Fieh to .Me. .SchZoezer. e. 252.1 BEoraTDEP A r OF STATE. "Washington. January 5i. 175. Sta: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 31st ultimo. 4nelosing. eub petlitaone remiesioi. the certificates of naturalization as citizens of the nited States of Jacob Kastellan and Hlernan ltastelan. former subjects of Prussia. The certificates bear date. respectively. the ith of January and the 13th of February. 1871. and your note conveys the information that in the same year. 1871. the Iessrs. Kastellan returned to Prssia and settled at Koshmin. in the province -of Posen. their native place. It appears. also. that after the return of the brothers itastellan to Koshmin. certain inquiries were instituted by the local authorities of that place in i elation to their citizenship. and that in resonse to the inquiries Jacob Kastolan statd that he received his discharge as a Prussian citizen from the government of Posen in 1666. and left for the United States in the month of May of that year. that Htr nan declared that he received his discharge from the same authority in 1867. and thaths left for the United States in the same year. and you further state that of. ficial inquiry made at the government of Posen verified the correctness of these .statements as to the date of the respective discharges. JXcob Kastellan having. as it is alleged. received his on the 20th of February. 18ti. and that of Herman having been granted on the 6th of May. 1867. These subsequent statements and facts appearing to be incompatible with the declaration of the certificates to the effect that each of tile parties in question bad resided in te United States five years previous to his naturalization. you desire to be informed. first. whether the certificates ore valid before the laws of the United States .j and. second. whether on the strength of these documents Jacob and Herman Kastellan are recognized by this government as American citizens. These inquiries involve a question of the gravest judicial character. The two papers which I had the hoser to receive with yoe note are certicates of regular decrees purporting to have been rendered by courts of general jurisdiction. and are accompanied with the ordinary evidence recognines by the laws of the United Slates as attesting the genuineness of solemn daontots emanating from such tribunals. they are received as vertties in all other courts of the United States and of the several Stat5s. and accepted with like credit by the exeoutive branch .of the Government. It appears. moreover. that these certificates expressly state that the fact of the required previous residence was proyed to the satisfation of the court. and it will be remembered that the law requires proof to be furnished in such eases by the oath of the party and other sworn testimony in corroboration thereof. What the precise evidence submitted in the case under consideration may have been this Department is not informed. but the presumption of correctness and regularity which obtains in relation to proceedings in judicial tribunals. under the laws of the United States. is equally applicable to naturalization proceedings and applies to them with full force. By the decree. therefore. of a competent court. after a hearing upon sworn testimony. and with the parties before the court. it has been adjudged that these appli. cante tor citizenship had comptied with the law as to residence and otherwise. and that they were legatly admitted to citienship. Such an adjudication affects the righats ani property of individuals and their children. and may seriseesly afloat a change in lte sights and interest of third parties.
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