The other point that the President has allowed to be his determinant is the educational. or the literacy. test. Speaking as one who believes in education. a citizen of a Nation that believes in a compulsory system of education. a citizen of one of the 48 States of the Union. most of which have compulsory laws compelling education. I for one will not vote against a measure that requires the same test of an immigrant who comes here that we require of the individuals growing up under laws that compel them to obey certain regulations pertaining to education. It is not unfair for a nation to put a demand upon a man who seeks to come to our shores that we put upon the children who grow to manhood within the nation. It is inconsistent to take any other position. it seems to me. Then. on the other hand. while I could understand why Members of the House who are opposed to a system of protection. as the Democratic Members. might oppose this limitation of immigration. yet I can not for the life ofme understand how Members on this (Republican) side of the House. who believe in a system of American protection. can argue against an immigration bill on the basis of protection to American labor. My Republican friends. whether you believe in a system of protection to American wages. as has been announced over and over again in the platforms as we publish to the world. and whether you do that because you belong to a particular party promulgating it or not. matters little to me. but it does matter when men stand upon a platform that pronounces for the protection of the present system of wages. through a protective tariff. and then argue for the admission of the laborer who becomes a competitor of American labor. If it be wrong to admit goods made by him. then why is it not wrong to admit him?
Keywords matched
immigration immigrant