those who were born in this country or who came here years back.

Statement of Richard Kuehne, Lincoln, Nebraska:

We have in Lincoln about eight thousand German-Russian people; the
most of them cannot follow an English sermon at all.

Statement of M. Lehninger, Plattsmouth, Nebraska, representing
Evangelical Lutheran General Synod of Wisconsin and other states:

While there are a good many people who do understand English well
and speak it quite fluently in everyday conversation, they all have
had their religious instruction in German, and they understand a
German sermon where they cannot understand an English one. The
people of my church have come partly from Germany and partly from
Canada, and many communicant members are native-born American
citizens, and still it is a fact that perhaps only half a dozen
members of the two hundred and fifty communicant members will have
the full benefit of an English sermon.

Statement of Vic Anderson, Minden, Nebraska, Swedish Lutheran:

It is my judgment that 35 per cent of our people do not understand
preaching in the American language. They can do business in that
language, but when it comes to understanding the interpretation of
the Bible, they would like to have it in the Swedish language
because that is the language that their fathers and mothers taught
them in.

Statement of John H. Steger, Plattsmouth, Nebraska, St. Paul German Church:

Half of my congregation cannot understand the English language.

Statement of C. F. Brommer, Hampton, Nebraska, Lutheran pastor:

In every congregation, but mostly in the congregations of the city,
we have people who understand the English sermon as well as the
German sermon, and then I think the majority speak, read, and write
English, in common, everyday life, perfectly, but they still would
derive greater benefit from the German than the English sermon, and
I think there are probably nearly 98 per cent of our congregations
and people who do not understand the English sermons and never will
learn to understand them. These are mostly old people. When they
came here they did not have the time nor the opportunity to learn
the English language.

Statement of Adolph Matzner, Lincoln, Nebraska, representing the
Nebraska district of the German Evangelical Synod of North America:

The majorit