Neither is any one prepared to prove that the “new immigrant is as bad as the old was good.”
It is very interesting that when authors and speakers quote statistics, as they usually do, to prove the criminal nature of the new immigrant, they do not differentiate between the older and the newer groups. If they did, and would let statistics determine the issue, they would find that the new immigrant is good and the old bad; yes, very bad.
The following tables, quoted from the Report of the Commission of Immigration of the State of New York, are worthy the close study of Mr. Edwards and the authors upon whom he has relied.[5]
Statistics Referring to Foreign-Born Offenders Committed to New York State Prisons and Penitentiaries During 1904.
Total Number of Prisoners Committed
| Major Offenses. | Minor Offenses. | Total. | |
| Aggregate | 3,679 | 26,136 | 29,815 |
| Total white | 3,345 | 24,969 | 28,314 |
| Native white | 2,266 | 16,759 | 19,025 |
| Native white of native parentage | 1,223 | 10,266 | 11,489 |
| Native white of foreign parentage | 732 | 4,500 | 5,232 |
| Native white of mixed parentage | 263 | 1,505 | 1,768 |
| Native white of unknown parentage | 48 | 488 | 536 |
| Foreign-born whites | 1,075 | 8,158 | 9,233 |
| Whites of unknown nativity | 4 | 52 | 56 |
| Negroes | 330 | 1,139 | 1,469 |
| Mongolians | ... | 1 | 1 |
| Indians | 4 | 27 | 31 |
Foreign-Born White Offenders by Nativity
| Major Offenses. | Per cent. | Minor Offenses. | Per cent. | |
| Austria | 48 | 4.5 | 259 | 3.2 |
| Canada | 68 | 6.3 | 435 | 5.3 |
| Denmark | 5 | 0.5 | 28 | 0.3 |
| England and Wales | 67 | 6.2 | 655 | 8.1 |
| France | 19 | 1.8 | 119 | 1.4 |
| Germany | 212 | 19.7 | 1,136 | 13.9 |
| Hungary | 15 | 1.4 | 83 | 1.0 |
| Ireland | 148 | 13.7 | 3,569 | 43.9 |
| Italy | 255 | 23.7 | 601 | 7.3 |
| Mexico | ... | ... | 6 | 0.1 |
| Norway | 7 | 0.7 | 46 | 0.5 |
| Poland | 30 | 2.8 | 232 | 2.8 |
| Russia | 119 | 11.0 | 392 | 4.9 |
| Scotland | 17 | 1.6 | 220 | 2.7 |
| Sweden | 14 | 1.3 | 163 | 2.0 |
| Switzerland | 4 | 0.4 | 43 | 0.5 |
| Other countries | 47 | 4.4 | 171 | 2.1 |
| Totals | 1,075 | 100.0 | 8,158 | 100.0 |
Paupers Admitted to Almshouses in New York State During Year 1904. by Nativity and Length of Residence in the United States.