MANY FOREIGNERS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18843, 18 October 1924, Page 9

MANY FOREIGNERS.

ARRIVALS IN AUSTRALIA. LABOUR MINISTRY'S PROTEST. . QUOTA SYSTEM DISCUSSED. [FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT. ] , SYDNEY. October 9. . Recent, arrivals of numerous immigrants from Switzerland, Germany, : Denmark, Italy, Greece and other countries and reports from Broken Hill and elsewhere that many had been stranded. without means, have evoked strong representations to the Commonwealth Government from the South Australian Labour Government. Suggestions that restrictions should be applied and that some system such as America's quota method should bo put into operation, were distinctly disfavoured in the Federal reply to South Australia. The Prime Minister, Mr. S. M. Bruce, in his letter, said that there would be serious objections from an international standpoint if restrictions were made against the landing in Australia of immigrants from friendly European countries. He added that it had been suggeste4 that immigrants from Southern Europe should be required to pass a dictation test. The establishment of that test had never been intended to exclude white immigrants from Australia,' but only to debar coloured people. After careful consideration the Federal Government had decided that the Commonwealth would not be justified In adopting th« quota system which prevailed in the United States. V.

! The position in Australia, said Mr. | Bruce, was quite 7 different from that of America. , In the United States the las? census revealed that the population was 105,710,620, . and it was now estimated at over 110,000,000, of which 36,000,000 —excluding 10,000,000 negroes—were foreign bojn. The Australian census " of 1921 showed that the population of the Commonwealth was about 5,400,000, and that less than 1 per cent, were aliens." The percentage 'of recent arrivals in. Australia showed that 94.5 were Britishers, and only 2.7 Mediterranean peoples. The - Prime Minister added that if there wore any evidence that the foreign! immigrants - who arrived this year became a charge on the State, owing to their being unable to-ob-tain employment, it "should be forwarded to the Commonwealth Government, who would then f consider the question of the advisability of making- representations n the matter., .-* . , .■ -