Under the act of 1825, therefore, an alien who had not filed the deposition as required by its provisions was unable to take by conveyance, devise or descent. The act of 1825 continued to be the law of the State until the adoption of the Revised Statutes in 1830. The Revised Statutes provided for the filing of a deposition substantially the same as that authorized by the act of 1825, and any alien who has filed such deposition may take, hold, sell, assign, mortgage, devise and dispose of real property in the same manner as a citizen, during six years from the filing thereof. Aliens who have not filed such deposition, whether resident or nonresident, are prohibited from taking real property by descent, devise or conveyance. If an alien dies while entitled to hold

real property, his heirs who are inhabitants of the United States take by descent. If real property is mortgaged by an alien entitled to hold the same, he is authorized to repurchase the premises on foreclosure.

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The Statute of Wills (R. S., pt. II, ch. 6, tit. I, § 4), adopted in 1830 as part of the Revised Statutes, expressly provided that every devise or any interest in real property to a person who at the time of the death of the testator, shall be an alien, not authorized by statute to hold real estate, shall be void."

Thus, by the Revised Statutes of 1830, an alien, whether resident or nonresident, who has not filed a deposition, was unable to take real property by conveyance, devise or descent.

The laws of the State in relation to the powers of aliens to take and hold real property, was revised and extended by L. 1845, ch. 115.

It has been claimed that the act of 1845 was temporary and referred only to aliens, residents of the State in that year. Although the act (L. 1857, ch. 576,) appears to refer to the act of 1845 as temporary, it will not bear such construction, and the courts have uniformly regarded it as being of permanent force, applying equally to aliens who became residents of the State before, as well as after, its passage. (Hall v. Hall, 81 N. Y., 130, 138.)

By § 1 of the act of 1845, a resident alien is enabled to take real property within this State by conveyance or devise, and to hold

the same upon filing the deposition required by law. This section superseded the provisions of the Revised Statutes, including the Statute of Wills, which prohibited an alien who had not filed a deposition, from taking by conveyance or devise.

Sections 4 and 5 of the act of 1845, as amended by L. 1875, ch. 38, authorized the persons answering to the description of heirs of an alien resident or citizen, or being his devisee, and of his blood, to take his real property as heirs or devisees, but if alien males, required by filing of a deposition in order to hold the same.

The section appears to permit alien women to take real property within the State by devise or descent, and to hold the same without filing a deposition. The act does not confer upon nonresident aliens, certainly not upon nonresident male aliens, any power to hold real property within the State.

Section 2 of the act of 1845, gives to the widow of a resident alien, whether she be an alien or citizen of the United States, dower in his real property.

Section 7 and 8 of the act of 1845 authorize a woman who is an alien resident, to take real property by devise, or an estate or interest in real property by way of marriage settlement, created by the will of her husband or by any person capable of devising real property.

Section 5 of the proposed revision confers upon resident aliens as broad powers in reference to taking and holding real property, as are provided by the act of 1845. Aliens are authorized to take real property by devise or descent, the same as citizens, but in order to hold it are required to file a deposition within one year after the death of the decedent, or if minors, within one year after majority. The widow of an alien is entitled to dower in his real property, but can only obtain admeasurement of the same upon the filing of a deposition, as required by law.

By the terms of this section, if property is devised or descends to a nonresident alien, he is unable to hold the same without becoming a resident of the United States, and filing the deposition required by law; and the intention of becoming a resident and citizen, whether the property passes to a resident or nonresident,

or a man or a woman, is made the test of the right to hold the

same.

The commissioners believe that with the exception contained in section 6, allowing a woman who marries a foreigner and resides in a foreign country to take real property and transmit it to her heirs, the State of New York has conferred as broad powers upon aliens as are desirable at the present time. They have therefore omitted from the revision, and repealed without re-enactment, chapter 207 of the Laws of 1893, which permitted the alien heirs or devisees of a citizen, whether such heirs or devisees are residents or nonresidents, and without filing any deposition, to take and hold his real property. If the revision becomes a law, nonresident aliens with the exception contained in section 6, and as their rights may be extended by treaties of the United States with foreign governments, will be unable to take and hold real property within the State. This, it is believed, affects no substantial change in the general policy of the State (which, until 1893, seems to have uniformly required residence and the filing of a deposition, in order to entitle an alien to hold real property within the State. It is believed that the tendency of modern legislation in this country is to restrict the holding of real property by aliens, to such as are residents of the United States.

