File:"My country, 'tis of thee!" or, The United States of America; past, present and future. A philosophic view of American history and of our present status, to be seen in the Columbian exhibition (1892) (14597967820).jpg

Identifier: mycountrytisofth00john (find matches)
Title: "My country, 'tis of thee!" or, The United States of America; past, present and future. A philosophic view of American history and of our present status, to be seen in the Columbian exhibition
Year: 1892 (1890s)
Authors: Johnson, Willis Fletcher, 1857-1931 Habberton, John, 1842-1921
Subjects:
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. Y. Huber co.
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: Sloan Foundation

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
r verylittle. Still Mr. Ford may be supposed, from hisposition, to know what he is talking about, forhis committee has spent a great amount of timein examining a great many witnesses who aresupposed to understand the nature of the immi-gration to this country of the peoples of thewhole world. But enough about paupers, idiots,insane and criminals; everybody is agreed thatwe do not want them. Are there any other classes whom we do notwant ? Yes ; we cannot afford to have the con-tract laborer. The native labor organizationshave talked a good deal of nonsense about theforeigner, but not on this one subject. The impor-tation on contract of men to do a certain amountof work for a smaller sum than American citizenswould accept, and to carry back almost all theirearnings to be spent in another country, is a verysuccessful way of making a nation poor. If wewere to send all of our money to Europe for thepurchase of supplies and Europe were to buynothing of us in return, it would soon be impos-
Text Appearing After Image:
IMMIGRATION. 353 sible to raise enougli coin to buy a postage stamp.Yet contract labor is a transaction of exactly thesame nature, and it is increasing at a rate tbatmay be estimated from the known ability andwillingness of large employers to have work doneas cheaply as possible, regardless of the conse-quences to every one but themselves. When, however, statesmen or politicians, ordemagogues or well-meaning labor agitators orleaders, insist that skilled labor should be keptout of the country, it is to the interest of thecommunity to firmly, persistently and indig-nantly oppose any such proposition. Lack ofskilled labor is the curse of the country. Be-cause a man is employed on work which requiresskill and experience is no sign that he is fullycompetent to do it. The tramps who bind thefarmers wheat, the cast-aways and chance laborerswho build some houses in the West, the riff-raffwho are gathered together occasionally to work amine, or sail a ship, or do the work of a planta--tion or

Note About Images