Milford chronicle., 1918-12-13
job and Saloon Should Not BE fhe
Only "imericanlzlng"
Influences
WHAT THEY DESIRE
Is THE OPPORTUNITY
Opportunity TO Learn. to Increase
Their Earning Power and Improve
Their Living Conditions
Wilmington, Del.

a
"a the only "Americanizing" influence
II that keep foregn-boru workmen +
ief Delaware
IS. Are they enough?
ny These are some OF the question.
ali raised by the Americanization sind,
Is which The State Defense Council ha,
S. conducted within the past two months
n. me industries OF Delaware, after The
10 war, cannot get along without foreign.
re born worhmen Is Delaware going IA
81 be able 10 get them, now that the era
81 OF extraordinary high wages OF war
. lilne mas passed: Is Delaware going
TO be able TO hold its own in the labor
.95 market IN order TO attract to this State
d desirable class OF foreign born work
e men?
; And when We get them TO the State
are We going to be able TO hold them
mere by making them good citizens
oy giving them opportunities 10 become
I good Americans, and then by insisting
lhat they shall meet our standards of
| IcItIzenship after we have given them
the opportunity?
The trouble is that here in Delaware
we do not give them the opportunity /
II would be interesting if every pa
trlotlc Delawarean would honestly ask
himself why foreign-born workmen
should choose to come 10 stay in Del /
IaWare-ln Wilmington, in New Castle
ana Claymont-rather than in New
! YORK or Maryland or Pennsylvania or {
any otAer state. What inducement do {
we ouer them TO choose Delaware?
Well what does the immigrant want. a
besides the saloon and a job in order S
10 become attached 90 a community? lv
Inc State Defense Council through its d
Amerlcanization work. has been find s.
ing out the answer TO some OF these "a
questions The immigrant wants his
CAuTcA. lie wants decent place for G.,
ais family 10 live in. He wants a safe b.
way 70 invest his savings He wants I'm
ways OF enjoying himself in the even pl
ing and on sunday, and plenty OF them. ei
Most OF the torelgn-born in this couu- tb
Try come from races which attach lbi
good deal more Importance to social
gatherings and merriment even than Sc
Americans do. They want places 10 ~
meet and have fun, with plenty OF lde
music and dancing. A great many of d,
ne iorelgn-boru especially the Poles lei;
ma Italians. want an opportunity To tly
lave little garden. just very small lnis
'lece OF land which they can work for "a
heir family And besides all these to
hIngs, which are not extraordinary de-
Tres, great many more of the for we
lsn-born than We admit want an op- I'M
ortunity 20 learn English and pre- mn
are for American citizenship. BIl
What is Delaware giving them be- rol
ldes the saloon and the job? me
As 20 what Delaware gives them in AN,
be matter OF educational opportuui- iob
es, the State Defense Council easily &,
)und the answer We give them ex- 7
city nothing There is not a single Am
ublIc agency in the State for the edu- viii
alton OF the fOreigu-born adult. except emI
ie characterization classes which bile
ave been operated lately by the State wo,
etense Council Neither the State of VIII,
elaware nor the city of Wilmington icai
I'VE ever appropriated money for this Srat
lrpose. Indeed, the State turned +,
'Wn a paltry appropriation of three com
ousand dollars and the Wilmington now
'uncil turned down an appropriation see
hiteen hundred dollars to maintain nus
modest piece of Americanization ltribi
)rk which was going on in the bra,
lools and actually proving success war
. ava
As TO naturalization, what oppor- indu
llties do we give foreign n-born to be- unIe
NE citizens of Delaware? Here is sbai
answer: Since 1910 exactly nine them
ndred and siXty-seven (967) foreign no .
N men in this State have been made staa1
zens, and of those who became citi- faee
IS nearly 300 were from the English tber
aking countries. The Defense Coun-
Is just now analyzing the returns
N census taken through the in
tries. In one plant of 80 foreign
n employees, go have not been nat
lized. Twenty-Five of these have Wa
n IN this country ten years or more Irespo
another plant Of rs foreign-born. more
have not been naturalized. These is wi
pen to be industries who tend TO famol
permanent residents among the going
ign-born rather than the migratory ion a
lps. lead ,
when there is not a single lare il
)rtunity in the State whereby non Mr.. Y
Ish speaking people may learn the C
English language, which is a re- herin,
ement for citizenship, few can pre- peace
themselves. lbring gi
Ell and women everywhere want hints
9thing more than wages. Thev allies
a decent means of living. thew means
ways of enjoying themselves, and dents
oreign-born are no exception. AT rives
minute, the Delaware industries land r
peace basis need more foreign ing tn;
workmen. But there are no consid
es to put them in if they were The
sht here. What is the answer? to give
Delaware industries to lag and de- of the
because we have not the means Mr.. WI
ling care of workmen? The next as foil,
months are a critical time The LEGATION
,n-born labor will be shifted from ial wal
. peace industries Is the State except
aware gong 70 get the share whole
US OF are they going elsewhere tion 70
ICES ICES more ready Tor them and tional {
disposed 10 receive them? know t
olner day the general manager mainter