16 Hattie Plum Williams 
advance him money for the voyage. The young man then writes 
to a brother, a cousin, or other relative in America and secures 
tickets for himself and his family. Immigrants thus assisted 
are far better off than those who borrow money in Russia. This 
most often happens when a man leaves home in a great hurry 
to avoid being caught for military service.*° He does not have 
time to dispose of his property advantageously or to wait for a 
ticket from America, so borrows enough for its purchase from 
money loaners in Russia. ‘These are usually Jews, and the interest 
demanded is enormous. On the immigrant’s arrival in the United 
States his relatives or friends secure a new loan for him and he 
is thus relieved from the necessity of paying exorbitant interest. 
Invariably, the purchase price of tickets to immigrants is loaned 
without interest, since the transaction ordinarily takes place be- 
tween relatives and is considered purely as a matter of mutual 
aid. In case, however, the relative is unable to raise the amount 
from his own funds and the circumstances are urgent, he can 
secure a loan with interest from one of his well-to-do country- 
men. ‘That it is a very rare thing for anyone to lose any money 
in these transactions, argues well for the assisted immigrants. 
Moreover, such aid from relatives is the best proof available that 
America has not made them grasping and selfish in their newly- 
found prosperity. It is a sign that they are keeping fresh in their 
minds the condition under which they came to America, and that 
they remember with gratitude the help that someone lent them. 
It is when they begin to say that they “need all the money they 
can make for themselves” that they manifest the unsocial spirit 
which the materialism of America fosters. 
An important factor in any immigration problem is the alien’s 
length of residence in America, which immediately affects his 
political status, and which is a means of demonstrating his ability 
to assimilate and to rise in the social scale. In Lincoln, as we 
10 Another type of immigrant who does not come technically “assisted,” 
according to the records, is the criminal who may or may not be aided by 
his relatives to escape. There are only a few of this class in the Lincoln 
settlement, but, as a rule, they attract a great deal of attention from the 
public. 
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