Kenneth Dexter Miller

“ When Bohemian papers in Austria can print a map of the proposed Czechoslovak independent state, and Bohemian representatives in the Austrian parliament state openly that they will be satisfied with nothing less than complete political independence, one can be sure that the iron hand of Hapsburg autocracy is losing its grip upon the throat of the smaller nationalities in the empire, and that it will not be long before they tear themselves loose, and win their long desired freedom. ”

“ Leaving America at a time when all the energy and enthusiasm of the nation was being turned into the successful prosecution of the war, and entertaining high hopes that Russia would yet play an important role in the war against German militarism, one can imagine my discouragement upon arriving in Russia to find that not only was Russia to be counted out of the actual warfare, but that the government had fallen into the hands of people who, wittingly or unwittingly, were playing into the hands of the German war-lords. ”

“ All this goes to deepen in my mind the conviction that it is a great mistake to hasten unduly the process of Americanization, and the belief that the more loyal these foreigners are to the traditions of their old country, the more loyal will they be to this, their adopted country. Of course, the Bohemian language is doomed to a slow death. I venture to predict that it will endure longer in Texas than elsewhere, and yet it is there that the process of Americanization has borne the greatest fruits. ”

“ The liberality of the Bohemians in America, the espousal of the cause of Bohemia by President Wilson have given to America a very warm spot in their hearts. They will never for get it. But they are looking to us for still further assistance. They are looking to the Bohemians of America to swell the number of the ranks of the Czecho-slovak army in France. They expect to see a bountiful subscription to the Bohemian Liberty Loan in America. But most of all they are looking to America to win the war and make the world safe for the democratic Czechoslovak Republic. ”

“ Whereas those who are most active in the propaganda for the independence of Bohemia, are encouraged in their activity by the very keen appreciation which they have of the liberty and democracy afforded to them under the American flag.
My visit to Texas has done much to deepen my affection for the Bohemian people. They are amongst the most progressive of our new citizens. They are making great contributions to our economic, political and cultural life. They have an intense love of liberty which makes them most appreciative of all that America stands for. ”

“ It seems to me that the least we Americans can do is to give them a hearty welcome into our community of liberty-loving citizens, and lend to them our sympathy and support in the noble effort they are making to secure political independence for Bohemia. ”

“ In Texas, as elsewhere, I have found it to be true that it is those who are the most ardent Bohemian patriots who are the most loyal in their allegiance to America. A Bohemian who will not support the Bohemian National Alliance in its effort to liberate Bohemia from the hand of the oppressor, is not likely to support the American government in its fight for freedom and democracy. ”

“ And as in the old country, the Bohemians of Texas are good farmers. Never will I forget the sight of the peasants up in the hill country of Bohemia and Moravia making use of every available inch of land, and producing good crops from soil which an American would despise as good for nothing. In Texas, the Bohemian farmers have not had to contend against those natural disadvantages. ”

“ We never miss an opportunity to draw them out, and the tales they tell of what they have been through are exciting enough to make one’s hair stand on end, and horrible enough to instil in one the most violent abhorence of war fare and the whole unhuman bloody business. ”

“ In spite of several tendencies which would seem to work in the other direction, the Bohemians of Texas are better Americans than those who have made their homes in our large cities. The Bohemians have kept by themselves a good deal, even out on the farms. It is seldom that you will find a Bohemian farmer settled in the midst of Americans. Generally they settle in the Bohemian regions of Texas, and there, through their churches and societies and in some cases through their schools, they foster their own language and their own racial consciousness. ”

“ The Bohemian farmers are prosperous today because they faced and overcame obstacles that frightened away the natives. They found there unbroken prairies used only as grazing ground by the Texas ranchers, who were too lazy or timorous to undertake the cultivation of it. They were not afraid to undertake the cultivation of bad lands, and many a hundred acres which are now bearing good crops were once wild forests, which were cleared only by diet of persevering and painstaking toil. I know of no more heroic work than that performed by the pioneer farmers of Texas. ”

“ Now, however, all doubts are forever dispelled, and I am absolutely confident that the Czechoslovaks will, as an outcome of the war, secure their political independence, for which they have longed for generations, and which they so richly deserve. ”

“ The second consideration which makes me absolutely confident that Bohemia will be free is the spirit of the men who form the Czechoslovak army. I first caught the spirit of this volunteer army at Petrograd in conversation with officers and men who had taken part in the famous charge at Zborov during the July offensive of the Russian army. We had received but little news of this glorious engagement in America, and hardly anything of the glorious part played by the Czechs. ”

