The daily union., 1854-12-21
NATURALIZATION AND CITIZENSHIP.
10 the Editor If the Union

over the subject of citizenship The consideration OF this
question derives increased interest and Importance from re-
cent manifestations OF the popular feeling and from the IN
PRODUCTION into the houses of intended TO cor
rect the supposed evil 1t is alleged that the exercise OF
the right of suffrage by naturalzed citizens has been pro-
ductve of great evil TO the interests of the country and the
remedy sought in federal legislation acting upon the
power of passing uniform naturalization laws How far
them Congress by its control the right of suffrage
the question which lies the very threshold of the sub
ect.
It. conended that the power conferred by the const-
tuition to establish uniform rule Of naturalization rs
when exercised by Congress- necessarily exclusive of any
similar power in the States We may admit this to be
true, and still the question remains Did the States, IN
granting this power Congress- yield up their right to
regulate political suffrage within their own limits
The constitution of the United States contains stpula-
tons in reference to the qualification of the tuconarses
who are to administer the federal government repre-
sentative have been citizen of the United States for
seven years senator for nine years The President is
required TO have been nauralborn citizen or citizen o
the United States the time of the adoption of the cons-
tuition, and fourteen years resident within the United
States But while constitution thus exercises its con-
troll over the qualifications of the funconares 1t nowhere
undertakes regulate the qualifications of the constituent
cy Recognising the principle that it was ordained by the
people Of the several States each acting for itself and by
ITSELF the only qualification of elections to be found in its
provisions is that for members of the House OF Repre-
senatives the electors in och State shall shave the quail
caons requisite for electors of the most numerous branch
of the State legislature
There neither express grant of power to the federal
government prohibition the States in reference TO
the right of suffrage and the clear implication from the
clause just quoted is that IL was left with the several par
ties to the compact arnatter of State Jurisdiction
1t is supposed that this original jurisdiction of the States
has been impaired by the I'd section of the 4th article,
which provides ha the citizens Of each State shall be
entitled In nj nriv and imn of citizens the
several States" But submit it intended by
this to consolidate the government by melting down into
mould the rights of citizenship. A citizen of
New York does not become pso aco citizen of Alabama
to beinvested with all the political rights fctzenshp
within the State power to require any length of pro-
baton, to discriminate between navebon and foreign
ers, wholly to exclude foreigners. And the
States foreign to each other except in under the
control of constitutional stpuntions it may be well to
fleet that the day may come when the preudices
sought to be organized for political action may lead to
laws Of exclusion among the natve-bom citizens of
| the different portions Of the confederacy.
What then arc privileges and mmunites' in consti-
tutonal sense? We answer with the court of Maryland
they that the citizens of all the States shall have
the peculiar advantage Of acquiring and holding real
we'll personal property and that such property shall
be protected and secured by the laws of the State in the
the property Of the citizens protected
They that such property shall not be subject to any
taxes or burdens VI SieHcHo 10 NV
subject to- They may also mean that as creditors they
shall be on the same footing with the State creditor in the
payment of the debts of deceased debtor They secure
and protect personal rights but they do not confer the
right of voting holding Office The contemporary his
tory of the constitution contributes very much to enforce
the here taken of these terms The same words are
used in the articles of confederation The free nhabt
ants of each of the States &c. shall be entitled to all prv
lepes and mmunties Of free citizens in the several States
and the peope of each State shall have free ingress and
egres and from any other State and shall ENJOY therein
oil the privileges of trade and commerce. subject to the
same duties imposons and restrictions as the inhabitants
thereof respectively would to be clear that political
rights were intended to be conferred by this clause
The right of suffrage being in representative government
the highest right of citizenship it is not to be supposed
would have been omitted in the specific enumeration to be
found in the article from which have quoted and thus
left to mere construction implication while minor rights
were carefully and expressly provided for It will be seen
that the privileges and mmunites not even by this
provision to citizens but extended to "nhabdnts
This must be conclusive seems to of the construction
under the confederation No intelligent mind could sup
pose the States which sovereign and Independent
ever intended that "inhabanf of one OF them
should exercise the right suffrage which belongs only to
full citizenship in every other State.
Now if am right in this, it is certainly not strained
argument to insist that the words used in the same
connexon when transferred into the constitution meant
by the consideration that this clause in the convention
which framed the constitution gave rise to no discussion
or remark which certainly would have done if the
ing of these terms had not already received fixed sgnf
| cation.
That the constitutional Of the word citizen does not
necessarily include full citizenship but that the distinction
between full and partial general and special citizenship
is recognised is in that provision which confers uris
dction upon the federal Judiciary in controversies between
acfisens Of different States" 1t has uniformly been held
by statesmen rs we'll uris that in this connexion the
term aczen was intended to signify merely resident
or inhabitant
srucon would justify in resorng the action Of the
States themselves the parties TO the compact evidcncng
the true sgnfcation of this grant of power. will not
refer to mere of the State legislatures although they
are numerous but the constitutions of the States in
which the voice Of a people directly declared BY them
it will be that the States have not only acted upon
the question of time necessary probation for citizen
ship but on the more fundamental question to the
classes persons entitled to the enjoyment OF its privileges
The constitution of Massachusetts, excludes paupers Maine
Indians not taxed Rhode Island the Naraganse tribe of
Indians Indiana persons enlisted in the army Of the United
States Connecticut New Jersey, Pennsy ylvania, Ohio
Indiana and Illinois, negroes Indians and all but white
men, Again Ohio admits to full citizenship "inhabit-
ants who reside ia the State one year Illinois, inhab
ants with six months residence without reference to the
question whether they nativebom of the State or,
being of foreign BIRTH have been natuized under the act
of Congress and Wisconsin has proceeded step fur
e and thrown wide open the doors of her temple all
A.. -,