Evening star. [volume], September 28, 1913, Page 2, Image 48

About Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972

Image provided by: Library of Congress, Washington, DC

                
SIEVE
jj | ? f 151 t h n i
to t im
?r?i fzrn 11on mills
,?f I'nrle Sam
A ml th<* nppor
and nether mill
tUOtlCS HTf ft
, together, a"
th.it the *?1imMhk
may lw ixcclinR
1> tine. One of
ih?>se mills is at
Ellis Island, where
? h.'iw*!.-; = immigrants each year
1 fn-.-m tin millstones of the
iili health strTii'e that the tit tna>
? [ i i(p<! from th> unfit. Thus 's
i . ?? of thi American tacr safe
rl. I I' tkf very portals of the
: i r\ mn<l l>y i handful of experts
. t. ~t that thes?' immigrants must
s through is not such an easy one
i> it one based upon theoretical
? >wledgf only. During the years
' the foreigner has come to th^
re I the I'nlted .States seeking
: mission his examination to estab
-'i ht.> titness to become an Arnerl
? dtlzoii l as been made more strln
-"?nt.
1 , out of this has gradually
l .v.t tl t marvelous --vsteni of prac
? which is wellnlgh in
ibl? preventing the entrance of
il ? ' who is not fit to coalesce
!i tl, new and virile race of the
m >fri hemisphere. Mentally and
? rwise, defective immigrants who
i 1^. it prove ? menace to American
v,<tnhood and womanhood are turned
b <? k to the country from which they
i ame
*
* #
In the last few years there has
arisen a movement. If such it may be
? ailed, in this country for the Im
provement of the human race through
the application of the doctrine of prac
tical eugenics The movement is not
confined to any one geographical sec
tion or group of persons. It appar
ently is widespread.
Its most recent manifestation is the
declaration by ministers of various de
nominations that they will not perform
marriage ceremonies where a health
and general fitness certificate is not
produced by those contemplating mat
rimony Wide comment has resulted,
just as if eugenics was a new thing.
As a matter of fact the doctrine of
eugenics la not new. Its practical
application probably is. to most peo
ple. But not to those actively en
gaged In the work of the public
health service at the various im
migrant stations of the country.
That it has so very recently become
a subject for popular discussion is
due no doubt to the fact that hitherto
the popular mind has failed to grasp
Its necessity in producing a people
able to cope with the conditions of a
higher and more complex civilisation.
In the many years in which the
public health service officers have
guarded the portals of the United
States they have made practical
eugenics a daily study. Nearly all
of the * tests they apply to suspected
defectives are their own Invention
and are based upon recognised funda
mental principles. They are the re
sult of many years of practice in
herding the sheep from the goats.
It is difficult to even imagine the
conditions that would quickly ensue
In this country should the vigilance
t BE " . ' HlH.
5 Man
'POSSESSING
A-."/.r:
%v>:;-v-SK.
"iVvi
" nes js weaii ?
Balancedmd /
ATfetfAL OSMPAfasoHTfeST I
"0EOH5 x -iL u
AMONq IXiJiTJSAiEs.^iiYcxfltr
zo Seconds Bast owrroxjRiftiyf crasr
J)jt Kowarp A Knox
rss^/MNS^/^N^^7^
Dr. Knox was asked to express his views
on the contention of many students of the
immigration problem, that all mental de
fectives should not be excluded.
"An extremist has said," replied Dr.
Knox, "that It is a n.xstaKe to exclude
all eccentric, queer or even mildly insane
persons from tne country. I do not agree
with him. It has been said that "good
sense is the absence of every strong pas
sion, and only men of strong passions
can be great," and that "good sense
travels on the well worn paths; genius
never.'
"Insanity and genius see.n to go hand
in hand. Lunatics have had talented
parents, and men of great ability and
geniuses have had parents or children
who were insane or criminal. Luther s
son was unruly and violent. The son of
Cicero was a drunkard. The son of Mar
cus Aurelius was a cruel monster. If
we study the history of Peter the Great
or of the Caesars we see a progressive de
cline Into crime and Insanity, rather than
the increase of ability and genius.
"The genius of some of these cases
seems hardly to compensate for the terri
ble conditions that have accompanied or
followed it. A little less genius and
more sanity might sometimes be better.
The stable, plodding 'draft horse' type
of man undoubtedly makes the best type
of citizen and produces the least number
of criminal anl worthless children; while
the high-strung, queer, eccentric per
son, or, as we medical men call them,
? ^\l)
Be ....
