The Washington times., 1922-07-23

sons.
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uralization and what interest does
the immigrant exhibit in public
affairs?" Mr.. Siegel was asked
There would be a larger In
crease In naturalization II suf-
ficient courts and clerks for that
purpose were provided. In cities
like New York. Chicago. Phila-
delphia. Boston and Pittsburgh
there are insufficient courts and
clerks. Application for citizen
ship Is q costly proposition. be-
cause the applicant is obliged TO
appear frequently. with witnesses,
and In most cases It is necessary
for him to pay the amount Of
wages lost by the witnesses while
attending court. The Federal
Government receives all the money
paid by the applicants for natural
ization. The money goes into the
Treasury. More than 100000
persons in the United States are
unnaturalized. OF these 1.032, 900
reside in the city Of New York.
Since each nation has its own
peculiar form Of government, It
is rather difficult to say Just
what interest immigrants, a. a
whole, exhibit in public affairs.
ADOPT U. 8. IDEAS.
Temporarily. at least. immi-
grants observe the customs Of the
land from which they came. In
time, Of course. they are assimi-
lated and change their views to
conform to American ideas. Ny
observation shows that many OF
the most prominent men in the
United States have come from
foreign countries. Take the case
of Harry Fischel. for instance:
''Fischel landed in New York
about thirty-fivs years ago. with
$1.37, saw and Q hammer. To
day he Is a director in many Of
the leading institutions Of New
York. He is the owner Of the
Holland House and valuable real
estate along Park avenue and
Fifth avenue. He recently pur-
chased the Astor Library and re-
modelled It. The building Ii now
used to aid immigrants. It 10
known as the Hebrew Sheltering
and immigration Aid Society.
"or the case of Joseph 8. Mar
Gus:
Forty years ago Marcus first
saw New York. His wealth WIS
exactly 81. Embarking In the
clothing line he soon obtained q
reputation for honesty. and was
able to get credit. He organized
the Public National Bank Of New
York, and later sold his shares in
the bank for $1,000. 900. He also
organized the Bank of the United
States, with many branches. He 10
today worth many millions of dol
lars.
Certainly these two men took
much interest in public affairs.
OF course, such instances could be
multiplied"
The Japanese problem, accord
ing to the Congressman, will likely
be settled by diplomacy between
now and the next session of Con.
gress, since It is most probable
that Congress will enact an immI.
grafton law in the winter of 1922
% providing that no immigrant
who intends to remain permanent
ly in the United States shall be
allowed to enter unless he is eligi-
BILE to citizenship.
THE question of illiteracy," OBJ.
served Mr.. Siegel, els a most In
teresting one. According to the
1920 census our country stands
first in illiteracy. The examina.
tions held by the army and navy
officials during the draft showed
there were approximately 2e per
cent of those drafted unable to
use the English language.
POLISHJEW WON PRIZE.
From figures at my disposal I
should say there are about 5000
900 illiterates In the United
States. There are about 1000, 900
Of these illiterates scattered
through the Southern States. But
there should be a sharp reduc-
ton in this number very soon, as
the immigrants now arriving In
this country must pass the
literacy test. Recently the
Daughters Of the American Rev.
olution offered "a prize for the
best essay on George Washing
ton" The prize was won by q
Polish. Jewish lad who arrival In