WAR DEPARTMENT, 
Adjutant and Inspector General’s Office, 
Richmond, March 13, 18G2. 
GENERAL ORDERS, \ 
No. 13. 5 
I. The following Act of Congress, and the Regulations of the Secre- 
tary of War thereupon, with directions respecting damaged powder, &c., 
are published for the information of the Army: 
An Act to establish a iuniform Ride of Naturalization for persons enlisted 
in the Armies of the Confederate States of America. 
SECT. 1. The Congress of the Confederate, States of America do enact, That every 
person not a citizen of one of the Confederate States, engaged in the military service 
of the said Confederate States, during the existing war against the United States of 
America, shall thereby, and whilst in such service, bo under the protection of the 
Confederate States, as fully as if he were a citizen thereof, the rights of a citizen 
being to such extent hereby conferred ; and moreover shall have the right to become 
naturalized and to become a citizen of any one of the Confederate States; and shall 
thereby he entitled to all the rights and privileges of a citizen of said State of the 
Confederate States, upon taking an oath to support the Constitution of such State, 
and well and faithfully to serve the Confederate States of America, to maintain and 
support the Constitution and Laws thereof, and to renounce all allegiance and obe- 
dience to any foreign Government, State, Sovereignty, Prince or Potentate, and 
particularly, by name, the Government, State, Sovereignty, Prince or Potentate, of 
which he may be, or have been, a citizen or subject, and stating which one of the 
Confederate States he intends to become a citizen of. But if the State in which tho 
said applicant shall have resided next before his application, shall afterwards be- 
come a member of this Confederacy, the citizenship of said applicant shall remain 
In said State, at his election, notwithstanding proceedings under this act. 
Sect. 2. The oath prescribed in the preceding section may be made by all person* 
below the rank of Colonel, before the Colonel or commanding officer of the regi- 
ment to which such persons may be attached; and said oath may be made by Colo- 
nels, and all officers superior in rank to Colonels, and by all persons enlisted in the 
military service of tho Confederate States, not attached to regiments, before any 
commissioned officer of the Confederate States of rank higher than that of Colonel. 
And it shall be tho duty of the Secretary of War to provide blank forms of the oath 
required to be taken as aforesaid, and to cause the same to bo distributed whenever 
necessary, and to make the regulations necessary for informing all persons now en- 
gaged in the military service of the Confederate States, of the provisions of this 
act, and to cause all the oaths so taken as aforesaid to be returned to the War De- 
partment. And it shall be further the duty of the Secretary of War to file for 
record, in the District Court of the Confederate States for the State and District 
where the Capital may be situated, all the oaths so returned to the War Depart- 
ment as aforesaid. And it shall be the duty of the Clerk of said District Court to 
record all oaths of naturalization filed with him as aforesaid, and to keep an index 
of the same; for which service, ho shall be entitled to a fee of twenty-five cents for 
each naturalization oath, to he paid out of tho public treasury, in the same manner 
as his other fees of office. [Approved, August 22,1861. ] 2 
11. Any person tinder the rank of Colonel, engaged in the military ser- 
vice of the Confederate States, and attached to a regiment, may become 
a citizen of one of said States, by taking the following oath before the 
Colonel or commanding officer of the regiment to which he is attached: 
I , do solemnly swear to support the Constitution 
of the State of , of which said State I intend to become a citizen; 
that I will well and faithfully serve the Confederate States of America, 
and maintain and support the constitution and laws thereof; and that I 
do renounce all allegiance and obedience to any foreign Government, 
State, Sovereignty, Prince or Potentate, and particularly ail allegiance 
and obedience to 
Sworn to and subscribed before me, this day of 
188 ,by , who is attached to the regiment under my 
command. 
111. The same oath must be taken by Colonels and officers superior 
in rank to Colonels, and also by all persons enlisted in the military ser- 
vice of the Confederate States not attached to regiments, in order' to be- 
come citizens of any one of the Confederate States. In such cases, the 
oath must be taken and subscribed before a commissioned officer of the 
Confederate States, whose rank is higher than that of Colonel, whose 
certificate must show that such oath was taken by a Colonel, or by an 
officer superior in rank to a Colonel, or by a person enlisted in the mili- 
tary service of the Confederate States not attached to any regiment. 
IV. Any oath taken as aforesaid shall be returned to the War Depart- 
ment by the officer before whom it is taken. 
Y. Wastage of damaged powder and ammunition in camps and at 
batteries, having been reported, it is made the duty of officers in charge 
thereof to turn it over to the nearest Ordnance officer; or, be being ab- 
sent, to the Quartermaster, who will forward it, with invoices of the 
amount, to the Ordnance officer at Richmond, Raleigh, Augusta or New 
Orleans, depending on their distance from those points respectively. 
The same will be done with all unserviceable arms. 
By command of the Secretary of War. 
S. COOPER, 
Adjutant and Inspector General.