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 AMERICANIZING AN 
 INDUSTRIAL CENTER 
 
 AN ACCOUNT OF 
 EXPERIENCE AND PROCEDURE 
 
 IN THE TOWNS OF THE 
 
 St. Louis. Rocky Mountain & Pacific Company 
 
 IN 
 COLFAX COUNTY. NEW MEXICO 
 
 HORACE W.KRUSE 
 WELFARE MANAGER 
 
 MANAC 
 
AMERICANIZING AN 
 INDUSTRIAL CENTER 
 
 AN ACCOUNT OF 
 EXPERIENCE AND PROCEDURE 
 
 IN THE TOWNS OF THE 
 
 St. Louis. Rocky Mountain & Pacific Company 
 
 IN 
 
 COLFAX COUNTY. NEW MEXICO 
 
 HORACE WJCRySE 
 WELFARE MXfCAGER 
 
'C7 kr 
 
 Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 in 2007 with funding from 
 
 IVIicrosoft Corporation 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/americanizingindOOkrusrich 
 
Copyright, 1920 
 
 By 
 Horace W. Kruse 
 
THE NEED OF THE WORK 
 
 In this day when the attention of the nation is drawn to- 
 ward its foreign born population, the vital question is to 
 find means of assimilating this vast influx of people into 
 our American life and imbuing them with American stand- 
 ards and ideals. The work of Americanization to be well 
 grounded, must start at the beginnings. In the first place, 
 recognition must be made of the conditions which these 
 people were used to in Europe and Asia. The majority of 
 them came in the hope of finding everything different here, 
 and better than the conditions they left behind in the old 
 country. The word "Liberty" attracted them supremely. 
 But the realization is in no way equal to their anticipation. 
 They arrive in New York in vast hordes and in a few hours 
 they are lost in this country. Many of them have come here 
 because of word they have received from relatives who pre- 
 ceded them. Those, perhaps, are most fortunate. They find 
 their way into different parts of the country; others, who 
 are pioneers, get lost in the life of the big cities. 
 
 Vast numbers of the immigrants finally locate in the 
 great industrial centers. It is with the problems in one of 
 these centers that we have to deal. 
 
 THE ALIEN GROUP 
 
 Our first problem in dealing with the foreign born in an 
 industrial center is this. As soon as the foreigners arrive 
 they group themselves. In our small towns we find that we 
 have whole communities of Italians, Montenegrins, Aus- 
 trians, Greeks, Japanese; and we find, too, that here, 
 grouped together as they are, they adhere as closely to the 
 customs of the countries from which they came as it is pos- 
 sible for them to do. 
 
 To one informed as to the vast differences of social view- 
 point, the ideals and customs of the foreign born, it is ob- 
 vious that any rigid system of management in such an en- 
 deavor would be ineffective. Furthermore, practically any 
 
 Page Five 
 
method of procedure that might be evolved requires con- 
 stant alteration and sometimes reversal of practice to fulfill 
 even in part the demands that arise in conditions that are 
 local and in a way peculiar. 
 
 For the most part, the Americans if they consider for- 
 eigners at all, think that the privilege of coming to this coun- 
 try is quite enough. They feel that merely being here is a 
 sufficient incentive for them to absorb American standards, 
 and that in permitting them to come to this country the ob- 
 ligation toward them has been fully met. Few have appre- 
 ciated the menace of these foreign communities to the gen- 
 eral welfare of our country until they were startled into the 
 realization of what these groupings of foreigners really held. 
 Investigation showed that they knew nothing of the Amer- 
 ican questions; they had no incentive to acquire American 
 ideals. For years they lived in the country without being 
 able to speak the language. The great majority of the for- 
 eigners were satisfied to be here and it was their intention 
 to stay in this country. Then, it was the part of the Amer- 
 ican people to instill into these people the spirit that v/ould 
 prompt them to want to become American citizens. When 
 the Americanization movement is mentioned it too often re- 
 solves itself into thinking that the only thing to do is to ask 
 the foreigners to take out their first papers. No special at- 
 tention is paid as to whether facilities are given them to 
 learn the language or in any way to learn the standards of 
 living as they are recognized here. 
 
 THE GROUP PROBLEM AT OUR MINES 
 
 At our several mines it is a noticeable circumstance that 
 the various nationalities have, insofar as practicable, formed 
 distinct communities among their own races, collecting in 
 neighborhoods in the closely built towns so that they may 
 associate as exclusively and continue as far as compatible 
 with American privileges, the habits and customs peculiar 
 to their own lands. Our experience leads us not to discour- 
 age this practice but to meet it from another angle. In the 
 
 Page Six 
 
meantime, it is much easier to approach the foreign born 
 through their own selected leaders, who are conversant with 
 the language and practice of their American fellows. The 
 Company has placed the responsibility upon the American- 
 ization educators to inform themselves thoroughly and sym- 
 pathetically upon the basic characteristics of the workmen so 
 that common ground may be found for accomplishing a 
 union of these alien characteristics with the desired ideals 
 of social contact and American institutions. The accom- 
 plishment of the whole general plan of welfare work is 
 through education, the ultimate end being Americanization. 
 The people must be taught American ways. They must be 
 surrounded with American standards of living. 
 
