CHAPTER VII
CYCLICAL FLUCTUATIONS OF SELECTED ELEMENTS
IN MIGRATION
The evidence presented in the preceding chapters indicates a
pronounced tendency for cyclical fluctuations in immigration to,
and emigration from, the United States to be determined primarily
by cyclical fluctuations in industrial activity in this country. The
nature of this relationship may be made clearer by comparing the
cyclical movements of selected elements in migration.
For this purpose we shall make comparisons between immigrants
 and nonimmigrants, males and females, and laborers and
other occupational groups.
PERMANENT AND TEMPORARY MIGRATION
Immigrants and Nonimmigrants.
The official statistics, as we have previously noted, distinguish
between alien immigrants and alien nonimmigrants, the latter comprising
 aliens entering the United States for a temporary stay or
returning here after a temporary sojourn abroad. Most of the
popular and scientific discussion of immigration problems deals
solely with the relatively permanent ‘immigrant’ group. To the
extent that the nonimmigrant group is made up of touristsand
other persons not seeking employment we should expect it to show
less responsiveness to cyclical changes than the “immigrant” group
proper; but, on the other hand, if we could segregate those nonimmigrants
 who, despite a declared intention of temporary sojourn,
enter for purposes of employment, we should expect the fluctuations
of this working element to show, particularly as to the exodus
during depression periods, even greater sensitiveness to cyclical
conditions than the more permanent migration.
Prior to the present century, the recorded number of arriving
aliens other than those listed as immigrants was relatively small.
In the nineteenth century, the number of recorded alien nonimmigrants
 never exceeded fifty thousand and exceeded ten per cent
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