to were discontinued by being mustered out of the Navy in December, 1918. Several temporary inspectors were later employed under the passport-permit appropriation, and with their assistance the work was carried on in a fairly capable manner to the close of the fiscal year, when the latter class of employees were also discontinued, leaving a great shortage of help but practically no diminution of the amount of work to be performed. Under this heading should also be mentioned the return of troops in large numbers on board transports, which has been occuring at Newport News since shortly after the armistice was signed, and also, toward the close of the fiscal year, some have landed at Norfolk. These vessels bring not only troops but war brides, stowaways, civilian passengers, etc., and in general have almost doubled the inspection work at Newport News and gradually increased it at Norfolk. Of course, it is understood that when all the troops have returned, by the fall of 1919, there will be a cessation of this class of work. This will be fortunate, for the present force available at Norfolk, and particularly at Newport News, is unable even by working overtime to keep up with the work in a satisfactory manner.

ILLITERACY TEST.

Practically all exclusions during the fiscal year in this district based on illiteracy applied to aliens who were also excludable on the ground that they were likely to become public charges, or other grounds. The majority of applications for admission received from seamen who desired to abandon their calling were made by Scandinavians and British, practically none of whom are illiterate. The illiterates excluded consisted of a few natives of Haiti, the British West Indies, and other scattering countries, and, as stated, there were usually other good grounds of exclusion aside from illiteracy. To the best of our knowledge no case has arisen where an alien worthy of admission in every other respect was excluded solely on account of illiteracy. From the class of immigrants received in this district it is considered unlikely that the enforcement of the illiteracy test will result in many exclusions, unless steamer lines bringing large numbers of European immigrants should later enter these ports.

PERSONNEL.

During the fiscal year there has been, as usual, a steady increase in amount of work to be performed, mainly due to the identity cards K and L and enforcing amended rule 10. Due to the assistance of men from the Naval Reserve and temporary inspectors appointed under the passport-permit appropriation, the work was handled, it is hoped and believed, in a proper manner. However, the extra help above referred to was all discontinued after June 30, 1919, leaving a serious shortage, particularly at Newport News. Practically at the beginning of the fiscal year 1920 only one inspector was left of the force at that place, with the promise of the bureau that another would be furnished. It was accordingly necessary to temporarily detail an inspector from Fort Monroe, which leaves only one inspector at that point to handle the work (boarding all vessels arriving between sunrise and sunset with the quarantine examiners), necessitating hours on duty from 6.30 a. m. to 8.30 and 9p. m., seven days in the week. The present force at Newport News, two inspectors, is also necessarily on duty practically every day in the week, with much overtime, which is a hardship for the employees there and tends to prevent the organizing and maintaining of a permanent and satisfied personnel. There should be at least three inspectors and one stenographer on duty at Newport News. Regarding the Norfolk force, the clerical force consists of one junior clerk, and one temporary junior clerk who is a stenographer. In addition to the inspector in charge (who has to divide his time between Norfolk and Newport News), there are three regular inspectors, one of whom is acting insepetor in charge and general assistant, keeps allotment reports, etc.; a second does the boarding work, which is very heavy and necessitates much overtime; and the third inspector has charge of statistical work, assists with seamen and miscellaneous matters arising in the office, and also does investigating. One additional inspector is needed at Norfolk, to allow for special detail work, absences, sickness in the force, relieving the boarding officer so he may take accrued overtime, and other duties. All the statistical and other records and correspondence are handled at Norfolk, including filing of crew lists, changes of crew, filing of identity cards, etc. It takes practically the time of one man to file the identity cards and keep track of and file alien crew lists and crew changes with reference to possible fines, as well as keeping the record of vessels boarded at both ports. As stated, another inspector is badly needed to handle the latter class of work and assist the one boarding officer and share the river work when necessary. With the additional help above mentioned, the line would be crossed between getting along somehow in a more or less inefficient manner, as

best we may, and having a force to perform the Government's business in a proper way. The force at Norfolk is already at a prewar basis, and the Newport News force is one man short of that basis, there having been two inspectors there when the United States entered the war and for some time before. At the same time, all the extra war work is continued, with the addition of the returning troop ships. As the bureau is well aware, all employees of the Immigration Service receiving the usual clerk and inspector salaries are now very poor men, who receive less wages than men with trades, and sometimes even less than day laborers. The dollar is conceded to be worth only 50 cents in purchasing power at prewar standards, so that an employee receiving $1 200 or $2 000 per annum actually gets but $600 or $1,000 per annum. At least some of the employees in this district have long since had to dispose of their Liberty bonds, much as they regretted the necessity for so doing, in order to meet the always increasing daily expenses of a meager livelihood for themselves and families.

