The Week [excerpt]

     The Philadelphia North American has collected the opinions of Congressmen on the following question:

     “Do you favor forbidding the entrance into the United States of those called anarchists and believing in the destruction, overturning, and subversion of established government, and an amendment to naturalization laws making these principles a disqualification for citizenship?”

The North American says that every answer received has been in the affirmative, which, no doubt, reflects the state of public opinion at the moment, but the practical value of such legislation would be small. It would not keep out any anarchist who really desired to come to this country. Persons who have the purpose to assassinate the rulers of nations, and who take the pains and precautions to accomplish that end, would never be deterred from entering the United States by any regulations that it would be possible to enforce. Nobody who has the intention to commit murder will hesitate to take a false oath. If the attempt is made to bring in testimony concerning the intentions, opinions, beliefs, and affiliations of an arriving passenger other than that derived from personal examination, then anybody may be excluded by false testimony on mere suspicion. Practically, the onus of proving a negative would be thrown upon every person against whom a bad report had been lodged with the Superintendent of Immigration. A bill to exclude anarchists was introduced by Senator Hill of New York in the United States Senate in 1894, and it passed that body, but failed to pass the House, because it was believed to be impracticable. Of course, such a measure, if it had been in force, would not have prevented the murderous assault on President McKinley, since Czolgosz was born in the United States.