Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-12-18
LEADING CITIZENS
Continued from page l

10 new and vigorous industries, and to
new and permanent workmen. We have
perhaps been too we'll contcnted with
things as thev are, but are we now pre-
pared To deal with the new difficulties
in industry which will come with the
after war period? Are we. equipped TO
deal with the new conditions OF the
modern labor market? Do we know how
to get and how TO keep foreign born
labor. or arc we still acting merely as
individuals, getting it spasmodlcally from
many sources, through Padroni and
labor agents without regard to whether
it be drifting or permanent labor?
What is needed. believe. is so,Indly
organized effort of cooperative citizen
ship. To secure which is the task OF the
Service Citizens of Delaware, and every
man and woman OF Delaware, who has
some service TO give, and is willing TO
give il in an orderly and organized way.
is hereby cordially invited to become
member OF the Service Citizens.
Foreign born workers have been
necessary to the industrial development
of this community and they will con-
| tinuc To be essential. All of us would
very much like to know what the labor
! supply will be six months or year from
| now. Applications are said to have been
received during the past four years by
| the commissioner of the port ol New
] York for passage from this country OF
! ,250, 900 aliens who desire TO go abroad
! aS soon rs travel is resumed.
What action our government VIII
! take, what means foreign governments
! will take to prevent their people from
! leaving are vet to be learned. We must
! do what we can to make the foreign
! born men and women who are Still here
! understand us. to feel at home, and To
! become attached to our State. That they
! should become citizens is of the hrSt
| Importance. and IN order that they may
| become citizens they must, of course,
learn to speak English. During the last
4 eight wears only 967 aliens have become
naturalizcd in this State. In the last
| draft of the men who registered IN the
! four Wilmington draft boards there were
f602 that could not speak English: his,
! of course. meant that they could not
understand the directions and orders
| given them and could not follow the
drills or learn the manual OF arms.
NO PLACE FOR DRlFrERS.
| The labor agents must understand
! that Delaware II not the market tor
| drifters, but will only take the best
, type Of foreign born workmen and their
| families, and for that they shall be gwen
| what our Declaration Of Independence
| guarantees 70 all our pcople-lIie. liberty,
| and the pursuit of happiness IN other
! words. they must be Amcrcanized.
There are in Delaware about 1o,ouU
I foreign born people, or more than zen
ner cent Of the total population Very
1 little has been done TO attach these people
/ ~ this community They need. after
! ernnloyrnent. houses 10 live In and 3
! chance. 10 learn English. | understand
there is not single public educational
| agency in the State to teach them the
English language.
The Service Citizens are asking you
to assist the State, not merely by support
ing its State program as individuals,
hut also by making il known IN very
nractlcal wav that the English language
Ie,ll bc taught inside your own industrial
plants This Is the real purpose Of this
conference.
And true AmericaniZation must not ne
An isolated thing, affecting only industry
or industry and education alone, but
As a training IN the very Ideals OF our
national life.
were the remarks Of G 4. German gen
er,I n ansrcr az the Harlan plant Mr..
sc rTnHln HQflltAtt1 tiihA AAAS tAt'AAN
running INTO a shortage OF labor The
uslal way IN peace was to pay more money
than competitor, but with wages con-
r-nlled bv the government this IS now
,,nnoS,lblc The only way lett was
An,ercanizatIon. which means an improve
nent ~ conditions for the alien and
q satisfied home seeker, not wanderer.
He said that last week : turnover AZ the
Harlan plant represented ratio equal
to 500 per cent yeaI
Mr. German told Of the efforts being
made TO Americanize the Poles and
Italians at the plant. Unless some such
methods as Americanization become
universal III this country, the shipyards
al America cannot compete with the
shipvards OF foreign countries.
The Harlan plant has entered tins
AmericanizatiOn program wholeheartediy,
said Mr. German, and we are going 70 DO
the very best We can. believe our plant
i the worst violatOr OF any plant In the
CITY in regard 10 citizenship but We pro
pose TO try and remedy this condition
WHAT THE ALIEN CENSUS SHOWS.
Mr.. German gave some interesting
/ figures concerning the returns OF the ahen
| Industrial census taken IN 3, Delaware
/ industries.
These returns cover 3,42S workers
| Of twenty-six different natlOnalltIes
| Counting only families living in Delaware
| fand many OF these men have families
! in the old country the total population
| represented IS over l0,00077 per cent OF
these men are aliens 62 per cent of them
have never even declared their intention
Of becoming citizens: 81 per cent do not
speak English % per cent do not write
English: q per cent are IllIterate In their
oW y language, and only % per cent have
ever received any instruction Ia English
/ or citizenship.
Moreover. when We group these mon
| on basis OF the length Of time they have
| been III America, We see that the STATION
Is even woIse among recent arrivals
Take for instance the ,236 men who are
| report ed IN the census as having come 10
\ America between the wears 1903 and 1913.
| These people have been here long enough
| 10 become citiz ns Only 3 per cent Of
| them have done So and only IL Per cent
have declared their intention Of doing 50.
Less than one-haf of this group speak
| English only one-fifth write English
nearly ont-four,h are illiterate and only
( one-tenth have ever had sny instruction
I in English or citizenship
John Raskob spoke for Governor
! Townsend and Director General Johnson,
Of the State Defense Council, on the
1 AmericanizatIon work that has been
under way He told how Delaware had
! responded 10 the national call to educate