The Greeneville daily sun. (Greeneville, Tenn.) 1918-1920, 1919-12-27
Swiss Would Close
Door to FOREIGNER
By HENRY WOOD
United Press Correspcndent)

+#~fNt *+NttN+t N.@tr@NsF
Switzerland Is today putting up
the greatest fight of her life to save
herself from being @cosmopolitaniz-
ed
Never since the day that William
Tell shot the apple of his sons head
have the Swiss faced situation In
which they feel that their national
and individual existence is so threat.
ened as now, and that from a danger
that no people. no nation, no race
has ever yet faced that Of being
"ccsmouclitanized."
For even New York, with its million
Italians, its several million Jews and
its hundreds Of thousands of various
other nationalities, the city still re-
mains essentially American.
But Switzerland is convinced she
cen hope for no such luck. Il she
permits herself to be swamped with
the waves of people that are now
pouring over her borders, she Is full
" persuaded that not only will it be
mighty hard in the end to find any
trace Of the Swiss people but that the
country itself, unlike American New
York, win lose all characteristics and
all individualities that now mark Swift
zerland as Swiss.
Since the outbreak Of the war
Switzerland has become the Mecca Of
all European people seeking refuge
for various reasons from various dis
asters that threaten the min their own
country. In the early days Of war,
and as far as that is concerned, for
years preceding, the great motive for
moving into Switzerland and beconl.
ing Swiss citizen was TO escape OBJ
ligatory military service in ones owii
country. Before the war this was
only d cort Of nightmare and caused
probably the "Swissfcation Of only
a few hundred or few thousand Rus
SLAMS, Germans, Italians, Frenchl
Hungarians, Austrians and others.
When, with the outbreak OF the
war, this nightmare became living
reality naturally the number Of those
who felt an irresistible charm fol
Switzerland increased and continued
throughout the entire period of the
war.
And now, following the armistice
and peace, the number is even greater
than ever although for different rea-
sons. While Switzerland is still at.
tracing thousands Of refugees who
for one reason or another are person
ma non grata in the new states, and
even the old ones, that are growing
out of the peace conference adjust
ment, yet by far the principle NUNS
Der now seeking to ooze into Swift
zerland are men of great wealth, us
ually war profiteers, who are seeking
to escape the burden Of taxation
awaiting them if they continue their
citizenship in any one of the coun-
tries that went to war and now has n
war indebtedness to pay off.
While hundreds and thousands Of
the political refugees such as de-
throned moliarchs and discredited
Statesmen who escaped into Switzer-
land were usually able to bring with
them goodly portion Of their for
tunes. yet these latter are mere bag
atelles compared with the gigantic
sums which war profitecrs and Others
arc trying to smuggle over the Swiss
frontier in order to escape the war
tax collector,
In any large European country
this access to the population Of few
hundred or a few thousand men OF
vast wealth would not constitute q
danger and would be encouraged as
highly desirable addition to the ma
tons wealth and population.
In a small country like Switzer-
and, however, the situation is vastly
different. The Swiss see clearly that
all Of its vast wealth now coming into
he country win eventually be invest
ed in Swiss industries. That means
at the end Of year all the financial.
industrial and economic life of the
country will be in the hands Of for
eigners.
Then from private control to public.
control is but a step. The naturali'
ation laws in Switzerland at the.
present time are very loose and easy.
Only very short time is necessary.
or all these wealthy foreigners 70
become Swiss citizens, to become ELI
gible for all public offices from the
highest down.
AS a consequence they are now
utting up q valiant fight to save
themselves from this cosmopolitan
cation" largely through the revision
Of their naturalization laws and their
regulations permitting foreigners to