Speech #640216976

I am going at least to have the satisfaction of finding out how much good faith. there is in the Senate upon the question of excluding undesirables. The committee has brought in an amendment which proposes to exclude every human being In more than onehalf. of the territory of Russia. no matter what their education. no matter what their morals. no matter what their attainments.. and the best information I can get is that the territory in Russiawhich is embraced within the exclusion provisions of the bill is: populated by probably the best class of Russians. The committee and Members. who. are advocating this measure have been loud in their claim that they desire to protect thepeople of this country from an. influx of.undesirables who are incapable of mnalgamating themselves. into the great body of the American people. and accordingly they propose to proscribe and keep. out of this: country members of. races that have. builded great. civilizations.. that have in times past. produced men of great eminence. andat present can point tomen of greatenminence who. belong to their. countries andi races& The amendment that I. now propose. can: not be brushed aside. as was the one just voted upon. on the ground that there is no immigration coming. from. these countries. There- has been a total immigration from them! in the last. 15 years. of 57.931. and that immigration! seems- to be steady and continuous.. It will be admitted: by every candid man that the! most undesirable immigration to. this country today from any place on earth is from these- islands. and I challenge any- man in: the Senateto dispute the facta class of people whoin their morals. in. their ideas of government. in all those things. that make for citizenship. good or bad. is coming to this country from these islands that is the lowest. the most vicious coming to our country from any spot or spots of.earth. I. want to see a vote on this. question and a record vote. I want to. see the consistency of men who will exclude millions. of white people. by territorial. linesi not by any intellectual. test. nor any moral standard. but by the red lines of a map.