Also, the people who filled steerage - the great mass of immigrants - were generally not well educated. My grandfather (Sicily) was a laborer and his father a carpenter and orchardist. My grandmother's family (Rheinhessen) were peasants. It was similar on the other side of my family. Nor did they speak English when they arrived, so they weren't considered suitable as teachers.

"I don't know which is worse: ignorance or apathy. And, frankly, I don't care." - Anonymous