New-York tribune., 1918-05-06
The Enemy Tongue
By Charles Stewart Davison
Of
The American Defence Society
<<"HE REVIEW OF REVIEWS. fArr,
NUMBER, under the heading "Edu.

= 4 w
number), under the heading 'sFdu-
cational Developments in Warm.
Europe" subhead Languages Of Enemy Ma.
tions," deprecates the agitation in this conn.
try against the teaching of German in ~.
public schools, and quotes from the Mod
ern Language Association in Great Britain
as to German and the Mannheim "Gazetts.
to English and French. The exception.I
conditions in this country have apparently
escaped notice. Were we a Homogeneous
people, so that German would be stud;sa
wholly by american" children, some mar.
Of the reasoning would apply Bu. we aye
not. We have a very large number of for
efgners, and it is of utmost importance far
the preservation of the Republic that IN.
children of these foreigners should be made
"Americans' in the first generation (eyen
al the expense of loss Of Cosmopolitan
ism"). The possession and recognition ~
their native tongue, of the language of their
nation, is of primary Importance They
must grow up to feel that Germany is
foreign nation and that Germans are foy.
egners to them. For German read in .ho
alternative all other national designations
SO long as our immigration maintains itself
at high figures this consideration outweiob.
all others. The ideas and ideals which N.
first generation of native born children ~
immigrants imbibe during youth must for
our and their common safety, be those Of
their native land, America. The absolufs
necessity Of education for all, and espe-
clally for the children of immigrants. wa
have long recognized. We have been edu.
eating in desperate need and desperate
haste to outstrip the perls of free inst;tu.
tons, of ignorance, with its train Of super-
Ftltlon and enslavement. We must 90 stem
further-this war has taught lis that-and
wean our bantlings from foreign ideas and
ideals; the unconscious home tendencies in
their families will be hard enough to strue
gle against; we must not increase or foster
them in their schooling. The gain we make
IN creating Americans far outweighs the
loss-indeed. is in different category. The
gam IS of an essential the loss is of
superfuity
Again, in another aspect our situation is
essentially different from and our condi
tions the exact opposite of either the Emo
hsh, the French or the Germans We ara
not subject to the same pressure of nronin.
qulty as they. For US Spanish would rem
resent, though in part only, what German
Goes as toward England and France and
what English and French do as toward Ger.
many. FINALLY, one may note that the Eng
llsh quotation in the article bases it's arou
meht wholly on commercial reasons and the
German one on a very thinly veiled prona.
ganda intent The position it takes is in
terms tnat after this war is over "she" Ger
many w1ll strive mora than ever to pene.
lrate INTO the world" With that warning
we would be insane to permit the children
CT America to be corrupted and tainted br
being inducted into German maths ~
thought What I have said relates in no
wise to the study of German or any other
1oreign language by persons who have al.
ready firmly formed ideals