132 NATIONAL ORIGINS PROVISION OF IMMIGRATION LAW 
Mz. Ripper. No. I do not think we ever could. But I think it is 
at least a better way than to say that a mass grouping is better than 
an individual selection. 
Senator Rep. Would you say that a clerk was a more desirable 
immigrant than a farm worker ¢ 
Mr. Riper. No; I would say the farm worker is potentially a 
much better immigrant. 
Senator Rrzep. Would you allow an unlimited number of farm 
workers of good moral worth? 
Mr. Roper. I would not allow an unlimited number of any work- 
ers to come. I would go by the conditions. If the conditions re- 
quired that we needed an unlimited number of farm workers, then 
I would take all the farm workers who could come in. 
Senator Reep. The statistics show that the farm workers when 
they, come go directly to the factories. How would vou cope with 
that? 
Mr. Ripper. If you are going to take 10,000 men from a certain 
country, it does not keep them out of the factories. 
Senator Reep. No; I know it does not. In other words, this is no 
better basis? 
Mr. Roper. In effect, it is worse than many bases and no better 
than others. 
Senator Reep. Do you prefer the 1890 basis? 
Mr. Roper. The German element are not so interested in what 
it is based on except that they prefer it based on something not so 
far back. We prefer the 1890 basis, but even if you base it on 1890 
it still has weakness. Between the national origins and 1890, we 
prefer the 1890 basis. 
Senator Reep. What would you say if we dropped the national 
origins basis entirely? 
. Mr. Roper. Then we would say that the law is probably as good 
as you will get. 
Senator Reep. Do you regard immigration from Great Britain 
as generally satisfactory? 
Mr. Ripper. Yes; oh, yes. 
Senator Reep. I have not heard any advocates of the national 
origins say that they did not regard the German immigration as 
entirely satisfactory, or the Scandinavian. 
Mr. Ripper. No; quite true. 
Senater Rep. I think everybody admits that. 
Mr. Roper. Yes. 
Senator Reep. That it is a good source of immigration ? 
Mr. Rioper. Yes. 
Senator Reep. But it has been argued that it was fair to give 
Germany 51,000 annually and to restrict England, Wales, Scotland, 
and North Ireland altogether to a quota of quota of 84.000. Do you 
think that is fair? 
Mr. Roper. Noj that is not fair. My judgment is that there were 
not more Britons coming in to-day than the quota permitted, or 
rather that the Britons were not making more applications. I am 
under the impression, right or wrong, that the British quota is not 
altogether used up. But if you speak of Great Britain——