Lxaf Cluster Test Is Ori.RATiE.pIiirLlKVEioPL
Test ButXpt28 Sxcokds.PicicOut 3>xsigh\s !That
Asx IDX^TICAT - , 3
of the-r men relax or should they
be entirely withdrawn from the work
they are doing- The Btream of im
migration from the older nations of
th? world to this newer land of prom
ise is growing day by day. With Its
liope of liberty and Independence and
probable affluence It constantly draws to
It those who would better their condition.
*
* *
There was a time not so very far
In the past when It was well known
that certain European governments
encouraged the immigration of mem
l>*ri? of their criminal classes to this
country. That today is an impos
-Iblllty, and largely so because of
the vigilance of the public health of
ficials at the ports of entry. Still,
there arrive on nearly every steamer
a certain number of mentally defec
tive, diseased and otherwise unfit
Immigrants who must be separated
from those that the regulations per
mit to enter.
It Is a far from pleasant dutv that the
of the public health service have to
perform. Dally there are scenes enact
ed nt Ellis Island that wrin* the hearts
of the most callous. Yet duty compels
?hem to turn a deaf ear to the many
Headings of relatives and friends of those
whom thev are forced to deport. Theso
cast's, however, are deposed of with
judgment, common sense and human
kindness.
The work of examining each lmm'grant
us he comes from the barge that has
fraught him from the steerage of his
ttamer to the receiving station at Fills
Island is not so verv difficult, nor vet is
?t an easv task. The^r immigrants are
known officially as "third class" and
when fh'v .>ntcr the stat.on they are put
through what has frequently been re
ferred to as "the sieve at Ellis Island."
As thev come from the barg^ they are
brought before the examiners, who Imme
diately begin a genera' examination as
?o rhy*?cal fltness These officers ar?i
so experienced In the detection of out
ward slms o? unfitness and disease that
escape the'r vigilant eyes.
It Is not to be expected, however, that
these exsminers can detect defective per
rons from the persona! appearance alone,
although this comblm-d with their actions
is of great old. especially as each type
of mental disease presents an attitude
and facial expression peculiar to itself.
*
* *
The doty of applying the tests that
have proven so effecti-e In detecting the
mentally deficient falls chiefly to a young
physician. Dr. Howard A. Knox. Dr.
Knox had been in the service a number
of ye*J'? and already ha* shown himself
to be onu of the most painstaking and
effleieai examiners in the government em
? pioyment He is an assistant surgeon
and is stationed at Wilis Island. Recently
'the psychopathically predisposed," fre
quently produce hot-tempered, impossible
offspring who never succeed In a world
which they curse until finally they leave
it In disgust.
*
? *
"'These individuals are feeble-minded,
but not in the ordinary sense of the word.
Intellectually they may be very bright
and have ability to solve mathematical
problems and pass all the complicated
testa that can be given them. It Is
rather in the emotional sense that they
are defective. They are high tempered,
Impulsive, thoughtless and given to the
gratilicatlon of the baser passions, re
sulting finally perhaps in murder and
other crimes. This type is really to be
feared fhore than the moron, or simple,
feeble minded person of more stable emo
tions. It is .. e aim of those who exam
ine immigrants to detect just this class."
The detection of the defectiveness
among the horde of immigrants that year
ly pass the portals of Ellis Island Dr
Knox does not regard as so very diffi
cult. He qualified this, however, by say
ing that the faces of the various types
of psychopathic cases are as open books
to the experienced examiner. The ex
aminer studies the facial expression and
from this draws his preliminary deduc
tions. He knows that educated and
highly civilized pers* ns huve learned to
control their expressions of feeling and
that frequently a, smile may hide an
aching heart.
"It can be seen." continued the doc
tor. "that facial expression is a more
accurate criterion of what Is in the
mind of the uneducated alien than in
that ot the intellectually developed per
son. Th>- chalk mark that is placed on
the clothing of the immigrant who Is
to be held for further examination
serves other purposes than to tell what
they are held for.
*
* *
"Persons of stable temperament pay no
attention to it. nigh-strung, apprehen
sive persons think It of grave impor
tance and may cry, lament or gesticu
late, thus revealing their mental make-up
Some of the actually insane regard it as
a mark of honor or of doom, or as a
special attention of the Diety, or of
the ruler of the land, guaranteeing a safe
passage to their destination."