 CLEANLINESS AND ORDER, THE FIRST FACTORS 
 
 The problem of Americanization must be taken up in the 
 light of fundamental principles. Before we made any men- 
 tion to the foreigners about taking out first papers, a cam- 
 paign was inaugurated to show these people what it meant 
 to live in America. A point of contact had to be gotten. 
 With infinite thoughtfulness the management of the Com- 
 pany provided means whereby its foreign population could 
 be taught the first requisite in American living — ^to keep 
 clean. The only way that their living conditions can be 
 described is in the phrase that they "nested" together. In- 
 vestigations disclosed that frequently as many as twenty 
 persons were living in a four-room house. The crowded con- 
 dition in the tenements of our great cities could hardly offer 
 parallel to the conditions as they existed with the foreigners 
 in these communities. 
 
 First, then, as a corrective, the houses were made more 
 attractive for the tenants by cleaning them thoroughly and 
 giving each house a coat of paint. Soon after, ash cans were 
 provided in which the litter was placed, instead of allowing 
 it to be scattered around the towns. And each house was 
 fenced so that each family had its allotment of ground. All 
 
 Pag* Seven 
 
/ 
 
 this was encouraging. The tenant began to have a certain 
 feeling of proprietorship. The cleaning of the towns then 
 became a very simple problem. As the improvement work 
 progressed the needs unfolded themselves to the Company, 
 often in almost laughable ways. Things that had seemed al- 
 together insignificant suddenly started out into the fore- 
 ground. For instance, when the fences were built, the for- 
 eigners received them with delight ; not on account of defined 
 boundaries, but as a convenience, a place upon which they 
 could hang everything that would hang on a fence. It was 
 a picturesque thing, but one of appalling disorder to go into 
 the towns and see fence after fence covered with washing, 
 carpets and clothes — everything. It was apparent that 
 clothes-lines were needed and clothes-poles. The Company 
 furnished them but the problem of disorder was by no 
 means solved. 
 
 Everything that was not found of use in the house was 
 thrown into the yard. Boxes were nailed on the outside of 
 the houses ; wash tubs regaled the front and back porches ; 
 beds that for a time might be out of use were put outside; 
 the general appearance was discouraging in the extreme. 
 To meet this phase of the situation required some very 
 adroit handling. Each family had to be visited and impress- 
 ed with the fact that order was a requirement. Cellars then 
 had to be provided for the storing of such things as were 
 needed only for special occasions, and with the exercise of 
 endless patience the outside appearance of the houses was 
 finally improved. It was important not to antagonize the 
 people but to win them to the cause and to rouse in them a 
 worthy pride. 
 
 Another improvement tending toward the general order 
 of the community was the building of a coal bin for each 
 house. This did away with the amazing untidiness of having 
 a load of coal scattered around the yard. All of this was 
 done to show the people what it meant to live in America. 
 
 TOWN MEASURES 
 
 The Company has always provided adequate facilities for 
 
 Pag« Eight 
 
the housing of its employees in the mining communities, 
 both as to the furnishing of dwellings for the men of family 
 and of spacious boarding houses for single men. However, 
 for some years, little attention was directed toward any fea- 
 ture of the housing other than the equipment of substantial 
 buildings of the frame type such as are ordinarily provided 
 in coal mining centers for the convenience of workmen. Suf- 
 ficient space for the number of people allotted to the houses 
 of various size and a dependable shelter for such number con- 
 cluded the problem of housing, exclusive of the necessary 
 maintenance. This system answered the requirements of 
 our labor quite effectively for years and was altered follow- 
 ing a desire to educate our workmen to an appreciation of 
 the better sanitary manner in which American workmen are 
 accustomed to live in their homes. 
 
 Through the appointment of housing inspectors a sys- 
 tem of supervision in ordinary sanitation was inaugurated. 
 The duties of the several inspectors include a daily supervi- 
 sion of the premises of all dwelling houses with instructions 
 to the householder as to the proper care of the disposal of 
 garbage and the cleanliness of yards, outhouses, fences and 
 like equipment of each place. The work was facilitated bj^ 
 an order issued for the removal of all the unnecessary struc- 
 tures and the general litter accumulated through years of 
 tenancy. As soon as this renovation was accomplished work 
 was begun in improving the appearance of the dwelling 
 houses and premises. Most of the houses constructed in the 
 earlier days of operation were of frame design, and although 
 there was a general uniformity in the various arrangement 
 of houses, yet there was a noticeable variance in the com- 
 munity appearance because of certain disregard that the 
 foreigners had for the appearance of their homes and yards. 
 
