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collection of several hundred books for recreational reading and for purposes of study, in addition to the books circulated for home and school use. The aim is to give to the children's room in a public library an atmosphere that invites familiar acquaintance with the room and its books and fosters the love of reading.

Individual tastes indicative of the natural bent of many a boy or girl in the line of drawing, invention, mechanics, natural history, poetry, or music, and a growing tendency to seek books in libraries to gratify personal preferences, are constantly observed, and are followed with interest by the children's librarians, who are known among the immigrant children as "library teachers." It is indeed at this point that the cooperation between the library and the school may become a vital thing by definitely relating interests awakened in school to books in the library.

For several years the library has supplemented with books the classroom libraries supplied by the board of education. Principals and teachers have often been aided with lists and other helps, and many of them have brought classes to spend an hour of a school session in learning the use of reference books and catalogues, in browsing at bookshelves or at tables where books dealing with a subject combining the study of English and geography had been placed by library assistants, or in listening to a story related to the study of English.

IV. EDUCATION OF THE IMMIGRANT ADULT.

I.-By CLARENCE M. ABBOTT,

North American Civic League for Immigrants.

The State of New York, in its education law, provides that working children between the ages of 14 and 16 in cities of the first and second class shall attend evening school, but no obligation for evening classes rests upon smaller cities or villages. Extension of evening educational advantages to thousands of immigrants and others for whom they are required depends absolutely upon individual boards of education. In some communities immigrant adults attend classes with American boys to the disadvantage of both; in others there is a partial recognition of the necessities of the immigrant and notably in the largest cities there are special schools or classes for the instruction of the immigrants. "Home rule" prevails and the State of New York has never in its statutes gone on record for the instruction of immigrants save as regards labor camps.

A Massachusetts law requires evening classes in communities of 10,000 population or larger and obliges the attendance of illiterate minors upon them. The statute places the responsibility of enforcing

attendance upon the employer, who may be fined if his illiterate laborers do not present themselves at evening school. The obligation laid upon cities to conduct evening classes is well worth imitation, but compelled attendance is doubtful in policy and difficult in enforcement.

In the report of the New York State education department for 1911 the following statement occurs:

The policy of the State should be to require all cities and all districts having a certain number of foreign adults who have declared their intention to become citizens to maintain night schools wherein such persons may be taught the English language and American history. Special apportionments of State funds in support of these schools should be authorized.

This view of the necessities of the case is commendable, but it is not sufficiently broad. Great Americanizing advantages such as are here proposed should not be restricted to those immigrants who have procured their first naturalization papers, but should be open to all.

Not including New York City there are 25 cities and 6 villages that conduct classes for teaching English to foreigners, the average duration of the session being 60 nights. The total average attendance upon these classes is 5,794. This important educational work is not carried on by the public schools in 19 cities which range in population from 9,000 to 21,000. Some school superintendents say in explanation that they have fruitlessly urged the organization of these classes; others that the city budget does not provide for them; that they have been previously unsuccessfully tried; that the foreigners are few in number in the community; that private agencies, such as the Y. M. C. A. or social settlements, are carrying the responsibility.

Adequate instruction of the immigrant involves: (1) The teaching of English; (2) protectional information; (3) civics instruction and naturalization aid; (4) public lectures in native tongues and English; (5) library advantages; (6) museums, etc.

It seems perfectly clear that instruction in English must be first undertaken. If the textbook or the developed theme have relation to the daily life and experience of the immigrant, then a great advantage is gained. From the very first hour the immigrant lands at the Battery he is a prey of those who would fraudulently gain his money. Protectional information against these abuses should be furnished them at the earliest possible time through well-arranged textbooks or themes.

Definite and special instruction in civics, or the incidental conveying of information on this subject, is included in most schools where English-to-foreigners classes are organized. However, there are five cities in New York State where civics is not taught to the immigrant adult in the public schools. The adoption of definite civics for foreigners' courses by the cities of Buffalo and New York has been

an important advance. Civics instruction should not touch the naturalization courts theoretically, but can with the consent of naturalization examiners and judges be made an actual preparation for the court test. Such is the practice in Los Angeles, where the school instructs for entrance to citizenship, and it is possible in New York State as well. Judges here have expressed favorable views with reference to the principle of definite school preparation for the examination. The details can no doubt be arranged.

The system of lectures in the New York public schools has made a very great educational impression. The use of the native tongue in some foreign communities increases the advantages offered and is greatly appreciated by the auditors. A few other cities in the State have opened their schoolhouses for public-school lectures, but none have developed as fully as the New York Bureau of Lectures. For the instruction of the newly arrived immigrants in large bodies concerning America and its ways there is no opportunity equal to that of the public-school lectures in the native tongue of the alien.

Public attention has recently been drawn to the desirability of establishing small museums in various sections of cities, where art and culture can be exemplified and brought within reach of the people. What a great educational advantage would be gained if exhibits of this kind, perhaps changing in character, could be added to the activities of the public school or library and be inade available for directed study by the immigrant and his child.

