Speech #670337876

R.. and others. These organizations are doing splendid work and the spirit of their cooperation was manifest. If an immigrant appears to be "clearly and beyond doubt" entitled to admission he passes over to the discharging quarters. where he is turned over to the agent of the authorized transport company or recognized representative. If. on the other hand. the alien does not appear to be clearly entitled to be admitted. he must appear before one of the several boards of special inquiry. which goes Into his case deliberately and thoroughly. giving him the right to appear and produce witnesses and testimony in his behalf. If the board of special inquiry holds against him. he then has the right of appeal from the decision of the board. in cases provided by the statute. to the Secretary of Labor. whose decision is final. America today is no longer the melting pot of the World. In the earlier history of our country people of northern Europe came here because there was free land and homesteads upon which they could settle and remain as citizens of this country. Gradually. as this free land became exhausted. the class of immigration changed. larger numbers coming from southern Europe. congregating In the large cities and where the population was dense. They did not forget their old customs or language or their country itself. Of the 14.000.000 foreign born in the United States less than half are now American citizens. Seven hundred newspapers and magazines are today printed in foreign languages and being read by hundreds of thousands of these people. What America needs today is not additional immigration so much as that those who are now here. being protected by our laws and obtaining the privileges and benefits of our country. should themselves become American citizens. Immigration to the United States should not be based upon numbers. but rather qualityand quality can not be determined entirely by the 3 per cent restrictive immigration law. The law permits a more thorough examination of those within the quota. however. The quality of the Immigrant can best be determined by the intelligence test. now applied by the Public Health Service at Ellis Island in a limited number of cases. This test is not a theory. neither is it a new proposition. It was used by our Army in the recent war.