 The frame buildings which were in proper state of pre- 
 servation were all painted, and others of older structure 
 were refinished by the application of a concrete pebble-dash 
 coating, which improved the general appearance and at once 
 added to the comfort of the occupants by increasing the 
 warmth of the building. 
 
 Page Nine 
 
The work of refinishing and re-decorating older struc- 
 tures was supplemented by the plan followed in erecting new 
 houses of more enduring materials than wood. New houses 
 now constructed in the towns are of concrete and of hollow 
 tile design. They vary in size from the comfortable four- 
 room cottage to the six-room house complete with clothes 
 closets, bath rooms. and large screened-in porches. 
 
 Close study of all problems of the disposal of garbage 
 and the regular renovating of yards has furnished informa- 
 tion which is valuable in summarizing the needs of all local- 
 ities and communities in each of the mine properties. Daily 
 removal of garbage accumulating from the kitchen and 
 household has taught the householders the importance of 
 meeting the Company's efforts in keeping their habitations 
 clean. 
 
 Each house now is furnished with electric lights and 
 running water in or adjacent to the house. 
 
 To assist in the care of the garden as well as to provide 
 a convenient water supply for household use, the Company 
 has installed extensive water systems covering all its towns 
 where natural water supply is available, and in localities 
 where natural source is lacking water is hauled daily to 
 furnish all the needs of each family at a minimum charge 
 for the labor service. 
 
 The residents of the towns are rapidly acquiring a 
 knowledge of the care of their places and although there is 
 an occasional laggard, yet the majority respond willingly 
 and have a pride in the appearance of their homes. 
 
 Hundreds of trees have been set out in the yards and in 
 the community centers which add greatly to the general at- 
 tractiveness. Lawns have been planted and each year the 
 Company gives special attention to beautifying the towns. 
 
 The new towns are models in appearance. There is a 
 fine general maintenance of the equipment, to which the 
 Company may point with pride. The uniform appearance 
 of the houses and yards, well graded street levels and alley- 
 ways give the general aspect of a city rather than that of a 
 
 Pag* T«n 
 
mining community. At night the towns are lighted with 
 electric street lamps. 
 
 BOARDING HOUSES 
 
 Many of the men employed by the Company are single 
 and provision must be made to furnish them with suitable 
 places in which to live. Men well housed and well fed are 
 satisfied and efficient workers ; so it has been the plan of the 
 Company to supervise the operation of the boarding houses 
 and in that way to promote contentment among this portion 
 of its working force. 
 
 The boarding houses are substantially built, being de- 
 signed to provide adequate room space for sleeping quar- 
 ters as well as for living rooms, dining rooms and kitchens. 
 The Company keeps the buildings in perfect repair. They 
 are regularly renovated and redecorated so as to have them 
 always attractively clean. All windows and doors are 
 screened and screened-in porches add to the comfort of the 
 men during pleasant weather. It is diflficult to find people 
 w^ho are qualified to manage the boarding houses, and toward 
 their selection very special attention is given. 
 
 BATH HOUSES 
 
 As part of the general welfare and improvement plan, 
 the Company has installed at each of its towns bath house 
 equipment with showers and dressing rooms. The service 
 is free. To get the effect of this innovation on the men, it 
 is only necessary to see the men entering the bath houses as 
 they come from work — tired, black beyond recognition, ex- 
 pressionless — and then to see them leave the house, refresh- 
 ed, transformed in appearance, and alert to get the best out 
 of the hours they still may spend in the daylight. The return 
 of the men to their homes in this condition has its psycho- 
 logical effect on the home life. It seems to make the home 
 a place to which the men are glad to go and where they 
 naturally are more welcome. 
 
 Page Eleven 
 
MEDICAL AND HOSPITAL CARE 
 
 The medical care of the employees of the Company re- 
 ceives careful attention. In each town there is a resident 
 doctor and at a central point the Company maintains a high- 
 ly modern and thoroughly equipped hospital in charge of the 
 Chief Surgeon for the Company. A sufficient corps of 
 trained nurses is maintained, so that in case of an emergency 
 any town may call upon the hospital for assistance. A part 
 of the hospital equipment includes a completely equipped 
 operating room, modem laboratory, and a Universal X-ray 
 Snook Transformer. Twice each year the school children 
 are examined and copies of the results are sent the par- 
 ents, the principal of the schools and the Chief Surgeon. 
 
 COMPANY STORES 
 
 At all towns general stores are operated for the conven- 
 ience of the residents. They carry complete lines of mer- 
 chandise and anticipate the varied demands of the trade. 
 Prices are in line with those in the adjacent city. Orders are 
 taken at the houses and supplies are delivered through regu- 
 lar delivery service. At each of the stores there is a bank 
 which is run in strict conformity with banking laws and pro- 
 cedure. They conduct a regular banking business and are 
 generously patronized by the town residents. 
 
