The passport of which he is the bearer, and which was issued to him by the mayor of the city of St. Louis, Missouri, mentions neither the object nor the duration of his journey, and being thus an insufficient means of legalization, it has been deemed necessary to come to an understanding on these two points with Mr. Von der Sandt. The latter, however, not only refuses all explanation, but will not even come forward at the summons which has been addressed to him by the landrath of Cleves. In these circumstances, sir, the King's government could only approve and sustain the measure which Mr. Von der Sandt complains of; and I sincerely regret that I am not able to answer in a more favorable manner your intervention in his behalf. In restoring herewith the letter inclosed in your dispatch, I have, sir, the honor to renew to you the assurance of my high consideration. THE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS. For the minister, LE COQ. Mr. Sandt to the legation of the United States. [Translation.] BREMEN, May 25, 1851. To the honorable legation of the United States of North America at Berlin : YOUR HONOR: I venture yet again, and, indeed, for the last time, to write to you, for the time for my departure is nigh at hand, and I have even until now waited in vain for a definitive answer. It is true, I have for some time remarked a cessation on the part of the landraths in my persecution, which I attribute to your honor's interference; but nevertheless, I am assured to-day, that, according to a letter from the government, I am to be sent out of the country; but for all that, still relying on my just rights and your powerful intervention, I await your answer with good hopes. Should, however, your honor not be in a position to protect an American citizen in this country, who, in spite of a correct passport, is persecuted without reason, then must my elevated thoughts about America vanish, and my pride in being a citizen thereof be undermined. In that case, I may perceive it to be my special duty to become a warning to every one, and to make my condition known not only through the papers of this country, but also through publication in those of America. I must also remark, that your honor, conformably to your last letter, is not exactly acquainted with my position; for if I had been apprized of the citation of the landraths, I should have gone blindfold into the power of the party from whom I must protect myself. Should your honor be informed of the reason of my persecution, I beg you will have Under all circumstances I await your the goodness to impart it to me. esteemed reply. Your honor's most obedient servant, The decision of the government of Prussia in the case of Mr. Von de Sandt, of which the department is advised, has not satisfied that person, and he has written to me again on the subject. I send a copy of his letter, with a copy of one addressed to him in reply, by way of caution and counsel. I have the honor to be, with the highest respect, your obedient servant, Hon. DANIEL WEBSTER, D. D. BARNARD. Secretary of State. Mr. Sandt to Mr. Barnard. [Translation.] BREMEN, June 9, 1851. I have received the letter of the secretary of legation, Mr. Fay, of the 26th May, and accompanying extracts from letters of the minister for foreign affairs of Prussia of the 21st May. I see, however, thereby, that you have come to an unjust conclusion, and that your decision, therefore, turns out disagreeably for me. From the beginning: that I emigrated in 1849 is an error of fact; because, from 5th October, 1843, I threw off the bond of subjection to Prussia, and emigrated a short distance out from here. So, also, is it erroneous to say that I emigrated to get rid of the military regulations.. I have fulfilled my active service period, and part of my reserve service, without fault; but if it be that I belong till my fortieth year to the first and second levy of landwehr, and could not emigrate without incurring the appearance of intention to evade my military obligations, and was the military liability the only oppression in this country, there certainly would not be here so many hundreds who, daily, secretly get across the Rhine, who are not soldiers, and who have no need to fear that; and in America, also, we are not free from the duty of service, but always bound, on any peril which may menace the land, to seize our weapons. That my non-appearance, on the verbal request of a field-guard, to appear before the burgomasters of Kelle, half a league from here, (not before the landraths,) was given out to seem to be the principal ground of my proscription, is not justice; for, a long time after my proscription, first came this summons, and not in substitution. But the mere fear of my arrest was the reason for my non-appearance; for, had I returned the copy of my passport, which contained nothing dangerous to my personal freedom, to the burgomaster, at his request, and if my longedfor personal freedom were assured to me, I would readily enough have complied with the summons, notwithstanding the learned in the law call it indiscreet to mix up in family affairs, and occasions are not unknown here on which people have been summoned and detained by a police office. That I desire to reside here under the name of foreigner, that I may evade the landwehr service, is also as untrue and unfounded. I wish to remain here scarcely four months longer; and thereafter, I hopefully look forward not any more to need your protection in this country. Also, yonder in America, can the time of my citizen's rights be settled and decided by competent persons, as important and not to be disturbed, so that I can, according to my oath taken, enjoy all the rights I have claim to, with that, also, of voting. That in Prussia only one passport signed by the government in Washington is sufficient, was unknown to the person who issued my passport, as well as the Prussian consul who in good faith visaed it as the legitimate pass of an American citizen. Upon this I have made this unlucky journey, and upon this I maintain that I deserve all protection, notwithstanding all denials and intrigues. Should your excellency, notwithstanding all this, not be in position to secure me liberty to be busy here yet a few months, this may, at least, give you a different idea of my character. With the assurance that this letter rests on truth and justice, I remain, with the highest esteem, your excellency's most obedient servant, The MINISTER OF THE UNITED STATES, Berlin. H. V. DE SANDT. P. S. For better faith in the foregoing language, I send, herewith, literal copies: 1. My passport, with the verification by the Prussian consul at St. Louis. 