Ward: Immigration and Restrictive Law 



321 



ping Co., New Home Sewing 

 Machine Co., Oliver Iron & Steel 

 Co., Pennsylvania Coal Co., Pennsyl- 

 vania Coal & Coke Corporation, 

 Pennsylvania Textile Co., Phelps- 

 Dodge Corporation, Southern 

 Cotton Oil Co., Standard Steel Car 

 Co., Studebaker Corporation, Under- 

 wood Typewriter Co., Worthington 

 Pump & Machinery Co., Bethlehem 

 Steel Co., Cudahy Packing Co., 

 Dold Packing Co., Du Pont de 

 Nemours & Co., General Motors Co., 

 Libby Mc Neil & Libby, Swift & Co. 



These are only a few of the several 

 hundred big financial, industrial 

 and steamship concerns whose 

 money is financing the propaganda 

 of the Inter-Racial Council. It will 

 be noted that many steamship com- 

 panies are among them. One list 

 of these subscribing or industrial 

 members will be found in the com- 

 mittee hearings of April 22, 1920; 

 another list, containing some names 

 not given in the testimony, will be 

 found printed on the literature of 

 the Inter-Racial Council. 



These subscribing members pay 

 annual membership fees amounting 

 to as much as S2,500 for some con- 

 cerns, and more than that for a few, 

 and smaller sums for each of many 

 others. "It runs from SlOO a year 

 to $2500, as an average. A few are 

 larger." (Testimony of Mayper, 

 executive secretary, p. 167.) 



The expenditures of the Inter- 

 Racial Council in certain of its 

 activities, which manifestly do not 

 cover all of them, amounted to 

 $213,955.19 for the period beginning 

 March 1, 1919, and ending March 31, 

 1920. (See testimony, Mayper, 

 p. 167) That was the first year of its 

 existence. Its activities have con- 

 tinued with apparently increased 

 magnitude, but I am without infor- 

 mation as to later expenditures. 



Mr. Blanton. Mr. Chairman, will 

 the gentleman yield? 



Mr. Box. Yes. 



Mr. Blanton. Is it any wonder, 

 then that this splendid piece of 



legislation has been sidetracked and 

 held up? 



Mr. Box. It is not any wonder, 

 but it is an ominous thing if the will 

 of the American people is to have to 

 give way to influences like these. 

 Nothing but a sense of duty prompts 

 me to present these facts as they 

 have been disclosed. The statement 

 that I have made is based upon 

 testimony. I have the hearings. 

 The situation is perfectly clear. 



Further comment on this point is 



unnecessary. 



THE WORKING OF THE LAW 



It was natural that there would be 

 certain difficulties in the early working 

 of the new law, before the exact num- 

 bers of admissible aliens from each 

 country could be officially determined. 

 Numerous steamers arrived during the 

 early part of June with aliens far in 

 excess of the numbers which were 

 admissible. Congestion resulted. To 

 each port there had been assigned a 

 percentage based on the usual percent- 

 age entering that port. When these 

 numbers had been filled, efforts were 

 made to borrow, from other ports, 

 "rights" to land additional immi- 

 grants. There was great confusion. 

 Immigration officials in Washington 

 went to the limit in showing humanity 

 and consideration. Aliens in excess of 

 the June quota were allowed to land 

 under bonds. By Joint Resolution 

 Congress later provided that the excess 

 numbers of any nationality thus admit- 

 ted should be deducted from the totals 

 of that nationality admissible during 

 the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1921. 



But even in the early days of the new 

 law, and all the more since then, the 

 complications and the hardships to 

 incoming aliens have been chiefly due 

 to the disregard of the law by the 

 steamship companies. In the whole 

 history of our immigration legislation, 

 these companies, with rare exceptions, 

 and then usually only when infractions 

 of the law meant payment of fines, 

 have never tried to obey our laws. 

 Their tactics under the new percentage 

 limitation Act have been as usual. 