 MEETING THE PROBLEM AT THE HOME AND THE 
 SCHOOL 
 
 Then came the more delicate problem of reconstructing 
 the inner conditions of the homes. For this work travelling 
 nurses were engaged. It required persons of the utmost 
 tact and skill to meet the complex and delicate situation. It 
 did not mean going into the houses and telling what should 
 be done; it meant going into the houses and working with 
 the families to show them how things should be done and to 
 reveal to them that from the standpoint of hygiene and 
 
 Page Twelve 
 
health the new conditions were of inestimable benefit to 
 them. They were taught to wash their windows, scrub 
 floors, to care for food, screen windows and doors and in 
 new and better ways to care for their children. 
 
 At the same time a like work was conducted through 
 the schools with gratifying results. At the beginning of the 
 school year prizes were offered for personal cleanliness. 
 This did not require that the children should wear their 
 Sunday clothes every day, but it did hold out that each child 
 should come to school with his face and hands clean and his 
 clothes brushed. When the Welfare Manager visited the 
 school it was always a subject for comment and praise. The 
 children very quickly caught the idea and were proud to 
 show their hands, often scrubbed raw in the effort to get 
 them clean ; their faces shone and their heads were slicked 
 with brushing. At the end of the year it was very difficult to 
 award the prizes, but it had to be carried out according to 
 promise, so the prizes were given and an especial day set 
 aside for a school picnic. 
 
 It is of more than passing significance that the children 
 themselves volunteered to put their prize money into library 
 equipment. Surely the work of Americanization finds its 
 greatest success in educating the children. They carry the 
 influence into the homes and into the future. 
 
 The work is intensely interesting and furnishes all kinds 
 of choice experiences. The teacher in one of the primary 
 schools one day asked a bright-eyed little girl who was chew- 
 ing gum to put her gum in the waste paper basket. The 
 child hesitated and was loath to obey. The teacher spoke 
 again and asked if she had not heard the request. Mary 
 raised her bright eyes appealingly. "Please, teacher, please," 
 she said, "it's my mother's!" Hardly could one execute a 
 command in the face of such a fact. 
 
 THE SCHOOL 
 
 In all this work the school is our best friend. Roger W. 
 Babson, in concluding his publication of "The Future of the 
 
 Page Thirteen 
 
Working Classes" says : "Those of us who are interested in 
 the future of the working classes should cease looking to ar- 
 bitration and the courts, but rather to education and 
 schools," making clear his point that "strikes and wars can 
 be alleviated only by training the youth of the nation in the 
 fundamentals of character and economic intelligence." So a 
 two-fold duty devolves on our schools — ^to instruct the child 
 in the fundamentals of character and economic intelligence, 
 and through the child to reach the parent. Immediate re- 
 sults cannot be achieved by primary work among the adult 
 population, so the first effort must be made to prepare for 
 the assimilation of the children. 
 
 American freedom in the home, which is peculiar to our 
 own land, is most easily learned by the foreign bom through 
 the children, and our good schools have proved fine forces 
 for spreading education beyond the school room. There is 
 instilled into the minds of the youthful alien a desire to ac- 
 quire the semblance of that home freedom for his own. The 
 position is reached whereby the child speaks in the leading 
 voice to the elder member of the houshold. In the main this 
 part of the undertaking goes smoothly. It has been an easy 
 matter to incite constant attendance at school so far as the 
 children are concerned. The hampering condition is the fact 
 that many of our foreign bom people were not previously 
 impressed with the value and need of primary education, and 
 a few at times have stood in the way of their children being 
 among their playmates in convenient and pleasant surround- 
 ings in the school and on the well-equipped school grounds. 
 
 SCHOOL METHODS PRACTICABLE AND PLEASUR- 
 ABLE 
 
 The average coal miner's child receives only such educa- 
 tional training as he gets in the town schools ; therefore, it 
 is of the greatest importance that he be given the kind of 
 training best to fit him to concentrate and think, to organ- 
 ize and reason, to work and rule. In artistic surroundings 
 
 Page Fourteen 
 
to be given instruction in the practical subjects and not in 
 the fashionable sciences. With that in mind, the training of 
 the child is at present carried on from the kindergarten 
 through the eighth grade. At the beginning of the school 
 year the kindergarten is made up almost entirely of children 
 of foreign parents who do not understand a word of Eng- 
 lish. To the delight of the child, he is given things to do that 
 his home life has been wholly bereft of. School at once is a 
 kind of strange wonderland for him. Here he works with 
 papers of gorgeous hues, colors so alluring to the foreigner, 
 moulds in clay, plays in games to muiVic, and all the time is 
 rapidly acquiring a speaking knowledge of the English lan- 
 guage. He is taught cleanliness since good health is the first 
 requisite of good work. Proper exercises are given and at 
 all times play is mingled with work, so that the child gets his 
 full quota of exercise and fresh air. Special emphasis is 
 placed on this feature of our educational system because we 
 realize that the kindergarten not only takes the child at its 
 most impressionable period, but that it furnishes a center 
 from which to radiate influences that affect the whole social 
 betterment situation. A little girl of six brought to the sew- 
 ing teacher materials for sash curtains. She asked the 
 teacher to make them. The child had persuaded her father 
 to buy the material because she wanted curtains in her hom.e 
 like the ones at school. 
 
