The effect of congestion upon living and sleeping arrangements is shown by the table next presented, which shows the number and percentage of households regularly sleeping in all except each specified number of rooms. The exhibit is by general nativity and race

of head of household:

TABLE 304.-Number and per cent of households regularly sleeping in all except each specified number of rooms, by general nativity and race of head of household.

Of the total number of foreign households, 59.9 per cent regularly use all rooms except one for sleeping, 18.1 per cent use all rooms except 2, 3.1 per cent use all rooms. The use of all rooms for sleeping is most common in Polish households, although it also prevails to some extent among the Magyars and Slovaks.

The apparently common practice in the households of the specified races is to use all rooms except 1 for sleeping. The extent to which this use of rooms is practiced ranges from 83.3 per cent of the Croatians and of the Poles to 44.7 per cent of the South Italians. The latter race, however, has the largest proportion of households sleeping in all except two rooms.

CHAPTER VII.

SALIENT CHARACTERISTICS.

Literacy-Conjugal condition-Visits abroad-Age classification of employees and members of their households-Criminality-Charity-[Text Tables 305 to 317 and General Tables 145 to 154].

LITERACY.

The following table shows the percentage of male employees who read and the percentage who read and write, by general nativity and

race:

TABLE 305.-Per cent of male employees who read and per cent who read and write, by general nativity and race.

(STUDY OF EMPLOYEES.)

[This table includes only races with 40 or more males reporting. The totals, however, are for all races.]

In the above table, of a total of 8,461 males 88.4 per cent can read, and a slightly lower proportion are able to read and write. Of the foreign-born 76.6 per cent are literate, and a slightly higher percentage can read but not write. Less than 1 per cent of the white employees native-born of native father can not read, and but 1.1 per cent are entirely illiterate.

A study of the races reporting ability to read shows that 91 per cent or over of each of the races of past immigration-namely the Irish,

German, English, and Welsh-report this ability, all of the last-named race being able to read. As compared with this high rate, the remaining foreign races exhibit very low percentages, the minimum proportion of 36.4 per cent being presented by the Servians. Of the iron and steel workers native-born of native father only 0.7 per cent of 2,689 males can not read. As regards general literacy the races of past immigration again show the highest proportions, ranging from 88.3 per cent of the Irish to 99.2 per cent of the English who are able to read and write, as compared with from 85.8 per cent to 34.1 per cent of the employees of the races of recent immigration, the Magyar reporting the higher and the Servian the lower percentage.

The following table shows the literacy of persons 10 years of age or over in the households studied. The data are presented according to sex, general nativity, and race of individual:

TABLE 306.-Per cent of persons 10 years of age or over who read and per cent who read and write, by sex and general nativity and race of individual.

(STUDY OF HOUSEHOLDS.)

[This table includes only races with 40 or more persons reporting. The totals, however, are for all races.]

From the figures of the above table it is seen that 66.2 per cent of all those included in the table can read. Among the foreign-born the Magyars, with the Slovaks next in order, have the highest percentages who can read, both for men and women. The Croatians show the smallest proportion of males who can read, and the Ruthenians of females. The totals for the several races show that the Magyars have the largest proportion who are able to read and to read and write. The Slovaks, Poles, South Italians, Croatians, and Ruthenians, in the order named, rank next to the Magyars.

The following table shows the percentage of foreign-born persons who were 10 years of age or over and who were able to read and to read and write, according to period of residence in the United States and race of individual:

TABLE 307.-Per cent of foreign-born persons 10 years of age or over who read and per cent who read and write, by years in the United States and race of individual.

(STUDY OF HOUSEHOLDS.)

This table

(By years in the United States is meant years since first arrival in the United States. includes only races with 40 or more persons reporting. The total, however, is for all foreign-born.]

As a rule, the proportions of persons who can read and both read and write are greatest among those who have been in the United States ten years or over and least among those who have been in the country under five years. Among the Magyars and South Italians, however, the largest proportions who read only, or read and write are those who have a residence from five to nine years. Among those who have been in the United States less than five years, illiteracy is most prevalent among the Ruthenians. The Croatians, South Italians, and Poles have also relatively small proportions able to read and to read and write. Of those who have been in this country ten years or over the South Italians and the Ruthenians are the only races that have smaller proportions able to read or to read and write. than the percentage for the total foreign-born group. The Poles, who have a relatively low degree of literacy among those who have been in the United States less than ten years, show 100 per cent able to read and 91.7 per cent able to read and write, with a period of residence of ten years or over. Likewise the Croatians have a relatively high degree of literacy among those who have been in this country ten years or over and a relatively low degree among those who have been here less than ten years. The Magyars and Slovaks, too, at every period show a relatively high degree of literacy.

The following table shows the percentage of foreign-born persons 10 years of age or over within the households studied who read and the percentage who read and write, by age at time of coming to the United States and race of individual.

TABLE 308.-Per cent of foreign-born persons 10 years of age or over who read and per cent who read and write, by age at time of coming to the United States and race of individual.

(STUDY OF HOUSEHOLDS.)

(This table includes only races with 40 or more persons reporting. The total, however, is for all foreign

born.]

From the total percentages it appears that of those who were under 14 years of age at the time of coming to the United States, nearly 87.8 per cent both read and write at the present time, as contrasted with 56.5 per cent of those over that age at the time of their arrival. All the Magyars and all the Slovaks who were under 14 years of age at the time of coming to this country can now both read and write, as can 87.2 and 79.6 per cent, respectively, of those who were over 14 when they reached this country. The South Italians and Poles both report considerable proportions with ability to read and write among those who were under 14 years old at the time of arrival, but fall below this proportion of the total for those who were over 14 years of age when they came to the United States. On the whole, the figures indicate that the younger persons of foreign birth after reaching this country learn to read and write more readily than the older.