These seven races constitute

and Russian races, in the order named. the great majority of immigrant employees from southern and eastern Europe, and combined form a total which is equivalent to more than three-tenths of the total number of mine workers.

The situation at present, therefore, as regards the racial classification of mining employees, is in strong contrast to that in previous periods. It is evident that since the year 1890 there has been a constant and increasing influx of races from southern and eastern Europe until at the present time they constitute about 33 per cent of the mine-working forces and, together with the employees born in Great Britain and northern Europe, make up about 50 per cent of the total number employed.

RACIAL MOVEMENTS TO REPRESENTATIVE LOCALITIES.

In order to give a more detailed and local application to the general history of immigration to the coal-mining fields of the Middle West, it will be valuable, in addition to the foregoing general discussion, to present the racial movements to certain localities in Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. In selecting representative districts in order to localize, so to speak, the racial movements and their effects, two classes of towns in Indiana and Illinois have been included: (1) Towns which have come into existence during the past ten years as a result of the opening of new mines or the development of old ones, and (2) towns which have been established for a period of years, but the population of which has steadily or suddenly increased because of an expansion in coal-mining operations. Towns of the first class have been established by an influx of races of recent immigration, and at present are composed largely of people of this character. Those of the second class show that practically all additions to the population have come from immigrant races of recent arrival in the United States. In the case of Ohio, the same presentation may be made in a general way according to counties or districts including two or more counties.

REPRESENTATIVE COMMUNITIES IN ILLINOIS.

In presenting the history of immigration to representative communities in Illinois, the towns are put forward according to the divisions of the State observed by the Illinois state mining department for purposes of inspection and preparation of reports. This department, by grouping adjacent counties together, has formed ten districts, which divide the State into sections which are almost horizontal, District No. 1 being in the extreme north and District No. 10 in the extreme south of the State. By referring to these districts, therefore, the general location of the community under discussion may be ascertained. The grouping according to districts will also be valuable in showing at a glance the geographical distribution of recent immigrants, as well as racial movements from one section of the State to another. With this explanation, the detailed presentation of communities follows, each community being designated by an Arabic numeral in regular order.

COMMUNITY No. 1.

This community is a typical bituminous coal-mining town of northern Illinois, of mushroom growth, located in the second district. It was founded in 1889 and within two years had a population of 2,500. At the present time its total population is approximately what it was at the end of its second year. Its racial composition is estimated as follows:

The introduction of the different racial elements into the community has occurred in the following way: In the year 1889, when the coal mines were first opened, there were about 100 each of English, Welsh, Scotch, and Irish in the community. All of the 1,400 Americans came in later and not all by any means entered the mines, as the town was a trading point, and many of the Americans engaged in business of various kinds. Practically all of the English, Welsh, Scotch, and Irish, however, obtained employment in the mines. There has been no influx of any of the English-speaking races since 1890, but during that period there has been a decrease in the number of natives and older English-speaking immigrants employed in the

mines.

In the year 1890 the first North Italians came to the locality. They were employed because of the fact that they were more easily controlled than the English-speaking peoples. These Italians communicated with their friends abroad, and soon all of the vacancies in the mines were being supplied with North Italian labor. By the year 1893 there was a North Italian population of more than 900. The Lithuanians and Poles were introduced into the mines in 1895 because of the scarcity of labor existing at that time, but they have never gained a strong foothold and their representation is but slightly above the number of first arrivals. Immigrants of other races have drifted in from time to time, and on finding vacancies have applied for work and have been engaged. Their numbers are so small, however, that they are scarcely noticeable as distinct races.

COMMUNITY No. 2.

This community is a coal-mining town in the second district, about 100 miles west and slightly south of Chicago. Coal was first mined in the locality in the year 1884. The town grew rapidly and had a population of about 5,000 two years after the first coal mines were opened. The racial composition of the total population of the town in the year 1886, as nearly as could be ascertained, is given on the following page.

Americans came to the community for the most part during the period 1884 to 1886. They were experienced coal miners from other coal-mining sections of Illinois and from the bituminous and anthracite regions of Indiana and Pennsylvania. The majority of the English came during the same years. Almost all of the English came from the Braidwood field of Illinois, which was almost exhausted at the time. The Welsh came to the community during the same years as the Americans and English. They too were all experienced miners from different parts of Illinois. The Irish also arrived in the town at its very beginning in 1884. They came from different parts of Illinois and Indiana, and almost all of them were experienced miners. The Poles also came in 1884. All of these spoke English and were engaged in the mines. During this same period, 1884 to 1886, a few Belgians and Italians drifted into the community, which was then a mining camp, and engaged in the liquor business. In the year 1886 a Belgian saloon keeper made an agreement with the operators to furnish them with some Belgian miners, and, as a result, about 200 miners came to the community direct from the coal fields of Belgium. These miners proved very satisfactory to the coal company because they were more tractable than the English, Welsh, Scotch, Irish, and Americans. Two years later one of the Italian saloon keepers brought in about 200 Northern Italians. These men were soon placed, but not without dissatisfaction among the English-speaking miners. Shortly after the introduction of the North Italians the management of the local coal company entered. upon a settled policy of employing immigrant labor. Immigrants came to the town during the next three years in large numbers, the larger proportion being Poles, Lithuanians, and North Italians. By 1889 there was a very strong feeling against the company and the recent immigrants on the part of the older English-speaking miners. The pioneer employees finally called a strike, which lasted eight months. At the end of that time almost all the English-speaking miners had either stopped working in the mines voluntarily or had been displaced. Since the years 1889 and 1890 the Italians, Poles, and Lithuanians have controlled the situation. A comparison of the racial composition of the inhabitants of the community in the year 1886 with that of the present population shows an English-speaking population of 99 per cent of the total number of inhabitants in 1886 as compared with less than 20 per cent of this class in 1900.

