Evening star., 1915-06-27

sure an American education for those
of the new arrivals from foreign coun-
tries who are of the school age.
One of the greatest problems that the
United States has faced for genera
tfon is how best to assimilate and bring
under the influence of it's institutions
the vast army of foreigners that an
nually pours into it's domains. The
automatically to make Americans of
the newcomers but a matter of fact
1t does not work as well as could be
wished. large portion of the immi-
grants settle in the big cities in COM
munities of people of their own ma
tionality who have preceded them
There they live, in the main, according
to the customs of the old country.
speak the old language, and learn prac-
tically nothing of the customs and in
stitutions of the country of their adop-
ton.
The astonishing thing to students of
sociology has been, however, the re-
markably rapid Americanization of the
children of immigrants who go through
the public schools. If, on the other
hand. the children enter employment
and fail to come into contact with the
public school system they grow up. it
has been observed. to be little less alien
In thought and customs and apprecia-
tion of American institutions than their
parents.
The United States bureau of educa. .
ton. which has a branch devoted to
immigrant education, has realized the
existence of these conditions and the
Importance of getting the children of
immigrants to school. and has recently
brought about cooperation between
the bureau of immigration of the Labor
Department and the schools of the
country that will. 1t is believed. result
in the Americanization Of many chill
dren who otherwise would grow up to
swell the ranks of our unassimilated
population.
Hereafter the names of all immigrant
children of school age. whether they
are accompanied by parents or not, will
be copied from the steamship manifest
a immigrant stations and sent weekly
to the superintendents of schools in the
localities for which the children are
bound. To make the service of value,
the bureau of education has written the
city and county superintendents
throughout the country urging them to
seek out such children. The indications
are that the local officials will heartily
cooperate in the work.
The great Importance of the new
work may be seen from the fact that
about 100, 900 children between the ages
of five and sixteen-practically enough
to populate the city of Toledo. ONO
enter the United States annually. or
these, fully S5 per cent come from non
those of southern and southeastern
Europe If the children do not learn of
American institutions through the pub
lie schools. 1t is pointed out by Or. ii.
H Wheaton, specialist on immigrant
education in the bureau of education,
thew are likely to grow up wholly unfit
for the citizenship that Will come TO
them automatically when they attain
their majorities. DR.. Wheaton expects
the new service by the bureau OF I'M
migration to bring about most graft
flying results. His estimate of the i'm
portance Of the new move is that '.it
marks the beginning Of the end or
laissez faire with reference to the
Americanization of the immigrant
Because Of the growing demand from
engineers, designers and manufactur-
ers, the United
Uncle Sans Great States bureau
Crushing Machine. feeding a con.
stantly increasing number of struc-
tural materials into the Jaws Of its
in Washington and subjecting them to
millions of pounds of pressure to find
Just how they will behave when called
upon to support great buildings or
bridges or to support the shifting load
of heavy locomotives.
This is the greatest testing machine
of it's kind in existence built to give
accurate results, though there are
one or two crude machines having
greater total crushing power. 1t can
apply a compressive force of nearly
100000 pounds and a pulling force of
nearly half that amount. Since it's
installation a few years ago, and since
the accuracy of its results has be-
come generally known, the machine
has been kept almost constantly busy
on materials ranging from relatively
small bars of various metals to great
steel columns designed as parts for
cloud piercing radio towers.
One of the most comprehensive series
of tests undertaken by the experts in
charge of the machine is in co-opera-
tion with special committees of the
American Society Of Civil Engineers
and the American Railway Engineers
Association. These tests are of steel
columns of sizes actually used in ordi-
nary construction work and of vary
ing types of cross section, weight, size
and length. The members of these
technical organizations have gladly
availed themselves of the opportunity
to check up formulas by actual con-
trolled tests, and many of them be-
lieve that the work will result in the
modification of some of the formulas
accepted as correct for many years.
1t also is believed that the tests will
bring about alterations in design of
columns in such a way that marked
economies can be effected.
In conjunction with the physical tests
careful chemical and metallur gical tests
are being made. This is with view
to the establishment of standards for
sure the production of columns that
will make the best possible showing
under the stresses and strains to which
they will be subjected. Although the
special column tests are only partially
completed, results obtained so far lead
correlated it will be found that they
constitute almost invaluable additions
to engineering knowledge.
One of the largest columns handled
by the testing laboratory was one built
up of riveted plates recently tested for
an important eastern railroad. 1t was
over thirty feet long and had a cross
section of about sixty-five square inches
of metal. 1t finally bent under COM
pressive force of 30.759 pounds to the
square inch, a total load for the column
of 1,996,90O pounds, or nearly 1000 tons.
The bent column is now on exhibition
at the Panama Pacific exposition.
Though the bureau of standards test
ing machine is one Of the largest in
existence it is by no means large
enough to take care of all demands.
The bureau officials desire a machine
of ten times it's capacity-capable of
testing accurately by end compression
and have recommended that Congress
provide it, They have also asked for a