File No. 358.117/1–2.
Minister Graves to
the Secretary of State.
American Legation,
Stockholm, September 8,
1909.
Sir: In compliance with the request in your
instruction No. 116 (file No. 19224) of April 28, 1909,1 I have the honor to inclose
herewith printed copy of the law exempting from military service under
certain conditions persons of Swedish origin who return to Sweden.
I have, etc.,
[Inclosure.—Translation.]
Law revising Section 16 of the law on military
duty of June 14, 1901.
We Gustaf, etc., hereby make known that, together with the
Parliament, we have seen fit to ordain that Section 16 of the Law on
military duty shall be worded as follows:
Section 16.
- 1.
- Postponement of enrollment till the following year may be
granted in the case of any person who is unable or unfit to
perform military duty at the date of enrollment owing to some
temporary cause such as accidental sickness, retarded bodily
development, or the like.
- 2.
- Such postponement may also be granted to the only able-bodied
son or grandson of a feeble or disabled father or grandfather or
of a widow or unmarried woman, and to the only able-bodied
adopted son of a feeble or disabled foster father or foster
mother, and to the only able-bodied brother of one or more minor
or disabled fatherless children, but only insofar as such
parents, grandparents, foster parents, or brothers and sisters
are essentially dependent on his support for their
subsistence.
- 3.
- If there is occasion for exempting a person according to this
section in the enrollment year in which he attains the age of 24
years, he shall be exempted from the performance of military
duty in the militia in time of peace.
- 4.
- If an enrolled person becomes unable to perform service in the
Nation’s defense owing to causes such as mentioned in Section 4,
he shall be exempted from further performance of military duty
upon application to the proper enrollment board.
- 5.
- If a foreigner who was not formerly a Swedish citizen acquires
citizenship here by naturalization and has reached the age of 26
years at the date of enrollment, or if he has evidence to prove
that he has performed military service in a foreign country for
a longer period than mentioned in clause 1 of Section 27, he may
be exempted from the performance of military service in the
militia in time of peace.
- 6.
- Such exemption shall also be enjoyed by persons who have
returned to Sweden after having emigrated therefrom to a foreign
land; provided, however, that—
- (1)
- His emigration was not in violation of the regulations
in force on the subject at the time.
- (2)
- That he was at least 28 years old when he
emigrated.
- (3)
- That at least 9 years intervened between the date of
his emigration and his return, without including the
time he resided in Sweden before recovering his lost
Swedish citizenship.
The provisions of clauses 5 and 6 shall go into force on January 1,
1910. The provisions of clause 6 shallonly be applicable until and
including the enrollment of 1914; however, the exemptions provided
shall also be granted to any persons contemplated in clause 6 who
are subject to enrollment in 1914 or before but who are not enrolled
until 1915 or later by reason of a valid excuse.
All persons concerned shall be guided by the foregoing.
In witness whereof we have signed it
with our own hand and had affixed thereto our royal seal.
Palace of
Stockholm, June 11, 1909.
Gustaf
. (L.
S.)
O. B.
Malm.
(Department of National Defense.)