PASSPORT-PERMIT WORK.

Pursuant to instructions contained in Bureau Circular Letter No. 54662-General of May 5, 1919, the following report is respectfully submitted concerning the work of granting permits to depart to aliens under the regulations of the Department of State during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1919:

Two hundred and thirty-one applications were received in this district; 5 were refused, and 218 were granted, 7 being referred to permit agents outside of district No. 6.

Toward the close of the fiscal year the bureau issued instructions that this service should take the permit work over from the representatives of the Department of Justice at Richmond, Va., and Raleigh, N. C. However, the United States attorney advised he had received no instructions from his department to make this change, so the work at Richmond was not turned over. An inspector made two trips to Raleigh, N. C., in June, 1919, to handle the work there, but no permits were applied for. Four permits were issued at Raleigh by the United States marshal before the work was taken over by this office.

The handling of the permit applications, particularly at Norfolk, considerably increased the work there as well as at Newport News, but as the volume of business was not large, owing to the rather light foreign population in district No. 6, it was handled without difficulty, and, it is believed, in a manner in accordance with instructions and to the satisfaction of the Foreign Permits Office, Department of State.

INSPECTOR IN CHARGE DISTRICT NO. 7, COMPRISING SOUTH CAROLINA, GEORGIA FLORIDA, AND ALABAMA, WITH HEADQUARTERS AT JACKSONVILLE, FLA.

APPLICATIONS.

The total number who applied for entry at ports in this district was 14.124. the total number admitted being 14,017, and the total debarred, 101; 6 cases remain pending. There were no Chinese applicants, but 17 Japanese applied for entry, of whom 16 were admitted on primary inspection, and 1 was debarred. All Japanese admitted were in possession of proper passports.

DEPORTATIONS (EXPULSIONS, INCLUDING CHINESE).

Eighty-five cases were considered under this heading, in which 70 detailed inves tigations were made, and as a consequence 45 warrants were issued by the department. In 13 cases deportation took place through ports in this district, and 10 aliens were conveyed for deportation to other ports; proceedings were discontinued in 7 cases, and 1 alien was released on bond.

The case of one Chinese person was investigated with a view to warrant proceedings under the immigration law, but insufficient evidence was developed to justify same.

SEAMEN.

Vessels from foreign ports boarded during the year totaled 1,648, and 29,376 alien seamen and 10,255 United States citizen seamen were inspected, a total of 39,631. Identification cards were issued to 7,549 alien and to 2,092 citizen seamen.

One hundred and eighty-nine alien seamen were examined for admission to the United States, all but 14 of whom were admitted. Deserting seamen to the number of 161 were reported, none of these being of the Chinese or Japanese race.

STOWAWAYS.

Sixty-one stowaways were apprehended, 53 of whom were excluded and deported, one being a Chinese person.

FINANCIAL AFFAIRS.

Head tax amounting to $55,172 was collected, and fines amounting to $1,640 were assessed against transportation lines under sections 9, 14, and 36 of the immigration act, $1,400 being on account of the bringing of illiterate aliens.

The allotment for the district was $3,500, and disbursements amounted to $4,692.76. The amount needed for allotment for the coming year is estimated at $5,000.

WHITE-SLAVE MATTERS.

Five cases of aliens convicted under the white-slave traffic act and sentenced to imprisonment in the United States Penitentiary at Atlanta, Ga., were disposed of during the year as follows:

Conveyed to New York for deportation, 1; deported to Canada, 1; released under rule 17-A, 1; warrant of deportation issued, 1; warrant of arrest issued (service pending), 1.

