The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1920-04-02
AMERICANlzINC WORK DONE WELL
 IN NEW BEDFORD

New Bedford, April 2-The un- usually diligent efforts that are be- ing made in New Bedford to Ameri- canize the foreign speaking residents are reflected in the annual report ot the State Bureau having charge of Americanization work throughout Massa achu usettS.
 The report, which has just been is sued places this city at the top of the list with regard to Americaniza- ton activity, the figures showing that New Bedford considerably eXcelled Boston in the number of applications for service handled during the year, although Boston, of course, has much larger foreign population than has New Bedford. Although there are branch offices of the State Ameri- canization bureau in various other cit ies, including Springfield, Fall River and other textile centers, none of the others, except Boston, even approach ed in activity the New Bedford of flee.
 The Americanization movement here has had the cordial support and cooperation of the various cotton mills, the Y. M. c. A. and '. w. c. A. and Board of Commerce and the municipal authorities Not only has citizenship instruction been given and classes in English conducted, but ap- peals to the foreign born workers have been made through advertising | methods, and there has been aggreSs- i've work to arouse the interest of the foreigners by means of motion pie tures circulars and active personal ! canvass in the various industrial plants. Athletic teams have been 1 organized to compete regularly with i similar teams from other establish i ments, and full opportunity to ap ! proach and interest the workers du- ] ing the noon hour has been given in l the various mills.
 There have been mass meetings for 1 the foreign born with widely known speakers to address them in their
 own tongue on historical and patriotic l subjects, and pictures calculated to
 teach something of the history of and
 arouse interest in this land of their
 adoption.
 The movement has gone somewhat
 into welfare and community center
 work, there being a regular public forum once a week, frequent school house meetings which are given 1 something of a social character and 1 instruction along sanitary lines, in i cluding, of course, chi1dren's clinics.
 The foreign born residents have been encouraged to come to the 1 Americanization office with their 1 troubles and to make the local sec 1 retary their confidant. The result has | been no less than 6,S44 applications
 during the year, and the range of
 subjects on which aid was sought is
 shown in the following ta;bulation:
 Attorney, II; bank, 34; business
 advice, 200; citizenship, 2,S35; com
 pensation for injury, 45; emigration,
 1S1; employment, 53; financial aid, 1 II; immigration, 101; Liberty bonds,
 39; locating missing persons, 2S; mis-
 cenaneous information, All; misce1- laneous military information, 3,0O3. The applicants represented the fol-
 lowing nationalities: Albanian, 34; Armenian, 12; Austrian, 1; Belgian
 q; Bohemian, Al; British, 1,133;
 French, 56; French-Canadian, 2,O59;
 German, 46; Greek, 145; Hebrew 204; Italian, 1S0; Lithuanian, 19;
 Norwegian, g; Polish, 664; Portu- ! guese, 2,1OO; Russian, IS; Swedish 26; Syrian, 70; Turkish, 6; unclassi- ed. 6.