Evening star., 1941-07-01
Texas Italian Consul
Appeals 10 Hull 10
LET Him Stay in u. 5.
OrtoIuni Points to His
Long Residence and
Love for America

Special Dispatch to The Star and N. A. n. A.
FORT WORTH, Tex, July l.
The fate of happy Fort Worth
family rested in the hands of the
State Department today.
Attilio Ortolani, 10, Italian Consul
here, has appealed to Secretary of
State Hull in an effort to escape
the rule that all Italian Consuls
must leave the United States by
July Is.
Mr.. Ortolani is hoping his petit
ton that his status revert back to
that Of resident alien be granted.
The reasons are:
l. His wife is Irish and their three
children are American citizens. The
two sons are employees of the Texas
State Highway Department.
g He has been a resident of this
country for A years and he feels it
Is his home. He likes the people of
Fort Worth and they like him.
Points to Long Residence.
Mr.. Ortolani's petition to the State
Department, first presented to the
immigration Service, which said 1t
could do nothing, points out that
he entered this country as an i'm
migrant long before there was an
italian immigration quota in the
United States, and he was a resident
for more than 20 years before being
appointed Consul
Mr.. Ortolani recently declared he
would prefer concentration camp
in the United States to return to
Italy, but was quick to add there
was no bitterness or sense of shame
in his feelings toward his native
land
II left Italy as boy because
wanted to become an American citi-
Zen" he said. Here is my home
and also my family. 1t is here I
wish to spend the rest of my life
But l do not wish to condemn
Italy in her dark hour. I do not
agree with her actions. but I SYM
pathize with her people and love
her as a country of my fathers
Wants to Stay in United States.
so l am not torn between loyal
ties. I love America and I want to
remain here. l also have a love for
Italy, but I have no desire to re-
turn there, and I pray that she
may soon return to a course that
will make us proud of her"
Mr.. Ortolani was appointed con-
sui IN 1920. This is the anniversary
Of the appointment. but the Orto-
lani family isn't celebrating The
appointment was made tempo
rarily,' the night after his consul
brother. Ugo Ortolani. was burned
TO death in a fire which DESTROYED
the consulate.
Ugo Ortolani rescued the mother
Of the family, who kept house for
him, and then dashed back into the
blazing wooden structure in an ef-
fort to save consulate records He
was trapped
A permanent successor was never
appointed. and Attilio Ortolani con-
tlnued to serve on. He had to retain
his Italian citizenship to hold the
JObJ NilAbIl IlLS DIl1N
Petition May Be Circulated.
If the State Department decides
he is not an exception to the rule,
q petition that he be allowed to
remain may be circulated in Fort
Worth, Tex, and the Nation. Mr..
Ortolani and his wife are Catholics,
and the petition probably will start
among the Catholic Daughters of
America, of which Mrs. Ortolani is
charter member in Fort Worth.
This is a Government of the
people and we feel the word of the
people will help our plight" the
Ortolani family says. "If the State
Department rules against allowing
Mr.. Ortolani to say, We will use the
petition as our last effort"
Strangely, Mr.. Ortolani has never
received orders to close his consulate
or prepare to leave by July Is. but,
in line with newspaper stories, his
only source Of information, he has
complied with the order.