The nationality of immigrants has, of late years, been very carefully recorded, espe cially at New York, where nearly 77 per cent of the strangers are landed. The follow ing table will show where the greater portion of the vast multitude came from: Ireland 3,065,761 England 894,444 Scotland. 159,547 Wales 17,893 Other British 560,237 Total from British islands . 4,697,912 Germany 3 081,812 Sweden 177,664 Norway. 128,428 Denmark 48,620 Holland . 44,319 Belgium 23,267 Mainly Teutonic 3,504,110 France..... .... 313,700 Switzerland 83,709 Italy 69,559 28,091 Portugal. 9,062 • Latin races. 504,121 Russia. ..... ... . . 38,0?.8 Poland. 14.231 Hungary. 6,085 58,344 Hungarians are often counted as Austrians. Some thousands and hundreds from other European nation's make up the. greater part of the remainder.
The Chinese arrivals up to 1877 numbered 207,270; but probably not more than 100,000 have ever been in the country at one time. The whole number of countries and islands from which immigrants have been received is nearly seventy. A general summary for nine years is here given: As New York is the main port of debarkation for immigrants, that state in 1847 established a board of commissioners of immigration, through whose care nearly 8,000,000 immigrants have passed. A strong effort has been made in congress to take the control of immigration into the care of the general government, but thus far with out success.
This makes a total of 3,807,715. The remainder went • 74.353 to the British provinces, 2,258 to Mexico, South America and elsewhere, and 22,759 gave no destination; the grand total of whom inquiries were made was 3,906,98.5. Of those settling in the
United States, 5.35 per cent went to New England; 55.59 per cent to the Middle states; 24.07 per cent to the middle Western states; 7.33 per cent to west 111ississippi states; 2.79 per cent to Pacific states and territories; and 4.87 per cent to the Southern states. The latter section of the union does not appear to be any more attractive to Mimi grants than it was in the days of slavery.
Many calculations have been made as to the amount of money brought into the country by immigrants, and the lowest places it at $50 per head. This would make near $500,000,000 for the whole. But there is far more value in the labor and enter prise which they bring.
The main causes of advance or decline in immigration are usually war, famine, or financial depression. The coup d'clat of Dee., 1851, within the three following years sent half a million persons to the United States. The Franco-German war had a similar effect, to a large extent. The Irish famines drove a million of the people of that island to this country. On the other hand, a financial crisis or a war in the United States at once checks immigration, as was seen after the panics or hard times of 1837, '57, '73, and '77. The rebellion naturally kept foreigners away, and the arrivals dropped from 153,640 in 1860 to 91,823 in 1861. The return of prosperity in 1870 started the tide again, and the year 1880 shows a total of nearly half a million of immigrants.