13

judge exercised the jurisdiction, though in 1868 in the superior court it was mainly done by Judge John H. McCunn.1 The highest number naturalized in one day in the superior court was, October 14, 2,109; and in the supreme court, by a single judge in one day, October 19, was 955. From October 8 to 23, inclusive, this judge ordered a daily average of over 718 certificates of citizenship.

How far these figures give the full number of certificates granted will be considered hereafter.14

2.—Number naturalized each day.

If there were no other evidence to stamp with infamy, fraud, and illegality a portion of these naturalizations, the great number issued by a single judge in one day would be quite sufficient. In 1844 a judge in Louisiana was impeached and removed from office for malfeasance in granting certificates of naturalization. The select committee of the House of Representatives investigating the charges in a report say: "It further appears that nearly 400 of these certificates were issued in one day. It seems to your committee impossible that this could have been legally done."15

But this impossibility is greatly increased when the number reaches 955-a number inconsistent with either honesty of purpose or legality in practice.16

13 Evidence, 3420. Meeks, a clerk, says:

Judge McCunn did the greatest part of it; Judge Garvin the next. These two judges were naturalizing; Judge Jones and Judge Barbour assisted. They were holding term, and when they got out of court they came over to assist; but the bulk of it was done by Judges Garvin and McCunn. Judge Barbour did some, but not much. Judge Morrell did none. He was in Europe from June until the 3d of November.

See Evidence, 3573.

14 Evidence, 7643, 7673, 2429, showing 840 papers missing for one day. See Evidence, 2168, 4138.

15 U. S. Senate documents, 2d sess. 28th Cong., vol. 9, 1844-'45; doc. No. 173, p. 148.

16 In Kings county, Brooklyn, the number of naturalizations were only procured from one court. But with the extensive practice there they did not reach so large a daily number as in New York city. The statement for one court is as follows:

Statement of the whole number of persons naturalized in the county clerk's office from the 23d day of September, 1856, to the 31st day of December, 1868, in Kings county.

Whole number naturalized from the 1st day of October to the 31st day of October, 1868.

722

483

2,328

2, 436

3,246

13, 841

3.-Minor applications.

By law any alien having resided in the United States five years, including three years next preceding arriving at the age of 21 years, may be naturalized without having made a declaration, in some court, two years before admission to citizenship, of his intention to become a citizen, such declaration being required in most other cases.

It must be manifest that many thousands of certificates of naturalization were fraudulently issued as upon "minor applications," to avoid the necessity of the previous declaration. Out of 10,093 naturalizations in the supreme court in October, 9,711 profess to be "minor applications," leaving only 382 for "soldier" applications; and of those having made previous declaration- ̧16

16 Evidence, 7594.

Days on which witnesses appear and the number of times each witness appears on the naturalization papers filed in the supreme court, county and State of New York, during the month of October, 1868, from the 8th to the 23d of said month, inclusive.

Total

230 258 144 277 241 356 230 139 181 184 216 186 107 2, 749

Number of papers examined....†1, 089 700 915 766 557 841 788 617 933 909 755 659 564 10, 093 Number of minor papers. . . 1,053 670 851 742 541 813 757 595 899 874 726 642 548 9,711

*Numbers marked thus (*) show a difference from the paper heretofore sworn to, for the reason that said paper was made a part of the evidence before all the naturalization papers of the dates therein were examined, except as to James Goff and Patrick Goff, when the one was taken for the other.

† 590 of Cctober 8th and 9th were examined by Mr. Glassey.

In the superior court an examination of 17,572 applications17 shows

17 Evidence, 7671:

that 13,541 were "minor," leaving only 4,031 on "declarations of intention" and for "soldiers." It is not possible that there could have been any such number of minor applications.

99 18

There was a republican naturalization committee, with an office at 25 Chambers street, organized "for the purpose of aiding applicants for naturalization in getting their papers, to which the various ward clubs and associations" sent parties, and for whom applications were made." "The whole business of naturalization of the republican party" was transacted through that office. This committee refused to employ any "professional witness," 19 and they kept a careful record of all persons naturalized.

The total number was.

Of these there were "minor applications".

On previous declaration of intention.

Soldier applications....

2,085 1,237

549

299

Less than 60 per cent. of these were "minor applications." Mr. Jarvis, the clerk of the common pleas, testifies that of the naturalizations in that court in 1868, "about one-half were minors”—he "made that estimate."20 But assuming that 60 per cent, is a legitimate proportion, then, of the 10,093 applications admitted to be in the supreme court, only 6,056 would be "minors," showing 3,655 fraudulent; and of the 17,572 applications examined in the superior court only 10,543 would be "minors," showing 3,000 fraudulent; making an aggregate of 6,655 fraudulent, on this ground alone, in the naturalizations of 24 days !21

4.-Extensive preparations.

Although in every county of New York there is a county court in permanent session22 authorized to naturalize aliens, yet for some reason many naturalizations for various counties were effected in the courts of New York city. The supreme court for the first time in its history engaged in the work.23 Notwithstanding the fact that the annual average number of naturalizations in the city in all the State courts was only 9,207, yet there was printed by the New York Printing Company, on the order of the clerks of these two courts, or their deputies, between September 16 and October 23, 105,000 blank applications

18 Evidence, 4880.

19 Evidence, 4824-4880. For democratic professional witnesses see tables in preceding notes, and 93, 7606, 7648, 4664, 1369, 1425.

