Speech #680071166

In the fArst place. we have for many years followed the .policy of encouraging the spirit of fraternity between this country and our neighbors In North and South America. To treat them as part of the fraternity of western nations. as we do In this bill. and to establish free trade in human beings. so to speak. with them. is believed to be desirable by those persons who have had the Pan American Union most at heart. In the next place. the only countries in this hemisphere from which we obtain any considerable immigration today are Meico and Canada. You could almost count -on the fingers of .one hand the number of permanent immigrants who come here from Central and South America. About 8.000 persons in all come from all of Central and South America each year. and practically every one of them is a tourist. The departures about equal the arrivals. We do not need to restrict immigration of those countries. The only countries from which we might need to restrict It would be Mexico and Canada. and it Is a physical Impossibility to guard the Mexican and Canadian borders to prevent the smuggling of immigrants. At the present time we do not try to guard the Canadian border very well. but we reach a better result by establishing immigration inspectors. and having immigration officers in all the Canadian ports. We allow a species of free trade to go on across the Canadian border. and they allow it with us. The immigration examination Is rather superficial there. but their inspectors and ours are keenly on guard at every one of their ports. and It Is much more effective. We are trying to do something of the same thing with Mexico. because the land border is so long. and the country Is so wild along much of it. that It is a practical impossibility for us to guard it.