The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-09-02
CATHOLIC WAR COUNCIL ISSUES HISTORY PRIMER Opening Campaign For Education of the
 Illiterate. BOOK HAS
 FIFTY PAGES Designed to Make Patriotic Citizens of Foreigners.

Washington, Sept. 1.-As ammunf-
 ton in it's nationwide fight for civic education of the nine million foreign born and Hliterate people in the United
 States, the National Catholic War
 Council has issued a patriotic primer, entitled The Fundamentals of Citi-
 Zenship,' from it's headquarters in this
 city. In less than fifty pages of short
 simple sentences, the history and idea.
 of American democracy, as well as the needs and rights of its people are
 outlined in this little book, with brief
 explanations of such subjects as pub
 lie education, health, legislation, rep
 resentation, the courts foreign rela-
 tions, fraud prevention, insurance, taxation, naturalization and duties of citizenship. Traslated into foreign Ian
 guages or quoted by thousands of the
 trained native speakers who are en- listed in this civic campaign the contents of this handbook on Ameri- can democracy will be placed before
 every man, woman and child in this country, whose civic ignorance might | make them easy prey for Bolsheviki propaganda. It includes copies of the , Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States. Declaring that "our country is the [ opportunity. and that a knowledge of its Constitu- i tion is necessary to the Amercan- ! born as well as the foreign born ''ft they, too, are to take up the task of | faithul citizenship this primer of pa 1 troitism devotes itself at the outset i to "the general work of reconstruc- i ton in citizenship" It explains that | the citizen who does not possess l some knowledge of our democratic in- ] stitUtions may easily become the prey | of the demagogue or of persons who | are anxious to advance their own in l terests at the expense of the people, i Democracy requires of each mar i a great respect for order; a more un- i selfish consideration of every mans i rights and advantage" asserts thi: i new pamphlet under the heading i ''The needs of the people, Each cit. l izen is responsible for the conduct ot i the government. He is part of the state. not merely a subject of it. The i Government is his. If it Is bad. it i! ! his fault. He has put power into the i wrong hands,"
 The first duty of every citizen 1. | to vote at every election" it is declar' 1 ed in a chapter on The citizen: 1 part He has no right to shirk thi: i simple duty. No one has a right tc | complain of how things are done il ] he fails to vote. It is not fair play tC l the rest of the people wheni any mar | who does not help to do the worl which benefits all; every citizen shoull 1 study public questions enough to vot' | wisely, and he should take the time i above all things, to learn aoout lh' 1 men who are to be voted for as publi' l officers. He should follow only thes' ] leaders who are true to the people 1 interest"
 | After sketching the rise of democra 1 cD- in this country and the part taker in it by various foreign leaders. tht l pamphlet says; The European strug ! gle for liberty Is marked oftentime! l by terrible injustice, by disrespect fo1 ! law. by public disorder and pulpit disa-ler. In it's history, injustice i often revensed by injustice, not over ] come by equality of opportunity w 1 see a noteworthy and terrible exampl of Hcense---not Hberty---in Russia to- l day. All these attempts are endeavor l after liberty and in that measure ar I prafseworthy. When they grow t' Iavylessness, they must be condemnet l by every lover of democracy"
 Millions of coTies of this patriotit primer will be printed and distribut 1 ed, not only in the channels of thi i civic education campaign of the Ma l tional Catholic War Council, but als' through every civic agency, in tn work of which it would prove O lNalue.