Speech #650164656

Congress ordained. by the selectiveservice act of 1917. that cobelligerent declarants were liable to military duty in the United Stales on the aime terms as citizens by birth or by adoption. In other words. citizens and leclarants -were placed upon an equality of sacrifice in defense of the United States. Time ratio of cobelligerent declaranils called to those accepted for service was higher than that among citizens naturalized by prewar legal forms. and only slightly lower than that among citizens by birth. (Provost Marshal Generals Report. p. 55.) Civic sacrifice carries with it an inalienable right to privileges. This principle is well recognized by your Government and already modifies the process of naturalization for enlisted aliens in the Army and Navy. No State can in equity require the sacrifice of life to civic duty from any but a citizen. The enforcement by the State. and the acceptance by the cobelligerent declarants. of the supreme duty inherent to citizenship constituted a contract between the State and cobelligerent declarants. That contract Implicitly extended to cobelligerent declarants the right to the privilege of citizenship of the United States. The selectiveservice act of 1917 in equity naturalized cobelligerent declarants. and was In accord with the established policy of the United States as laid down in section 1999 of the Revised Statutes of the United States. Cobelligerent declarants were called upon for military service as a class. The demand for military service made upon :them differed In no particular from the demand made upon other classes of citizen. Accident of age. ballot health or other circumstance. caused certain of these declarants to be discharged. exempted. rejected. or not called upon . but similar accidents affected in precisely similar ways both nativeborn and naturalized citizens. Such accidents can. therefore. in fiowise affect time status of citizenship conferred implicitly by the selectiveservice act upon all cobelligerent declarants. that act was in nature a contract which can not be modified by treaty or convention. As the provisional government of Ireland are maintaining on a front. where allied unity Is not at present possible. the -principle of selfdetermination. and. as the United States Government entered the war to champion that principle. our respective countries are do facto cobelligerents. associates in a common strugale for this comman cause.