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File No. 763.72115/3254a

The Secretary of State to the Secretary of Labor (Wilson)1

WASHINGTON, December 17, 1917.

SIR: The question of the general relief of the wives and families of enemy aliens interned in the United States under the provisions of the President's proclamation of April 6, 1917,2 or because of their failure to comply with our immigration requirements, is daily becoming more pressing. It is unquestionably in our interest that these people be kept from destitution, being deprived of their former means of support through the internment of their husbands or fathers, and equally important that a careful control be exercised over the amounts of the relief payments, so that the money may not be used for purposes contrary to the interests of this Government.

At present this relief work is undertaken by the Prisoners of War Relief Society of New York, a German-American organization, presumably loyal, but financed entirely by individual contributors. The Department's control over it has hitherto been limited to an examination of the lists of payments which the Swiss Legation, in charge of German interests in the United States, has been required to submit regularly.

According to the Swiss Legation, the German Government has taken the attitude that there is no necessity for using German Government funds for making relief payments, inasmuch as there are many German subjects and German-Americans in this country who are financially able and willing to contribute to the relief of German subjects less favorably situated.

The Department considers this attitude wrong. The German Government spent at least a million and a half roubles a month for the relief of German civilians in Russia while our Embassy in Petrograd was in charge of German interests and at least a million marks a quarter for the relief of German civilians in the British Empire. They can therefore well afford to do likewise in this country, particularly in the cases of those individuals or families whose husbands, sons or brothers have been interned because of acts unfriendly to the United States and acts presumably meant to be of service to the German Government.

Believing that the Legation of Switzerland should be made the sole distributing center of these relief funds and that it should, as heretofore, be required to give us an account of its activities in this direc

1The same, on the same date, to the Attorney General and the Secretary of War.

'Ante, p. 165.

tion I append herewith a tentative scheme for controlling this relief work and shall be glad to have an expression of your views in regard thereto, in so far as the scheme applies to enemy aliens under the control of your Department. I particularly request your opinion with regard to the maximum payments to be permitted, mentioned in paragraphs 7 and 8, the Department having taken more or less arbitrary figures as a tentative proposal.

I have worded the draft in such a way that it may subsequently be made to apply also to Austro-Hungarian subjects under the protection of the Legation of Sweden.

I have [etc.]

ROBERT LANSING

File No. 311.63/59

The Secretary of State to the Swedish Minister (Ekengren)

No. 307

WASHINGTON, December 24, 1917.

SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of December 18, 1917 (No. 2745/21),' inquiring whether there would be any objection on the part of the Department of State to the distribution of relief funds to such Austrian and Hungarian subjects in the United States as may be in need, whether interned or not, by the Prisoners of War Relief Committee of New York City.

In reply I beg leave to inform you that the Department is at present formulating a proposed scheme for the relief of enemy aliens in the United States, which will eventually be brought to your attention as in charge of Austro-Hungarian interests. Until this scheme can be put into operation, the Department will have no objection to the distribution of relief funds to Austrian and Hungarian subjects who may be in need, whether interned or not, by the Prisoners of War Relief Committee of New York City, provided(1) That the necessary licenses first be procured from the War Trade Board under the provisions of the Trading with the Enemy Act, to which Board definite lists of the proposed payments should be submitted by the Committee; (2) That copies of these lists be submitted also to the Department of State; and

(3) That payments to interned persons be made, when licensed, direct to the United States officers or commissioners in charge of the respective camps or stations for payment to the prisoners according to the regulations of the Departments under which such prisoners are held.

Accept [etc.]

ROBERT LANSING

'Not printed.

[For correspondence regarding the exemption from postal duties of mail and parcels intended for or dispatched by interned civilians, see Department's circular telegram of January 8, 1918, page 18, and replies, pages 21, 22, 27.]

File No. 311.62/458

The Secretary of State to the Chargé in Switzerland (Wilson)

[Telegram]

WASHINGTON, February 1, 1918, 4 p. m.

1436. Your 2122, November 26, 4 p. m.1 The President has decided that private communications concerning welfare and whereabouts of persons in the United States may not be forwarded. This does not include prisoners of war and interned alien enemies. The Legations of Switzerland and Sweden, and the Embassy of Spain at Washington, respectively in charge of the interests of Germany, Austria-Hungary and Turkey, have been so informed. They are permitted, however, to make official enquiry concerning welfare and whereabouts of persons in the United States and report officially to their Governments.

