122 
THE IMMIGRATION PROBLEM 
assessment plan with certain variations. The com 
mon method of conducting the society is that of a 
mutual organization with a fixt payment or assess 
ment for death or other contingencies. Usually the 
payment is a death benefit sufficient to cover funeral 
expenses. 
As an illustration of the character of the various 
immigrant fraternal and other organizations the table 
on page 123 which sets forth the societies among the 
alien population of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, may be 
presented as typical. Similar organizations are to be 
found in other industrial localities and the situation 
in Johnstown may be said to be representative of the 
country as a whole. 
Immigrant Business Establishments 
Aliens of recent arrival in the United States, in the 
smaller industrial cities and towns as well as in the 
larger cities, are engaged in all branches of small 
business undertakings. 
In some of the immigrant localities of recent origin, 
such as those in the different mining districts or in 
the comparatively recently established glass or steel 
manufacturing towns like Granite City, Illinois, large 
immigrant mercantile houses have been established to 
cater to the wants of the newcomers. They are usu 
ally a combination, consisting of a general store, saloon, 
banking and steamship agency, and rooming house, the 
upper rooms being used for the last-named purpose. 
Some of these establishments recently investigated by 
the Federal government represented capital invest 
ments ranging from $25,000 to $40,000. These mer 
cantile houses, however, usually disappear after the