American Agriculturist 
“Agriculture is the Most Healthful, Most Useful and Most Noble Employment of M2Ln'^—Washington 
Reg. U. S. Pat. Off. , Established 1842 
Volume 111 ^ 
For the Week Ending April 28, 1923 
Number 17 
Immigration Not The Remedy 
For Overcoming The Shortage of Labor That Farmers Are Now Facing 
M uch discussion concerning the 
effects of immigration on agri¬ 
culture is going the rounds. Often 
it is not based on facts. Before 
discussing the effects of the present law, it 
is desirable to find out what the facts are. 
The facts are given in the report of the 
Commissioner General of Immigration and 
in various press releases. For many coun¬ 
tries, the number of immigrants who de¬ 
sired to come to the United States in 1922 
was not so large as the law would allow. 
Many more Austrians, Danes, Swedes, Nor¬ 
wegians, Hollanders, Germans, Englishmen, 
etc., would have been admitted had they de¬ 
sired to come. The law checked the admis¬ 
sion of Greeks, Hungarians, Ital¬ 
ians, Rumanians, Armenians, and 
Turks. The countries from which 
more people would have been ad¬ 
mitted had they desired to come 
are as follows, with the percent¬ 
age of the possible number of 
immigrants who came to the 
United States in the year ending 
June 30, 1922: 
Austria .... 
Denmark . . . 
France . 
Germany . . . 
Netherlands . 
Norway ... 
Russia. 
Sweden .... 
United Kingdom.55 
Some , countries from which 
immigration was checked by law: 
Bulgaria, Czecho-Slovakia, Greece, 
Hungary, Italy, Belgium, Poland, Ru¬ 
mania, Jugo-Slavia, Armenia, Palestine, 
Syria, Turkey, Africa. 
Data up to February 7, 1923, 
which is a little over seven months 
of the present year, indicate that 
the law will admit many more Danes, Nor¬ 
wegians, and Germans than desire to come. 
Judging by the present indication, the Swed¬ 
ish, English, French, and Holland quotas 
may not quite provide for all who desire to 
come. The immigration from southern Eu¬ 
rope will be checked as it was last year. 
Opinions About Immigration 
Facts and opinions about immigration 
should be clearly separated. The above are 
some of the facts. The writer is of the opin¬ 
ion that we ought some time ago to have 
adopted constructive policies on the immi¬ 
gration question rather than to allow mat¬ 
ters to drift. Those who have studied the 
question believe that the immigrants should 
be inspected in foreign countries and not 
allowed start for this country until they have 
passed such physical and mental tests as 
would indicate their acceptability in this 
country. It is an injustice to the immigrant 
to have to cross the ocean to find whether 
he can be admitted. Selection would be more 
discriminating if done before starting. The 
enormous expense that the State of New 
York is carrying in maintaining foreigners 
in our State institutions is an indication of 
the need of much more careful selecton. 
By G. F. WARREN 
In so far as restriction of immigration 
from southern and eastern Europe makes 
the^ opportunities for immigrants in the 
United States better, it encourages immigra¬ 
tion from northern Europe. It is certain 
that more Canadians, English, French, Ger¬ 
mans, Dutch, and Scandinavians are coming 
than would come if immigration were not 
restricted. In short, the restriction law is 
a restriction to southern and eastern Europe 
and a stimulus to northern and western 
Europe. The quality of the immigrants now 
coming is much above the average that came 
before the restriction law was passed. 
Because of the high wages in cities, some 
farmers believe if we allowed indiscriminate 
immigration that it would break the - labor 
market. Since farmers as a class depend 
more on the labor of themselves and mem¬ 
bers of their families than they do on hired 
labor, and depend more on their own labor 
than they do on the returns from capital,- 
it is to their interests that wages be high. 
