Mr. Terrell to Mr. Gresham.
Constantinople , March 19, 1894 . (Received April 9.)
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of a dispatch signed by the Hon. Edwin F. Uhl, No. 150,3 of date the 27th ultimo, directing me to ascertain the character of the “passport” referred to by Jacob Toprahanian in his letter to you of the 8th ultimo as having been issued to his wife, Catharine Toprahanian.
That passport was issued by me on the 10th day of October, 1893. Its number is “195.” On receiving your instructions to facilitate the woman in her effort to join her husband correspondence was opened with him in New York, and his certificate of naturalization was sent to [Page 770] this post and returned to him. His wife was at Diabekir, in the interior of Asia, about 300 miles from any consul or consular agent.
The papers evidencing the citizenship of Jacob Toprahanian were regular in form. Blank forms in duplicate were forwarded to Artin Cassapian and returned, after which a passport was forwarded to the woman. Her application (now before me) states that she was born on the 15th of June, 1858; that her husband emigrated to the United States about the 18th of May, 1883; that he resided seven years uninterruptedly in the United States, from 1883 to 1890, at New York; that he was naturalized as a citizen of the United States before the court of common pleas of New York on the 19th of April, 1893, as shown by an accompanying certificate; that she was his wife; that she resided uninterruptedly in the United States seven years, from 1883 to 1890, at New York; that she is domiciled in the United States and her permanent residence is in New York; that she left the United States on the 15th of June, 1890, on board the La Bourgogne, and reached Havre on the 23d of June, 1890. Her signature to the oath. The certificate of identification was signed by Artin Cassapian. An inquiry among Armenians here confirmed the essential facts regarding the woman’s residence in the United States, and that she was the wife of Jacob Toprahanian.
She was detained so long at Alexandretta that her money was exhausted. When finally they (herself and children) were permitted to leave her passage was paid to Alexandretta on my order, for which I am personally responsible.
I have, etc.,
- Not printed.↩