into a private prison, and holds him a prisoner until the vessel is again at sea. One is tempted to ask if this be not the worst offense, since it violates not only the thirteenth amendment but also the exclusive right to imprison and punish. And the imprisonment would not be for any actual violation of law but to prevent a possible violation. Much water has gone over the dam since the Robertson-against-Baldwin decision was handed down, and Congress has abolished the laws and treaties under which the decision was made. Are we sure that the court may not now distinguish between seamen at sea under the common hazard and seamen in port? The constitutionality could surely be questioned and the decision might be all the worse for the ship. But let us suppose that the seaman should stow away a bottle of rum in his kit or on his person. What would then be the result? Arrest, imprisonment on shore, and finally deportation at the expense of the United States.

AS TO FOREIGN NATIONS

It has already been suggested that they can not justly complain, because we would play no favorites and would only be helping them by seeing that their own laws are obeyed while in our jurisdiction; but again Great Britain takes control to see that no vessel leave her ports undermanned. She determines the minimum crew on her own vessels and then applies that law to foreign vessels. She has boarding officers who, upon complaints, visit any vessel; and if the law is about to be violated, the vessel is held the law is complied with.

THE SACREDNESS OF VESSEL PROPERTY

One might express some wonder about what there is about a vessel that is so sacred that the owner is to be permitted to violate the laws of this country or that the laws must be so made as to make it easy for him to violate them with impunity. Are we so eager to see foreign vessels in our ports that we must give them special privileges in order that they may come here? Or is this law that makes the vessel in an American port into a prison to apply to American vessels as well as to foreign ones? If this be the case, then the purpose is easily understood. In that case it is just an effort to man the American vessels with orientals to be hired in the Orient under the act of 1884; but this would be a death sentence of the American hope of sea power. No selfrespecting American would sail under such laws.

The idea to place seamer, under bonds began in the newspapers as a part of the propaganda against the seamen's act. The failure to enforce the seamen's act and to make regulations which the Department of Commerce and the Department of Labor have a right to make made it easy and safe to use one law against the other to bring both into disrepute and to prepare the public mind for such legislation as would, at least ostensibly, enforce the immigration laws. It was easy, therefore, to suggest a remedy for violation of the immigration laws which at the same time would repeal the seamen's act. When this is brought to the attention of the promoters of the bonding idea they suggest as an alternative that the whole question of seamen be left out of the proposed immigration legislation. If that was the only reasonable and decent alternative and the only way in which the immigration laws could be made effective, the seamen would not seriously complain; but the evil so justly complained of would continue and continue to grow. Why this should be done when there is another alternative which is justifiable, human, and decent seems rather difficult to understand.

Feeling sure that these suggestions and the substitute will be given serious attention by the members of the committee and of Congress, I beg to remain, Most respectfully,

ANDREW FURUSETH.

Proper and adequate inspection of aliens arriving as seamen at ports of the United States is required under the provisions of sections 18, 19, and 20 of the bill.

Enforcement of the sections (secs. 32, 33, and 34) of the immigration act of 1917 respecting alien seamen has been one of the most difficult tasks confronting the Immigration Service. In fact, due to a weakness in section 32, there has been no proper enforcement for several years. The flaw was that the shipmaster, although required to detain inadmissible seamen, could not be

punished for failure to detain unless it was shown that he had notice in writing so to do. Notice in writing anterior to the breach of responsibility to detain was physically impossible.

Requirement of a landing card for every alien seaman is made a feature of this phase of the bill. All the rights of seamen under the La Follette Act are protected. Sections 32, 33, and 34 of the immigration act of 1917 are repealed. Section 3 of H. R. 7995 defines an immigrant and excepts an alien seaman from such definition, namely:

"SEC. 3. When used in this act the term "immigrant" means any alien departing from any place outside the United States, destined for the United States, except (5) a bona fide alien seaman serving as such on a vessel arriving at a port of the United States and seeking to enter temporarily the United States solely in the pursuit of his calling as a seaman."

For purposes of comparison, the new paragraphs affecting alien seamen and the paragraphs of the 1917 act to be repealed are printed in parallel columns:

AMENDMENTS PROPOSED BY ANDREW FURUSETH AFTER H. R. 7995 HAD GONE TO THE FLOOR OF THE HOUSE

"On page 26 of House bill, line 9, insert the word 'which' between the word 'card' and 'shall.' Strike out the period after the word 'valid' and insert for sixty days unless extended because of sickness or litigation.'

"On page 28 of House bill strike out after the word 'required,' beginning with 'or,' on line 3, to and including the word 'so,' on line 6."

The alien seaman provision as finally reported out by the House committee, on H. R. 7995, and as it passed the House, is in the following language, namely:

ALIEN SEAMEN

"SEC. 19. No alien seaman excluded from admission into the United States under the immigration laws and employed on board any vessel arriving in the United States from any place outside thereof, shall be permitted to land in the United States, except temporarily for medical treatment, or pursuant to such regulations as the Secretary of Labor may prescribe for the ultimate departture, removal or deportation of such alien from the United States.

"SEC. 20. (a) Upon the arrival (after the expiration of four months after the enactment of this act) of any vessel in the United States it shall be the duty of the owner, agent, charterer, consignee, or master thereof to deliver to the immigration officer in charge at the port of arrival, in respect of each alien seaman employed on such vessel, a landing card in triplicate, stating the position such alien holds in the ship's company, when and where he was shipped or engaged, and whether he is to be paid off and discharged at the port of arrival, and such other information as may be by regulations prescribed, and having permanently attached thereto a photograph of such alien.

