24
LET’S BUILD AND KEEP THE DWELLING
TOGETHER
TWO MEN lived in a dwelling.
1
One man said: “I have been here longer than
you. My parents lived in this house before me, there
fore my rights to it are greater than yours.”
The other answered: “Yes, but I help to keep it
up and pay my share of the taxes. I help to keep the
house neat, tidy and clean. I pay rent. Therefore I
have some right in this house, too.”
The two finally quarreled over their rights and neg
lected their duties, each man thinking the other wrong
and selfish. Meanwhile the house fell in bad repairs
and three notorious roudies, common enemies of both,
seeing their differences, conspired to take possession
of the premises.
Realizing their common peril the two men sat down
to talk the matter over calmly. The result was that
they realized they were partners and pals, needing
one another and that BOTH had an indisputable in
terest in the dwelling and that the right thing to do
was to keep it, guard and protect it together.
The two men represent the native American and
the foreign born American.
The dwelling they quarreled over is the United
States of America.
Their common enemies who have made dangerous
encroachments upon their soil, preparatory to dis
possess the two men and through a ruse take posses
sion of their dwelling, is NATIONALITY, RACE and
RELIGIOUS PREJUDICE!
When native and foreign born come fully to learn
that both are in different ways trying to do the same
thing and that their misunderstanding of one an
other has caused their common enemies to virtually
move into their premises then they will make short
stay of it for their uninvited guests, then they will be
in a better way to carry on their work for a common
purpose and a common good, then the feeling of intol
erance will vanish and out of the din and strife they
will come together making for both a greater and
better AMERICA.
Let us have volunteers on both sides of the con
troversy to engage in bringing about understanding
and a sense of mutuality of interest before the vul
tures gain the upper hand!
I
DECEMBER, 1923
years old, and another fifteen per cent are under
twenty and over fifteen. The report shows also that
the farming class is strongly represented among the
emigrants, being surpassed only slightly by the indus
trial workers.
In view of the approaching exhaustion of the Swe
dish quota to the United States, the Swedish-Ameri
can Steamship Line has announced that at least one
of its liners, the Stockholm, will make regular stops
at Halifax beginning early in January, in order that
Swedish and other North European emigrants may
go to Canada in lieu of the United States. Another
big shipping corporation which serves Norwegian,
Danish and Swedish ports has announced a similar
practice. In Denmark, especially, the stories of
crowding and other unsatisfactory conditions at Ellis
Island are said to have weakened the impulse of emi
grants to sail for the United States, and induced the
shipping authorities to make Halifax a port of call
to accommodate the growing number of Danes who
prefer the prospect of success among our northern
neighbors.
THE UNITED AMERICAN
pared with the land of 100 per cent bigotry — which
they know by a different name—tyranny.
Those who don’t believe in the Americanization and
education to intelligent citizenship and EQUALITY
of the foreign born, who can indulge in anything con
sistent with the creed “my country right or wrong”
should find much to ponder over in these lines of
innocent satire, at least in their serious moment,
when they contemplate a America beyond the pres
ent—a America to be handed down to their children,
as safe, sound, just, fair and unsullied as they re
ceived it from their ancestors.
GIVE THE FOREIGN BORN CREDIT FOR THEIR
SHARE IN BUILDING AMERICA
'THOSE WHO claim that the foreign born people
1 in America are an expense to the country and
that it would be much better off without them, and
deny that they are helpful to American life, will have
no trouble in ascertaining that the following carefully
collected facts about their contributions to this coun
try, its progress and industrial maintenance and de
velopment can be corroborated through official
channels of government statistics:
They fought for American — thousands of them in
the Civil War and in the Spanish War, and over one I
million of foreign birth and parentage served under I
our flag in the World War.
They feed America — baking one-half of our bread;l
refining one-half of our sugar, and do more than!
three-fourths of the work in our meat-packing in
dustries.
They build America — mining and manufacturing
three-fourths of the iron for our ships, buildings, ma
chinery and railroads.
They keep America warm — mining nearly three-1
fourths of the coal that fills our furnaces, running our
mills, giving us light and transportation.
They clothe America— manufacturing three-fourths I
of our clothing and nearly one-half of our silks, wool
ens and shoes.
They carry America — Railroads have been made)
safe by them and they have made most of America’s!
streets and highways—one-half of the maintenance!
work is done by them.
They save in America— The American Bankers As
sociation states that the foreign born own $4,000,-1
000,000 in savings and the Postal Savings Bank has!
over $150,000,000 credited to more than 750,000 de
positors from among them.
AMONG THE FOREIGN BORN
They succeed in America — About one man in every!
A CCORDING to a report compiled by the Swedish ten in the list of -prominent Americans in “Who’s
government, more than fifteen per cent of all Who in America” is foreign born.
They play for America — They have taught us near-
Swedish emigrants are between twenty and thirty