The evening world., 1894-03-31
OTHERS LIKE
De VITO FREE.
Authorities Very Slow in
Following Up Natural,
izatiOn Frauds.
JUDGE G|EGER|CH's CALL.
Much Good Expected from the
Meeting Of the Men Who
Issue the Papers.
FEES SHOULD BE EQUALIzED.
Now It Costs $1.50 to Become a
Citizen in a Federal and Only
SO Cents in a State Court.

With a bill before Congress-, another
before the Legislature OF this State ard
a meeting of all the judges called to
discuss the frauds unearthed and ex-
posed by The Evening World.'' It Is
pretty certain the naturalization laws
will be quickly amended or such rules laid
down by the judges as will materially
check the traffic In fraudulent citizen
ship papers.
If In the immediate future, as now
seems certain, proper laws are enacted,
then the work Of The Evening world''
In the arrest Of Vincenzo De Vito,
banker. padronc, liquor dealer and poll
tician. for procuring papers by perjury
and then selling them for SIS will be
amply rewarded.
Since Judge Giegerich, recognizing the
fuil force of the exposures, undertook
to call the judges together to lay down
uniform rules for the issuance of nat
u~ralization papers other judges have
expressed their hearty approval Of the
plan. h is particularly SO Of the
judicial officers In whose courts citizens
have been and are being made daily
They are well aware Of the frauds
practised through their courts, but
under existing laws they are almost
powerless to check the evil.
Time after time applicants have been
rejected because, under examination by
the Judge. 1t was shown conclusiyely
that either the would-be citizens or wit
nesses had perjured themselves In the
made before the clerks. Then
the same witnesses n the same appli-
cants have gone to other courts and pro-
cured the DaDprS without npaettnp NE
ness n applicant in the mean time had
united upon a scheme of perjury which
was successfully carried through.
Inc meeting of the Judges to consid-
er the exposures and to lay down rules
Will. while doing a vast amount OF
good. leave other important points to
What action will the DistrIct-Attorneys
OF the different counties OF the Stale,
particularly New York and Kings coun,
ties ties 90 to aid the judges in the detec-
United States District-Attorneys do in
the same matter?
What move. If any, has been made by
the Distr!ct-Attorney OF this county as
wen as Kings to capture the criminals
who have secured citizenship papers and
set the law at defiance? Have the police
or either city been even asked by the
tSSs neatly Two o'n mon,b 10 40 anything?
The Evening World" in its series Of
articles on the evils OF the padrone sys-
tenn, made the positive statement that a
In the city, who for sis would procure
naturalization papers for aliens not le-
galiy entitled to receive them.
That statement was reiterated, but ap-
parently no move was made by the pros
ecuting officer; 1t remained for 1.-THE
Evening World" to demonstrate beyond
a doubt how the gang worked. The
held for the Grand Jury was sufficient.
That others of the gang are fugitives
from Justice is well known.
That fraLds existed was supected by
many, and now to some persons. The
general public also suspects hat bigger
men than De Vito lent their aid to the
fraud. Not a move of any kin has so
far been made by the authorities to get
to the bottom facts.
Now that the Judges are getting to-
gether to help crush the evil, II seems
s1so order Gn so for the pr% %Hi ting of officers to
There Is one thing which the judges
can do. namely. regulate the question
Of fees. At present the fees charged in
the amount charged in the United
States Courts. The State Courts only
demand so cents, and 1t is safe to say
that a majority OF the immigrants rush
reason more than any other that around
election time the State Courts are
crowded with applicants, and judges
sit until midnight making citizens.
II ittS ith w. ~ p'Nll ANdNt rIll
Federal courts should be the same. The
State judges in nataralizing aliens sim
ply act as Deputy United States officers.
WHY there should be a difference in fees
seems incomprehensible.
About two months before election every
year, Tammany opens It's headquarters
FOR naturaliZinG aliens, and for years
II has been ocated at Senator Timothy
D.. Sullivan's 'Wigwam." in Centre
street. The organization deposits hun
dreds of dollars with the clerks of the
Common Pleas and Superior Courts, re-
ceiving In exchange half dollar tickets
These tickets are given TO the aliens.
who. on presenting them in court and
answering questions, obtain citizenship
papers free. Not In n single instance
has Tammany sought to naturalize its
men in the Federal courts.
While Judge Giegerich was speaking
to an Evening World" reporter yester-
day he handed the latter a bunch OF
applications, all of which the Judge had
rejected in one day-Oct. q last. There
were more than forty in the batch. and
more than half of them showed that
the grossest kind Of perjury had been
committed. Some OF the applicants ad-
mitted to being fifty years old. and
| said they had come here when less thar
eighteen years old This was TO get
around the first papers obstacle. Under
cross-eXamination by the Judge they
admitted they had only been here a
few years.
In each case they had the excuse that