New-York tribune., 1922-11-14

rlcan, race and the Indians then in
habiting this country read, the opin-
ION. ut may be true that these two
races were alone thought of as being
excluded, but to say that they were
the only ones within the intent Of the
statute would be to ignore the afirma-
tive form of the legislation. The pro-
vision is not that negroes and Indians
shall be excluded, but it is, in effect,
that only free white persons shall be
included. The intention was to confer
the privilege of citizenship upon that
class Of persons whom the fathers
knew as white, and to deny it to all
who could not be SO classified.
Demands Affirmative Proof
ut is not enough to say that the
trainers did not have in mind the
brown or yellow races of Asia. 1t is
necessary to go farther and be able to
say that had these particular races
been suggested the language of the act
would have been so varied as to in
clude them within it's privileges.
If it be assumed that the opinion
OF the trainers was that the only per-
sons who would fall outside the desig-
dians, this would go no farther than to
demonstrate their lack Of sufficient in
formation to enable them to forsee
precisely who would be excluded by
that term in the subsequent admins
tration Of the statute. 1t is not i'm
portant in constituting their words to
consider the extent of their ethnoloe-
ical knowledge or whether thew
thought that under the statute the only
persons who would be denied naturali
cation would be negroes and Indians.
It Is sufhclent to ascertain whom they
intended to include and having ascer-
eained that it follows, as a necessary
coroliary, that all others are to be
excluded
The question then is who are COM
pretended within the phrase free
white persons? p Undoubtedly the word
free was originally used in recopni-
t1on of the fact that slavery then
existed and that some white persons
occupied that status. The word, how
ever, has long since ceased to have
any practical significance and NAV
now be disregarded.
Test Racial, Not Personal
We have been furnished with elab-
crate briefs in which the meaning of
the words white person is discussed
with ability and at length, both from
the standpoint of judicial decision and
from that of the sciFlce of ethnology.
IL does not seem to us necessary, how
ever, to follow counsel in their ex-
tensive researches in these fields. It
is sufficient to note the fact that these
decisions are, in substance, to the eff
feet that the words import. a racial
and not an individual test, and with
this conclusion, fortified as it is by
reason and authority, we entirely
agree.
Manfestly the test afforded by the
mere color of the skin of each indi-
vidual is impracticable as that differs
greatly among persons of the same
race, even among Anglo -Saxons, rang
ing by imperceptible gradations from
the fair blond to the swarthy brunette,
the latter being darker than many Of
the lighter persons of the brown
or yellow races Hence, to adopt the
color. test alone would result in a con-
fused overlapping of races and a
without any practical line of separa-
tion.
"The determination that the words
white person are synonymous with the
words a person of the Caucasian race
simplifies the problem although it does
not entirely dispose of It. Controver
sizes have arisen and will no doubt
arise again. in respect to the proper
classification of individuals in border
line cases. The effect Of the con-
clusion that the words white person
mean Caucasian is not TO esta blsh
sharp line of demarcatlon between
those who are entitled and those who
are not entitled TO naturalization, but
rather zone of more or less debatable
ground outside of which upon the one
hand are those clearly eligible, and OUT
side OF which, upon the other hand, are
those clearly ineligible for citizenship.
Individual cases falling within the zone
must be determined as they arise from
time to time by what this court has
called, in another connection, the
gradual process of judicial inclusion
and exclusion
"Thc appellant in the case now un-
der consideration, however, is clearly
of race which is not Caucasian, and
therefore belongs entirely outside the
zone on the negative side. A large
number of the Federal and state courts
have so decided, and we find no re-
ported case definitely to the contrary.
These decisions are sustained by nu-
merous scientific authorities, which we
do not deem it necessary TO review. We
think these decisions are right and so
hold"
II NE