Speech #710172944

But those laborers do not want to come. They never have come. There will be no effect whatsoever on these 18 countries except to produce hard feelings. except to produce the impression that we regard them as inferior to us and to our race. except to show them that. while we are perfectly willing that persons shall come in from Canada to any extent. we are unwilling that there may be permitted freely to come what few persons desire to come to the United States from the 18 South and Central American Republics that are now sending us practically no immigrants who compete with our laborers. with our wageearning classes. The only effect will be to show them that. in our opinion. there is nothing in the ideal of socalled Pan Americanism. to show them that we are now willing to regard them on the same basis as the rest of the world. and that the statement of our public men. our Presidents and Secretaries of State for many years past really have all to be put in the discard today. and that we propose to regard our neighbors to the south. even though there is no logical reason for doing so. as on the same basis as are European countries.