Speech #640264339

Mr. President. in returning to the House in which it originated without his approval this bill. President Wilson observed: In most of the provisions of the bill I should be very glad to concur. but .J can not rid myself of the conviction that the literacy test constitutes a radical change in the policy of the Nation which is not justified in principle. It is not a test of character. of. quality. or of personal fitness. but would -operate in most cases merely as a penalty for lack of opportunity In the country from which the alien seeking admission came. The opportunity to gain an education is in many cases one of the chief.opportunities sought by the Immigrant In coming to the United States. and our experience In the past has not been that the illiterate immigrant is as such an undesirable immigrant. Tests of quality and of purpose can not be objected to on principle. but tests of opportunity surely may be. Mr. President. the President of the United States states his side of this. proposition strongly..as he always does. but it seems to me that he does not get down to the fundamentals involved in this proposition. The fundamentals upon which this literacy tebt rests are easy to understand. and when once understood it seems to me that the case made for the literacy test is siiply ci aaswera ble. .In the first place.. we contend that no man ought to be .ad mitted into this country unless hecomes for the purpose of -be cominig a peimanent resident of i t. and is fit to*become associated with our. people and incorporated into.our body pqliti That means. of course. that he must be a citizen and a voter oh this Republic in the end. He can not be. a citizen and a vote of this Republic unless lie possesses a certain amount of intelligence. a certain anmount of understAnding. and in more than 30 of our own States lie cnn not vote unless he has a cevtain anoinnt of intelligence and can read and write. Now. what hardship fs Involved in requiring of the foreigii emigrant. seeking admission into otir country. seeking to eventually become a citizen and v6ter of this Republic. exactly the same qualifications tidt more than 30 American States. in one form or anothei. require of their own people before they can participate in the duties. responsibilities. and functions of citizenship? I understand. of cour se. Mr. President. that education alone. standing by itself. is never a test of virtue. of integrity. of chalacter. and yeteducation always iust be the test. the standard. the yardstick for determining the possession of the ambunt of intelligence necessary to exercise certain duties of citizenship. The rule. of course. has its exceptions. the standard does not always secure exact accuracy. but it is the best standard that we have been able to dvise for our ownpeople whenit coiies to defining who are fit to exercise tliefuntiois and di�clarge the responsibilities of American citizenship. and there is no injustice in requiring these immigrants who come from other countries to measure up to the sanie standards that we requre of our own people. So much for the fundamentals involved. In the second place. I insist that this bill is right and that it ought to pass. the objections of the President of the United States to the contrary notwithstanding. for another. reasonbe*cause we want to restrict immigration from certain cuntrils in Europe and from certain peoples of Europe which this test will excludenien who -come here without any desire whatever to become permanent citiens of this Republic. sharers in its destinies and bearers of its burdens.