The following synopsis of laws of the several States in relation to the power of aliens to hold real property will be interesting as indicating the present tendency of legislation in this country:

ALABAMA.-- Constitution, article I, § 36. "Foreigners, who are or may hereafter become bona fide residents of this State, shall enjoy the same right in respect to the possession, enjoyment and inheritance of property, as native born citizens."

Alabama code (1886), § 1914. “An alien resident or nonresident may take and hold property, real and personal, in this State, either by purchase, descent or devise, and may dispose of and transmit the same by sale, descent or devise as a native citizen."

ARKANSAS.-- Constitution, article 2, § 20. "No distinction shall ever be made by law between resident aliens and citizens in regard to the possession, enjoyment or descent of property."

Revised Statutes (1884), chapter 3, §§ 232-34. (L. 1874, Doc. 15.) All distinctions between aliens and citizens as to the holding, transmission or descent of real property are abolished and their personal property is to be distributed the same as the property of a citizen.

CALIFORNIA.- Constitution (1879), article 1, § 17. "Foreigners of the white race or of the African descent, eligible to become citizens of the United State under the naturalization laws thereof, while bona fide residents of this State, shall have the same rights in respect to the acquisition, possession, enjoyment, transmission and inheritance of property, as native born citizens."

Civil Code, §§ 671, 672. "Any person, whether a citizen or alien, may take, hold and dispose of property, real and personal, within the State." "If a nonresident alien takes by succession, he must appear and claim the property within five years from the time of succession or be barred."

§ 1404. By this section aliens are enabled to take by succession the same as citizens.

COLORADO.- Constitution (1876), article 2, § 27. "Aliens who are or may hereafter become bona fide residents of this State, may acquire, inherit, possess, enjoy and dispose of property, real and personal, as native born citizens."

Mills Annotated Statutes (1891), chapter 3, § 99. (L. 1861, p. 57, as am. by L. 1883, p. 132.) By this section all distinctions between aliens and citizens abolished.

§ 100. (L. 1887, p. 24, as am. by L. 1889, p. 272.) Nonresident aliens are prohibited from acquiring more than two thousand acres of agricultural land.

§ 1529. "The alienage of the descendants shall not invalidate any title to real estate which shall descend from him or her."

CONNECTICUT.-General Statutes (1888), § 15. Resident aliens of the United States and citizens of France, so long as France shall accord the same right to citizens of the United

States, may purchase, hold, inherit or transmit real estate in as full a manner as native born citizens. The wife of such alien or citizen may take and hold real estate by devise or inheritance and be entitled to dower. Lineal descendants may take and hold as heirs-at-law.

Alien nonresidents authorized to acquire and hold quarrying or mining property, and transmit the same by conveyance, devise, or inheritance, but a nonresident alien shall not acquire greater rights than his grantor, etc.

DELAWARE.-Revised Code (1852), amended in 1893, title 12, ch. 81, § 1. An alien residing within the State who has declared his intention of becoming a citizen, may hold and transmit property and his resident heirs or devisees may take the same if they reside within the United States. Nonresident aliens are prohibited from holding real property.

FLORIDA.- Constitution (1885); Declaration of Rights. § 18. "Foreigners shall have the same rights as to the ownership, inheritance and disposition of property in this State as citizens of the State.

Digest of Laws (1881), ch. 92, § 7. "Aliens of any country or nation whatever, may purchase, hold, enjoy, sell, convey or devise any lands or tenements in the State to the same extent and with the same right as citizens of the United States." § 14. Aliens as well as citizens may take by inheritance, and shall be entitled to share and share alike.

GEORGIA.- Code of Georgia, § 1661. "Aliens or subjects of governments at peace with the United States and this State, shall be entitled to all the rights of citizens of other States resident in this State and shall have the privilege of purchasing, holding and conveying real estate in this State."

IDAHO.- Revised Statutes (1887), § 2827. "Any person, whether a citizen or alien, may take, hold and dispose of propety, real or personal." § 5715. Resident aliens may take in all cases by succession as citizens, but no nonresident foreigner can