The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1909-10-15
SYRIANS TO TESTRuLIN that
BARS Them FROM CITIZENSHIP

Minneapolis, Oct. 1.-THE Journal
says: The Syrians of Minneapolis pro-
pose to unite with those of st. Paul
Mankato, Duluth and other cities in
making statewide fight against the
ruling of the naturalization bureau in
Washington against admitting their
race to citizenship.
Father Benedict Bellama, priest OF
the Syrian Roman Catholic church at
1923 Main street northeast, yesterday
told his parishioners about the ruling
Immediately it was determined to sug-
gest statewide cooperation, to raise
funds and fight in the courts. The
local Syrians will meet some time this
week.
''They will be glad to hear this in
Turkey" said Father Bellama, bitterly
''We are pmest white, we Syrians
Yes, we are uneducated. Yes, we diff
fer from Americans. What of that ?
America has had century of liberty
we have had one year. We come to
hHelic1 W lediH' l. nat Is WlldC we
have to say to this Mr.. Crist in Wash,
ington-give us a chance"
The meeting after mass yesterday
voted its thanks to A. E. Allen, clerk
of the Hennepin county district court
for refusing to obey Washington de.
partmental orders without court con.
frmation.
Father Bellama spent all day today
visiting his parshioners.
Will Put Up Fight.
Certainly" he said. eve will fight
Our local meeting will be held some
time this week. If our people who
come here are ignorant, it is not our
fault. We do not want to be ignorant
We call America our country. We
want to be its citizens. When one of
us goes back to Syria, he is welcomed
because he has learned to be man.
Copies of The Journal of yesterday
were sent by Father Bellama to the
United Syrian society of New York
which is conducting a similar fight
there.
Mr.. Allen wrote today to the depart
ment at Washington, with the sugges-
ton that if the department would
look up the law it would find that he
had no authority to alter court rec
ords without the order of higher
curt. Mr.. Allen was ordered to pro.
curt the cancellation of the declara
tions of intention of four Minneapolis
Turks.
Washington dispatches today declare
that the attorney general will not un-
dertake to reply to an appeal for in
structions if sent by f. A. Allen, clerk
of courts. The only reply is that the
attorney general will decide no such
inquiries, but that he confines himself
to advising and directing the depart
ments and trying government cases in
court
Mr.. Raymond Crist, acting chief of
the naturalization bureau, when today
shown the article in The Journal of
Friday last, replied: 'The Journal is
correct in its surmise that the law is
intended to apply not only TO Pales-
tine Jews, but also to Persians. Syr.
ians, Georgians. Albanians, and natives
of India, as well as to Chinese and
Japanese. There is ample law for our
position, and also decisions of the
courts"
Mr.. Crist stands by his order issued
to the Hennepin county district court.
No Back Steps at Washington.
From Washington, it is declared that
the department of justice is in thor
ough sympathy with the attitude of
the department of commerce and labor
in denying naturalization to Turks and
other Asiatics. Not long ago a Turk
is said to have been naturalized by a
federal Judge in Louisiana, but it is
claimed that naturalization was effected
with only partial presentation of the
facts, and the attorney general has now
ordered the case appealed to the cir
cult court of apeals of the district,
where it now is.
1t is believed by Washington that in
due time a decision will be handed
down which will cover all the points at
issue in the northwest. Should that
decision be appealed to the supreme
court of the United States, the issue
will finally be determined.
The federal attitude is based on a
Interpretation of the law,
not upon any definite court decision.
The expected court decision is to con-
stitute the federal reply to Mr.. Aliens
request for instructions.
In substantiation of its definition of
the law. the bureau of immigration and
issues several pages of
court memoranda and communications,
as follows:
''It may well be doubted whether
the copper colored natives of America,
or the yellow or tawny races of Asia
tics, are white persons within the pur-
view of the law" Chancellor Kent,
9 Kent. Comm. 72).
''The words of statute are to be
taken in their ordinary sense, unless
it can be shown that they are used in
a technical sense. From the common,