Speech #680083437

Then they turned and massacred those whom Columbus had left in the port in the West Indies on his first trip. Racial integrity will be maintained always by every race of people. and we can not permit the yellow and the brown races to come to this country in large numbers without destroying racial integrity. More than that. we have recognized that fact in our law. and have refused to grant citizenship to immigrants of either the yellow or the brown race. No man should be admitted as an immigrant to this country unless the law itself expects at some time that he may become an American citizen and take part in the affairs of our Government. so there Is a reason for the exclusion of those from the Asiatic shores without in any way reflecting on them that makes it entirely different from European immigration. The great body of European immigration comes from the same source. Their blood has been mixed through the centuries. There may be a division In language. There may be some dissimilar racial characteristics. But they belong to the white blood. to the Caucasian race. and it is more opportunity that has made the division than it is racial characteristics. As I said a moment ago. it is idle to say that this change is made on the basis of protecting the American standards and American labor. because under this bill as it stands we are going to allow to enter this country only 238.000 immigrants a year. and. if the change is made adopting the census of 1890. we will allow 169.000 immigrants to come in. making a change of competition at the bread line of only 69.000 human beings. half of whom at least will be not wage earners. but those who will be dependent on others. So that the number is Insignificant a. compared with the great flood of immigration that beat upon our shores but a few years ago. More than that. if that were all that was involved. if it were only a question of the numbers that should be admitted. without reflecting on anybody. the basis could be reduced from 2 per cent to 1 per cent figured on the census of 1910. and there would be fewer immigrants coming into this country than would come in under the 2 per cent provision with the census of 1890 as the basis. So it is perfectly apparent that the purpose of the change in this bill is not to protect the standards of American labor. and not to protect the standards of American life and American ideals. but it is to discriminate against one class of European immigrants coming into our country as In favor of another. Mr. President. if we will look at the census returns. and compare the number of immigrants who come in from these countries. we will find that from northern Europe. under the census of 1910. as compared with that of 1890. there is an increase from Austria. which is a German country. of 3.704. of 333 from Belgium. of 764 from Norway. of 596 from Esthonia. of 2.269 from Finland. of 567 from the Netherlands. of 1.481 from Denmark. of 4.601 from Sweden. and of 221 from Switzerland. making a total increase from those countries of 14.536. There would be an Increase of those coming from Czechoslovakia of 7.499. from Yugoslavia. 3.349. from Poland. 11.580. from Russia. 14.278. and from Italy. 23.949. making a total of 60.1655. There are some smaller countries Involved on both sides of this equation where the difference In change would be less than 100 to each country. and I shall not worry the Senate by going into all the minute details. but the fact- is that if we adoptthe census of 1910 as the basis as against the proposed amendment making the census of 1890 the basis. we will get 60.000 additional immigrants from Czechoslovakia. Yugoslavia. Poland.