Aside from the study of the facial ex
pression of the arriving immigrant, there
are a number of simple tests to deter
mine their mental caliber. These are
known as the illiteracy tests and consist
of a variety of charts and drawings.
There also are sets of different kinds
of wooden blocks that are to be placed
in a certain position in a tray that is
constructed to contain them exactly in
one position.
One of the simplest .and yet most effl
1/ XI 1
J "si 12C.
i ^
Imvelcse. Test Foe> Tmmigeakes TuaDwuHER.
Pomislb (SieJ&icjN And T^e^ubject Fwrs The. , L
^AinE,jjE3i<yicwANDTHER.^?i Of ise, .Sheet 1 '(
TiiERE. AEEoKBubs.? The. Tb^siShocjld Be,)
Aacompushe,x> inia Seconds.
cient tests that are used is known as the
visual comparison test. It Is the inven
tion of officers of the public health
service and has been found to be one
of the most effective in determining
the mental quickness of suspected
feeble-minded persons. It consists of a
aeries of drawings and the suspect is
required to pick out a set of the draw
ings in a given number of minutes.
The whole test is standardized for the
examination of alien illiterates over
twelve years of age.
All of the work of the examiners has
to be done through the medium of In
terpreters. since it is not to be expect
ed that the medical examiners should
know all of the languages and their
various dialects that are spoken by
the immigrants. Frequently It hap
pens that even the large number of In
terpreters is not sufficient to cope with
a new dialect that has not hitherto
been met.
*
* *
"It must be understood," said Dr.
Knox, in outlining the position of the
public health service In its examina
tion of aliens, "that the examining of
ficers' position is wholly a judicial one,
and they are neither for nor against
the immigrant. The country Is the
plalntifT, and the alien Is the defendant
?and he is innocent until proved
guilty. The burden of proof Is upon
the country and its representatives
rather than the immigrant. Perhaps It
is well that this Is so.
"The uninitiated person at first sight
may protest against the influx of ragged
and very uncouth foreigners, but these
are qualities and not crimes, provided
the alien possesses no psychopathic or
uther degenerate traits. Some must come
In from other lands to prevent racial In
breeding, which produces degenerates
partly as the result of a long line of
educated progenitors
?"Extreme care always Is used In ex
amining aliens for mental diseases, since
1 o them it is an extremely vital question.
It may be they have sold everything
they possess to make the trip and often
may have borrowed money besides. To
them It Is Indeed a hardship to be de
ported to the port whence they came, and
perhaps to walk many miles to their na
tive village with the prospect of prosecu
tion for debt staring them In the face.
"Nor is this all. Perhaps the deported
alien is the last of his family, and there
is nothing ahead of him but sadness and
poverty and suffering. To this must be
added the brand of 'fool' that has been
placed upon him, because he has been
adjudged mentally incompetent.
"These and similar considerations are
strong arguments In favor of skilled men
with strong humane instincts and abil
ity to judge of human nature, to conduct
the examinations of defectives with the
tests they have themselves perfected,
standardized and know how to Interpret."
*
? *
Examination of aliens is not alto
gether confined to the use of visual and
similar tests. Many questions are asked
by the examining physician through the
Interpreter, and the alien's mental fitness
is largely Judged through the readiness
and accuracy with which he replies. In
fact, the quickness with which he grasps
the significance of the questions often
yields information of the greatest value.
Here are some of the questions that
are asked: *
"How old are you?"
"How old were you four years ago?"
"What ship did you come on? '
"What is the year of your birth?"
"What place is this?"
"How many are six and six?"
"How many are six and seven?"
"How many are six and five?"
"What Is the day of the week, date,
month and year?"
"Can you count from ten to one?"
"Who is the ruler of your country?"
"Have you memorized the address to
which you are going?"
To the average person the answers to
these comparatively simple questions
might mean but little, but to mon who
have asked them of many thousands of
persons and know exactly how the av
erage of each race and type answers them
they contain a wealth or accurate lnfor ?
mation. Indeed, they go a long way to
ward establishing the mental caliber of
the suspected mental defective.
