The Irish standard., 1910-04-16
THE NEW MEXICANS
Why They Are Ignorant of the Eng
fish Language.

llsh Language.
The following letter appeared in a
recent issue of the Chicago Inter
Ocean:
TO the Editor.-Permit me, as a res
ident Of New Mexico for almost twen-
ty-five years. to make a few comments
on your editorial under the caption,
"One Country, One Language" Your
argument in favor of other non-Eng-
fish speaking peoples and against nom
\ English speaking New Mexicans is
the merest special pleading, and to my
mind is unworthy of the usual broad
minded Inter Ocean. And more, it is
partly untrue.
When you give as one reason that
the New Mexican people do not sup
port newspapers of note, you are in
error, as to my own knowledge they
do support several such papers. And
in their praise it must be said that
not one Of them advocates the Internal
principles of anarchy, as some of the
papers you refer to do. So far as
my experience goes, and from init
mate acquaintance with our people,
1 have never seen nor heard Of New
Mexican anarchist. On the other hand
1 have often read in the Inter Ocean
and other. Eastern papers Of large pro-
cessions marching through your streets
under the red flag, the symbol of MUIR
der and incendiarism, and if 1 am not
mistaken, it has been found necessary
to forbid the carrying of this red flag,
to break up such PROFESSIONS silence
anarchistic speakers and dispense their
meetings. But up to date I have not
heard of such wretches being disfran-
chised, even when they do not speak
the English language. Why is this
thus?
I have read in the Inter Ocean daily
exposure of wholesale public plumber
by so-called servants of the people in
Chicago Pittsburg, Philadelphia and
other Eastern cities. am almost sure
that I have read somewhere that some
of these thieves have been indicted,
but | have not seen single sugges-
ton that these wretches should be
disfranchised. l suppose the fact that
they can speak and write the English
language we'll enough to enable them
to perpetrate their villainies Is sufn-
cient to condone their stealings and
save them from disfranchisement If
such robberies were perpetrated in New
Mexico or Arizona In proportion to
our population, we would be denounced
as outlaws. absolutely unfit for citi-
zenship, and consequently unworthy of
association with your Buses. Colemans
and their highly respectable compan-
ions. But although we are free from,
such rascalities, we are guilty of a
more wicked crime, to-wit, our ignor-
ance of the English language.
Now, let us see who is to blame for
this ignorance? Why, the American
government. If the government had
spent in education during the entire
half century since New Mexico was
forcibly annexed to the United States
!. as much as has been spent in the
Philippines during their twelve years
under our flag, it is safe to say that
English would be we'll understood by
our present generation Of Spanish
Americans. But as you undoubtedly
know, our government has. never ex-
pended one cent in educating these
good people. although millions have
been squandered in educating (?) the
wild Indians, nearly all of whom drift
back to their pueblos and reservations
and fall back into their original half
savage state.
Now, in justice to the Spanish Amer
leans. let us see what they are doing
for education among themselves. Out
of their scanty means they are, and