At a recent meeting of the board of officers of the Norwegian National League of Chicago, the following resolution was unanimously adopted:

"Whereas, The elementary public schools are the greatest unifying factors of our cosmopolitan population and a thorough knowledge of the English language is most conducive to such results; therefore be it

"Resolved, That we do not desire any portion of our school funds devoted to the teaching of foreign languages in our grammar schools."

It is understood that the meeting was called at the instance of School Trustee C. R. Walleck, who desires to ascertain the sentiment of the respective 2nationalities in Chicago concerning his resolution providing for the teaching of any foreign language in any of our public schools under certain conditions.

The Walleck resolution provides that if at least fifty per cent of the children in any school belong to any one nationality, they are to be instructed in the mother tongue of their parents during school hours and at public expense. If this policy were to be adopted, German would be taught in several schools, Danish and Norwegian in two, Swedish in two or three, Bohemian in two, Polish in two, and the Old Irish tongue in two or more schools.

The idea looks like a huge joke, but Mr. Waldeck (sic) is apparently in dead earnest. He is backed by his own nationality [Bohemian], and his line of investigations would seem to indicate that he really believes in the polyglot policy.

The emphatic protest registered by the Norwegian National League voices the all but unanimous sentiment of the Norwegians in Chicago and undoubtedly also 3of the other two branches of the Scandinavian family, the Danes and the Swedes. Not that the Scandinavians have no pride in their mother tongues. In general education, literature, and art the Scandinavian countries take rank among the very foremost. Danes are not apt to forget the language of H. C. Andersen, nor Norwegians the tongue of Henrik Ibsen, nor Swedes the vernacular of Tegner and Fredrikka Bremer. They glory in the intellectual achievements and triumphs of their mother countries; they endeavor to keep in touch with their kinsmen across the sea and to profit by their development; and though they Americanize more quickly and thoroughly than any other people seeking new homes in this land, they cherish the speech of their fathers.

But they do not want any of the Scandinavian tongues taught in the public schools. They believe that the speech of the land, and no other, should be the speech of our elementary schools. They also believe that no part of the public school funds should be used for purposes of sectarian instruction of any kind or in any form. Any hostile move against the little red school house, whether cloaked in language resolutions or other disguises, will encounter their unyielding opposition.