*
* *
If the questions have been answered
to the satisfaction of the examiner the
alien Is allowed to go his way. provided
he has passed the physical and other
tests. If they have not been satisfacto
rily answered, and thus mental short
ulthuan1akc, "polisk, jr.us.siam and italjiat^ qirl.s
hach.1& years old the,fiassian'vasro-uiii>to"bef?xbi?.tton^
the. Oth&tl three. "were* hprkcalj
comings are indicated, the alien is de
tained and allowed to rest for a few days,
when more conclusive tests are applied
Many attempts, both pathetic and
amusing, are frequently resorted to in
an effort to deceive the examiners. Sel
dom do these attempts prove successful;
yet never a day passes that they are not
tried in a number of Instances. Much
ingenuity is displayed in originating these
schemes and it requires all the vigilance
of the immigration officers to detect them.
It is the custom among the persons of
a certain race to make their mentally un
sound look very beautiful before appear
ing before the examiner; they are clean
and well groomed and have been in
structed to smile a little when passing
the examiner. Many of them pretend to
be deaf and dumb, knowing that under
some circumstances persons so afflicted
will be allowed to enter the country.
One of the favorite methods of circum
venting the examiners is to bring mentally
feeble persons to the country as second
and even first class passengers. This,
however, usually fails because tho health
authorities board all the incoming ships
and examine those aliens who travel above
decks. There is no escaping the vigilance
of those who are charged with the all-Im
portant duty of protecting the American
race from "pollution.
*
? #
"The other day," said Dr. Knox In cit
ing examples of attempted evasion of the
health examinations, "I observed a well
dressed man running to catch up with the
line of immigrants of which he was the
last one. I stopped him and found he
was very lame, due to a dislocated hip.
He had practiced a running step for pos
sibly many weeks in the hope of thus
passing the medical officer undetected.
"It is almost impossible to keep up with
the many schemes these apparently igno
rant foreigners hatch up in their desper
ate attempts to enter the country at all
hazard. I have known them to come here
with glass eyes that virtually defy detec
tion. so perfectly do they match with the
good eye. A favorite trick of the totally
blind whose eyes, however, appear normal
on casual Inspection is to walk very close
to their friends who are in fact leading
them.
"The variety of such schemes Is almost
endless. Persons with loathsome scalp
diseases wear wigs- Those who are
hunchbacked swear they "got it on the
ship." If this is the truth they are not
sent back. Parents -rith' undersized im
becile children who cannot walk declare
they are but eighteen months old. *,Iany
of them claim to be citizens of the coun
try when in fact they have never been
here before.
"Persons with goiter bend the head for
ward to hide the affliction, while those
with false hands wear gloves, as also do
those who have contagious nail diseases.
Those with missing fingers or stiff elbows
hang overcoats or shawls over them;
those with flat feet wear arches. Women
with signs of disease on their faces wear
heavy veils and look Indignant when
asked to remove them; persons who are
lame frequently carry heavy pieces of
baggage to cover their awkward walk.
And so it goes."
*
* *
Practically every action by the exam
iner produces a certain reaction in the
alien under examination, depending on
his race, education, previous environment
and experience. The asking of a ques
tion without previous warning will in
variably result in a very characteristic
reaction, according to the race from
which the alien has sprung.
"For example," said Dr. Knox, "take
the question 'How long did you attend
school?" Before the real answer is ob
tained the reactive response is made. In
the case of the Irishman it is "What?"
In the case of the Scot it is a moment of
silence and then an answer to the ques
tion. The Englishman almost always re
peats the question, and a display of sur
prise that such a question should have
been put to him.
"On the other hand, the Frenchman
answers at once and directly, which also
is the case with the German. Neither
wastes breath in replying. Such, how
ever, is not the case when the same
query Is put to the Hebrew. He always
spars for time and forces a repetition of
the question and then takes his time In
answering.
"The Turk regards the questioner with
suspicion and the Armenian and Arab
with utter amazement. The Russian and
Pole answer without hesitation, provided
they understand. The Lithuanian will not
reply unless the examiner's knowledge of
his language and the grammar of the
question is perfect. The Scandinavian
looks at the questioner with a blank stare
The Biter Bitten.
If there la one
thing on earth of
which Senator John
Sharp Williams Is
Innocent, It Is his
being well off In
this world's goods,
for the accumula
tion of filthy lucre
Is not one of his
talents.
But back In the
old days, when
Williams was
campaigning
against a populist
candidate, the opposition tried to work
off a gag regarded as a sure shot.