Answering your two questions:

(1) You may forward enquiries concerning interned Germans in the United States to the International Red Cross which will reforward to Red Cross here. The latter will transmit to destination upon receipt of license from War Trade Board.

(2) Enquiries received from persons in the United States regarding German and Austrian subjects in the Central Powers should be returned to senders.

LANSING

File No. 763.72114/3283

No. 127

The Secretary of State to the Swiss Minister (Sulzer)

WASHINGTON, February 13, 1918. SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of January 30, 1918,1 in which you requested that arrangements be made to transfer the German subjects now interned at Ellis Island to Hot Springs, N. C.

In reply I have the honor to inform you that I submitted this matter to the Secretary of Labor, from whom I have now received a re

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ply stating that the matter of transferring the enemy aliens interned at Ellis Island, as well as those at Gloucester City, N. J., to Hot Springs, N. C., was under consideration and that he furthermore expected that the transfer would be completed very soon, possibly within the next 10 days.

Accept [etc.]

ROBERT LANSING

File No. 763.72115/3273

The Secretary of State to the Swiss Minister (Sulzer)1 No. 131 WASHINGTON, February 21, 1918. SIR: I have the honor to enclose herewith, for your information, a draft of a "Tentative Scheme for Administering Relief for Interned and Non-Interned Enemy Aliens and their Families and Prisoners of War in the United States." I realize that a large part of the executive and administrative work involved in the proper execution of the enclosed scheme will fall upon the Legations of the protecting powers of the enemy governments and should be most grateful, therefore, if you would co-operate with me in order that this scheme may be carried out in spirit as well as in letter.

Accept [etc.]

ROBERT LANSING

File No. 763.72115/3283

The Secretary of State to the Secretary of Labor (Wilson)

WASHINGTON, March 21, 1918.

SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of March 42 enclosing a copy of a memorandum of February 26 by the Commissioner General of Immigration regarding the question as to whether or not it would be proper to compel alien enemies who are civil interns in the custody of your Department to work at useful occupations during the time that they are detained pending the outcome of the war.

In reply I have the honor to advise you that this Department sent you as enclosures to its letter of March 14, 1918,2 replies from the American Embassies at London, Paris, and Rome with respect to the practice of Great Britain, France, and Italy regarding forced labor of civilian interns. It will be observed from these reports that it is the practice of all of these countries not to compel such alien enemies to work, but that they are allowed to work voluntarily under certain conditions as to compensation and otherwise. I am of the opinion

1The same, on the same date, to the Swedish Minister, in charge of AustroHungarian interests in the United States (No. 360).

2 Not printed.

that it would be fair and equitable on the part of the United States and subject to no criticism or retaliation on the part of the Central Powers if the practice followed by the Allies were followed in the United States, for the present at least; that is, to offer the civilian alien enemies held by your Department opportunity for voluntary labor under reasonable conditions of service and compensation. This Department does not attempt to pass upon the control to be exercised over such enemies during service, nor the legality of exercising such control.

I have [etc.]

ROBERT LANSING

Proclamation No. 1443, April 19, 1918, Extending Regulations
Prescribing Conduct toward Alien Enemies to Include Women

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION

WHEREAS, by Act of Congress, approved the sixteenth day of April, one thousand nine hundred and eighteen, entitled "An Act to amend section four thousand and sixty-seven of the Revised Statutes by extending its scope to include women", the said section four thousand and sixty-seven of the Revised Statutes is amended to read as follows:

Whenever there is a declared war between the United States and any foreign nation or government, or any invasion or predatory incursion is perpetrated, attempted, or threatened against the territory of the United States by any foreign nation or government, and the President makes public proclamation of the event, all natives, citizens, denizens, or subjects of the hostile nation or government, being of the age of fourteen years and upwards, who shall be within the United States, and not actually naturalized, shall be liable to be apprehended, restrained, secured, and removed, as alien enemies. The President is authorized, in any such event, by his proclamation thereof, or other public act, to direct the conduct to be observed, on the part of the United States, toward the aliens who become so liable; the manner and degree of the restraint to which they shall be subject, and in what cases, and upon what security their residence shall be permitted, and to provide for the removal of those who, not being permitted to reside within the United States, refuse or neglect to depart therefrom; and to establish any other regulations which are found necessary in the premises and for the public safety;

WHEREAS, by sections four thousand and sixty-eight, four thousand and sixty-nine, and four thousand and seventy, of the Revised Statutes, further provision is made relative to alien enemies;

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