Immoral women have been excluded from the districts in which they formerly resided in practically every city throughout this district, and while some reports are to the effect that they still occupy rooms, boarding houses, etc., in various sections of certain cities, it is generally conceded that much good has been accomplished. The inspector in charge at Savannah, Ga., reports that many societies are making investigations and reports preparatory to more practical work in regard to immoral

women.

CONTRACT LABORERS.

Ten specific contract labor investigations were conducted within the district during the past year, but no evidence of violation of this provision of the law was obtained. Following the usual investigations, permission to import labor was issued by the Secretary in two cases, that of the Owen-Cotter Jewelry Co., of Tampa, Fla., to import a manufacturing jeweler and engraver, and to the Shiver Spring Co., of Shelton, S. C., to import a chemist and sirup maker.

WORK OF MEDICAL OFFICERS.

The work performed by the medical officers in this district has been entirely satisfactory, the heartiest cooperation being manifested.

SMUGGLING OPERATIONS.

During the fiscal year approximately 3,000 Chinese haye passed in transit from China via San Francisco and Key West, Fla., to Cuba. It is thought that the ultimate purpose of a number of these Chinese is to gain illegal entry to the United States. Some rumors of smuggling along the west coast of Florida have been heard. Recently, however, an experienced immigration officer made a very thorough investigation along the west coast of Florida from Tampa to Apalachicola (this being the part of the coast in which it was said that Chinese had gained illegal entrance), but the officer failed to find evidence that any Chinese had illegally entered the United States along this coast. The bureau's attention has been called to the fact a number of times that a large part of the west coast of Florida is unguarded by immigration officers, and it is thought that a regular immigration officer stationed in the vicinity of Apalachicola and another immigration officer stationed at Fort Myers, Fla., would have a most excellent effect and would be very beneficial in preventing the smuggling of Chinese along the west coast of Florida if such should be attempted.

SOCIETIES FOR THE BENEFIT OF ALIENS.

There are no special organizations in this district for the benefit of arriving aliens.

SETTLEMENTS OF ALIENS OF PARTICULAR RACES.

At Ybor City and West Tampa, Fla., both of which are suburbs of Tampa, Fla., Cubans and Spaniards are practically colonized. There is also quite a colony of Nassau negroes at Miami, Fla.

CHINESE PREINVESTIGATIONS.

The cases of 5 laborers, 3 merchants, and 3 natives, applicants for preinvestigation of status, were considered, and 6 return certificates were granted.

INVESTIGATIONS.

Investigations were conducted as follows: Regarding applicants for admission, and admitted aliens, 32; in warrant cases, 64; in naturalization matters, 379; Chinese investigations, 16; 6 of the last named being for the purpose of determining lawful residence.

STATION AND EQUIPMENT.

The immigration station at Charleston was some time ago turned over to the Navy Department. Outside of this there is no immigration station worthy of the name in this district. However, the Peninsular & Occidental Steamship Co. has established on the wharf at Key West, Fla., a two-room building to be used for the temporary detention of aliens-that is, while their friends are being located or their cases are are disposed of by boards of special inquiry.

PERSONNEL.

The officers in this district are perfectly loyal and the cooperation is admirable. The writer does not feel that he would be doing justice to the personnel without stating that they have all subscribed liberally for Liberty bonds and the purchase of war savings and thrift stamps, and that they have also contributed freely to the Red Cross, Salvation Army, and other worthy causes.

In this connection, it would do injustice to the service if the writer did not state that the force at every port in this district is reduced to the very minimum, and it is really impossible to do the work as it should be done without an increase in the number of employees in this district. An insufficient force has resulted in practically every employee working over time, which has been cheerfully done. The bureau will readily see the necessity for an increase in the force of this district from an examination of the figures shown above, special attention being invited to the increase in immigration and especially the increase in head-tax collections.

The cooperation of the immigration officers in this district with representatives of the Department of Justice, and with the Army and Navy intelligence officers has been all that could be desired, and the results accomplished have been in every way satisfactory.