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(b) If the alien seaman after examination (which examination in all cases shall include a personal physical examination by the medical examiners) is found to be temporarily admissible to the United States, he shall be permitted to land during the stay of the vessel in port, or temporarily for the purpose of reshipping on board any other vessel bound to a place outside the United States, and the immigration officer shall cause the fingerprints of the alien to be placed upon each copy of the landing card, and indorse upon each copy the date and place of arrival, the name of the vessel, and the time during which the landing card shall be valid. Thereupon one copy of the landing card shall be delivered to him by the immigration officer, one copy shall be transmitted forthwith to the Department of Labor under regulation prescribed under this act, and the third copy shall be retained in the immigration office at the port of arrival for such length of time as may be by regulations prescribed. It shall be unlawful for any alien seaman to remain in the United States after the expiration of the validity of his landing card.

"(c) Any alien who has received a landing card under this section and who departs from the United States shall, prior to his departure, surrender such card to the master of the vessel, who shall, before the departure of the vessel, deliver such card to such individual as may be by regulations prescribed.

"(d) an alien seaman who departs from the United States temporarily at frequent intervals in the pursuit of his calling, or who is employed on a vessel touching at more than one port of the United States in the course of a continuous voyage, may be admitted to the United States, under such regulations as may be prescribed, without the requirement of a landing card in respect of each entry into the United States.

"(e) Landing cards shall be printed on distinctive safety paper prepared and issued, under regulations prescribed under this act, at the expense of the owner, agent, consignee, charterer, or master of the vessel. The Secretary of

Labor, with the cooperation of the Secretary of State, shall provide a means of obtaining blank landing cards outside the United States.

"(f) The owner, agent, consignee, charterer, or master of any vessel who violates any of the provisions of this section shall pay to the collector of customs for the customs district in which the port of arrival is located the sum of $1,000 for each alien in respect of whom the violation occurs; and no vessel shall be granted clearance pending the determination of the liability to the payment of such fine, or while the fine remains unpaid, except that clearance may be granted prior to the determination of such question upon the deposit of a sum sufficient to cover such fine, or of a bond with sufficient surety to secure the payment thereof approved by the collector of customs.

"SEC. 21. (a) The owner, charterer, agent, consignee, or master of any vessel arriving in the United States from any place outside thereof who fails to detain on board any alien seaman employed on such vessel until the immigration officer in charge at the port of arrival has inspected such seaman, and delivered to him a landing card (in cases where a landing card is required), or who fails to detain such seaman on board after such inspection or to deport such seaman if required by such immigration officer or the Secretary of Labor to do so, shall pay to the collector of customs of the customs district in which the port of arrivel is located the sum of $1,000 for each alien seaman in respect of whom such failure occurs. No vessel shall be granted clearance pending the determination of the liability to the payment of such fine, or while the fine remains unpaid. except that clearance may be granted prior to the determination of such question upon the deposit of a sum sufficient to cover such fine, or of a bond with sufficient surety to secure the payment thereof approved by the collector of customs.

"(b) Proof that an alien seaman did not appear upon the outgoing manifest of the vessel on which he arrived in the United States from any place outside thereof, or that he was reported by the master of such vessel as a deserter, shall be prima facie evidence of a failure to detain or deport after requirement by the immigration officer or the Secretary of Labor.

"(c) If the Secretary of Labor finds that deportation of the alien seaman on the vessel on which he arrived would cause undue hardship to such seaman he may cause him to be deported on another vessel at the expense of the vessel on which he arrived, and such vessel shall not be granted clearance until such expense has been paid or its payment guaranteed to the satisfaction of the Secretary of Labor.

"(d) Section 32 of the immigration act of 1917 is repealed, but shall remain in force as to all vessels, their owners, agents, consignees, and masters, and as to all seamen, arriving in the United States prior to the enactment of this act. Sections 33 and 34 of such act are repealed, to take effect after the expiration of four months after the enactment of this act, but the provisions of such section 34 shall thereafter remain in force in the case of any alien seaman who has landed in a port of the United States before such repeal becomes effective."

AMENDMENT OFFERED BY SENATOR KING DURING CONSIDERATION OF THE IMMIGRATION BILL IN THE SENATE, CALENDAR DAY, APRIL 18, 1924

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[Congressional Record, p. 6858, Sixty-eighth Congress, first session]

SEC. 16. (a) Every alien employed on board of any vessel arriving in the United States from any place outside thereof shall be examined by an immigrant inspector to determine whether or not (1) he is a bona fide seaman, and (2) he is an alien of the class described in subdivision (f), section 17, hereof; and by a surgeon of the United States Public Health Service to determine (3) whether or not he is suffering with any of the disabilities or diseases specified in section 35 of the immigration act of 1917.

"(b) If it is found that such alien is not a bona fide seaman he shall be regarded as an immigrant, and the various provisions of this act and of the immigration laws applicable to immigrants shall be enforced in his case. From a decision holding such alien not to be a bona fide seaman the alien shall be entitled to appeal to the Secretary; and on the question of his admissibility as an immigrant he shall be entitled to appeal to the Secretary, except where exclusion is based upon grounds nonappealable under the immigration laws. If found inadmissible, such alien shall be deported, as a passenger, on a vessel other than that by which brought at the expense of the vessel by which