The present racial composition of the community follows.

Older immigration:

Native-born of native father and races of older immigration, including
English, Irish, Scotch, Welsh and German.....

Recent immigration:

Belgian...

Italian, North..

Italian, South..

Lithuanian..

Polish..

Syrian...

Total......

.o1,600

Proceeding farther south to the seventh district, a representative mining locality of recent growth is found in a group of three small towns which are located within a distance of 1 or 2 miles of each other, but which practically form one community, which may be designated as Community No. 3. The oldest town in the locality for many years formed only a small trading center for the surrounding agricultural region, but within the past five or six years, owing to the opening of coal mines, has had a very rapid growth in population. Both of the other towns have sprung into existence during the past six years because of the starting of coal-mining operations. Four mines furnish employment to the residents of the towns. These mines have a depth below the surface ranging from 320 to 350 feet, and are taking coal from geological seam No. VI, which is from 7 to 8 feet thick. Altogether about 1,800 men are employed in this operation. Unlike the northern communities, mining is here done by machine. The population of the three towns, or of the whole community, is somewhat above 6,000. Two of the towns have a population of about 2,500 each, and the other a population of 1,000. One of the larger towns is the home of the greater part of the English-speaking and German elements of the community, while the other two are peopled almost entirely by recent immigrants.

The population is made up exclusively of white races and embraces native-born Americans, and native and foreign-born English, Irish, Scotch, Welsh, Germans, and foreign-born Italians, Ruthenians, Poles, Slovaks, Lithuanians, and a small number of Hebrews. These races form three more or less clearly defined groups. The natives, together with the British and German races, make up the first group and constitute about one-half of the population. The Italians stand about midway between the other two groups in point of Americanization, and are said to furnish nearly 30 per cent of the population. The Lithuanian and the Slavic races form the third group, comprising approximately one-fifth of the combined population of the three towns.

The peoples from the British Isles and Germany in the community are closely associated both in business and social relations with natives, and are not usually had in mind when "foreigners" are referred to by natives. There is difficulty, therefore, in arriving at

a Because of the coalition of the English, Irish, Scotch, Welsh, and Germans with the native Americans, it is impossible to estimate the relative number of each race.

facts in regard to the percentage of these races in the total population. It is estimated, however, that the British and Germans together form about one-fourth of the total population, and that the British alone, principally Scotch and English, form one-fifth of the total. According to this estimate the native population is 1,500; the British, 1,200; and the Germans, 300.

The North Italians and Tyrolese are very closely affiliated with each other and together form nearly the whole of what is spoken of as the Italian element of the population. South Italians number not more than 10 to 15, most of whom are single men, or married men whose families are elsewhere. The Tyrolese are from one-third to one-half as numerous as the North Italians, and the two races have a male population of working age in the community of about 600. Two hundred and fifty or more of these people are married men who have their families with them.

Ruthenians, Slovaks, and Poles are the races making up the bulk of the Slavic population, aggregating about 850. The Ruthenians by far outnumber the others and have a population of about 500, including 150 to 175 adult males and 75 or more families. The Slovaks number somewhat under 300 and have a male population of working age of 100 or more, about 40 of whom are married men with families. There are about 10 Polish families, and 25 adult Polish males.

The total Lithuanian population in the community numbers about 400. The males of working age among these people number about 200, and there are said to be from 50 to 60 Lithuanian families in the towns under consideration. The Lithuanians seem to be identified with the Slavs in the popular mind, because the degree to which Americanization has gone on among them is about the same as the development among the Slavs. As a matter of fact, however, the Lithuanians hold themselves aloof from the Slavic races, with the exception of Russian Poles. Aside from the races mentioned above, a few Hebrew business men are living in the community.

The bulk of the immigration to the community has taken place within the past five years and has come largely from other sections of the United States. Germans in small numbers have been engaged in farming in the surrounding territory during the past forty years. These people have entered mining occupations as the demand for mine workers has increased, and within the past four or five years Germans have also been coming from Europe and from various sections of the United States. English and Scotch were, however, the pioneer miners of the community, and during the past five or six years these races, with smaller numbers of Irish and Welsh, have come in large numbers from sections in Iowa where a large portion of the coal mines have been abandoned. North Italians and Tyrolese had begun to arrive in large numbers about five years ago, chiefly from other sections of the United States, and since that time have gradually increased their numbers by drawing in their friends and relatives both from other localities in the United States and from Europe. The few South Italians form largely a floating element. Practically all the other races in the community have arrived, as already stated, during the past four years and have come chiefly from neighboring fields and from other mining regions of this country.