Speech #680073871

If there Is a charge of " discrimination." the charge necessarily Involves the idea that the proposed quota varies from some standard which is supposed to be not " discriminatory." What is that standard? From the arguments of those opposed to the bill it would appear that the census of 1910 is now regarded as not " discriminatory." or at least as less " discriminatory" than the census of 1890. It will be remembered that the census of 1910 was adopted as abase for emergency legislation. legislation not expected to be permanent. legislation not claimed to be exact. but Intended to answer the purpose of an urgently needed restriction of the total volume of Immigration. It has answered that purpose fairly well. but with some unnecessary hardships obviated by the present bilL The number admitted under it. however. has been far too great. and It Is now proposed to cut the quota more than onehalf. But It is not the cut In the total which is so bitterly complained of. It is the change in the proportions. and it is interesting to note that those who violently opposed the passage of the 3 per cent law now with equal violence demand the retention of Its proportions in the present legislation. But at least we can say that it has not been in operation long enough to have become an established and inviolable principle of distribution if some more equitable basis could be devised. It is submitted that the Immigration Committee might fairly have determined to disregard the claims of very recently arrived immigrants that they should be figured at all as a basis for the admission of others. Congress might reasonably say. "Your value to the United States may be proved. We hope it will be. iBut It has not yet been fully proved. and we prefer to base our quotas on groups whose value has been established through several generations. We will therefore endeavor to distribute immigration in proportion to the elements of our population a.. they existed a generation ago." But the committee did nothing of the sort. and the use of the 1890 census proposes nothing of the sort. Whatever our inducement to question it. we did accept the new immigration at its full face value. and we said. "We will distribute immigration in proportion to the elements of our population as they exist today. We will give you full credit for your recent additions to (ur population on exactly the same basis as we credit the contributions which started nearly a century and a halt ago." It is submitted that this is the very height of liberality to those who with ungrateful clamor are now complaining that they are being discriminated against. Now. let me emphasize that with the 1890 census as a base we do divide our future Immigration. as nearly as it can be divided. in proportion to our present populationnot our population in 1890 or any other period. but our population of todaythat is. of 1920. our last census. I have prepared and will Insert in the RECORD at this point a table based oi the book A Century of Population Growth. published In 1909. and on the calculations of Mr. John l1.