From the giant steamship at the left comes a procession which includes men, women, and children of many races. Each immigrant, whether Greek or Russian, Jew or Gentile, brings some gift of art or skill to lay at the feet of America, his new motherland. The Melting Pot is not a huge cauldron into which all individuality is to be poured so that it may become a homogeneous and commonplace mass, but a crucible in which the gold of character and personality is to be discovered and refined for the enrichment of all.
To the right are the sons and daughters of these immigrants. They have become successful in the trades and professions; they and their children have gained education; they are contributing their share to the wealth, government, defence, and prosperity of the nation. The picture embodies a spirit of true Americanism.
THE MELTING POT. By Vesper L. George
Copyright by Vesper L. George. From a Copley Print, copyright by Curtis & Cameron, Boston. Reproduced by permission.
On the Pillar to the left the words Equality and Liberty indicate what the immigrants seek in America. On the Pillar to the right the words Opportunity and Prosperity indicate what they find. On the pedestal are graven the stirring words which Paul addressed to the men of Athens nearly nineteen hundred years ago.
Americanization.—Among the European immigrants now in the United States there are many thousands who cannot speak the English language, who have never become citizens, know nothing about the way in which American government is carried on, and have no comprehension of American political or social ideals. This situation was not fully appreciated until the outbreak of the World War. During the past few years an earnest attempt has been made both by the public educational authorities and by private organizations to Americanize these people by helping them to learn the language, to obtain a knowledge of American history, to become naturalized, and to acquire a proper conception of what American democracy implies. This does not mean, of course, that we desire all people, of whatever race, to possess the same temperamental traits, or hold the same opinions, or have the same point of view. Diversity in individual qualities, physical, mental, and moral, is not undesirable provided the differences are not so great as to prevent the various elements from adequately understanding one another. By Americanization we do not mean, therefore, that every newcomer to this country should submerge his individuality in the general mass, discard his own inherited traits, and put on a veneer of Americanism. Rather it implies that those who are the children of the soil, the native-born, should exemplify the Golden Rule towards the stranger who comes within our gates and should endeavor to show him, by actions as well as words, the meaning of good citizenship in a democracy.
General References
T. N. Carver, Principles of National Economy, pp. 123-140;
J. R. Commons, Races and Immigrants in America, pp. 1-38; 63-106;
J. W. Jenks and W. Jett Lauck, The Immigration Problem, pp. 1-39; 40-66;