Evening star., 1923-05-27
SCORE CARD is PLANNED
TO BETTER CITIZENSHIP
Expected to Build Up Community
Rivalry and Promote Activity Il
for Good Government. \:

able to grade itself in definite terms
In regard oits standing along lines
THAI make for good citizenship iahd
their facilities for citizenship. Each
community will be able to check up
actual conditions, to analyze care
fully it's deficiencies in respect Ito
citizenship and to compare itself with
other communities. The element tlof
competition enters at once into khe
use of the card, and 1t IS expected that
the widespread use of the card will
have an excellent effect in stimu-
lating activity in elevating the stand
ards of citizenship.
The details of the score card have
not been made public in their en-
tirety. but school attendance, voting
and other activities which mean the g.
exercise of citizenship will be given
a percentage on the card. and each
community will set down. after in
vestigation, the rating to which it
is entitled under these various head
ings. .,,
x X
One of the great difficulties in this
country in the past-it is difficulty
today also-has been to get all the
good" citizens to go to the polls.
1t has been estimated that very large
number of potential voters fail in
each election to go to the polls. DIR.
Tigert in his address before the
American National Council made the
following significant statement in
this connection: IT doubt If a weak
or undesirable public official has ever
been elected by a larger majority
than the number of good citizens who
failed to vote in the election. / agree
with the statement / heard a public
speaker make the other day when
he said that he had ten times as much
respect for the man who voted ten
times as he did for the man who did
not vote at ALL"
Instances were cited by DR.. Mann
where grating politicians were able
to continue in power because only 81
per cent of the voters turned out to
take part in an election. These same
grating politicians We're cast out. he
said. when only So per cent of the
voters went to the polls after condi-
tions had become such they were
goaded into fulfilling their duty as
citizens.
y X x y
1t may we'll occur to the nearly
half million Citizens" of the United
States now living in the National
Capital that it will take something
more than a government prepared
| chart or score card to enable them,
nn hnr
| to do SO. to show themselves 100 per
cent efficient when it comes to per-
forming the duty of citizens at the
polls. Nothing short of q constitu-
tional amendment will make 1t possi-
BILE for a resident Of the District OF
Columbia to vote for members OF
Congress, who levy taxes upon him
and spend his money. or to vote for
the chief executive Of the land, who
is also the chief executive Of the
District
1t is the plan of the Federal Coun-
| ell of Citizenship Training to CO.
operate. with the many non-govern-
mental agencies, public and private,
which are engaged in seeking to inn
prove citizenship throughout the
| the means of such cooperation. 1t is
estimated there are about 1000 ma
| tional agencies which are applying
| themselves today to the problems of
social, and civic improvement. There
| are other thousands of local agen-
| cies engaged in the same kind of
work. If these agencies can be
brought to work together along only
few lines the impetus given to the
movement for better citizenship will
be very great.
The American National Council, OF
which President Harding is the homo
rary president and Frank A. Wander
lip the acting president. will CO.
operate in every way with the gov
ernmental agencies in the crusade
now. launched.