The Washington times., 1901-09-11
REVISION OF LAWS URGED.
Checks on Naturalization Urged
by Henry Z. Davis.

| Strict Limitation But No Total Ex-
custom of All Immigration sedi-
tious Utternnces Call for Greater
Punishment Than Mt Present
In speaking yesterday of the attack
upon the President. and of ways to pre-
vent the commission of crimes of a SIM
liar nature, Henry f. Davis, formerly
| United States Attorney for the District
| said:
| THE attack upon the President will
bring good out of evil if it shall cause an
| overhauling of our laws respecting ma
| turalization and sedition, and produce
proper legislation dealing with those sub
jects. At present we have no law on the
subject of sedition, except as applied to
the army and navy. and our laws relat-
| ting to naturalization are grossly lax in
| their provisions and administration.
"A review of the legislation respecting
naturalization brings to light some inter.
| esting facts, and suggests that in somo
particulars our forefathers were wiser
| than ourselves. Ever since the act of
| January %. 1895. it has been a provision
of our naturalization laws that before al
applicant may be admitted to citizenship
he must prove his residence in the coun-
try for a specified time and also cause
1t to appear to the satisfaction of the
court that during that time he has be-
haved a man of good moral character.
attached to the principles of the Consti-
tuition of the United States. and well dis
posed to the good order and happiness of
the same. This sounds very well in the
reading, but, as every lawyer knows, the
proof by an applicant of his character.
Mt IN ha ri nE,NIn Of thA (vnr,
stitution. and well disposition to the good
order and happiness of the United States
is quite uniformly of the most perfume
tory sort The applicant brings to the
court two or three of his personal friends.
| who come for the purpose of helping him
to citizenship. and they answer the most
formal questions propounded by the court
in the absence of any representative of
the Government or any opponent of any
sort. 1t is only occasionally that some
judge subjects the applicant and his wit
nesses to anything like rigid examina-
tion. and the result is that in ninety-nine
cases in one hundred, indeed, in a great
er proportion than that the applicant is
admitted to citizenship with scarcely any
more formality or consideration by the
court than would attach to the signing
of an order of publication.
II have often thought while witnessing
the proceedings in naturalization cases.
of the very loose way in which aliens be-
come citizens and of the grave danger
which turks in the existing practice. The
act of June IS, 1898. contains some provi-
sions which l think it would be well for
| Congress to recall. Thus, 1t was provided
| by that act that clerks OF courts before
| whom declarations of intention were
made should certify and transmit to the
| Secretary of State abstracts of all such
declarations. giving a suitable descrip-
ton of the name, age, nation. residence.
and occupation for the time being of the
alien. and should also afterward send TO
| the Secretary of State certified copies of
| all records of naturalization. The act
further provided that all aliens residing
| or arriving in the United States should
be reported to and registered by the clerk
OF the district court of the district of
residence or arrival or in some cases,
to the collector of port of arrival or place
of residence or some officer or person
there. or nearest thereto. authorized by
the President to register aliens; such re.
port to be recorded in n book to be kept
| for that purpose and a certificate of the
| report and registry to be granted to the
| person making the report and to each
individual concerned therein, and a tran
script of such registry to be sent to the
| clerk of the district court, who should
file the same in his Office and enter and
| transcribe it in book Monthly returns
Of all aliens registered were to be sent
by the clerk of the district court to the
| Department Of State. penalty was pro-
vided for every alien who should neglect
to make a report. and he was obliged to
give surety for his good behavior during
/ hfH Ra.Ess1a L.,
such report and registry should be made.
and on failure to do so, was to be COM
mitted to Jail. When, afterward. the
allen applied for admission to citizenship.
the date of his registry was taken as the
| time when his residence within the Unit
| ed States commenced.
The act OF April Il. 1902. while continu-
| registry, omitted the requirement respect
| ing It's transmission to the Secretary of
! state; but the act of March e lSl6 re-
| quired the certificate of report and regis
Try: and also the declaration of Intention
to be exhibited by every alien on his ap-
pIication for citizenship, and that each
ord oi the court admitting the alien 9th
erwise. any pretended admission of an
allen 10 be OF no validity or effect
| These very salutary provisions do not
| exist IN the present laws governing nat
| uraltzauon. and have long been of opin-
ion that the restoration of some such pro-
| NiSionS 10 tne law would be most whole
| some. and is. as / think, essential to the
| proper government of the subject
| think that there should be created n bu-
| reau of naturalization under the State De
partment. that every alien residing or ar
| riVlng in the country should be required
| 10 report and register, as under The. old
| law: that a certificate of his report and
registry should be sent to the bureau of
| naturalization. which should at once
transmit a copy of the same to the United
States Consul nearest the place of birth
| or foreign residence of the alien; that ON
| the application of the alien for admission
| to citizenship notice of the application
| should be given to the Consul and also by
publication at the place of residence in
this country and the place of foreign resi-
dence of the applicant and that the
| United States Attorney should in each in
| stance appear before the court to which
! application is made examine the appIi-
| cant and present to the court certiiied
| copies of all records relating 20 the appli-
| cant and also such report az the Consul
| may have made to the bureau. This would
| not be a very cumbersome process and
| would enable the court considering the
| application to have the fullest possible
| information in relation to the applicant
and his fitness for citizenship. In this
| way undesirable applicants could be kept
| from citizenship, and the antecedents of
| every applicant as to character. political
views, and everything fully investigated
and revealed.
1t is contrary to the spirit of our peo-
| pie and institutions to talk of any whole
| sale exclusion of aliens. This country has
| always been considered open to desirable