It seems that the "pops" had written
a pamphlet in which Williams was hailed
as a "robber baron," a "bloated pluto
crat," etc.. etc. His property, held in
several places, was really small in
amount, but this leaflet made it appear
that the holdings in a farm and a town
property, as well as some stock, amounted
up into the millions.
Williams was speaking in a small city
when some of these tracts began to cir
culate among the crowd. A friend se
cured one and hurried to the platform.
"Here, Sharp," exclaimed the friend,
anxiously, "read this."
Williams read slowly, then grunted sor
rowfully.
"Gentlemen." he shouted, waving the
pamphlet above the heads of the crowd,
"I have in my hands here a paper which
accuses me of being worth a million.
My friends, this is the first lie told About
oie that I wisb was true!"
Because of Wings ?
In the House the
other day some
body made the re
mark that the pro
gressive party was
gaining strength
through the west.
That remark
caused Represent
ative Sereno Payne
of New York to
smile.
"It reminds me,"
said he, "of a little
middle western
town to which a
new Episcopal minister had gone. He
visited the town and found a Methodist
chapel. It was a quiet place, so he
strolled down to the store determined to
make acquaintances and find out if he
could obtain the use of the chapel for
his flock. On the steps sat an elderly
sage.
" 'Are there many churches around
here?* asked the new Episcopal minister.
" 'A few,' replied the elderly sage,
grouchily. 'Cam'ellltes an' Methodists
and Baptists and the like.'
" 'Any Episcopalians?' demanded the
preacher.
" 'One out on the lake yesterday,* re
plied the sage. 'Looked somethin' like a
mallard duck only its bill's longer. Si
Simmons shot it.'
"And that," concluded Representative
Payne, "is the status of the saw party."
Putting One Over.
Assistant
said
Secre
tary of the Navy
Franklin Roose
velt is a suave and
urbane man on
mo3t subjects, but
the newspaper men
have found one
way of capturing
his goat and lead
ing it around the
lot. That is by
asking him about
the plans of the
battleship Penn
sylvania. which
stolen several months
were
ago.
The department, although it has never
recovered ihe plans, has persistently
maintained that it has suffered no great
loss, as only a portion of the sketches
were missing, and they were unimportant.
Not long ago a veteran newspaper man
asked the question again and waa told
by Secretary Roosevelt that nothing had
been heard.
"What about the three-turret gun
plans?" he asked next
"Great heavens!"cried Roosevelt "When
were they taken?"
He was about to yell for further Infor
mation on the new theft when the news
paper man interrupted.
"They weren't taken aa far as I know,''
he aaid. "I just wanted to ??? whether
or not they were important"
The Young Idea.
Recently Senator
Heed Smoot's boy
came to him with
a pitiful story of a
| j j woman who need
ed a position. The
woman's son was
his playmate, the
senator's son
pleaded, and her
husband was away
in the southwest
with tuberculosis.
So eloquently did
the youn^ orator
plead that the
senator finally decided to do what he
could to aid the woman.
He asked her to call upon him. He
ascertained that the story of her need
and worthiness was true In all particu
lars and finally got her a position at a
salary sufficient to keep her and her son
from want.
Some days later. In the morning mail,
came a letter for young Smoot, and his
father's eye saw a five-dollar bill fall
out
He demanded the reason for such an
inclosure, and. taking the letter, he read
a deep expression of thanks from the ?
woman, and at the end:
"Inclosed find $5, instead of the $1
which my son promised you should have
If you obtained me the position."
After the senator got through talking
with his young son the latter understood
thoroughly that government positions
are not given, even to the needy, on a
commission basis. Needless to add. the
money was returned.
and answers without the least expression
in face or voice.
"These characteristic reactions are pro
duced mainly ii^ the uneducated of vari
ous races, or. in' the peasant classes, and
if they depart very far from what haa
usually been the case heretofore the cir
cumstance is regarded as suspicious, es
pecially if there is no apparent reason
for the digression.
?'The frame of mind of the immigrant
is not important in making a physical
examination, but it is all Important in
the mental investigation. It is difficult
to realize the great mental strain these
ignorant foreigners labor under when
they reach Ellis Island. Nearly all of
them have heard of the rigid investiga
tion they must undergo "before being per
mitted to enter'the country. Therefore
it is not to be wondered at that they
contemplate the ordeal with appreben
sion."
