The eastern clarion. [volume] (Paulding, Miss.) 1837-1863, 1859-08-03
VOLUME XXI. NO. 43.
EXPATRnTION AND NATURALIZATION.
OPINION oFTHE ATTORNEY GENERAL.
WASHINGTON, July Is, lS5i

EAPATRIATlON AND NATURALIZATION. |
OPINION oFTHE ATTORNEY GENERAL.
WASHINGTON, July Is, 1889.
Attorney-Gene Black has, in compli-
ance with the request of the President of |
the United States, rendered an opinion in |
the case of Christian Ernst, a native of |
Hanover, and who emigrated to this coun- |
try in 1851, when he was about l0years Of /
age.
This subject was recently made the ba- |
sis of a communication TO our Minister at |
Berlin, who was instructed to demand the !
release of Mr.. Ernst.
1t appearaOthat he was naturalzed last |
February, and in March, after procuring |
a regular passport, he went back to Han |
over on a temporary visit. He had been
in the village where he was born about
three weeks, when he was arrested, car
ried to the nearest military station, forced
into the Hanoverian army, and there he
is at the present time unable to return
home to his family and business, but com
pefied, against his will, to perform mill
tary service.
The Attorney-General says that this is |
a case which makes it necessary for the !
Government of the United States to in |
terfere promptly and decisively, or ac-
knowledge that we have no power to pro-
tect naturalized citizens when they return |
to their native country under any circum- |
stances whatever. What YOU will do
must of course depend upon the law of
our own country as controlled and modi- |
fed by the law of nations, the Constitu-
ton Of the United States and the acts Of
Congress.
The natural rights of every free person
who owes no debts, and is not guilty of
any crime, to leave the country of his
birth and in good faith, and for an hon
est purpose-the privilege of throwing off
his natural allegiance and substituting
| another allegiance in its place--the
general right, in one word, of expatrla-
ton, is incontestible. | know that the
| common law of England denies it; that
| the judicial decisions of that country are
opposed to it, and that some of our own
| courts misled by British authority, have
expressed though not very decisively)
! the same opinion. But all this IS very
far from settling the question.
The municipal code of England is rot
one the sources from which we derive 1ur
| knowledge of international law. Wetake
| it from natural reason and justice, from
|
practice of civilized nations. All these
are opposed to the doctrine of perpetual
allegiance 1t is too injurious to the gen
erai interests of mankind to be tolerated.
Justice denies that men should either be
confined to their native soil or driven
away from it against their will A man
NAV be either exiled or imprisoned for an
actual offense against the law Of his coun-
try, but being born in it is not a crime for
which either punishment can be Justly in
fiicted Among writers on public law the
! preponderance in weight of authority, as
well as the majority in number, concur
with Cicero. who declares that the right
of expiration is the firmest foundation Of
human freedom, and with Bynkerchock,
who utterly denies that the territory of a
State is the prison of her people.
In practice, no nation on earth walks or
ever did walk by the rule of the common
law All the countries of Europe have re-
ceived and adopted and naturalized the
citizens of one another. They have all
encouraged the immigration of foreigners
into their territories, and many of them
have aided the immigration of their own
people. The German States have conced-
ed the existence of the right by making
laws to regulate its exercise. Spain and
the Spanish American States have always
recognized it. England, by a recent stat
ute q and Vic, has established per
, manent system of naturalization in the
verv teeth Of her common law rule.
France has done the same. and besides
that has declared in the Code Napoleon
Art. IL that the equality of French.
man will be lost by naturalization in a
foreign country. There is no Govern
] Il, e,
, callv denies the right. Here in the
United States the thought of giving it up
cannot be entertained for a moment
Upon that principle this country was pop
. ulated We owe to it out existence as a
nation. Ever since our independence we
have upheld and maintained it by every
form of words and acts. We have con-
: stantly promised full and complete protec
ton to all persons who should come here
: and seek it by renOuncing their natural
= allegiance and transferring their fealty tc
us. We stand pledged to it in the face
of the whole world. Upon the faith oil
that pledge, millions of persons have
, staked their most important interests. II
: we repudiate it now, or spare one atom OF
the power which may be necessary to re
deem it, we shall be guilty of pertidy SC
/ gross that no American can witnessit with
r out feeling of intolerable shame.
| Expatriation includes not only emigra
I ton out of ones natural country, but
n naturalization in the country adopted as &
furture residence. When we prove the
4 right of man to expatriate himself We
t establish the lawful authority of thecoun
e try in which he settles to naturalize him
if the Government pleases. What, then
J. is naturalization? There is no disput,
:, about the meaning of it. The derivation
d of the word alone makes it plain. AL
n photographers and all iurists define it on,
If way. In its popular etymologicala and law
:. full sense it signifies the act of adopting
q foreigner and clothing him with all tn,
IS privileges of a native citizen or subject
il There can be no doubt that naturalza
ton does, pro .tacto, place the native anC
adopted citizen in precisely the same re
= lations with the Government under whicl
q they live, except so far as the express an,
Z positive law of the country has made
: distinction in favor of one or the other
= In some countries immigration has bee
so encouraged by giving to adopted cit
zens certain immunities and privilege
Of not enioyed by natives. In most, how
ever, political favors have gone the othe
re way. Here, none but a native can b
]
m ! born citizens are ineligible to the office {
Governor, and in one of them they car
ls not even vote for two years after they al
,d naturalized. But if these restrictions ha
IN not been expressly made by positive enac
o ment, they certainly would not have eXi
u ted.
W. In regard to the protection of our eli
he zens in their right at home and abroad, "
no have no law which divides them into elias
Ily es. or makes any difference whatever b
le. tween them. A native and a naturalizC
rs American may therefore, 90 forth wit
ds equal security over every sea and throug
III every land under heaven, including Il
m country in which the latter was Dor
ch Either of them may be taken up under
MS debt contracted, or a crime committed
himself; but both are absolutely free fro
all political obligations to every count
but their own. They are both of the
American citizens, and their exclusive
Ao' legiance is due to the Government of I
III United States One of them never d
81 owe fealty elsewhere, and the 9th
oS at the time of his naturalization solemn
~. and rightfully, in pursuance of public L
~ and municipal regulation, threw off,
L le nounced and abjured forever all allegiar
.nI to every foreign Prince, potentate, St,
~ and sovereignty whatever, and specia
~ i,. to that sovereignty whose subject he /
nae Nv, previously been. Ifthis did not work a /,
a ato solution of every political tie which bou
~ him to his native country, then our nat
- alization laws are bitter mockery !
- y the oath we administer to foreigners !
5s ".a delusion and snare.
oF There have been and are now ners
rho OF very high reputation who hold th,
. Of naturalized citizen ought to be protec
by the Government of his adopted co
try everywhere except in the country
his birth; but if he goes there, OF
DIN caught within the powero his native 5
to ereign, his act of naturalization may
the treated as a mere nullity. and he wlil
Co., mediately cease to have the rishtS OF
sus- American citizen. This cannot oe 'I'
- 1t has no foundation forest upon laiiu
red except tbe dogma which denies altoogetf
fit tbe right Of expatriation without the CO
in sent Of his native sovereign-and that
co. ,ntonabIc as | think | have alrea
MaS I Te;tber is this view supported by
anu -, of the world | need not )