The Burlington weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington [Iowa]) 1860-1876, 1864-07-09
BURLINGTON WEEKLY HAWK.EYE;

EEKLY HAWK-EYE;
The Alleged Fereisn Enlistment
"A Pointed LefeeP 1rom OecPe
tary Seward. W.
DEPARTMENT OF STATE, \.
| WASHINGTON, June Is.
| 10 the President The Secretary Q
State, to whom has been referred the reso
luton of the Senate OF the Oath instant, re
4uesting the President to inform that bod,
| II any authority has been given any one
elther in this country or elsewhere, to Oh
tain recruits in Ireland or Canada for oul
army or navy; an0whetheY any such re
cruits have been obtained, or whether, K
the knowledge Of the Government, Irish.
men or Canadians have been induced t
emigrate to this country in order to be re.
crulted; and II 90, what measures, II any
nave been adopted in order to arrest such
conduct" has the honor, in reply to the
inquiries thus submitted, to report, that
no authority has been given by The Execu-
tive Of this Government, or by any execu-
country or elsewhere, to obtain recruits
either in Ireland or in Canada, or in any
foreign county, for either the army or the
navy Of the United States; and, on the
contrary, that whenever application for
such authority has been made, it has been
refused and absolutely withheld.
II any such recruits have been obtained,
either in the provinces named in the reso-
luton or in any foreign country, they have
been obtained by persons who are not
even citizens Of the United States, but SUBJ
jects or citizens of the country where the
recruits were obtained. The persons who
obtained such recruits, II any were SO OBJ
tanned, were amenable to the laws of the
foreign province or country where their
ofienses were committed, and at the same
time they were not within the reach Of our
own laws and tribunals; and such persons
acted without any authority or consent,
and even without the knowledge OF this
Government. THIS Government has no
knowledge that any such recruits have
been obtained in the provinces named, or
In any foreign country. In two or three
instances 1t has been reported to this De-
partment that recruiting agents had cross
ty, with > view 70 engage recruits or re-
claim deserteTa. The complaints thus
made were Immediately investigated; the
proceedings Of such recruiting agents were
promptly disavowed and condemned, the
recruits or deserters, if any had been
brought into the United States, were at
once returned and the offending agents
dismissed from the public service.
In the land and naval forces of the Uni
ted States there are found not only some
Canadians, some Englishmen and some
Irishmen, but also many subjects of Con-
tinental European powers. All of these
persons were voluntary immigrants into
the United States. They enlisted after
their arrival on our shores of their own
free accord, and not in any foreign coun-
try. The Executive Government has no
knowledge of the nature of the special in
ducements which led these volunteers to
emigrate from their native countries, or Of
the purposes for which they emigrated. It
has. however, neither directly or indi-
rectly, invited their immigration by any
offers Of employment in the military or
naval service. When such persons are
found within the United States, exactly
the same inducements to military service
were open to them which by authority of
law were offered at the same time to citi.
zens of the United.States.
Having thus answered the inquiries con-
tanned in the resolution of the Senate, the
Secretary Of State might here, withoutim-
propriety, close this report. Nevertheless,
the occasion is . proper one for noticing
in our army and navy which have recently
found utterance in the British House 81
Lords. The Secretary Of State has, there
fore, farther to report that the Government
Of the United States has practiced the most
scrupulous care in preventing and avoid
ing in Great Britain, and in all other for
cign countries, any violation of interna-
tional OF municipal law in regard to the en-
listment Of soldiers and seamen.
Moreover, when the British Govern
nient or any other foreign Government
has complained Of any alleged violation of
the rights of its subjects In the United
States, thfs Government has listened to the
complaints patiently, Investigated them
promptly, and, where redress was found
n md nd inoh In ho~ n1.A
fully accorded it. This Government, on
the other hand, has been obliged to SUBJ
NIT in the ordinary way grave complaints
Of the enlistments, equipment and periOdi-
cal payment, In British ports, Of seamen
and marines employed in making unauth-
orized war from such ports against the
United States.
Il is . notorious fact, manifest to all the
world, that . vigorous and continual tide
Of emigration Is flowing from Europe, and
especially from portions Of the British EN-
pire, and from Germany and Sweden, into
the United States. This immigration, like
the immigration which preceded it, results
from the reciprocal conditions Of indus
trial and social life in Europe and America.
OF the mass of immigrants who arrive on
our shores, far the largest number 60 inn
mediately into the occupations Of peaceful
industry. Those, on the contrary, who are
susceptible to the attractions Of military
life, voluntarily enter the national service
with similar class Of our own native citi-
zens, upon the same equal Inducements
and with the same patriotic motives. There
is no Law of nations and no principle Of
international comfy which requires Us to
refuse their aid in the cause Of the country
and Of humanity.
! The Government does. not repuciate or
discourage immigration. The Govern
ment frankly avows that It encourages inn
migration from all countries, but only by
open, lawful and honorable agencies and
means. However statesmen I'm other coun-
tries may have at the beginning misuu-
derstood the nature and direction of the
present civil war. that nature and that d.
recti0n were not misunderstood by the
Government OF the United States. Il was
forseen here that the seditiouss attempt to
divide the American Union, If not disc0ur-
aged by other commercial and maratime
powers, would not merely produce great
commercial and social embarrassment in
the United States, but that, II it should be
persisted in and protracted, II must seri-
ously disturb the commerce and industry
Of other nations. Upon this ground,
among others, the Government OF the
United States earnestly demonstrated with