2. My oath of declaration. 3. My permit to emigrate. 4. My lately received order from the landrath of Cleves, the original whereof is with my father, H. V. de Sandt, of Bremen, where it can seen, and to whom you may send answer. be H. V. DE SANDT. Mr. Barnard to Mr. Sandt. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, Berlin, June 17, 1851. SIR: Your letter of the 9th instant has been received, and I lose no time in giving you such counsel in reply to it as your case and the positions you assume seem to demand. Your letter and the inclosures disclose certain facts which should be noted. In the first place, if you were a citizen of the United States already naturalized, your passport is an invalid one. A mayor of a city in the United States cannot grant a valid passport. It must come from the authority of the general government, and not from any State or city authority. With the visa of the Prussian consul, your passport proved to be sufficient to enable you to get into the country; but it was not one on which you could rely to protect you in a residence here. But in the next place, you are not yet a citizen of the United States. Declaring your intention to become a citizen does not make you a citizen. This intention was declared so late as March, 1850, and the time required by law for your admission to citizenship after that declaration is very far short of having been accomplished. When you ceased to be a citizen of Prussia by your permit of emigration and became a resident in the United States, the laws and government of that country became your protection so long as that residence continued. When, however, you quitted your residence there before perfecting your naturalization, and again took up your abode in Prussia, for your own purposes, your condition was a peculiar one, and required from you a peculiar and very discreet line of conduct. It was impossible for the American legation here to claim you as an American citizen; though, as a resident of the United States, who had taken the first steps in good faith to become a citizen, and whom we should hope one day to see in the full enjoyment of citizenship in that country, we might have asked, and would very gladly have been instrumental in procuring for you, the free permission of the government of Prussia to remain here for any reasonable time required by your business or your convenience. The error in your case has been in claiming to be an American citizen, and in insisting on the right to remain here as such withou. declaring your object or business or the time of your proposed stay. I am quite persuaded, if you had presented yourself voluntarily or promptly, on being required to do so, before the proper authority or officer of the locality, and had laid frankly before him the exact truth of the case-your position as a resident of the United States, intending to become a citizen, the business or objects which had brought you back to your old home, and the probable time of your necessary staythat on satisfying such authority or officer of the sincerity and truth of your declarations you would not have been disturbed. Perhaps it is not too late yet. If it is still desirable to you to remain, I should advise you to try what a frank exposition of your case before the burgomaster or landrath might be able to effect for you. But you should avoid any spirit of demand or of controversy. State exactly your position as it has now been laid down to you from this legation; state exactly wherein you have been mistaken, and ask permission, as a matter of favor and courtesy, to remain where you are till you can accomplish the business which brought you back to Prussia. If you will put yourself on the ground here indicated, and respectfully ask to be permitted to remain in the country for the completion of the lawful objects which brought you here, I should hope that such permission might still be granted to you. I regret very much the inconvenient position in which you find yourself, and am very desirous of being of service to you by the information and advice which I give Your obedient servant, you. Mr. VON DE SANDT. D. D. BARNARD. Mr. Barnard to Mr. Webster. [Extract.] No. 31.] LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, SIR: I have the honor to inclose to you copies of correspondence, as follows. A letter from Mr. Bates to me, of the 19th July, with the inclosure, being a letter from a Mr. Brand, claiming to be an American citizen, and who is imprisoned at Coblentz; my letter to Mr. Bates, of the 22d July, on this subject; a letter from Mr. Bates to me, of the 25th July, referring, in the conclusion, to the case of Mr. Brand, but chiefly relating to the detention of Mr. Thomas N. Dale, an American citizen, at Aix-la-Chapelle, on the old ground of the want of a Prussian visa to his passport; my answer to Mr. Bates, of the 28th instant; and my note to the minister of foreign affairs on the question of passports, of the same date. My letter to Mr. Bates, last referred to, together with my note to the minister, will show what action I have taken in regard to the difficulty which it seems is still sometimes made by an over-zealous police about American passports. I have the strongest assurances that steps shall be taken to correct the evil. In regard to the case of Mr. Brand, it will be seen by Mr. Bates's letter of the 25th instant that he had, up to that day, received no further information from Mr. Brand, and that he had written to the legal officer of the king, at Coblentz, on the subject. In a personal interview which I had yesterday with Mr. Le Coq, the under-secretary of state, (the minister being absent,) I presented the case of Mr. Brand to his notice, as far as I had information on the subject, with an earnest, though friendly, appeal in behalf of this person, if it should appear that he was an American citizen and had |