Desirous of helping his fellow immigrants learn English, Charles Ashleigh finds the books on offer to be one long piece of bourgeois bunk. His review below.

‘Alas! The Poor Immigrant!’ by Charles Ashleigh from Solidarity. Vol. 7 No. 329. April 29, 1916.

One of the biggest tasks confronting Industrial Unionists–especially those of the industrial East is that of unifying the workers of different races and languages. The multiplicity of languages spoken in a congested industrial community has often proved to be a severe obstacle to organization. This has been recognized by many rebels, and only a week or two ago there appeared an item in SOLIDARITY recommending that locals provide facilities for foreign members to learn English. This is a good suggestion. I do not say that without a common tongue common action is impossible–Lawrence, Paterson and a number of other instances would prove the foolishness of that assertion; but I do most certainly believe that common action would be greatly facilitated by easier communication.

It was with this in mind that I inquired into the means of teaching English to foreigners. And, in the course of these investigations, I made a discovery. My discovery was a book, a unique book, a book so replete with unconscious humor that I can sincerely recommend it to any Rebel family as absolutely certain to provoke mirth and cheer during the long, winter evenings. At least I would so recommend it were I not opposed to adding to the income of the learned writer a worthy publishers by increased sale.

The title of this compendium of wit is “A Second Book in English for Foreigners,” by Isabel Richman Wallach, a lady the euphony of whose name is doubtless only equaled by the richness and profoundness of her stupendous and scintillating mind. This volume is in use in many foreigners’ classes in the public schools and in many night schools conducted by benevolent (?) associations.

The puissantly intellectual Isabel starts out in the Preface to inform us that the book has been carefully planned “to give foreigners who have come to America to seek homes and livelihoods, information of direct practical value.” Let us now see how this promise is carried out in the body of the book.

The first chapter consists of a few cheery words of encouragement in the task of learning English. The second chapter discourses learnedly upon the manifold advantages to the foreigner of reading American newspapers. Among other responsible functions of the American newspaper, it “helps foreigners to understand what the government of this country does for the people and what the government expects the people to do in return.” Miss Wallach then proceeds, sagely: “The word ‘people’ as used here includes every man, woman and child in the United States, foreign-born and native-born. The U.S. government takes care of them all and in return it expects them all to respect and obey its laws.” Get that? Now I lay me down to sleep (in a box-car) in the blissful consciousness that over me is the protecting motherly care of the government of the United Snakes which takes care of us all! She’s right about its “doing for” us, though!

In the next chapter the unfortunate foreign student is treated to the following philosophical gem: “A desirable immigrant is one who is HONEST, HEALTHY and WILLING TO WORK. The sort of person able to take care of himself and make a good citizen, The U.S. cannot have too many good citizens.” (The capitals are mine) Here we see the game revealed in all its ugly nakedness; “honest” means too honest to steal when hungry or poor; “healthy” means that the bosses don’t want any workmen imported who are damaged, they want to do all the damaging themselves; and “willing to work” means willing to work–under any conditions, however scabby, to be a willing worker in return for a pat on the head from the dear, good government that takes care of all of us! But no! Further on the lady says she wants (or the U.S. does, they seem to be identical) someone “able to take care of himself.” Well, if he can do that, whatinell’s the good of a government doing it? She remarks, sapiently, “the U.S. can’t have too many good citizens;” maybe they can’t, but they’re doing their damndest. Witness San Diego, Paterson and other places where the “good citizens” wrote their goodness in letters of blood upon the bodies of the workers.

