Yo the Editor of the "NortH-Cuina Dalny News"
Sin,—Hardly a day passes without finding in your columns the word "nationality" used as a synonym ior "citizenship." But these two words are far from being identical in their meaning.
Citizenship can be acquired and changed in a certain period. The passport of an individual reveals his Citizenship but not his nationality. Citizenship and nationality may be identical but is does not imply that they must be identical. Everybody is born with the nationality of his father and mother, but this does not mean that he must have their citizenship too.
lf.a Chinese goes to the Philippine Islands he may acquire in some the Philippine citizenship, but with regard to nationality he is still a Chinese. The Sudeten Germans were of Czechoslovakian citizenship but of German nationality, The citizenship was imposed upon them, but no peace treaty, no regulation could change their nationality. Nationality being a composition of race, culture and feeling cannot be classified. If an Italian is deprived of his Italian citizenship he is still an Italian because the nationality being a part of him can never be wiped out with the stroke of a pen.
Citizenship is a technical matter. You may determine and acquire it, but nationality is given to you. You cannot change it.
N. S.
Shanghai, Dec. 5.
***Nationality:—1, National quality character. 2, National feeling, 1772. 3, The fact of belonging to a particular nation, 1828. 4, Separate existence as a nation; National independence or consolidation, 1832. 5, a motion, 1932—"Shorter Oxford English Dictionary."—Ko.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.