St. Paul daily globe., 1891-07-19
ALIENS IN OUR MIDST
st. Paul the Home Of Many
Who Are Not Even
Citizens.
Hen Who Shirk a Plain Duty
Through Lack Of
Patriotism.
The Records Show That James
Mullen Was the First
Citizen.
Our Proud Boast Should Al
ways Be, | Am An
American.

Citizenship in this great country of
ours is the most precious gift afforded
man; but, also. the number who realize
the force of this truth are few and far
between. In the United States there
are hundreds of thousands to-day who
have not as much as declared their in
tentiOn of becoming citizens. They
seem contented to reap the advantage
which living in republic affords, while
all the time owing allegiance to some
foreign prince or pOtenJate. The causes
for this condition of things may be
summed up in the phrase. "lack OF
patriotism" +" which is superinduced by
apathy and a want of interest in the
public affairs of the land under
whose nag they seek protection.
At each recurring election hundreds OF
aliens come forward reluctantly before
the clerk of court and answer certain
questions under oath touching their
citizenship. On the strength OF the
declaration made, first papers are
issued. These men are usually most
ignorant. and have but little under
standing of the step they are taking,
any more than they know that the pos
DNoo5OAl VI lliOoO lopNAo VIZ SAfS
the right of suffrage. No record Is
made of papers issued at electian times.
there being no legal requirement to that
effect. Consequently, If the declaration
paper is lost. citizenship is lost with 1t,
and MANY there are who have this fact
brought home most forcibly 10 them
when, after lapse of two years, they
make application to take out final pa
perS, and find to their sorrow that the
clerks records do not contain their
names. 1t only costs a miserable, petty
ffty-cent piece to purchase birth
right under the stars and stripes, but it
would seem that that price is too high
by nalf, if one can judge anything by
the number who become naturalized
throughout the year.
There should be some law enacted to
compel foreigners to enroll themselves
as citizens after aTesidence of five years
i'm the United States. Failing in this,
they should be obliged to seek shelter
in some cline more cOngenial to their
tastes. Nor is the number OF those who
may be termed unpatriOtic made up al
together Of the ignorant. 1t is surpris-
ing how many intelligent men there are
who hold alOOf from the performance
of this all-impOrtant duty to the new
parent government. Men have risen to
high places in the government service
by reason of certain personal or natural
qualifications, and it was not discovered
until long after their election that they
were not citizens, and therefore for
feited all claims to their stations. \
case in point was the election of nom
citizen about a year ago as county at
tOrney of Stearns county. He was
obliged
To step Down
and out. The same thing happened in
Brainerd a few years ago. the new sher-
itf-elect having been shown to be a sub
ject of Queen Vie and therefore not
entitled to wear civic honOrs in the land
of the free. There is not venira of
Jurors drawn in the district court, while
the same is in session. that does not
contain two or more foreigners, who
come forward when the judge announces
that he is ready to hear excuses, and
1lippantly declare that they are nOn-citi-
Zens. OF course, the law provides that
only citizens are allowed to exercise the
blessed privilege of earning a dollar per
day in the capacity of jurors, so these
men are of necessity excused. though
the judges not unfreQuently indicate
their diSpleaSure none the less fOrcibly
If silently.
"What is your excuse. sir?" inquired the
court al the last term of a young man who
looked as if he might have been born and
raised in Minneapolis.
I'm an alien, sir" was the answer.
''N on re an alien, eh:
I'm an alien
"Do you intend TO become a citizenr'
Hadn't thought Of il, sir
''Where was you bOrny'
an Canada, sir.
You re excused, sir; but I think you had
better consider The advisability of enlisting
under the stars and stripes.
The youthful Canuck screwed" with
all possible haste, his face suffused with
bushes and evidently much discounted
over the awkward position he found
himself in.
The English and the Canadians are
hardest to bring INTO the fold, and the
Irish and SwedeS the easiest.
The ordinary native of Canada is
fOnder of the lady who preSides over
the destinieS Of the British dominiOnS
than those who call themselves English
men. lie can subscribe TO everything
contained in the declaration until that
part is reached which reads, land to re-
nounce forever all allegiance and
fidelity to any foreign prince, pOtentate,
state or sovereignty whatever, and par
ticularly TO the queen of England''-he
is then ready TO call the deal off. The
the land that bore them and the mon
archial system Of government under
which they previously lived. 1t there
fore comes as hard for them to swallow
republican principles as for a con-
firmed topper to tackle a glass of spring
water. As Sullivan puts it i'll "Pina-
fore"
He might have been a Prussian,
A Franco, Turk. or Russian;
But in spite Of all temptations
To belong TO other nations,
He remains an EngliShman."
With the Irishman it is quite the re.
verse. He cannot escape the British
yoke too quickly, and he is ready to re-
nOunce his allegiance to Victoria from
the moment he reaches Castle Garden,
and he is poor specimen of the product
of the Emerald Isle who does not make
the act of citizenship his first duty after
short residence in the new land. The
ScandlnaVianS seem 10 be similarly I'M
bued with the priceless heritage which
citizenship in the United States signi-
fies, and there are few among them who
have not. at least, taken out first papers
1t is an lriShman who enjoys the
grand distinction of having been the
first st. Paulite to have become a full
citizen of the United States. His name
is James Mullen. The records show
that Mullen took out his first papers be
fore the clerk of the court OF Kalamazoo
county, Michigan, Nov. 10, IS47. He
was twenty-three years of age at the
Time of His Arrival
in New York, which was in 1913. The
formal papers were made out before
James K. Humphrey, the then clerk o.
court of Ramsey county, and still al
honored citizen Of St. Paul. Edmund
Rice and W. II. Welch testified as wit
nesseS, No doubt the old-timers vii
remember Mullen. He is not living il
st. Paul now, having gone West man,
years ago. when the gold craze was a
It's height.
The next in order to declare their in
lentions were Joseph Wolf. AnGrev
Parker. James Lambert and AleXande
Cathcart. The latter, who will be wei
remembered by the early coners
rrived in the United States Oct. l, 1S47
rom England. Five wears later he hat