Here are a couple more phrases selected at random! “He must live as the Americans live. Above all, he must respect and obey the law of the land.” And then again, “Allowing an undesirable person to enter the country is not a question of liking or disliking. It is a question of law. If the immigrant proves undesirable before the law he must be deported, for law in the United States is law, and everyone must obey it.” Sure, it’s just a matter of law, pure law, Mabel! John Turner, the English militant Labor unionist, was not allowed to land because of LAW. Roecker, the Jewish rebel, had to slip over and return under an assumed name because of LAW. Edward F. Mylius, who was in jail in England for insulting the spotless name of Kink George the Fifth, was kept for months waiting at Ellis Island, at the gateway of this “Republican” country, because of LAW. The rebel Russian author and agitator, Maxim Gorki, was hounded by Federal officials because of LAW. And so on and so on. But this chaste and righteous law says no word of forbidding to the aristocratic syphilitics of Europe THEY don’t have to be “healthy.” Any crowned puppet who has sent thousands to their death is fawned upon by our makers of LAW; HE doesn’t have to be “honest.” Any exploiter of the starving masses of Europe, the blood of the proletariat dripping from his chops, his belly and pockets lined with the stolen product of the workers, may enter amid plaudits and welcomes; HE doesn’t have to be “willing to work!” Faugh! The stinking hypocrisy of the whole canting thing leaves a brown taste in my mouth.

Here are a couple of literary cameos on liberty, “The U.S.A. is everywhere spoken of as the land of liberty. It is the land of liberty for all, because it offers liberty to all alike, white or black, rich or poor.” Sure thing, Isabel! It’s an all-round deal all right; the rich have liberty to plunder and the poor have liberty to starve; we all get some sort of liberty, if it’s only the liberty to work for a boss and present him with nearly all we produce. As for the white and black part, Isabel’s right there, we get pretty equal treatment. They’ll lynch a colored man one day and turn a Maxim gun loose on a bunch of white miners, and their women and children the next. One day they’ll whip a “n***r” for stealing a chicken and the next they’ll hire five official gunmen to shoot a white man because he happens to be a rebel. Sure, we can’t complain about that; we’re not treated any better or worse, white or black.

And here’s an absolute scream: “Let us hope and pray that the false idea of being free to do as one pleases will never rule in the U.S., where liberty of a far grander and higher type has shown itself.” Now, what do you know about that? “Higher and grander type!”

I guess that type means being free to do what the boss pleases.

And here is the worst paragraph in the book, a paragraph so rotten that it is impossible to joke about it: (I make my own capitals): “The best way, perhaps, for a stranger among us to learn how the American nation governs itself is to study the government looking up at it from the bottom. The mass of people stand here side by side. Just a bit ABOVE them stand the police officers. The policemen are men appointed by law to KEEP ORDER among the people and to protect them from harm. The police officers must enforce the laws and do what they can to prevent anyone breaking the laws. The people must RESPECT the police officers and OBEY THEIR ORDERS. THEY SHOULD ALSO INFORM THE POLICE WHEN THEY SEE ANYONE BREAKING THE LAW.”

I will quote no more. The whole book is sodden from beginning to end with similar stuff. And, remember, that this particular book, and many just as bad, are being used in thousands of schools to teach foreign workers and their children.

It is nothing more than an attempt at the wholesale manufacture of spineless slaves, scabs and stool-pigeons. Everything which is abhorrent to working-class ethics is instilled into the mind of the alien worker, under the pretext of teaching him the English language. Respect of the bosses’ law, of the robbers government, and of their tools, the police, is rammed into the receptive minds of these foreign workers by a small army of “intellectual” prostitutes. And then we, wonder that we are not progressing more rapidly in the great industrial centers.

If any locals have the means of teaching workers the English language so that they will not have to sully their minds with the above brand of filth, they will certainly be doing the movement a service.

The most widely read of I.W.W. newspapers, Solidarity was published by the Industrial Workers of the World from 1909 until 1917. First produced in New Castle, Pennsylvania, and born during the McKees Rocks strike, Solidarity later moved to Cleveland, Ohio until 1917 then spent its last months in Chicago. With a circulation of around 12,000 and a readership many times that, Solidarity was instrumental in defining the Wobbly world-view at the height of their influence in the working class. It was edited over its life by A.M. Stirton, H.A. Goff, Ben H. Williams, Ralph Chaplin who also provided much of the paper’s color, and others. Like nearly all the left press it fell victim to federal repression in 1917.

PDF of full issue: https://www.marxists.org/history/usa/pubs/solidarity-iww/1916/v7-w329-apr-29-1916-solidarity.pdf