Dr. Knox cites many Instances that
have come under his personal observa
tion where the immigrant has done him
self an injury while thus laboring un
der the strain of apprehension. Not
long ago, the doctor related, an arriving
alkn slashed himself across the wrist
with suicidal intent. It was plainly ap
parent that while he was not actually In
sane. he was of unstable make-up and
was suffering from the mental strain
due to the long voyage in the steerage
and the ordeal that confronted him on
landing. He thus plainly showed his
weak resistance under an unusual strain.
*
* *
Another case that came under the ob
servation of the examiners was that of
an Italian boy, who had been abused on
shipboard by a sailor. The boy stood
the abuse as long as he could, and then
proceeded to "polish up the deck * with
the sailor. For this he was put In irons
and kept a prisoner for the remainder
of the voyage. When he arrived at Ellis
Island he was in such a frame of mind
that nothing could be done with him.
He waa bordering on functional lnsan
* e
A native of an European country void
h!- co*. a few sheep he happened to bo
?o fortunate an to posseaa and the little
hut ho railed home. The *al? netted
him enough to pay his pajtaage In the
steerage and a small aurplua to meet tha
requirements of the United States Immi
gration laws. While on Rl/ipboard ha
waa robbed of all the money be posaesa*
ed, and consequently when he arrived
he had not the necoaaary aum to enter
The experience preyed on his mtnd to
such an extent that he practically was
a mental wreck. A few daya' rest and
kind treatment altered his viewpoint, and
hie mental balance returnod. He waa
then permitted to ent?r In spite of the
lack of funds. He has since become
a useful and respected citizen
The belief that the 'wild and woolly
west" exists Juat aa It did many year's
ago was evidenced in a case that came
to the attention of the health officers
at Kills Island recently. A young Ger
man who intended coining to this coun
try was told by hla brother In Montana
that the state was a dangerous place,
and that he had better purchase a re
volver before starting on his journey.
On board the steamer, on which he
traveled in the steerage with his wife
nnd child, the little family was badly
treated. Indignities were Inflicted upon
the wife, who was about to benme a
mother for the second time. This ill
treatment so preyed upon the father and
husband that when the ship arrived la
port he waa almost in a frenty. Finally
he could contain himself no longer and
he drew the revolver his prudent brother
had advised him to buy. Thla naturally
got him into trouble and the little fam
ily waa sent back whence It had come
Theaa cases are cltad as instanoea 0f
conditions that put allena in an adverse
frame of mind and unfit them for the
ordeal that awaits them on reaching the
examiner at Kills Islaand. Thee* cases
have to be detained for a short time
amid qnlet surroundings and where they
may obtain rational treatment until they
arc restored to their normal condition
*
* *
Practically all of the insane that come
to Ellis Island arc detected at some point
in the examination, since every one at
the station is doing his utmost to pre
vent the entrance of even one unde
sirable alien. Not very long ago an im
migrant, standing at a window remarked
that the Statue of IJberty was walking
down the bay waving her arms. H? sug
gested that some one throw a rope around
her and tie her down. This alien was
promptly deported.
need '?r the stringent regulations
??tabllshed by the public
health service and the fidelity with which
they are applied In the interest of the
future of the American race is apparent
Race pollution must be avoided, and it
can be done only by turning back thoss
would prove a burden
to the country and be the progenitors of
e ?' ment?l incompetents.
..e dan**r of racial pol
lution, said Dr. Knox on this phaae of
the question of practical eugenics at the
entjy. "the cost of confining
criminals, defective and Insane In pub
lic institutions is an item for the most
serious consideration. During May 1913
108 mentally defective cases were de
tected at ?71 lis Island and sent back to
the countries from which they came. In
100 years the average number of de
scendants from one mentally defective
will be about 450. Of these at least ISO
will have to be taken care of by the
state. The average number of years of
care, computing from present averages,
will be twenty-five years for each de
fective. It costs about WO to maintain
each insane person, reckoning along the
most economical lines. If these esti
mates are correct, and they probably
are, it will be seen that one defective,
more or less, is a very Important Item.
*
* *
"The average number of years of con
finement times the number of descend
ants of one defective unable to car* for
themselves times the cost of caring for
one person for one year, yields the as
tonishing result of $1,425,000 aa the cost
of maintaining the progeny of one de
fective for 100 years. Since there were
108 of these defectives turned back at
Ellis Island during May this year there
was a saving to the nation of 108 times
this amount, or 1153,000,000. which would
be approximately the cost of maintaining
such progeny for 100 years.