 At the end of the kindergarten year the little foreigners 
 speak English very fluently and are then prepared for the 
 next step in Americanization, the beginning of the regular 
 graded school work. Here special attention is given to the 
 practical. The girls are instructed in sewing, being taught 
 to make their own dresses, trim their hats and make cur- 
 tains and useful articles for the adornment of their homes. 
 Particular attention is given to corrective gymnastics and at 
 each town specially trained instructors look after this work. 
 Gymnastic drills in military formation to music are part of 
 each day's work, and basket ball, volley ball, foot ball, and 
 base ball are indulged in with immense delight. Play- 
 Page Fifteen 
 
grounds equipped with the most modem and approved ap- 
 pliances are installed in each town and supervised play is in 
 each school schedule. To carry on the school work a corps 
 of thoroughly trained, competent and experienced teachers 
 is employed. Special attention is given to house and equip- 
 ment. Each school has a piano and Victrola and educational 
 material and supplies are provided to meet the special re- 
 quirements. In every room there is an American flag to 
 which the pupils pledge their allegiance at the beginning of 
 the morning session. The Company looks after the comfort 
 of the teachers and provides houses completely furnished in 
 which they may live. During the summer months the boys 
 and girls are in charge of supervisors, to look after garden- 
 ing and other projects. 
 
 Fine recognition should be given the teachers who are 
 quietly guiding and uplifting the children under their train- 
 ing. They strive conscientiously to make the work a suc- 
 cess, and upon them so much depends. The real teacher is a 
 gifted person and proper recognition should be made of 
 those who engage in the profession by giving them better 
 financial compensation. Everyone is not qualified to teach, 
 but those who are create an important class of professional 
 people. They are zealous and proud of their work. We 
 should prove our sincerity by working with and not against 
 them. They find their dignity, their courage, their joy in 
 the work because of its ultimate end, always in sight, al- 
 ways attainable. 
 
 NIGHT SCHOOLS 
 
 At the time of original employment with the Company, 
 each applicant for work is asked if he desires to attend 
 night school. The records show that over 80% of the Europ- 
 ean workers who are unmarried have expressed their desire 
 to begin their education in the English language. Without 
 expense to the men, provision is made for them to attend 
 night school, where special instruction is given them to pre- 
 pare to become citizens through naturalization. 
 
 Page Sixteen 
 
It is not an easy matter to carry on night school work. 
 The drifting tendencies of the men make regular attendance 
 a difficult problem. It is hard to find suitable teachers. To 
 be successful they must be singularly alive to the work and 
 must appreciate the seriousness of teaching adults with the 
 same patience that is required in handling children. The 
 work must be vivified, with the teacher alert to the degree 
 that he can take the inspiration from the class and turn it to 
 practical account. In the first lesson the foreigner must get 
 something that he can use the next day in his work, at the 
 mine office, at the store and in his home. He must be made 
 to feel the great advantage that speaking English holds over 
 his own language. 
 
 Mistakes by the pupil are many, but he must 
 never be. made the object of ridicule. He is a man grown 
 and approaches his English instruction very timidly. He 
 must be given confidence in himself to speak and patiently 
 led on until his advancement inspires the needed attribute — 
 courage. 
 
 Our experience shows that in very few lessons the men 
 are able to give such information as this : the location of the 
 places in the mine, the kind of work they do, check number, 
 house number, to ask for materials required in their work. 
 
 The first requisite of the instruction should be that the 
 work must proceed along plain, simple and understandable 
 lines. 
 
 The night school course should be arranged in short 
 terms. The work should be intensive. A man enters for 
 three weeks. In that time a definite instruction is given so 
 that at the end of the term he finds that he has acquired 
 something worth while. He is then interested to go on. 
 New pupils are enrolled only at the beginning of the term. 
 A successful procedure in English instruction is through the 
 use of pictures. The foreigner, with his natural love for 
 pictures, easily associates names with objects and in this 
 manner he increases his vocabulary. 
 
 Each employer has his special problem to work out in the 
 matter of night schools. Many methods have been proposed 
 
 Page Seventeen 
 
to Congress toward the end of educating the foreign born. 
 The most important thing is to provide the means for the 
 foreigner to get his instruction. He should not be paid, 
 nor should bonuses be given for his attendance at night 
 school, but he should be shown the advantages of being able 
 to speak our language and have it made clear that he cannot 
 share in the privileges of citizenship until he has proved 
 himself worthy of them. To pay him for his attendance 
 at night school would give him the impression that he would 
 be favoring his employer instead o f benefitting himself. It 
 is mutually advantageous that the foreigner should speak 
 our language ; but in dealing with an emotional, impression- 
 able people a real danger lurks in the approach from the 
 wrong angle. 
 
