Rensselaer Republican, Volume 22, Number 36, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 May 1890 — A NEW IMMIGRATION BILL. [ARTICLE]

A NEW IMMIGRATION BILL.

Dis «t iit rrsrttr. £ ItimPrbltiblorj Legislation NeededNew York Press. (Saturday.) Congressmen Owen and Slump and Senator Squire of the Sub-Committee on Immigration returned to Washington yesterday. Mr. Owen, the chairman of the committee, appeared to be feeling particularly happy over the result [of - the investigation, and lie told a Press reporter—that he intended to introduce an immigration bill in Congress within the next two weeks. ■ • 11 . ’‘The bill,” he said, “will recommend a radical change in the alien contract laws. Probably five hundred immigrants come into this.country every week in violation of the intent of the Contract Labor law, yet, under the present lettter of the law, it is impossible for the inspectors to detain them. There will have to lie a system of inspection on the other side of the water and the law must be changed so as to compel the return of immigrants coming into the country in violation of the law.

The bill will also provide that the Secretary of State shall forward to our consuls monthly the condition of our labor to the end that if there is no call for labor immigration will lose much of its stimulus, as these' people will not be so likely to come in the face of an already overstocked labor market. Without question New York and New England are suffering from the influx of immigrants termed ‘birds of passage,’ who stay a season, or at the most a few years, and then return to Italy or elsewhere with their earnings and becoming princes. We propose to show that in the months of April and May, this year, more Lilian fifty thousand Canadians will enter the New England States and will return home in the fall. The Italians in New York and the Canadians in New England have,, supqffrroted American unskilled -labor almost entirely, and have driven our people to seek other pursuits. It is apparent tliat this influx hits very materially decreased the wages of our laborers, and we hope to provide a measure which will permanently cure this evil.

‘‘ln framing this measure we have to consider tliat the character of our immigration is changing from a class wholly desirable to a class a very large percentage of which is not only undesirable, but pernicious in its effects on our wage system and our civilization.” “We do not need prohibitory, but discriminating, legislation. No immigrant should be permitted to land who does not come here with the desire to build up a home. The privileges of our institution should not be continued to any immigrant who after a certain time, fails to become an American citizen.” The committee obtained its. most valuable information in regard to the violations of the Contract Labor law at its secret sessions. The members of the joint committee will decide whether this information shall be made public.