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Foreign Israelites do not escape this legislation, which defines the laws applied to them relative to their admission into the territory of the empire and to their sojourn in Russia.

The localities the limits of which are accorded to Israelites, subjects of the empire, in order to sojourn in a permanent manner, are as follows:

The governments (or provinces) of Bessarabia, Vilna, Vitebsk, Volbynia, Grodno, Ekaterinoslaf, Taurida, Kershow, Tchernigov, Kowno, Minsk, Mohilef, Poltava, Podolia, and Kief, with the exception of the city of Kief; but upon the observance of the following rules:

1. In the governments of Vitebsk and Mohilef the Israelites have the right to reside in the inhabited localities, in virtue of proper tickets of sojourn which are given to them for this purpose, without, nevertheless, having the right to definitely establish themselves there in the quality of fixed inhabitants. With respect to the city of Nicolaief, they have the right to choose a domicile there and to acquire real estate, in conformity to the special provisions of the regulations on commerce.

2. Regarding the western governments adjoining the frontier and Bessarabia, the Israelites are not authorized to establish themselves there within a distance of 50 versts from the frontier of the state. Along the western frontier of the state, the Israelites guilty of contraband are, in addition to the other penalties, condemned to vacate the above-cited limits. (See articles 16 and 23 of the regulations on passports, sequel to the Code of Laws, ed. of 1876.)

A general statute law that foreign Israelites are not authorized to immigrate to Russia nor to receive Russian naturalization. (See article 992 of the regulations on

social conditions, Code of Laws, vol. ix, ed. of 1876.)

Nevertheless, article 530 of the regulations on passports (Code of Laws, ed. of 1857), in admitting certain exceptions to the preceding law, particularizes who are those among foreign Israelites who are authorized to establish themselves within the limits of the localities where the right of domicile is accorded to all Jews in general:

1. Those whom the imperial government invites to come to Russia to exercise the functions of rabbins.

2. Those who come to Russia with the object of creating manufactories and workshops (with the exception of distillers), and who can show a capital for this purpose of at least 15,000 roubles. The individuals, at their entry into Russia, must engage in writing to create said establishments within a period of three years. In case where they shall be found not to have complied with the terms of their engagement, they shall be expelled from the empire. On the contrary, in case they shall have fulfilled it, they shall have the right to become Russian subjects and shall select a legal status. 3. Artisans called to Russia by the Israelite manufacturers to engage in manufacturing labor in their factories. These artisans shall not be permitted to enter Russia except upon presentation (a) of a passport in order, (b) of a certificate from the imperial legation or consulate of Russia certifying to their condition, the character of their former occupations, the trade which they follow, and showing that they have really been called to Russia, by whom, and with what object. After a sojourn of five years in the factories, and upon presentation of a certificate from their employers and the local authorities attesting their skill and their irreproachable conduct, they shall be permitted to establish themselves permanently in the localities of domicile acquired for Israelites, and to become Russian subjects.

Foreign Israelites arriving in the localities where the fixed sojourn is authorized for all Israelites in general, shall be put in possession of passports in which it shall be stated that they are only of value within the limits of the localities above mentioned. (See article 8 and annexes to article 486, remark 2, of the regulations on passports, sequel to Code of Laws, ed. of 1876.)

The local authorities are required to watch rigorously that foreign Israelites do not reside under the name of Christians in the localities where their sojourn is prohibited. The individuals discovered to be in this situation will be immediately expelled from Russia. (See article 531 of the regulations on passports, &c.)

Foreign Israelites, and especially those who are agents of large commercial houses abroad, are permitted to visit the great commercial and manufacturing centers of Russia, and to reside there a period of time, the fixing of which is submitted to the judgment of the proper authority.

It pertains to the department of the interior to definitely decide on the petitions presented for this object by the said Israelites. Nevertheless, the imperial legations and consulates may, without previous authorization of the department of the interior, deliver to bankers and chiefs of important commercial houses abroad passports to enter Russia, and visé these passports, reserving notification to the department of the interior of the delivery or visé of passport to each one of the said individuals. (See article 2 of the annexes to article 486 of the regulations on passports, &c.)

