by rob05c

Also, Swedes and Russians are too dark.

French, Russians and Swedes, are generally of what we call a swarthy Complexion

while we are, as I may call it, Scouring our Planet, by clearing America of Woods, and so making this Side of our Globe reflect a brighter Light to the Eyes of Inhabitants in Mars or Venus, why should we in the Sight of Superior Beings, darken its People?

You can't make this stuff up.

I came across this googling whether the US Founding Fathers supported immigration. Incidentally, it appears they mostly did. Franklin's racist business animosity aside. But they thought critically about the problem, so their statements are easily taken out of context, on both sides.