Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-11-07
TEACH FOREIGNERS
TO SPEAK ENGLISH
Preparing Young Men of Other
Nationalities for Service IN
American Army.

I'rdaypight the Federal court room IN
the postoifce building WAS crowded 10
overliowinp with several hundred men
who had come there in response 10 tue
Joint request of the State Defense "u i
ell the BOARD of Instruction and the
local draft hoards that MI n"n-tngliSh
speaking men likely to he called tor scrV-
lee npprar Frd night III order TO ne
organized into classes for instruction III
military English before they 80 I" fa9 p,
The State Dcfcusc Coyncil has planned
IN course of instructio for these en-,
which will he put INTO chCt beginning
rcxt Thursday evening. ne classes
ere To he held in various sections o' the
CITY. according 10 where the men i've.
Ono cl.ss Will hc held IN the mtcd states
publir e,npIoymcnt rooms AZ Sixth and
i>inr streets The men are IN the hahlt
cf qninp there and il Is Judged 10 bC a 1T
pl.cc for the classes Other CLASSES will
ie held IN schools convenient to the va
rinuS fnrcign-Speakng sections al the
CITY Iht IL Irc schools M | ~ Ninth
and Scott street,. -, ~ Oak and liar
r;San. and :. 1T Seventh and spruce.
Their, vas something distinctly stirring
Friday NIGHT in the sight of these hundreds
al men likely suun 10 hc lighting undtr
the American tag oversees and Nrt unable
to speak the language ot the country
Under whose fac they Wili fight They
wire chiefly Italians. Poles Russians
and Greeks \ special effort wa~ made
throughout the evening I" find ont II
t,uict WAYS iron those present wha, the
mems own atttudc VS. toward learning
English Most Of them showed Very
distinct cagcrn, = not only 10 comply
with a governmental request, but also
to take adva' tagc OF IN en- oriunlty To
learn the lanCuagc ot this country. Some
Of them have been here and worked her"
MANY wears ard vet are unable 70 Use
more / han a VERY fcN words ot tHc language
1t would hc impossible for them 70 %
through i military drill AMI understand
thc commands ii their officers
~ early a : a clock the benches began
t. be tiled and b. so the meeting could
have begun although It was called for :
Governor Townsend. a. chairman of
the State Defense Council some tune ago
expressed the wish that the state De
fensc Council might ro-opyratc with the
Board nt Instruction II carrying ont the
request of the Provost Narsh"l General
and Secretary 81 the Interior Lame. that
IN every community possible non-fng
li>h speaking drafter~ 10 gwen - least
a working knoWlctig, Of military English
before they 90 10 the camps The State
Defense Council Obce here in Wilmington
immediately took up the matter with
John j. Satterthwait chairman q thc
Board Of Instruction. and with the tour
local draft boards, beaded respectively
bv Joseph Bancroft. Board No i Dr.
Nj. OStro, Board Ne ;, Captain Horace
WILSON. Board No 3 and Joseph WIgclcS-
worth Board No +
Rive men teachers capable q giving
instruction in military English wrr
secured: a standard set uf military lessons
recommended by the Provost Marshal
GMerals office was adopted schools
vefc selected; the invitation sent to the
men for last nights meeting, and every
thing put into operation for the actual
beginning Of the work next week
John j. ~atterthwaIt, chairman of tho
Board Of Instruction presided AZ Frld y
nights meeting He introduced Major
Wiler. in command Of the Twelfth Bat
talion at the Barracks. He spoke hrIcfi>
on the advantage drafted men would Ilai
n learning English before They goto camp
lie also spoke briefly of the camp nj and
If the meaning nd the opportunity taa
goes with Induction into the nationI'
service Major Nlicr had brought with
him three soldiers in uniform. represent
ing the Italians. the Poles and tho Rus
slams Each OF thes spoke in the Ian
gllage OF his fellow eountrymCn. eXp!aiulug
what Major Wller ad said and further
setting forth the purpose Of the meeting.
Joseph J.Emory concluded the meetin
with an address to the Poles, urging upon
hem the learning of English as a practica
advantage to themselves individually
and as a means Of giving further service
TO the nation
After the meeting the men were divi-
ded into various groups nd distributed
t. different rooms to be organized into
classes under instructors for each class.
The division was made according To the
section of the city in which the men live
and according to their nationality When
they meet for the first time next Thurs
day eveningthey will probably be further
divided into classes. according 10 their
ability to speak English Those who
can read and write their own Ia guage
will be in one group. the illiterates III
another and those who can speak English
slightly nov, IN another group
The teachers who vii! begin this work
1T once are + L. Gallagher Jr William
J.. Hess X L. Mowbrev and Thaddeu~
r. Mieckowsi.i. Additional teacher,
are being secured.