 Great stress is laid upon the importance of instilling 
 American ideals in the minds of the foreign born workers 
 in our industries, but as yet few suggestions have been made 
 for the furtherance of a plan to renew the pride and to 
 stimulate the latent appreciation of such ideals in the hearts 
 of our own native born fellows who are the associates of 
 these newcomers in our industrial organizations. The work 
 of Americanizing the American should keep pace with the 
 work of Americanizing the foreign born. 
 
 Americanization is a complex matter and there are many 
 approaches to it. It necessarily is a slow and thorough pro- 
 cess if it is complete. There can be no doubt about the first 
 steps — the influence of American living conditions, instruc- 
 tion in the English language, and most effective of all, the 
 education of the rising generation. 
 
 AGAIN, THE GROUP PROBLEM 
 
 Welfare work is constructive — improvement work al- 
 ways is. The accomplishment of one thing shows the neces- 
 sity for another. And so with the houses made attractive 
 and comfortable, the fences having been completed, the 
 sanitary and general health conditions having constant at- 
 tention, the bath houses in operation, the schools of high 
 
 Page Eighteen 
 
standard ; in a word, the towns made at once pleasing in ap- 
 pearance and desirable places in which to live ; yet this con- 
 dition which has already been mentioned — ^the disposition of 
 the foreigners to segregate — still comes prominently into 
 the foreground. The towns are made up of unassimilated 
 groups — ^groups with varying social ideals, varying lang- 
 uages. The need, then, was to have a common ground 
 where the different nationalities could meet for recreation 
 and enjoyment. The saloon had formerly served in its way 
 as a meeting place for men. When prohibition became effec- 
 tive, it was decided to convert the old saloon buildings into 
 community houses. ' 
 
 COMMUNITY HOUSES FOR AMERICANIZING THE 
 GROUPS .. 
 
 The carrying out of this plan has provided the towns 
 with most attractive social centers. There is nothing now 
 that suggests the old saloons, for in the remodeling and ex- 
 tensive additions they have entirely lost their identity and 
 m their stead are carefully planned buildings which are won- 
 derfully suited to the purpose of giving pleasure to hundreds 
 of people living in the mining communities operated by the 
 Company. 
 
 In the main the general plan is the same for all of the 
 houses, though they have their separate characteristic style 
 in architectural design. The arrangement includes a screen- 
 ed-in porch from which entrance is gained to a spacious re- 
 freshment room in which is a soda fountain, furnished with 
 all the appliances and devices employed in the serving of 
 fountain refreshments. The dance halls adjoin the refresh- 
 ment rooms and are arranged and constructed to accommo- 
 date the maximum attendance. These rooms are also fur- 
 nished to provide for motion picture entertainment and are 
 fitted out with modern picture machines and their scientific 
 appliances which make them most efficient. The pictures are 
 always selected from the best programs offered by dis- 
 
 Page Nineteen 
 
tributors and include the super-special productions as they 
 are released for exhibition. 
 
 Frequent dances, concerts, social affairs and club meet- 
 ings enliven the town spirit and promote a desired mingling 
 of nationalities under wholesome, happy conditions. 
 
 Other rooms in the building provide generous accom- 
 modations for library and reading rooms, women's parlors, 
 completely arranged kitchens, billiard and pool rooms and 
 barber shops. The furnishings have been carefully selected 
 to the end that they may give the greatest comfort to the 
 town people. They are substantial in design and of fine 
 finish — Flemish oak, combined with leather, give the rooms 
 a certain elegance of tone. 
 
 As part of the regular furnishings, phonographs are in- 
 stalled and each house has one of the finest of electrically 
 controlled expression pianos. Here the people may gather 
 for general entertainment, the women may have their after- 
 noon social meetings for which they may prepare and serve 
 their own refreshments, the young people may enjoy their 
 dancing, all of which in no way interferes with those who 
 wish to spend a quiet hour in reading or writing. 
 
 SIDELIGHTS 
 
 Precautionary Measures During the Epidemic 
 
 During the recent epidemic of influenza the schools were 
 kept open until it became necessary to use the buildings for 
 emergency hospitals. Up to this time there had been no 
 cases of influenza among the children, and the subject of 
 hygiene came to the fore. The children, on reaching the 
 school, were first given a gargle drill. Each child had his 
 own cup. The cups were prepared by the teacher with salt 
 water gargle ; then the children were marched out for a reg- 
 ular gargle drill. They delighted in it and gargled away 
 with the enthusiasm of a chorus in light opera. Whether 
 this means was an effective one or not, the results were sat- 
 isfactory. As a further health measure, the childijlen were 
 
 Page Twenty 
 
 I 
 
given supervised exercise during the morning and afternoon 
 sessions, and as many recitations as could be were conducted 
 out of doors. The children were lined up in military forma- 
 tion and given calesthenics and breathing exercises which 
 they executed with zeal. 
 
