Every port city was overcrowded. every road leading to the ports was filled with people seeking to come to America to escape the burdens of reconstruction. Something had to be done or the United States would have been inundated. After years of careful inquiry Congress decided on the formula that we now call the national origins quota. This meant that immigrants from each nationality would be admitted in direct ratio to the numbers of their nationality in our population. not in accordance with the numbers in foreign countries seeking admission. One powerful argument in winning assent to the quota system was the overwhelming evidence that emigration from overcrowded areas does nothing to cure population pressure. New births keep the population of the old country at the same high level. Countries with a low standard of living have difficult problems but they can be met only by hard work in dealing with social problems people prefer not to face.
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quota system immigrants emigration national origins quota