Israelites, foreign subjects, known for their social position and large operations or commercial enterprises, are permitted, as the result of a special understanding in each case between the ministers of finance, of the interior, and of foreign affairs, to estab

lish a business within the limits of the empire and to open banking offices, by providing themselves, nevertheless, with certificates of merchants of the first_guild. They are likewise authorized to establish manufactories, acquire and lease real estate freely, upon the basis of the provisions decreed by the regulations on social conditions. Foreign Israelites whose high social position and commercial operations are of public notoriety, and who come to Russia with the object of purchasing products of the empire and exporting them abroad, can also, as the result of a special understanding in each case between the ministers of finance, of the interior, and of foreign affairs, obtain certificates of merchants of the first guild. (See part 5 of the remark to the third annex to article 128 of the regulations on commerce, ed. of 1876, with a complement; decision of the committee of ministers, December 26, 1877.)

Israelites who may acquire by inheritance real estate situate beyond the localities where their sojourn is authorized are required to sell it within a period of six months. This law applies also to foreign Israelites who may acquire real estate in Russia by right of inheritance. (See article 960 of the regulations on social conditions, Code of Laws, ed. of 1876.)

The following provisions having been decreed for the Israelite subjects of the empire, shall be applicable to foreign Israelite subjects in so far only as the latter are found to have satisfied the requirements of the above-cited laws:

Merchants of the first guild inscribed upon the general basis in the first guild of the cities may go there with the members of their families whose names are found upon the guild certificates.

Israelite merchants who, in virtue of the preceding provisions, remove to the cities of the empire situated beyond the limits of the localities of their authorized domicile, are permitted to bring with them clerks and servants, likewise Israelites, in a limited number, and by observing the following rules:

1. Israelite merchants who remove to one of the two capitals, St. Petersburg or Moscow, are required to state, in a special petition presented by them to the governorsgeneral or the prefect of the place, the number of clerks or servants which they judge indispensable to bring with them to said capitals, and upon what considerations this number is based. The granting of these petitions is left to the judgment of the governors-generals and prefects above cited.

2. Israelite merchants who are inscribed in the guilds of other cities are authorized to bring with them, at the most, one clerk or one office-boy and four servants, of the two sexes of their race, per family of Israelite merchant. (See annex 3 to article 128 of the regulations on commerce, sequel to the Code of Laws, ed. of 1876.)

Israelite merchants of the first guild, besides the general rights of commerce which belong to them within the limits of the localities of their authorized sojourn, enjoy the following special rights:

1. They have the right to bring, in bulk, from the capitals and ports, in order to effect sales within the limits of the authorized district, all kinds of merchandise through the medium of commercial offices and local merchants or by correspond

ence.

2. They are permitted to visit twice a year the capitals, and other cities, for the purpose of making sales there of merchandise, on condition that the period of their sojourn does not exceed six months per year. In case there shall be an impediment or impossibility, on account of sickness or other cause, to their going in person for the above-mentioned object to the interior of the empire, they will be authorized to send in their stead clerks provided with the proper authorization, always computing the period cited. An Israelite clerk who has already visited the provinces twice in one year by virtue of an authorization of a merchant cannot go there a third time in the course of the same year. It shall be the same if, having gone to said provinces once for one merchant, he held the authorization of another merchant. He shall in this case not be authorized to make more than a single journey in the course of this same year.

3. Israelite merchants of the first guild are authorized to undertake enterprises in the governments of the interior, but on condition that they do not employ in any case Israelites as agents or superintendents.

4. Israelite merchants of the first guild are permitted to carry on in the capitals and the ports wholesale trade in the products of authorized governments, by means of Christian clerks or of merchants of the place, or by direct correspondence with the manufacturers; but they are forbidden to make sale in person of said products in the capitals or ports of the empire, or to open shops, under penalty of immediate expulsion and the confiscation of the merchandise.

5. They shall not be authorized, neither personally nor even by means of Christian agents, to sell merchandise which they may have imported from abroad outside of the limits of the governments of their authorized fixed sojourn. (See article 130 of the regulations on commerce, sequel to the Code of Laws, ed. of 1876.)

[Inclosure 2 in No. 135.]

