When those men came here the law then on the statute books gave them every reason to. believe they could send for their wives and children to join them in this country. later on.. Quite a number came in that belief. .pioneering. as it were. looking for jobs in America and a chance to establish homes. with the full intention .of sending for their wives and children. At the time they came there was nothing in our immigration law which would seem to prevent that uniting of the family here in the United States. On July 1. 1924. however. the new law suddenly took effect. These immigrants. who were comparatively recent arrivals. had no warning indicating that the whole picture would be changed. that a much severer set of restrictions would he imposed: but on July 1. 1924. with the enactment of the new law. the husband and father who had come to this country to live here permanently. who had come here legally. with every expectation of bringing his wife and little children here to join him. suddenly awoke to the fact that he could not see his wife and children again short of five years. I say five years is the shortest period because the quotas were so restricted and reduced that if he were to wait until his wife and children could be picked up in the quota of the country of their origin lio would have to wait all the way from 8 years to 20 years before they could come to tills country.
Keywords matched
immigration immigrants