The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1876-12-14

While emigrants in large mum
bers become citizens of the United
States, it is also true that persons, boil
native-born and paturalized, once citi
zens Of the United States, either by for
NAL acts or as the effects of a series O
facts and circumstances, abandon theil
citizenship and cease to be entitled Il
the protection of the United States, but
continue, on certain occasions, to assert
their claims to protection.
FOREIGN MARRIAGES.
In advance of provision, and in this
connection, / again invite your atten'
tion to the necessity of legislation con
corning marriages of American citizens
contracted abroad, and concerning the
status of American women who may
marry foreigners, and of children born
of American parents in foreign coun-
try. The delicate and complicated ques-
tions continually occurring with refer
ence to naturalization, expatriation,
and the status of such persons as ha We
referred to induce me to earnestly direct
your attention again to these subjects.
In like manner / repeat my recon-
mendation that some means be provided
for reaching determination of the just
and existing claims of aliens upon the
Government of the United States, with
in reasonable limitation, and of such
as may hereafter arise. While by a
strained provision of law the Court of
Claims may be, in certain cases, resorted
to by an alien claimant, the absence of
any general provisions governing all
such cases, and the want of tribunal
skilled in the disposition of such cases
upon recognized, fixed and settled prin.
ciples. either provides no remedy in
many deserving cases or compels con-
sideration of such claims by Congress or
the executive departments of the Gov
eminent.
1t is believed that other Governments
are in advance of the United States
upon this question, and that the prac-
tice now adopted is entirely unsatisfac-
tory.
COLORADO.
Congress, by an act approved March
3, 1875, authorized the inhabitants of
the Territory of Colorado to form a
State Government, with the name of the
State of Colorado, and therein provided
for the admission of said State, when
formed, into the Union, upon an equal
footing with the original States, a Consti-
tuition having been adopted End ratified
by the people of that State, and an act
ing Governor having certified to me the
fact as provided by said act, together
with copy of such Constitution and Or
dinances as provided for in the said act,
and the provisions of said act of Con-
gress, having been duly complied with,
l issued my proclamation ON the 1st of
August, 1876, a copy of which is hereby
annexed.
WAR REPORT.
The report of the Secretary of War
shows that the army has been actively
employed during the year subduing at
the request of the Indian Bureau, GER
tain wild bands of the Sioux Indian ma
tion, and in preserving peace at the
South during the election. The commits
sion constituted under the act of July
"a, 1876, to consider and report on the
whole subject of reform and the reor-
ganization of the whole army, has col
lected a large mass of statistics of
points bearing on the subject be-
fore it. These are now under coDsidera-
tion, and their report is progressing. /
am advised by the President of the Com
mission that it will be impracticable to
comply with the clause of the act re-
quiring report to be presented through
me to Congress on the first day of his
session, for want of time for that mature
deliberation which the importance of
the subject demands. Therefore, ask
that the time of making the report be
extended to the Goth day of January,
1877, in accordance with the resolution
of August 15, 1876.
The army regulations prepared under
the act of March /, 1875, have not been
promulgated, but are held until after
the report of the above mentioned COM
mission shall have been received and
acted upon.
By act of August Is, 1876, the cav
airy force of the army was increased
by $500 men, with a proviso that they
should be DISCHARGED on the expira-
ton of hostilities. Under this authority
the cavalry regiments have been
s0icuktuCheu, anu poitiOh Vi ehCh oiO
now in the field, pursuing the remnant
of the Indians with whom they have been
engaged during the summer.
The estimates of the War Department
are made upon the basis of the numbers
of men authorized by law, and their re-
quirements as shown by years of
and also with the
purpose on the part of the Bureau
officers to provide for the contingencies
that may arise during the time for which
the estimates are made. Exclusive of
the engineers estimates, presented in ac-
cordance with the acts of Congress call
ing for surveys and the estimates for i'm
prOvements at various localities, the
estimates now presented are about
six million dollars in excess of
the appropriation of the years 1874,
1875, and 1876. This increase is asked
in order to provide for the increased
cavalry force, should their service be
necessary, to prosecute economical work
upon important public buildings, to pro-
vide for the armamentOf fortifcation,
and the manufacture OF small arms, and
replenish the working stock in the sup
ply department. The appropriations for
these last named have Tor the past few
years been 80 limited that the accumula-
tions in store will be entirely exhausted
during the present year, and it will be
necessary to at once begin to replenish
them.
l invite your special attention to the
following recommendations OF the Sec
retary of War:
First-That the claims under the act
of July 4, 1864, for supplies taken by the
army during the war, be removed from
the offices Of the Quarter-master and
Commissary Generals and transferred to
the Southern Claims Commission. These
claims were of a precisely similar nature
to those now before the Southern Claims
Commission, and the War Debt Bureaus
have not the clerical force for their ex-
animation, nor the proper machinery for
investigating the loyalty of the claim
ants.
Second-That Congress sanction the
scheme of an annuity fund for the benefit
OF the families of deceased officers, and
that IL also nrovides for the permanent