MEMORANDUM OF TREATIES OF COMMERCE WITH RUSSIA.

Treaty between Great Britain and Russia, 1858.

[Extracts.]

ARTICLE I. There shall be between all the dominions and possessions of the two high contracting parties reciprocal freedom of commerce and navigation. The subjects of each of the two contracting parties, respectively, shall have liberty freely and securely to come, with their ships and cargoes, to all places, ports, and rivers in the dominions and possessions of the other, enjoy the same rights, privileges, liberties, favors, immunities, and exemptions in matter of commerce and navigation which are or may be enjoyed by native subjects generally.

It is understood, however, that the preceding stipulations in no wise affect the laws, decrees, and special regulations regarding commerce, industry, and police in vigor in each of the two countries and generally applicable to all foreigners.

ART. XI. The subjects of each of the two high contracting parties, by observing the laws of the country, shall have:

1. Full liberty, with their families, to enter, travel, or sojourn in all parts of the states and possessions of the other contracting party;

2. They shall have the power in the towns and ports to rent and own the houses, warehouses, shops, and lands which they shall need;"

3. They shall carry on their business either in person or by means of agents of their own choice; finally,

4. They shall not be subject for their persons and property, nor for their passports, permits of sojourn or establishment, nor on account of their business or industry, to taxes, whether general or local, nor to imposts or obligations of whatsoever nature, other or more onerous than those which are or may be fixed for natives.

The treaty of commerce between France and Russia, 1874, is almost identical in language with the foregoing articles of the English treaty.

The treaty of commerce between Austria-Hungary and Russia, 1860, contains similar provisions, using in most instances the same language.

Article XIII of the Austrian treaty contains the exact text of Article XI, above quoted, of the British treaty, and there is added the following paragraph:

"It is understood that the restrictions established in the states of one of the high contracting parties shall be equally applicable to the subjects of the other belonging to the same confession."

No treaty of commerce exists between the German Empire and Russia.

[Inclosure 3 in No. 135.-From the London Times, May 23, 1881.]

THE CASE OF MR. LEWISOHN.

Mr. Leon Lewisohn, a native of Hamburg, but a naturalized Englishman, carries on business as a merchant in London. In August, 1880, having occasion to visit Russia for the purposes of his trade, he provided himself with a passport signed by Lord Granville and fortified with the visa of the Russian consul in London. He proceeded to the fair at Nijni-Novgorod, and after a stay of three weeks went on to St. Petersburg, where he took up his residence at one of the principal hotels. On sending his passport to the proper department (bureau des étrangers) for examination, he was required to appear personally there, for the reason, as he states, that his name appeared to indicate a Hebrew origin. He duly attended, and was taken before the chief of the department, who merely asked him, "Are you a Jew?" On receiving a reply in the affirmative, the Russian functionary informed Mr. Lewisohn that he could not be permitted to remain in St. Petersburg, but must leave for the frontier within twentyfour hours. An order was indorsed on his passport to the effect that "The bearer of this passport, the British subject Leon Lewisohn, a Jew, is forbidden to stay in St. Petersburg," and instructions in conformity with the order were given to the police. Mr. Lewisohn applied for assistance to the English embassy, but appears to have seen no one in authority. He did not obtain the help he sought, and he left the Russian capital next day (September 23). Mr. Lewisohn states that he suffered pecuniary loss from the expulsion.

On returning to London, Mr. Lewisohn made a statement of his case to the foreign office. Lord Granville immediately communicated with our ambassador at St. Petersburg, and Sir Julian Pauncefote was instructed to inform Mr. Lewisohn that the notice

which he had received to quit Russia appeared to have been in accordance with Russian law. Mr. Lewisohn having further told Lord Granville that his business requirements would in a short time render it again desirable for him to visit Russia, and having asked whether protection would be afforded him for that purpose by Her Majesty's Government, Lord Granville requested Lord Dufferin, by telegraph, to ascertain whether there would be any objection to Mr. Lewisohn's returning to Russia. A delay of three weeks supervened, and Lord Granville telegraphed again, and learned in reply that Lord Dufferin had not yet received answer from the Russian Government to several inquiries he had made on the subject. Ultimately, after a correspondence extending over four or five months, Mr. Lewisohn received (on April 2, 1881) a letter from the foreign office which informed him of the definite refusal of the Russian Government to permit him to return to St. Petersburg.

