TABLE 70.-Per cent of foreign-born employees who speak English, by sex, years in the United States, and race.

(STUDY OF EMPLOYEES.)

[By years in the United States is meant years since first arrival in the United States. This table includes only non-English-speaking races with 200 or more persons reporting. The total, however, is for all nonEnglish-speaking races.]

MALE.

TABLE 70.-Per cent of foreign-born employees who speak English, by sex, years in the United States, and race-Continued.

Upon referring to the total in the preceding table it is seen that there is a rapid advancement in the proportions of employees able to speak English corresponding to an increased period of residence in the United States. Of the total number who had been in this country less than five years only 28.6 per cent could speak English as contrasted with 59.6 per cent with a residence of five to nine years and 83.1 per cent who had been in the United States ten years or over. The smallest proportions of employees with ability to speak English with a residence under five years are shown, in the order named, by the Cuban, Portuguese, Bulgarian, Turkish, Ruthenian, Polish, Macedonian, Greek, Finnish, Lithuanian, South Italian, Russian, and Roumanian races, all of which fall below the general showing for the total number of foreign-born wage-earners. Of the employees with a residence of five to nine years the Cubans exhibit a percentage of only 15.1 and the Spaniards of 16.4 with ability to speak English, while the French Canadians, Montenegrins, Poles, Portuguese, and Ruthenians have percentages less than that for the total number of employees within this residence period. Of the employees who had been in the United States ten years or longer the Cubans, Spaniards, Mexicans, Portuguese, South Italians, Ruthenians, Servians, Syrians, Poles, French Canadians, and Magyars, all of which have less than four-fifths of their number able to speak English, indicate, in the order mentioned, the least progress in ability to speak English.

Of the males from southern and eastern Europe with a residence of ten years or over the smallest proportion of employees able to speak English is exhibited by the Servians, the showing of the Poles, Portuguese, Magyars, and South Italians being but slightly more favorable. The lowest percentages are found in the case of the Cuban and Spanish cigar makers, of which races almost three-fifths are unable to speak the English language.

Upon referring to the totals for the male and female wage-earners it is seen that the former not only show a larger proportion than the latter in each period of residence with the ability to speak English, but that the male employees also exhibit greater progress in acquiring the language after specified periods of residence than the females. This condition of affairs is due to the greater segregation of the female workers and their more limited opportunities for contact with American life and institutions as compared with the males. Of the southern and eastern European females the South Italians exhibit the smallest proportion with ability to speak English who have been in this country ten years or longer. The Polish, Portuguese, Finnish and Syrian females make a somewhat better showing than the South Italian, but fall below the proportion for the total foreign-born females.

In the table which is next presented, the progress of non-Englishspeaking races in acquiring an ability to speak English after designated periods of residence in the United States is shown. This table sets forth, by race of individual and by years in the United States, the per cent of foreign-born persons of non-English-speaking races in the households studied who were 6 years of age or over and who were able to speak English.

TABLE 71.-Per cent of foreign-born persons 6 years of age or over who speak English, by years in the United States and race of individual.

(STUDY OF HOUSEHOLDS.)

This table includes The total, however, is for all non

[By years in the United States is meant years since first arrival in the United States.
only non-English-speaking races with 40 or more persons reporting.
English-speaking races.]

Upon referring to the total of 43,249 persons studied, it is seen that there is a steady advancement in ability to speak English corresponding to period of residence in the United States. Of the persons who have been in the United States less than five years, the Syrians, Bulgarians, Japanese, Macedonians, Greeks, Spaniards, Ruthenians, and Russians, in the order named, exhibit the smallest proportions with ability to speak English. On the other hand, of those persons with a residence of five to nine years, the Mexicans, Turks, Japanese, Spaniards, and Servians display the smallest degree of English-speaking ability; and of those who have been in the United States ten years or longer, the Mexicans, Cubans, Ruthenians, Spaniards, Slovaks, and Slovenians have the smallest proportion of persons able to speak English. The unfavorable showing of the Mexican, Ruthenian, Slovak, and Slovenian races is largely to be ascribed to the fact that the greater number of representatives of these races are coal-mine workers living in more isolated localities