 It happened that the epidemic gripped many commun- 
 ities of the State before precautionary measures could be 
 taken. People feared and dreaded it without knowing how to 
 protect themselves. To guard the towns of the Company 
 against the epidemic they were all placed in a state of 
 quarantine before the influenza made its appearance in the 
 surrounding towns. The main idea of the Company was to 
 impress on the people the seriousness of the situation, 
 and at the same time minimize the fear. With that in mind, 
 the necesary restriction of liberty, as to frequent mov- 
 ing in and out of the towns, v/as received kindly. There was 
 no discontent. Our people appreciated the careful watch- 
 fulness of their health. Finally, in spite of the utmost care 
 the epidemic got started in the Company's towns. Imme- 
 diately, everything was done for the stricken ; a corps of doc- 
 tors and nurses was provided at the Company's expense and 
 the situation, grave as it was, was handled in a most success- 
 ful manner. 
 
 What The Selling of Liberty Bonds Revealed 
 
 Just as among the mining town children one who works 
 with them suddenly sees the gleam of larger qualities, so, 
 too, with the men and women there are many intimations 
 of the response to fine things. The war brought out unsus- 
 pected fervors. 
 
 In each town a point of particular pride had been the 
 erection of a flag pole. The American flag was raised every 
 morning and lowered in the evening. Unconsciously, the 
 people living in the towns were imbued with the spirit of 
 patriotism and the response of these people of foreign birth 
 during the great war was so remarkable as to deserve recog- 
 nition. At one of the towns a beautiful twenty-foot Ameri- 
 
 Page Twenty>One 
 
can flag" was made by the wife of the mine foreman. Both 
 the foreman and his wife are of Italian birth. She had pur- 
 chased the materials and had diligently made the flag by 
 hand, taking the pattern from a picture of a little flag print- 
 ed on a calendar. As the flag floats from the pole in the 
 community center it is a fine expression of the loyalty of 
 those living within sight of its colors. Perhaps no community 
 people responded more generously to the calls for assistance 
 than did these foreigners. When the Liberty Bonds 
 were offered for sale, each man in the Company was 
 approached and each man in the Company bought. The 
 bonds were sold with the right spirit, a special 
 point being made of why they were offered and what they 
 meant. No man purchased a bond without knowing what 
 was back of it, and each purchaser was proud of the fact that 
 in buying Liberty Bonds he was becoming a share holder in 
 this great country. They aided the Government at the time 
 when aid was needed, and it was an excellent chance to im- 
 press upon the foreign born what the privileges of living 
 in America really meant. Besides impressing the foreigners 
 with the patriotic motive, it taught them to save their money 
 and it protected them in the expenditure of their money. 
 That they failed to subscribe voluntarily was because they 
 had not been educated in the purpose of the bonds. To meet 
 this need, meetings were held and pamphlets were distribut- 
 ed. It was interesting to compare the differences among the 
 nationalities in their readiness to respond. The Greeks were 
 the quickest to buy. 
 
 The way of selling the bonds was carefully worked out. 
 The Welfare Manager, with the Superintendents of the 
 mines, went into each mine and saw each man in his 
 working place in the mine or out of it. Men were stopped 
 from their work to have the purpose of the visit explained. 
 Many bought quickly; others offered excuses which were 
 very much alike. Again and again the response was, "No 
 got money — want to help." "Not now, next time, maybe." 
 
 Page Twenty-Two 
 
*'Big family," ''Brother in hospital," "Owe two hundred dol- 
 lars in Michigan," "Send money to my papa in old country," 
 "My mama he buy farm — take all money," "I buy auto- 
 mobile," and, always with a smile, "Must have my 
 beer." Excuses rarely varied, and when they were 
 given the Welfare Manager could frequently sug- 
 gest one or two that might be overlooked. That made 
 the miner good natured and he laughed at his own 
 ability to offer reasons for not buying. All of this was 
 preliminary. Then the seriousness of the situation was 
 explained to them — the really fine part they were playing in 
 helping win the war by staying at their working places in 
 the mine and helping produce coal made an appeal to them 
 that in working as they did they were no less patriotic nor 
 were they serving their country in a lesser degree than the 
 men who were fighting in the trenches. Frequently, after 
 offering every excuse that he could smilingly think of, a 
 miner would pledge himself to the purchase of at least one 
 hundred dollars' worth of bonds and very often two hundred 
 dollars, and from that on up to one thousand dollars. The 
 excuses given were finally swept aside, when, after 
 placing the order, they would say: "I pay cash tonight" 
 and, true to their word, they would come to the mine oflftce on 
 their return from their work and pay cash for the securities 
 they had pledged themselves to buy. 
 
 The greatest patience had to be exercised to make the 
 men understand ; after that it was clear going. Often there 
 was confusion in their minds and they did not know the dif- 
 ference between Liberty Bonds, Y. M. C. A. subscriptions, 
 or Red Cross drive. After exhausting every possible argu- 
 ment upon one Italian and making every kind of patriotic 
 appeal, this man said : "All right, I buy. I give fifty cents." 
 Then, knowing his reason was not to evade buying but be- 
 cause of his not understanding the situation, further pa- 
 tience and explanation resulted in the man's buying a two 
 hundred dollar bond, cash, and promising to subscribe to 
 every future loan, which he has most patriotically done. 
 