20 Evidence, 2012. He accounts for many minor applications of prior years by reason of the registry law of 1865, requiring the production of a certificate of naturalization even of persons who were citizens by the naturalization of their parents during their minority. But this cannot well be deemed the true construction of the law. Evidence, page 326. As three years elapsed since this law was passed, it could not materially increase the "minor applications " of 1868.

And see Evidence, 4172, 7504, 7523, 7557, 7550. Judge Garvin swears:

4484. Q. How did the number of minors who applied for naturalization this year compare with the number who applied the previous year? A. I do not know that there was any larger proportion of minors this year than other years.

21 Henry Lyle testifies:

4769. Q. State, if you can, what proportion of persons for whom you procured certificates of naturalization was on blanks for applicants who came to the United States under 18 years of age.-A. They were all, except two or three.

4770. Q. State whether any persons for whom you made out applications did really come to the United States under 18 years of age.-A. Perhaps a few of them did.

4773. Q. Among the applicants for whom you procured certificates of naturalization on the ground that they came to this country under 18 years of age, were there any very old men ?-A. Yes, sir; a great many.

22 Evidence, 7555.

23 Evidence, 1952.

BY THE QUANTITY.

quanThe existence or distribution of thousands in "bundles"32 and “ tities" was proved in like manner, until it was found impracticable to go further.

A naturalization office at No. 6 Centre street procured from the supreme court and sold certificates on an extensive scale-the "red tick,"33 to pay clerk's fees, being supplied by Tammany Hall. This office was superintended by Benjamin B. Rosenberg, afterwards indicted in the United States circuit court for some of his naturalization frauds.

ets,

Win. T. Simms called on Rosenberg on Monday, October 19, and he describes what occurred thus:

Rosenberg asked me what I wanted of him. I told him that I was from Yonkers; that I had 20 or 30 friends at Yonkers who wanted naturalization papers, and that I had no witIf nesses or principals. Said I, "Can you or can you not get me papers for those men? you cannot, say it, because I do not wish to begin it and then fail. If you cannot, I will seek elsewhere." He asked me what party I was from, and I told him the democratic party. He said, "I can get them, without fail. I have sold 7,000 of them." I told him I would return later in the afternoon with the names, as they were then incomplete. I did return in the afternoon, but without the memorandum of names, telling him that I was still unable to complete the names, but that I would return in the morning. On Tuesday morning I went back with a list of these five names: Patrick O'Brien, John J. Mercer, Antonio Gomez, Alex. N. McCann, and Adolph Slechelseine. I handed him the memorandum, and asked him to let me have the papers that afternoon, if he could. He said that was impossible, but at I could have them by 6 o'clock. I left the office and went about my business, and at 6 I walked directly witak Laed. As I went into the saloon he immediately arose. of the saloon, where there was a dark room, which I entered. Rosened me the five papers which I now hold in my hand, and I 24 Charles E. Wilbur testifies: at a prior interview he said to me, "I do not 2168. I am president of the New York Printing Company, I give you five papers." That is, in three years ago. We printed naturalization blanks for the variou

rior court: October 2, 10,000 certificates of naturalization; Octoberhich are filled into these papers, October 15, 10,000 certificates of naturalization; October 3, 10,000 app natura... tions of four or five different kinds. I believe they were delivered to the

I was to 1

custom. We printed for the supreme court: October 6, 5,000 certificates of nact them w certificates of naturalization; October 15, 10,000 certificates of naturalization; Octo of naturalization; October 6, 25,000 applications-5,000 each of five different kinds; ter in a case, at the cations; October 13, 10,000 applications; October 16, 5,000 applications; October 19, 5.000 It was a creanver ber 22, 5,000 applications. They were delivered, I believe, to the officers of the court. The et one of k for the superior court, 30,000 certificates of naturalization and 30,000 applications; for the su 30,000 certificates of naturalization and 60,000 applications. I know no reason why there shou -amine the applications in the supreme court than in the superior. I should suppose there would be two or three many applications needed as certificates. I do not recollect our having printed naturalization certifica the supreme court prior to this time. There may be many blanks on hand in the offices of the clerks of courts; there are none in our office. The company is a stock company.

17?

?

4138. I wish to state that in addition to the number of certificates of naturalization and applications printed by the New York Printing Company, of which I gave evidence before, I have found that on the 16th of Sep. tember we furnished to the supreme court 10,000 applications and 9,000 certificates, and on the 19th of Sep. tember 10.000 applications.

We did not furnish blank applications to any other parties than the clerks of the court. We did not furnish any to the Tammany committee.

25 Evidence, 3331, 3355, 3362. Moses D. Gale, chairman of the Tammany Hall naturalization committee, testifies :

We had an office at the corner of Centre street and Tryon Row, in the basement. It was in a lager-beer saloon kept by a man named Pfeffe, at No. 1 Centre street. There was a branch office

*

*

*

at Tammany. 3336. Q. How many persons were employed at this particular office, No. 1 Centre street?-A. I think in the neighborhood of 20.

3362. Q. How many sets of naturalization blanks did you procure and furnish?-A. That I cannot say ; I certified to Mr. Pickford's bill and referred it to the finance committee. Blanks were ordered as they were wanted. I should think there were several thousand of them.

26 Gale says:

A. My impression is that there were over 40,000 tickets furnished to the committee. How many were left I do not know."-Evidence, 3361-3377.