Weekly North Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1850-1858, 1855-07-11

We publish to-day, in another column the letter
of Gen. Washington to Governeur Norris referred
to some weeks since, after its appearance in the
American Advocate Kinston. We saw then, and
see now grounds of objection to the sentiments
of the letter-though we confess we doubted its
genuineness on account of its style. Gen. Wash
ington was right in insisting that the army should
not be brought under the control of foreign officers;
he felt strongly upon the subject, doubt and he
wrote strongly. Yet the Editor of the Advocate, if
he had looked just two three pages further on in
the same volume Of Sparks which contains this let
ter would have found another letter from the great
Chief addressed to the President of Congress, un-
der date Scamp, near White Plains, Oath July,
l77s in which, after adverting to the number of
foreign officers in the service, he says:
81 will further add, that we have already full
proportion of foreign officers in general coun-
cils; and, should their number be increased it may
happen, upon many occasions, that their voices may
equal if not exceed the rest. trust uou think me
so much citissn Of the acorl, as to 5cliece lam not
easily o'a'ped led as0ay By Attachments merely To-
cal or An'erican; get I confess am not entirely
'oithout them, nor does it appear TO that they are
uncorrantable if confined acithin proper limits"
9th, p. 49, There other letters in this volume
in which he speaks in kind and high terms of "for-
eign" officers engaged in the service We invite
the attention of the Editor of the Advocate to the
foregoing extract.
We copy the following, which is admirably to the
point, from the last Goldsborough Tribune:
''At the time Gen. Washington penned that letter
to Gov. Norris, military adventures from Europe
/
| commissions in the army just perhaps, as Ameri-
cans are at the present tmc soliciting commissions
in the Russian army. These foreign adventures wcre
Of course, source of annoyance; nor it is reason
able to suppose, that they all so earnestly sought
the independence of America, they did their own
| ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. OF them, and them only however
did ashinston speak, and it is dsingenuousi in any
man TO say that, in his letter to Gov. Norris the
great and good Washington had the remotest refer
ence to adopted citizens.
General Washington fought for LIBERTY, civil and
religious, and as often he alludes to tn, subject
| his writings incontestby prove, that he regarded
naturdlized citizens as AMERICANS" and in his
language, "''elcome to q participation in all oar
rights and pricileges" That he was in favor of i'm
migration, and of laws providing for the naturaza-
ton of foreigners is put beyond doubt 10y the " De.
ctardtion OF Independence, by the CONSTITUTION OF
THE UNITED STATES, and by " W WAsBrxGrox's FARE
| WELL ADDRESS"
Surely the editor of the American Advocate can
perceive the difference between foreigners and cii-
sens by choice; )" and surely he will not attempt to
| say, that Washington ever uttered sentiment de-
| rogatory to the character of naturalized citizens
We appeal to his candor in this matter, and beg him
to confess, as is his duty, that Waskngtnns letter
to Governor Morris has no relation whatever to the
question at ISSUE ard that while it pervers the lam
guage of the Father of his country" it is doing
gross injustice to clause of citizens that were en-
deared to Washington by their loyalty and yalor
We have the constitution, before us-three Cat
ieast) foreigners signed it! The Declaration of in
dependence lies our table-eight Foreigners
signed it !-''Foreigners" were not wanting in
Washingtons army, nor did they 60 unrerrescnted
in the Americian navy.
We cannot, however, elaborate these papable
truths We will close this brief notice of the letter in
question, by the following piece of historical inforna
ton:
Of the signers ofthe Declaration of independence
eight were born in foreign countries, viz Burton
Guinett, Robert Morris, England James Smith
George Taylor, Mathew Thornton, Ireland John
Witherspoon, James Wilson, Scotland; Francis Lew
is, Wales. Ofthe Major generals, eleven foreign
ers; Lafayette, France; Barons DeKalb and Stcu
ben, Germany; William r. Davis, Wm. Moultrie
England VIM Cloghan, John James, Richard Mont
gomery, Ireland Kosciusko, Poland; Charles Lee
Wales; Arthur ST. Clair Scotland Of the brigadiel
generals employed the American side in the revolu
Con Co,th three were foreigners Horato Gates, England
James Christie captain IL iG iGe Amy, A was sbfp BORN Il
Scotland. OF the navy, Paul Jones was born ii
Scotland, ana Jonn barry IN lreand, Aioert OalIatlr
was born in Switzerland and Alexander Hamilton
in the West Indies.
Such is the foreign catalogue of American patri
OTIS. Is it not proud one?
1t may also be stated, undoubted history, tha
John Paul Jones, Scotchman by birth, had tn
honor of hoisting the first flag ever displayed oil
board an American man-of.war. This was the Colo
NAL flag, which bore the figure of pine-tree, ant
the significant device of rattlesnake, with tn
words, "dont tread on mel" John Paul Jone
also had the honor of first hoisting the flag of tn
stars and stripes "over the decks of the Range
with his own hands, as he did the Colonial flag o
board the Alfred about eighteen months before"
: WHO is RIGHT?