No. 136.]

No. 35.

Mr. Foster to Mr. Blaine.

[Extract.]

LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES,

St. Petersburg, July 14, 1881. (Received July 30.) SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your confidential No. 80, and have read with much interest your admirable note to Mr. Bartholomei which you sent as an inclosure.

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You express a desire that I should transmit without delay the text of the law governing the residence or sojourn of Jews in Russia, to which Sir Charles Dilke alluded in Parliament. I regret to say that I am unable at present to do so, but I hope the abstract sent with my No. 135 will be sufficient for your purpose.

As heretofore stated, the laws are numerous and conflicting, and I do not know the precise one referred to by him; besides, they are in the Russian language only, and uncodified, and it would require the assistance of a learned native lawyer, with fuller information as to Sir Charles's remarks, to do more than send what is contained in my No. 135. I will write to Mr. Lowell, who may be able to get more light upon the subject. I will not, of course, ask him to do anything if he sees the slightest embarrassment, but as the action of our government and of this legation have been freely referred to in Parliament, he may be able, without appearing to be intrusive, to get further information, which I will ask him to communicate to you direct.

I hope the memorandum on the British, Austrian, and other treaties with Russia, which I also transmit, will be of some service to you. The examination which I have made satisfies me that the text of our treaty of 1832 is more favorable to us than that of any other of the nations mentioned. It is possible that the last three lines of Article I may yield the point under discussion, but they certainly do not do so as fully and explicitly as either the British, French, or Austrian (especially the latter), or the treaties of the other European governments. I think you have been misinformed if you have the impression (as I infer you have from your note to Mr. Bartholomei) that either other nations have more favorable treaty stipulations on this subject with Russia than the United States, or that the Jews of other nationalities receive better treatment than those who are American citizens. On the contrary, so far as my observation goes, more consideration has been shown to American Jews than is usual with those of other nationalities. I think

that upon further examination of the subject you will be confirmed in the views suggested by the resolution of Congress, and approved by the President and yourself, that the defect may be in the treaty, and that we will have to look for a remedy in that direction.

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The present time is not a favorable season, however, for any action, as both the embassies and court are in vacation; and, besides, you may prefer to further consider the subject before any other steps are taken. There is a kindred matter which I design to make the topic of a dispatch, to wit, the rights of naturalized American citizens of Russian nativity who may revisit this country. The question has presented itself recently in two or three phases, and in the absence of a treaty of naturalization it is not easy to make a satisfactory settlement. I am, &c.,

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SIR: From a careful examination of the cases of grievance heretofore reported by your legation, it appears that the action of the Russian authorities toward American citizens, alleged to be Israelites, and visiting Russia, has been of two kinds.

First. Absolute prohibition of residence in St. Petersburg and in other cities of the empire, on the ground that the Russian law permits no native Jews to reside there, and that the treaty between Russia and the United States gives to our citizens in Russian jurisdiction no other rights or privileges than those accorded to native Russians. The case of Henry Pinkos may be taken as a type of this class.

Second. Permission of residence and commerce, conditionally on belonging to the first guild of Russian merchants and taking out a license. The case of Rosenstrauss is in point.

The apparent contradiction between these two classes of actions becomes more and more evident as the question is traced backward. The Department has rarely had presented to it any subject of inquiry in which a connected understanding of the facts has proved more difficult. For every allegation, on the one hand, that native laws in force at the time the treaty of 1832 was signed prohibited or limited the sojourn of foreign Jews in the cities of Russia, I find, on the other hand, specific invitation to alien Hebrews of good repute to domicile themselves in Russia, to pursue their business calling under appropriate license, to establish factories there, and to purchase or lease real estate. Moreover, going back beyond 1832, the date of our treaty, I observe that the imperial ukases concerning the admission of foreigners into Russia are silent on all questions of faith; proper passports, duly visaed being the essential requisite. And, further back still, in the time of the Empress Catherine, I discover explicit tolerance of all foreign religions laid down as a fundamental policy of the empire.

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