Williston graphic. (Williston, Williams County, N.D.) 1895-1919, 1909-11-25
RACE PROBLEM
UP TO The COURTS
NATURALIZATION CHIEFS RULING RE-
GARDlNG SYRIANS NOT ACCEPT
ED BY THE DEPARTMENT

w dSlllllSCO COl, A>OF' liz d"oo
ton of granting naturalization to
Turkish subjects is for the de-
termination of competent courts.
This is the attitude of the state
department as defined in a state
ment issued yesterday, and is TAX
en- to indicate that the department
is not prepared to accept without
question the conclusian of the bur-
eau of naturalization of the depart
ment of commerce and labor, that
Turkish subjects are not entitled
to naturalization.
The recent ruling of Chief
Campbell of the bureau of natur-
aIization, that Syrians and their
racial kindred who are Turkish
subjects, were yellow, not white,
and that they were barred there
fore from naturalization under eX-
isting laws, called for the public
statement of protest from the Ot-
toman charge d affairs a few days
ago. The state department view
is that Turkey is responsible, in
large part for the situation that
has arisen. The departments
statement is as follows:
For a quarter of a century the
government of the United States
has sought and today continues to
seek to negotiate with the Ottoman
government naturalization con-
vention to provide for the recog-
milton by that government of the
expatriation of Turkish subjects
who are not naturalized as Ameri-
can citizens. This we'll illustrates
the fact that there has been abso-
lutely no change in the policy or
views of the department of state
on the subject of the naturaliza-
tioa of Turkish subjects.
The basis of recent press re-
ports has only recently come to
the notice of the department of
state. Insofar as such reports
may have been discussed as affect
ing the question of naturalization,
it is hardly necessary to state that
they are without effect upon the
above policy or upon the question
of granting naturalization--a
question which now as in the past,
is for the determination of the
competent courts
According to the view held by
the race experts of the Smithson-
ian institution, the Syrians,
large portion of the Armenians,
the Arabs, Semitics and dweelers
of northern Africa, such as the
Egyptians, Notwithstanding the
hot sun in that climate has tanned
their skins, are as much part of
the white race as any blond white
man can be.
DR.. Justin 5. Kirreh, of New
York, who has been upturning
every available stone in Washing
ton recently in his efforts to over
throw Mr.. Campbell's ruling, has
appealed to the Smithsonian ex-
perts, with results which
he regards as highly
satisfactory. He came out last
night with the statement that DR..
A. H. Heidlica, of the Institutes
division of physical anthropology, !?
has entirely confirmed his conten-
tion that the Syrians and their
kindred sought by Mr.. Campbell
to be excluded, are indisputibly of
the white race.
No Official utterance on the sub
iect has been made by the Smith
sonian Institution, which shows
no disposition to enter the contro-
versy in any formal way in ab-
sence of formal request. DR..
Kirreh said, however, that DIR.
HeidIica informed him that so far
we're the Syrians from being of
The yellow race that they never