Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-06-16
lLL|TERATE PEOPLE
ASOCIAL PROBLEM
Conference Held to Combat,
Menace Threatening Three
States.
INABILITY TO READ IN ANY
LANGUAGE is AN OBSTACLE
League to Campaign in New
York, Connecticut and New
Jersey Against Evil.

NEW YORK. June 16.-Adult Hit
eracy which IN New York, New Jer-
sey and Connecticut is said. to be in
creasing SO rapidly as to be. real
menace, is the subject OF an import
ant conference today in the rooms
of the Industrial League. in the
Woolworth Building. Z. z. ClaXton,
United States commissioner Of edu-
cation, members Of the education
boards of this and nearby cities and
representatives OF Industrial and
manufacturers associations will be
among the speakers.
The object Of the conference as de-
scribed by Winthrop Talbot manager
of the league, is the promotion Of n
campaign against adult iidteracy.
The control of this illiteracy is. ac-
cording to Mr.. Talbot. the most
pressing. far-reachins and economi-
cal form of industrial education. and
it is possible, he asserts. through the
cooperation of industrial managers.
to- promote an active campaign to
better Industrial relations. The con-
ference will consider measures for
launching such campaign in the
three States mentioned.
Inability to read in any language
is the most serious obstacle the
league asserts. TO shop instruction.
accident prevention, personal hygiene.
shop sanitation. and the learning Of
English. 1t stands in the way of good
citizenship and Intelligent workman
ship. 1t increases tho cost Of work
mems compensation insurance to
every empl- ying concern and places
an indirect but serious tax upon the
cost of business administration
Pointing to the fact that the waste
due to industrial agitation and uH-
rest occurs in those districts where H..
literacy is the greatest, the startling
assertion is made that in the State
Aof New York alone in 1910 the number
Of persons ten years of age and older
unable to read and write in any Ian
Suage was greater than the COM
bined populations of Schenectady,
Utica, Syracuse and Yonkcrs. AS a
growing menace to representative
government democratic institutions,
and industrial prosperity, this mass
of illiterates is to be dealt with in
the campaign to be in2ugurated BY
the Industrial League.
The following figures are given by
the league as the result of its tn
vestigatons:
THE number of adult illiterates in
New York. New Jersey and Connecti-
cut is rapidly increasing. in 1910 the
numbers of adult illtcrates were as
follows:
= 1910. 1900 1890
New York. ! e. 100. 029 31S,0o0 2s6,9ll
New jersey. 1850 S6,65S 74,321
Connecticut &C.. 1850 42.s7S s., 1874
"Twenty-dve States OF the Union
have a more illiterate adult popula-
ton than New York. New jersey and
Connecticut. New York has made no
decrease whatever in percentage OF
,lliteracy in twenty years. New Jer-
sey has decreased only g of | per cent.
Connecticut has increased : of l per
cent-the sole State showing actual
increase in percentage of illiteracy.
New York ranks forty eighth, New
Jersey, forty sixth and Connecticut,
fortyninth Yet the percentage Of
increase in adult population in New
York is less than in eighteen other
States, in New Jersey less than in
sixteen other States. in Connecticut
less than in nineteen other States.
In 1914 the number of illiterateS
over ten years of age in New York
State now approXimates 100000 In
1910, S6I920 were adults beyond school
age. OF these IS per cent. We're men.
81 per cent were women. Nine out of
ten iliiterates were foreign born or
362.0ea out of 406,020; 1880 males of
voting age were illiterate, i. e., one
out of sixteen men of voting age was
unable to read or write in any Ian
guage."
Comparing conditions in New York
and neighboring States with those in
the South, this additional information
is given;
1.-The South is far outstripping the
North in its efforts to deal with the
problem of iiliteraey. While the per-
centage in the States of the South
Atlantic division is greater, it is be-
ing cut down from one-quarter to
one-half every decade, while in the
Middle Atlantic division no advance
is being made. with the number of
adult illiterates increasing constantly.
These adults are mainly employed in
Industrial concerns. II is through in
dustrial concerns only that they can
be reached Closer cooperation be-
tween industry and education is
necessary.
During the twenty years from 1890
to 1910 the number of illiterateS in
Virginia, North Carolina. South Caro-
lima Georgia, Kentucky and Florida
decreased from 2,027,951 to 1,427,0
but in Massachusetts, Rhode Island.
Connecticut. New York, New Jersey
and Pennsylvania. the increase was
from 790,772 to 1,103,S72. The south
eastern group of Southern States now
have 600,SS4 fewer illiterates than
twenty years ago, while the group of
Eastern States have 913,100 more than
twenty years ago.
I'm Rowan county. Kentucky, by
means of public school classes, il
literacy was wiped out within
period of eighteen months. The con-
ditions in Rowan county. Kentucky
could be matched in several counties
in New York, New Jersey and Con-
necticut."
N