 The bonds being sold, the next step was to educate the 
 
 Page Twenty-Three 
 
men in the care of the bonds. One Mexican bought a hun- 
 dred dollar bond of the Second Liberty Loan in five months 
 by equal deductions made each month. At the end of that 
 time he quit his job to visit his parents. When he called for 
 his time at the office he was given a hundred dollar bond. 
 He did not appreciate that he had been paying for it. He 
 didn't know what to do with it. He seemed to be dismayed 
 at its possession and when it was all carefully explained to 
 him, he asked when he would have to start paying interest 
 on it! 
 
 The successful salesmanship of the bonds often required 
 a common interest. Tony Romljek, a prosperous young 
 Austrian, had made the boast that he would not buy — not to 
 be construed as disloyalty to the Government, but because 
 he said he preferred to deposit his money in the Post-Office. 
 He lived alone in a pebble-dashed cottage and worked in the 
 mines at night. When the Welfare Manager finally met him 
 at his house, on entering the room he was surprised to see 
 that the wall was lined with barrels. Tony had pur- 
 chased two thousand pounds of grapes and had put them 
 all down in wine. Here was a possible point of contact with 
 Tony — a discussion of his wine. Without suspecting the 
 purpose of the visit Tony was led to tell about the wine, 
 the making of it and aging of it. Finally, Tony was 
 won over and in a moment of generous impulse he offered 
 the Manager a drink. He took from his bench a wash basin 
 absolutely covered with a soapy grime. Into this basin 
 Tony drew off some wine. He held it up and looked at it 
 in the critical way of an expert. "There are pieces of grape 
 in it," he remarked, and reached into his pocket. He drew 
 out a very soiled handkerchief. It was evident that he 
 meant to strain the wine. The Manager then appreciated 
 what he was up against. He saw that that was the wine he 
 must drink, so he told Tony that since the particles were 
 only pieces of grape they v/ould not hurt the wine. 
 Then Tony poured the wine from the basin into an al- 
 most equally dirty cup and offered it to the Welfare Man- 
 ager to drink. He drank it. 
 
 Page Twenty-Four 
 
He sold Tony five hundred dollars' worth of Liberty 
 Bonds for cash. 
 
 THE FOREIGNERS' GIFT TO THE AMERICANS 
 
 From the American point of view, it would seem that 
 the Americans give all and receive nothing in return. On 
 the contrary the foreigner makes a generous cultural con- 
 tribution to our life. 
 
 With the building of fences the yards of the foreigners at 
 once became gardens of remarkable practical work. The 
 training in Europe had taught them to cultivate the soil suc- 
 cessfully and Americans can easily profit in following the 
 garden plan that yields such gratifying returns. The for- 
 eigners are masters in arrangement. Their natural love for 
 the beautiful is expressed in groupings of gorgeous flowers 
 and their appreciation of the practical shows in sturdy rows 
 of choice vegetables. 
 
 They have a deep love for music. At one of the recent 
 concerts the most appealing numbers were those given by 
 the foreigners. Melodious accordian music, the rythm of 
 stringed instruments, the folk songs and numbers by the 
 band were delightful revelations to the American part of 
 the audience. The Americans were able to do very little 
 on the program, but the Italians, the Austrians and the 
 Welsh brought forward the rich elements of their national 
 arts. 
 
 There is another subject for consideration. The for- 
 eigners are home people. The women are thrifty. They 
 make everything they can and save everything they can. 
 Few of the American women in the mining towns bake 
 their own bread. The foreign women all do. This is one 
 instance. All through the work we are in the presence of 
 the solid virtues, one of the most practical of which is the 
 foreigner's unfailing instinct for courtesy. Again and again 
 the American finds himself in the presence of a veritable 
 prince of manners. They will almost certainly bring into 
 our life a needed strain of gentlemanliness. And their rich- 
 Page Twenty-Five 
 
toned voices are a distinct asset toward Americanism of the 
 future. 
 
 THE SPIRIT OF THE WORK 
 
 The important part of any work is the spirit of it. One 
 must understand it and revere the wisdom and necessity of 
 it. The Company recognized that it could aid materially in 
 moulding the character and aiding the development of its 
 alien units by shaping their lives along the lines of civic 
 and social usefulness. Vast sums of money have been spent 
 in improving the conditions under which its men work and 
 live, and hundreds of men and women who live in its towns 
 are being guided toward industrial content and betterment. 
 The work of Americanization must not be spasmodic; it 
 must be sustained. Above all, there must be vision. No one 
 has a right to undertake it who does not believe in for- 
 eigners. 
 
 Page Twenty-Six 
 
^rayiora JtJros. 
 
 Makers 
 
 Syracuse, N. Y. 
 
 PAT. JAN 21, 1908 
 
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