Evening star., 1940-10-06

SCRIPT OF MS son DHtn CeItlIlCdte. ne
photostat was hurried to Lisbon via
transatlantic Clipper, then flown to
Rome. from whence it was carried to
Bologna, Italy, on a specially char
tered plane.
This all cost money, yet the outlay
was negligible compared to the anxiety
of the doctor and his wife For their
only son, studying abroad. was being
drafted into the Italian army for lack
of legal proof of his American citizen
ship. Born here. he had gone abroad
with his ltalian-born {but naturalized
parents before he became twenty-one.
When the parents returned to New
York. he renamed in Italy to study.
attaining military age in the interim.
Despite his protestations, the only
thing that saved him from service in
a dictator's army was that precious
birth certificate.
This may sound farfetched. but it
isn't. In the last war my father was
oversee, exhibiting movies in canton
ments, hospitals, etc. When he reached
Italy, the aide and interpreter as
signed to him proved to be a New
York boy of Italian parentage who
had been in the war since 1914 and
had been wounded four times. He was
an American citizen, too: but he
couldn't or didn't get that in
valuable birth certificate!
All of which brings up pertinent
question: have yon got any legal
proof of the place and time of your
birth?
If not, this would be an excellent
time to set about obtaining it. for IN
no previous period has the possession
of such evidence been so desirable.
On July l, for example, over 1900
people. who we're coming back to this
country from Canada, were held up at
the border near Detroit and more than
100 we're denied admittance into the
United States The bulk of these were
Americans who, disregarding the new
regulations, had failed to provide
themselves with proof of citizenship
and, therefore, couldn't get back into
their own country. A similar jam
occurred at Buffalo. And while the
penalty was merely lot OF incon-
venience, these are days when travel
ing Americans who cross borders
where passports aren't required are
liable to get iEto difficulties if they
can't prove their nativity.
All For q Good Rsoson
KEMAINING at home, there are a
dozen other reasons why you may
have to produce birth certificate. All
the airplane factories, the big auto
mobile plants and most of the metro
politan hotels are now requiring this
of employees All civilservice jobs re-
ouire birth certificate; and in many
states a drivers license. marriage
license or the right to enter school may
be denied or postponed for lack of
legal proof of birth.
Today some 45,OOO.0 900 people are
affected by the old-age insurance pro-
visions of the Social Security Act, and
much hardship is already being borne
by prospective pensioners through
their inability to prove dates OF birth
On top of this there is much talk of
"selective service" and if you're called
it is going to be highly important to
be able to prove conclusively the age
group into which you properly fall.
Few of us ever think of this question
until the emergency arises - and that
NAV be too late. A Montana farm
girls inheritance, due her at twenty
one, was held up by the courts for
months until finally she was able to
prove her age. A Texas girl, who stud
led to be teacher at considerable
sacrifice to her family, wound up as
waitress merely because her inability
to produce a birth certificate barred