Reply from Congressman Emanuel Cleaver concerning Orphan WorksActof 2008

[Hal Duston]

On Tue, Aug 12, 2008 at 04:00:22PM -0500, Jeffrey Watts wrote:
> Brian, I'm assuming from your name that you're not Native American (the
> modern usage).  How did your forefathers come to this country?  Did they get
> a visa from the US consulate in their country?  Can you prove this?  The
> reality is that unless one's relatives arrived after 1924 they most likely
> just showed up here.

When my ancestor (Thomas Durston) arrived in 1632, there was no US
consulate that one could visit to apply for a visa.  Legally he was
migrating from one part of the British empire to another, and therefore
no visa was required.

Thanks,
--
Hal