monotone suppresses .svn directories.

I'd like to use monotone (which I'm familiar with) to manage local 
revisions to a project that's using svn.  It's easy enough to create a 
'vendor' workspace by checkout from svn, and then to check that into a 
local monotone database, then check that out into local mtn workspaces 
with as many short-term branches as I care to.

Except for one thing.  The project uses the .svn directories, or files 
within them (it's not entirely clear) to clue in their Makefile as to 
what to do.  When I  use mtn add recursively, the .svn directories are 
suppressed, probably for good reason, and so the Makefile malfunctions.

How can I do the recursive mtn add and suppress the .svn suppression?

I  don't have commit privileges.  Project headquarters definitely doesn't 
want to see all my short, experimental branches, only the final results 
contributed as patches.

-- hendrik