'This is not a theory nor yet wild
speculation. It Is a fairly accurate pic
ture of what Is actually occurring and
serves to call attention to the need for
trained men at all ports of entrv so that
a thorough examination be made of all
aliens who seek entry Into the country
The pollution of the race must be avoided.
"The children of feeble-minded parents
will be defectives, and they usually pro
duce about twice or three times as many
children as normal persons. One feeble
minded and one normal parent as a rule
will have children of vthom half will be
defectives and the other half practically
normal, but all will be capable of trans
mitting feeble-minded traits to their de
scendants. This is breeding fools to order
and is lowering the general standard of
the nation's mentality at an alarming
rate."
Uncle Sam's millstones are very effl
c'eijt. They have to be. Otherwise they
could not remain in the service a minute
These examiners of the public health
service are picked men and to them Is
due the fact that the insane asylum** of
this country are not more crowded than
they already are. They keep out tho?e
undesirables who would come but
shouldn't.
Therefore the immigration mills of
Uncle bam grind exceeding fine.
W?11 Kiniowini P@opfl?
The Old Masters. Significant.
George Randolph Chester, the tack London, preparing to emhark
writer, walked through a New York J on another cruise around the world,
bookstore the other day. told In Santa Barbara of the strange ex
A small table was devoted to new nov- perlences of his last cruise.
els, and all the rest of the space was "But we had no such hairbreadth es
takpu up with gorgeous editions of capes as that of a missionary we met in
Dickens, Thackeray, Scott, Moljere, Samoa," he said. "This good fellow was
Fielding, etc.?magnificent leather-bound preaching in one of the Islands in which
volumes' that only cost, the copyright cannibalism is practiced. While trying
[,avtng long since expired, about 30 cent* vainly to make converts he was cap
. c tured by a cannibal king. To his sur
' Mr Chester, waving his hand toward P'lse. he was Immediately released. His
> ,.v shelves of old masters, smiled release however, was made on the con
ui(1 shk1 . ditlon that he carry a small sealed packet
"literature would pay better if there to ac neighboring- king.
iv,-re not so many dead men in the busi- "The missionary was so grateful that,
-jess." meeting unexpectedly a detachment of
English sailors, he refused to acoompanv
T/*** I ftftcn them to safer territory. The sealed pack
I 00 LOOSc. et from his benefactor would b?> delivered
as he had promised. But an officer in th**
MRS. CARRIE CHAPMAN CATT midst of the discussion opened tin*
ridiculed in Chicago the old anti- packet.
,uffraEc cry of domesticity?that woman . , VTtSr' "'o^Z
place is the home. these simple b?K significant words:
"The trouble is," said Mrs. Catt, "that ?? *He will be delicious with these:
many v^omen cannot be domestic; they
have no homes. The word 'domestic,'
therefore, should not be used, as is too
uftcn the caje, in a loose way." K JTAYOR CHENEY of Hartford said
f ??
Too Much Reform.
Mayo
of a reformer who desired to rc
"Yes," Bhe continued, "some people vive some of the most intolerable of the
give this word as elastic a meaning as Sunday blue laws;
the witness gave It In a Georgia court. "The man would stop us from reading
\sked why he was not present to testify our gun<jay newspaper, from taking our
In a certain case, the man said he had Hlltw?_v nutn rid? "
lad a 'domestic trouble' just about that He frowned
_ . , "A reformer of his type." he said, "may
What was the domestic trouble, jeflne<j as one who believes In the di
3r?:',i- examining attorney vin<) Tlght of interference."
Well, to tell the truth, boss, said the
vitness, "I was in the penitentiary tor
itealin' a cow.' " J()0 Qeep.
$
Husbands. S ENATOR TILLMAN, who is an ant:
^ suffragist, listened calmly, at a dln
ISS HELEN TRAVERS, the presi- ner in Washington, to an Imp?toned
dent of the Bachelor Girls' Club speech by a brother senator In suffrage'*
>f Duluth, said in a toast, "The Men," behalf.
it the club'a nineteenth anniversary: ^ the end of this speech a diner, as
"And now we come to the man as hus- Tmrnan?" " * ?
>and. Man as husband may be divided ?? .H?'s a deep thinker, ain't h*T'
nto two classes-~he whose meals dls- ??'Yea.' was the reply; "he can't talk
igree with him. and he who disagrees three minutes without getting beyond
vith his meals.*' his depth.' "
M'