The great majority of the alien enemy seamen taken from merchant vessels and interned at Fort Oglethorpe, Ga., have already been repatriated, having sailed from Charleston, S. C., on the U. S. S. Martha Washington June 26, 1919, and on other vessels sailing a few days later.

It will be observed that there is a considerable increase in the number of alien applications for admission as compared with the previous year, the number of United States citizens arriving (14.243) also having nearly doubled.

The large number of subports in immigration district No. 7, 14 in all, together with the large stretch of sea coast from Charleston, S. C., to Mobile, Ala., makes the work in this district somewhat different from that in any other district in the United States.

Referring to the department's extension of its order of March 9, 1918, permitting during the six months beginning October 1, 1918, illiterate laborers coming from the Bahama Islands--who were able to pass the other requirements of the statute-to land for the purpose of engaging in agricultural pursuits, I have to state that the waiving of the literacy test in respect to these laborers was a great benefit to many of the truck farmers on the east coast of Florida who were badly in need of help, and these laborers saved a great deal of the tomato crop from rotting in the fields. Of these illiterate farm laborers 661 were admitted at this port. They are now returning to their homes in the Bahama Islands, and are being checked out as they depart from Miami, Fla.

1

During the months of August, September, and October, 1918, 1,597 laborers were imported from the Bahama Islands through the port of Miami, Fla., by the Mason & Hanger Contracting Co., for common labor in connection with construction work which was being done by that company for the United States Government at Charleston, S. C. The contract labor, head tax, and illiteracy test features of the immigration law were waived with respect to these laborers. In addition 993 of such laborers were imported by the same company from the Bahamas through the port of Charleston, making in all 2,590 imported through the two ports. Some of them were returned to the Bahamas by steamer from Charleston to Nassau, N. P., and some returned through Miami. That office has been checking them out as they depart, and some of them are still departing, but 241 remain in the United States. It is believed, however, that nearly all will voluntarily return to their homes in the Bahama Islands; but it is the intention to institute warrant proceedings in the cases of any it may be possible to locate.

Passport-permit work, September 15 to close of year.

Number of applications for permits received, including transits... 3, 049
Number of permits granted..

Refused..

Abandoned.

Pending..

United States citizens' identity cards issued.

2, 928

31

47

41

2

COMMISSIONER OF IMMIGRATION, NEW ORLEANS, IN CHARGE OF DISTRICT NO. 8, COMPRISING LOUISIANA, MISSISSIPPI, ARKANSAS, AND TENNESSEE.

APPLICATIONS.

A total of 4, 512 aliens applied for admission in the New Orleans District, 4,363 of whom were admitted, and 148 debarred; while 7, 822 citizens of the United States were admitted during the fiscal year. Three of the aliens admitted were Chinese persons, and 2 were Japanese. It will be noted from the foregoing figures that the number of alien arrivals at this port falls slightly below the number of arrivals recorded during the previous fiscal year. The passport regulations in effect have heretofore acted as a barrier to aliens from the countries of South and Central America and the British West Indies who might have desired to visit this country, and since the regulations governing passport-permit control and visé procedure were amended, making it easier for aliens to obtain such documents, there has been a notable increase in arrivals from those countries at this port.

During the year 7, 822 American citizens arrived at this port as compared with 4, 429 the previous year. The amount of work involved for the officers of this service in connection with the examination of the papers presented by these citizens was almost equal to what would have been necessary in the case of an equal number of aliens.

DEPORTATIONS (EXPULSIONS).

As a result of investigations conducted by officers in this district in 42 cases, 32 warrants of arrest were issued by the department; 30 hearings were held under these, and up to the close of the year 15 warrants of deportation had been executed.

The cases of 3 Chinese persons who had entered without inspection were handled under the immigration law, and the aliens were deported.

SEAMEN.

Ninety-five seamen applied for admisssion during the year, all of whom were admitted. Of the applications, a number were admitted in other districts in the case of alien seamen who landed at this port without inspection. No applications were received from Chinese or Japanese, and no escapes occurred.

STOWAWAYS.

A large majority of the 82 stowaways arriving at this port during the year proved to be young negroes, most of whom were British subjects. Of the above number 68 were excluded and deported.