The sun., 1901-03-27
We Are All Americans.

Notbing said by Mr.. Roosevelt In ms
.oeech 10 the Legal Aid Society on oatur-
dav evening, was received with more ap-
nlause bv an audience made up chieny OF
naonIe NJ German birth or descent thah
his remark that 1t was nreet ing OF Ahieri-
csn citizens and that " he is an enemy 10
the development Of our people, who permits
sor one moment the existence OF any dlVlu-
INC line of class. creed or race among those
Americans who honestly and. in good taith
strive for the welfare OF America
The attempt OF the Stmts-Zeaun0 TO
draw such line OF separation-in the interest
of -Gcrmanism is simply an lndlca''oh
that actually the line Is disappearing
The vast majority Of the population OF New
York are OF foreign birth and parentaGe
and OF these the greatest number OF any
single nationality are Germans or OF Ter
man descent. The German-bDrn almost
invariably become American citizens by
naturalization and are soon mingled in the
mass OF American citizenship without any
distinction OF Germanism." The second
generation. educated in our schools. speak
our language without trace OF German
accent and sven their fathers are recog-
nized as dsI inct variety OF Germans,
German- Americans" when they return
To visit their native land In inveighing
sosinst Americans. therefore, the Stats
Zeituno assails its own people moor
porated into ourCitizenship and powerful
factor in making the American sentiment
n essays to insult Probably its rage is
due to A conscic usness that II il losing
steadily the sympathy OF the great body
of the population Of New York Of German
birth and descent. and thus the reason for its
peculiar existence is departing.
In striving TO keep alive Germanlsm
M a distinctive sentiment hostile 10 AmeN-
capism, the .StOdts' Zenung is hghung
yainly against the complete assimilation
OF the population Of German nationality
which has gone on and il continuing all
about il. II is paper printed in the
German language. but the language
spoken and read by the great majority
of citizens OF German stock is our own, as
obviously requisite TO their progress In
this country Naturally, therefore, lis
temper Is not improved by its struggles
in the uphill fight Germans VIII have
not yet famiiarzed themselves with our
language may read the Stodts-Ze,tung,
hut the number OF such actually and rela-
tiyely. is now diminishing al faster rate
than ever before: while their children,
instructed In our schools, have no use for 1t
and no sympathy with its narrow. un-Ameri-
can spirit In the very nature OF things
II is paper which must become an obsolete
institution, or at least OF insignificant pat
ronape. unless IL follows the people "a
whom It seeks 10 appeal in becoming
thoroughly Americanized in tone and
language.
The immigration from the German Empire
has now fallen OF greatly from its former
vast volume The mass OF the German
born here Is no longerrecruted by large
and steady stream OF fresh immigran''
who cannot read English. as was the case
formerly, while the number OF those al
ready in New York who have that inability
IA becoming smaller every day. until a
Isngth the time will come when Germans
hero will no more need a German-printec
newspaper than does Mr.. ROOSEVELT Z
paper printed in Dutch,
This Ia a development fortunate for bott
citizens of German birth or descent and fo
this Republic. and 1t ia welcomed by NJ
part OF our population with more heartnes'
than by intelligent men Of German blood