The evening-school system in New York City under the admirable direction of Mr. Shields should be considered alone, and may be said to afford the greatest and most convincing example of educational work for immigrants in America. The average attendance of over 20,000, the 20 or more nationalities represented, and the interest manifested among the pupils are sufficient evidence of a growing interest. Mr. Shields's last report upon the New York evening schools is a splendid analysis of the work, which frankly discusses failure as well

as successes.

While, beyond doubt, the learning of English should be urged upon the immigrant, if illiterate he should not be deprived of books in his own tongue. He has brought an inestimable treasure to Americaan inheritance of old-world culture. The Italian barber possibly knows Dante better than you or I, for he is devoted to his classics in literature as well as music, and they should be available to him. It is not sufficient to have an uninteresting collection of books in foreign languages in a main library perhaps a mile or more from the foreign colony; there should be branches or distribution centers near the colony. Ample publicity of the library advantages should be given through the foreign-language press, and earnest and sympathetic effort should be made to popularize the branch. With the

exception of those in New York and a few other cities, libraries are not progressive in their educational work for foreigners.

The State education department has traveling libraries for foreigners in a few languages, and these are freely borrowed by local libraries. Our efforts generally in educating the immigrant should be to increase the public institutions for him and to urge him to use them. The one subject can gradually be accomplished by publicity and demonstration of facts, and others by publicity again through the foreign language press, by cooperation of national societies, and in similar ways.

II.-By E. H. LEWINSKI-CORWIN,
New York Academy of Medicine.

This country, as well as this city, faces a very serious social problem created by the nature of the recent heavy immigration, which is composed mainly of Slavs and Italians, two races who in their mores, their folkways, their habits of mind and life, conceptions of right and wrong, traditions, and physic reactions are very different from the people into whose midst they have come. They may be, and they are, possessed of great gifts and latent possibilities that will prove at some future day a great asset to this country, but for the time being they present a serious problem, a problem of adjustment.

There exist very disquieting signs that our body politic has not yet struck the best solution of this problem. One illustration out of a great number may suffice. I quote from Prof. Chaddock's paper published in the Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Sciences, March, 1911, page 73:

The number of male prisoners per 1,000,000 of the population of voting age in 1890 was as follows: Native white of native parents, 3,395; native white of foreign parents, 5,886; foreign whites, 3,270. In this analysis, age for age, the foreign born show a lower rate than the native born. Besides, the table shows criminality among the native born of foreign parents twice as high as either of the other groups.

There exists a lack of adjustment and a disrupting social influence. in that children of foreign parentage brought up in this country grow out of harmony with their parents. They become different, and not being educated enough, they become ashamed of their parents' ways, and lose all respect for them. Proper family ties. become loosened and often altogether disrupted. This lack of family spirit, of family pride, added to the lack of adjustment, is responsible for the lapses in the second generation, as partially illustrated in the above statistics. Many of us realize this, and it leads us to put emphasis on the importance of the education of the immigrant adult. He must be given every opportunity possible to educate his mind and

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to find himself-an opportunity which was denied to him in his native land. You can not expect to do it through the medium of the English language; you can not expect that an unschooled man or a woman working hard all day in shop, factory, mill, or railway will grasp the English language to such an extent as to enjoy reading and thinking in this language. They will never do it. They must be educated, if at all, through the medium of their native tongue. Hence the need of libraries, educational and recreational centers, where all that is worth while may be given to them in a way that they may understand and enjoy.

III. By MRS. ADELAIDE BOWLES MALTBY,

Tompkins Square Branch, New York Public Library.

The New York Library has 41 branches, and all that are located in districts where foreigners live have collections of books in languages native to the residents. In this way we try to show our friendship to those adults who do not read English and may never do so. This makes it possible to impart American ideas and ideals and aids the parents to keep in touch with their children, who rapidly take on new ways and manners. Our books are selected from the best authors in their own languages, and there are translations from our best authors. Of course we include civics, American histories, naturalization pamphlets, and other books intended to teach our laws, customs, and traditions.

We go even further. We have assistants of the nationalities represented whose especial duty it is to seek the acquaintance of their countrymen and to make known to them the library privileges. The papers printed in foreign languages are always glad to publish items which will help their patrons, and we use their columns freely. Foreigners become Americans under such conditions much more naturally and rapidly than they would without books in their own tongues. The desire to learn English is early evident. We find it. difficult, indeed, to supply enough books of the sort which teach the language, hold the reader's interest, and present right ideals, all at the same time.

IV. By Rosamond KIMBALL.

The fortnight which the foreigners spend aboard ship on their way to America affords an opportunity to reach these people at a time when they have nothing to do but listen and learn. It is, perhaps, the only time in their lives when they have leisure, and when they are peculiarly alive to the best thoughts and ideals that we can give

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