If over a series of years wages remain high, 
the pay that farmers receive for their own 
labor will be high. It is very trying to see 
one’s sons and hired men go to the cities and 
receive very high wages at a time when farm- 
products are low. It is not in the interest of 
farmers to have country and city wages out 
of adjustment, but it is in their interest to 
have wages high. Adjustment between city 
and country can be brought about by the 
movement from farms to cities as readily 
as by bringing in foreigners. 
Effect of Restriction on Agriculture 
Other farmers believe that, if we allow 
free immigration, men will be available to 
work on farms even though farm wages are 
out of adjustment with city wages. If it 
were possible to hire men at wages that are 
put of adjustment with the industries, it 
would be interesting to know just how the 
prices of farm products would be brought 
into adjustment with prices of manufactured 
goods. One who complains that there is an 
overproduction of farm products is certain¬ 
ly not very logical if he also clamors for 
more labor. 
Comparatively little of the work on farms 
in the United States is done by persons from 
southern Europe. Most of the farm hands 
in this country are native Americans. Some 
come from northern Europe. Since the pres¬ 
ent law tends to stimulate immigration from 
northern Europe, the chance of your having 
a Swede, Dane, Englishman, or German to 
work on your farm are better than they 
would be if immigration were un¬ 
restricted. But, in any event, 
these chances are very slight. 
More highly skilled native Ameri¬ 
can farm boys are raised on farms 
than are needed in agriculture. 
The best source of additional farm 
labor is these young men. If the 
relative supplies of manufactured 
goods and farm products are so 
out of adjustment that farm 
prices are so low that it is im¬ 
possible to keep these men on 
farms, it would seem logical to 
let enough of them go to bring 
about this till we see what effect 
Possibly too many are now going 
to cities. We cannot be sure 
about this till we see what effect 
the present movement has on 
farm production. 
The farmer has another inter¬ 
est in the immigration question. 
Our own population is multiply¬ 
ing very rapidly. Farm families 
are so large, and the' increase in 
efficiency of farmers is so great, 
that there is room on farms for only about 
one-half of the children who are born there. 
Where are these children to go? Evidently 
they must go to American cities. Accurate 
data are not available, but probably the nor¬ 
mal movement from farms to cities is about 
one-half million per year. Some city oppor¬ 
tunities are needed to make places for this 
surplus farm popoulation. 
Effect of Immigration on Public Welfare 
This country is no longer thinly populated. 
There is no longer a supply of readily avail¬ 
able good land. The additional production 
of the future must come from slower and 
more expensive methods of expansion. Is it 
not well to leave a few of our resources for 
gradual development to provide a place for 
our own surplus population? 
Very much more important than the imme¬ 
diate economic effects of immigration are the 
permanent effects on national welfare. We 
are all working not only for ourselves, but 
for our children, grandchildren, and great¬ 
grandchildren. We like to accumulate some 
property which can be left to them, and like 
to earn enough so that they may have edu¬ 
cational opportunities. Is it not just as 
{Continued on page 380) 
Per cent 
.64 
58 
76 
28 
67 
49 
84 
44 
A Constructive Immigration Policy 
A CONSTRUCTIVE immigration policy would appear to include: 
Examination, both physical and mental, in Europe, of all pro¬ 
spective emigrants for permission to embark for the XTnited States. 
Rigorous enforcement of health tests. 
Rigorous intelligence tests to encourage immigration of persons of 
good intelligence and prevent immigration of persons of inferior in¬ 
telligence. The army test showed that a large number of such per¬ 
sons have in recent years been admitted. We have enough such in 
this country now to raise all of the imbeciles and near imbeciles that 
we need. The increase in our asylums is appalling. 
Continuance of literacy tests. 
The number of persons who desire to come from northwestern 
Europe does not seem to be larger than can be quickly assimilated. 
The number who desire to come from southern and eastern Europe 
seems to be much greater than can be readily assimilated. These 
should be restricted to such numbers as can be readily assimilated so 
that all who come will be absorbed rather than remain as insoluble 
lumps in our so-called “melting pot.” A percentage regulation based 
on the 1900 census would seem the best means of accomplishing the 
desired result. 
