Norwich bulletin., 1922-09-22
Humanity in Government
By James J. Davis. Secretary of Labor MAKING NEW AMERICANS

MAKING NEW AMERICANS There never was time in the hig- tory of the country when American citi- | zenship meant So much to the alien born l as it does today. Many find 1t difficult 1, to ind employment unless they can show that they possess their second citizen l sh p paI,ars. Frequently the aliens wife 1 and family are abroad and he must ob- 1 tain citizenship before he can bring them to this country. The average alien who comes to these shores, unless he comes to escape relig- 1 ious or political persecution is not sue cessfui from material standpoint. If he were he would in all probability re- main in the. country from which he
 came. If he is to become an American, i tae obligation to see that he recognizes that status and attains it in it's highest l degree. is one resting in no small de- i gree with his local community. It in- | wolves the question of the application of
 the golden rule. He is the raw mater 1 ial generally speaking. and the making
 of an American rests with those who
 claim that tile. He Is the builder of the railroads of the factories, of the home l and cur success depends to no small ex- l tent upon him. It is to our interest to see he Is happy and content If he came to this country with ideals, we should see they are perpetuafed. If he comes with no ideals, we should see that he
 gets them, for if he comes and lives among us without growth, he is simply itransplanted and might retard our ad- vancemen&. If he doesn't speak Eng fish, see that he learns. for that Is q | fundamental requirement of an Ameri-
 can. Remember that the making of an American depends not only upon what you teach him, but the way you treat
 him.
 I Patriotic citizens through the country
 have combined with local communities
 to cooperate with the bureau of natur-
 alization in the work of making the
 alien within our boundaries worthy of
 American citizenship, and capable of
 taking advantage of the opportunities
 which that high estate offers. In thou
 sands of sehoolroon1s across the land
 ceiving instruction in the English lan-
 guage, the history of our country, and T the ideals represented fin our govern
 mental institutions. They are becoming
 more familiar with our laws and cus-
 toms. They are learning of the respon- sibility which rests upon the individual
 in American life. They are becoming
 Americanized
 The Americanizatfon process should
 not be left to chance or haphazard meth
 ods We find the result of such pro cedure in every alien community. Radl-
 calisn is bred in misunderstanding of our language. American institutions, ideals, standards and government. The ,
 Is no immediate danger of revolution
 destroying our government of evolution , but nevertheless sinister forces are con stantly at work and should be checked
 The government itself should under
 take the task of educating the foreign born and it should do so in a spirit of helpfuiness and not of antagonism. From
 the time that he lands he should be ! 1 made to feel at home and weieome-hs , should be made to understand that America wants to help him to secure a , full benefit of the privileges which res i idence and citizenship here affords. Bu' I the government must know It's problem , just as an individual must know his jot before 1t can succeed. The school au'
 thorities keep records of the ehfldreI
 they are to teach, and see that tho sdu , cation is furnished. The bureau of nat f uralization in it's Characterization pro : gram should be no more lax in It's worl 6 than the public schools. The ahen mus f therefore be enrolled and a record kep . of his progress At the time of enroll . ing and at subsequent annual recording n a small fee for the service rendere' |. should be collected to be invested by tn Il government solely for the aliens wei r fare. Some objection to this program
 Is raised because it's opponents declare . it would be similar to the old espionag if system of the czar, but it must be point e ed out, the ezarist regime never ha h such a program for welfare and educs a ton, True, we would be able to locat e more easily the radical leaders engage : in sinister propaganda against the gos IS erranent. They ought to be discovere Il and returned to the countries froi a which they came. Such individual Il seeking to bring to America the cond h tons existing under the irresponsibl Is governments of part of Europe an l. Asia are no less menace to Americ
 than to the ,law-loving aliens fesidin 1t here. The allen who believes in o1 e government of law and order and our IT E. stftrtions of liberty, freedom and edui 10 opportunity to all have nothing to fes in from enrolment for education and muc Y to gain in happiness, contentnnent an s- urosnerity by a knowledge of our lai e. Eua9e and full participation as fnteH IL gent citizens in our national affairs. \ i'd These aliens come to us from natfor te whose system of government. an v- scheme of human relations Is antipodi e. | to the ideals of America They con
 from an atmosphere where the pornp
 kings and emperors has eiaEhed vii
 wild political theories that lead to al
 arclfy and destruction, where econom
 and political turmoil have given Dir
 fo vile polittcai doctrines fatal to hl