(3) Economic: it is
argued that the Oriental's lower standard of living makes it impossible
for the white man to compete with him. The objection is well founded,
and is indirectly of concern to eugenics, as was pointed out in a
preceding section of this chapter. As eugenists we feel justified in
objecting to the immigration of large bodies of unskilled Oriental
labor, on the ground that they rear larger families than our stock on
the same small incomes.
A biological objection has also been alleged, in the possibility of
interbreeding between the yellow and white races. In the past such cases
have been very rare; it is authoritatively stated[152] that "there are
on our whole Pacific coast not more than 20 instances of intermarriage
between Americans and Japanese, and ... one might count on the fingers
of both hands the number of American-Chinese marriages between San Diego
and Seattle." The presence of a body of non-interbreeding immigrants is
likely to produce the adverse results already discussed in the earlier
part of this chapter.
Eugenically, then, the immigration of any considerable number of
unskilled laborers from the Orient may have undesirable direct results
and is certain to have unfavorable indirect results.
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