Arizona republican., 1904-12-02
PHOENIx. ARIZONA, DEC 2, 1904.
Onr Citizens Abroad and the Trouble
 They Cause.

one of the cherished beliefs of nearly all Americans is that Great Britain goes further than any other nation in nFatecting her citizens in foreign lands. Ia is generally supposed that a British citizen has only to wrap the union jack around him in order to defy the world, and Americans have been in the habit of regretting that Americans abroad are not protected as the BritOn is by his home government. In the chapters from his diplomatic life that are pub lished in the December Century Mir. Andrew D. White corrects some popu- laF errors On this subject.
 MT. White knows what he is talking about He has been American minis ter to Germany, minister to Russia and ambassador to Germany, after our representative at Berlin was raised to that rank In addition to his long and distinguished diplomatic service, MT. White has been a great trav- eler, and speaks with authority as to the manner in which Great Britain. and the United States respectively take care of their citizens in foreign lands. MT White points out that there is a wide differ ence. between the status of a native citizen of the British empire and a citizen by naturalization, whereas Uncle Sam makes no discrimination between the native American and the foreign-born citizen-they both look alike to him. And it is the foreign born citizen of the United States who is forever appealing to the govern ment at Washington for protection.
 MT. White is one of the most charm ing writers of English now living. and his "reminiscences are absorbingly in teresting, and in dealing with the vexed question of American citizenship abroad he reveals facts which should cause the people of this country to think.
 Prom the moment of my first ar rival in Berlin as ambassador" he says, II saw evidences of the same evil which had struck me during my pre- vious missions in Berlin and St. Pe- tersburg-namely, the constant and in gcniOus efforts to prostitute American citizenship. Among the manifold du- ties of an ambassador is the granting of passports. The great majority of those who ask for them are entitled to them; but there are always a consider able number of persons who, having Left Europe just in time to escape mili- tary service, have stayed in America just long enough to acquire American citizenship, and then, having returned E,F.- 9rv~ aaaL- Fr f,rr the advantages of both countries and to discharge the duties of neither. Even worse were the cases of the chil- dren of so-called Americans, most of them born in Europe and not able even to speak the English language. Worst of all were the cases of certain Rus sians. who having left Russia and gone to America, had stayed just long enough to acquire citizenship and then returned and settled in the eastern part of Germany, as near the Russian frontier as possible. These were na- turally regarded as fraudulent inter lopers by both the German and the Russian authorities, and much trouble resulted. Some of them led a life hardly outside the limits of crimin- ality, but they never hesitated, on this account to insist on their claims to American protection. When they were reminded that American citizen ship was conferred upon them not that they might shirk its duties and misuse its advantages in the land of their birth, but that they might enjoy it and discharge its duties in the land of their adoption, they secuted the idea and insisted on their right as Amer ican citizens, to live where they pleased. Their communications to the embassy were almost without exception in German, Russian or Polish; very few of them wrote or even spoke Eng fish, and very many of them could neither read nor write in any language. For the hard working immigrant, whether Jew or Gentle, who comes to our country and casts his lot with us, to take his share not only of privilege but of duty, I have the fullest respect and sympathy, and I have always been glad to intervene in. his favor; but in terventiOn in behalf of those fraudulent pretenders I have always felt to be a salling burden"
 In the states which have a large for eign vote. a favorite theme with poIit- ical speakers and newspapers is the al- legged failure of the American govern ment to protect its citizens in other lands and England is always cited as a shining example for the United States. On this point MT. White 70 says:
 Prom time to time attacks appeared.
 In our country. against the various American embassies and legations abroad for not protecting such Amer jean citizens. and a very common fea- ture of these articles was an unfav- orable comparison between the United States and England, it being claimed that Great Britain protects her citizens everywhere, while the United States