“ Out of it all there must issue a new free Bohemia, where these men and their countrymen may have the freeest opportunity for self-development in every department of social life.
When discussing the present military and political situation, the men invariably end by saying: “Well, we are relying upon America.” They are most fervent in their expressions of gratitude for what America has already done for them. ”

“ Having previously visited all sections of Bohemia, Moravia and Slovak-land, and having already acquainted myself with the conditions prevailing amongst the Bohemians in such American centres as New York, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Chicago, and the farming regions of the central west, it was intensely interesting by way of comparison and of completion of my knowledge of the Bohemian people, to observe the conditions of life prevailing amongst the Bohemian population of 100,000 in our great Lone-Star state. ”

“ That is to say, they seem to have grasped the spirit of America, of her ideals, traditions and institutions even better than some of their country men who have learned the English language and American ways so fast that they have forgotten their mother tongue and the ideals and traditions of their forefathers. ”

“ The men crowd in the back and stand, wedged in as tight as they can be, throughout the whole performance. Quite often the men realize as much as 1500 rubles from one performance which is devoted to the invalid fund, or the Bohemian Liberty loan. ”

“ One of the greatest privations of their life, as they stand idle during the long winter months, is the lack of any outlet for their natural social instincts and of any means of satisfying their intellectual and cultural tastes. In many cottages no light whatsoever is afforded them and they have nothing to do but think, and with nothing very pleasant or cheering to think about. ”

“ The men of the Czechoslovak army are of the intelligent class. They have all had a good schooling, and it is by no means an uncommon thing to find University professors, lawyers, merchants and well-to-do farmers serving in the ranks as privates. ”

“ The men are billeted in the peasants’ cottages. But the cottages there are nothing like the cottages they are accustomed to in Bohemia. They are small, and dirty and ramshackle, and infested with vermin. The men sleep on the bare floor with their knapsack for a pillow and their overcoat for a covering. ”

“ The “theatre” is generally an old barn which the men themselves have fitted out, and on the night of the performances it is always crowded to suffocation. The officers and the civilian population occupy the front seats, for which they pay a good round sum. The local people are wild about these performances, are only too glad to pay any amount charged to see them, for they also have no other form of recreation. ”

“ One of the besetting sins of native-born Americans is the tendency to regard all foreigners as inferior to themselves. And when these “foreigners” come into a community and proceed to demonstrate their superiority as workmen and as farmers, a feeling of jealous resentment might easily be provoked. ”

“ When men can sleep out in the open snow, or tied to the branch of a tree, when they can go for days with nothing to eat at all and then devour with the utmost relish a dinner of two cats and a dog; when they can go through four years life in the muddy, vermin infested trenches, or in the disease ridden prison camps where men die by the thousands every day ”

“ Furthermore, owing to the fact that it is only a year since Texas secured a compulsory education law, and to the further fact that the children are put to work at an early age in the cotton fields, a great many, though born in this country, have grown up with a very meagre knowledge of the English language. But, in spite of this fact, they are good Americans. ”

“ And the Bohemians are held in very wholesome respect by their American neighbors. I took advantage of every opportunity to learn how the natives regarded their new neighbors, and was gratified, though not surprised, to hear such expressions of opinion as the following: “The Bohemians are the best farmers in all Texas”; “They make the very best American citizens” ”

“ The men have, however, displayed untiring energy and remarkable ingenuity in meeting this situation. Most every regiment now has a theatre of its own where performances are given three times a week. I have attended a good many of these performances, and have always come away with a feeling of wonder at the ingenuity of the men, and also with the sense of having a very good time. ”

“ They are settled, for the most part, in the most fertile regions of the state. The great black belt, famous for its productiveness, is largely taken up by Bohemians. But, even here, they have not found life a bed of roses. ”

“ The regimental band or orchestra plays, the regimental chorus sings, and individual soldiers give an exhibition of their ability along the line of declamations, imitations, comic monologues, and short one-act comedies. Often the men borrow feminine attire from the civilian population and appear as charming young soubrettes. ”

“ It seems as if they cannot or will not be downed. The present political situation in Russia has put upon them an added burden. All around them the Russian army has been going to pieces. A complete breakdown of military discipline has been followed by social and political anarchy. ”

“ Most of them have warm clothing too for the winter season, although quite often one sees soldiers walking through the snow clad only in the light summer uniform of the Russian army. The people in the villages are either very poor Ukrainians of little or no education, or grasping, fawning Jews. ”

“ Besides the theatres, the men have provided themselves with libraries, reading rooms, and in some cases tea-rooms. They are constantly handicapped by the lack of funds, however, and it is in this respect that the Young Men’s Christian Association has been able to be of real service to them. ”