Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1857-1865, 1859-07-15

Ihe government is therefore bound, b
every consideration of honor and GOO
faith to protect its citizens, naturalized
and native born, against unreasonable
Seizures" of their their "persons" an,
'effects" And if so bound, why is tn
obligation less binding abroad than a
home? 1t has been the pride and boas
of our countrymen, that in whatever par
of the globe an American citizen may be
the flag of his country protects him. 1
is when far from home, in a foreign land
that the protecting arm of his country
has most value to the citizen. In requir
ing the naturalized citizen to "abiure'
allegiance to all foreign countries, oul
government becomes morally bound tc
protect him against all "claims" by such
foreign countries, to that allegiance we
have required him to abjure.
1t will not be doubted that, should a
naturaljzed citizen "give aid and CON-
fort to the enemies of the United States,
he would be held guilty, under the law OF
treason, and would be punishable with
death. But under Mr. Cass's doctrine,
such citizens may be forced into the mill
tary service of power at enmity with the
United States, be made to give it "aid and
comfort" and thus be subjected to the
death penalty, by the mere fault of our
government itse.f, in failing to extend its
protecting arm over its own citizens. 1t
is well remembered fact, that the i'm
pressment of American seamen into the
British service, under this same specious
doctrine, that they owed service to a gov
ernment to which they were once subject
led to the war of 1912. Mr.. Madison re-
PEELED with indignation the timid counsels,
such as now seem ready to offer up ma
turalized citizens of the United States to
the predatory claims of belligerent Eu-
ropean powers Mr. Jefferson, as early
as 1776, in the act of the Virginia code,
recorded his well known opinion, that the
right of every freeman to expatrate him
self from any one country and accept
citizenship in any other, is a natural
right. like that of our right to life, liberty,
the use of our faculties, and the pursuit
of happiness derived not from the
"charters of Kings or legislators" but
from "the King of Kings" In 1917, he
said-"I believe, too, / might safely affirm,
that there is not another nation, civilized
or savage, which has ever denied this
right" France, Great Britain, and /
think all European States, are in the habit
of naturalizing foreigners, and are there
fore estopped from dissenting from it as
legitimate in the United States The
adoption of citizens OF foreign birth is a
usage as old as the earliest known govern
ments on earth. Density of population
in Europe, and necessity for population
in America, have rendered it advantageous
both to the peoples and governments of
Europe and America to favor naturaliza-
tion in the United States. Under its vast
results, it has now become but an act of
justice on the part of the United States
to maintain the right of national protec-
tion to its adopted citizens, against any
musty pretensions of tyranny which may
still linger in the old world The timidity
which would shrink from this duty will
very probably destroy any Administration
disclosing such startling weakness. The
power of governments to protect their own
citizens, at home or abroad, is no new
doctrine-it is common to all nations.
OF course this protection does not shield
the citizen who commits crime, or subjects
himself to the penal laws of another coun-
try-as L understand, was the case of ST.
mon Tonsig, who returned to Austria and
was arrested in 1854, under the Pierce
administration. But in such cases as is
cited by Gen. Case, in which foreign
government "ctaims military service" ofI
an american citizen-claims allegianc
from one whom we have required to "ab
jure" that allegiance-from one who has
sworn to give his whole allegiance to the
United States-claims military service,
(perchancc against the United States, }
from one whom the United States would
punish with death, if found in arms against
this government-if our government does
not protect its citizens and its own plight
ed faith against such wrongs, it would be
Inundated among the nations Of the
earth. If the usage of our government, ]
in favor of the right of protection in such
cases, required any settling, the case which
has been published, of Mr.. Allibert, un-
der Mr.. Fillmores administration in 1852,
was precisely in point, and well settled it,
Mr.. Allibert; French naturalized citi-
zen, resident in Louisiana, it seems revis-
tied France, and was seized and impress
ed into the French military service, under
the "claim," granted by Gen. Cass, of
right to military service from all natives
of France who may be found within its
jurisdiction. Mr.. Pillmore's administra-
ton gave prompt attention, and caused
the government of France to set at liber-
ty this naturalized American citizen
Surely this is what should be done in all
such eases. Mr.. Webster, while Secreta-
ry of State in 1912, had already obtained
from Lord Ashburton, the British Minis
ter, a similar acknowledgement of this
great principle of justice to naturalzed
citizens of the United States. Lord Ash
burton's words to Mr.. Webster are full
and omphatic-"I must admit" said he,
"that when British subject, Irish, Eng
lish or Welsh, becomes an american, and
claims no longer the protection of his