that the Immigrants of the old immigration were occupying the good positions. those requiring skilled labor. while those of the new immigration. those who have been coming in suchnumbers during the last 10 years. were performing the lower grades of work. and were treceiving -correspondingly low prices for .their labor. In the iron and steel :industries. slaughtering. meatpacking. wool and the manufacturing of wool and worsted. coml. copper. .leather. cotton goods. clothing. and silk goods. the average number of foreign born found in those industries amounted to 65.6 per cent of the whole.