The US Supreme Court clearly defined natural-born citizen by two independent remarks:
1. all children born in a country of parents who were its citizens became themselves, upon their birth, citizens also. First, the Court states that these persons are citizens. But then it makes a second statement about this class
2. These were natives or natural-born citizens, as distinguished from aliens or foreigners. This class of citizens are part of a class defined as natural-born citizens. They are citizens, natural-born. This distinguishes them from all other citizens. If this were not the case, it would have been sufficient for the Court to stop at the first statement concerning their citizenship.
But the Court didnt stop there. Because the Court was avoiding the 14th Amendment, the Court went to the second step and defined this class to be different from all other citizens. This class did not require the 14th Amendment to be US citizens.
Whether persons born in the US to non-citizen parents were citizens was not a question before the Minor Court because Mrs. Minor was natural-born, whereas Wong Kim Ark was not. The determination of his citizenship required the 14th Amendment, whereas Mrs. Minors did not.
It was held that Mrs. Minor was a US citizen as the syllabus states in point 2 because she was born in the US to parents who were citizens. This was the independent ground that springs forth precedent. (See Ogilvie Et Al., Minors v. United States, 519 U.S. 79 at 84 (1996)).
I will be too busy with medical matters from now through Saturday to respond at length. I expect to do so on Sunday.