Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1890-05-30


United States 10 belongs to ascertain how
many inhabitants there are Ia each State
Goa order 90 determine the right II repre-
seutatiou iu each State in the National
House of Representatives.
Would YOU advise citizen 90 answer
these questions when put 90 hlm. asked
the reporter
individuals caE answer the questions
voluntarily or refuse t1 answer them. just
dis they please When the census man
comes tO my house . shall give him the
names. ages. and perhaps tine places of birth
of the different members of my family. but
. shall 40 200 further This, ! have no
doubt. will be the action of q majority of
the citizens I don't believe. either that
there win De q single prosecution in case OF
"a refusal Again, 10 may Doe Important on
10 may not 90 kuOw whether a. man has the
govt or not, but the Government haSn got
the right tO ask him.
WILLIAM "a. uoENEtoWEE.
William b. Houblower the lawyer of
30 Broadway. was most emphatic nm ms
deuunciafiOn of the law which authorizes
the enumerat0r 90 ask citizens of the United
States the diseases with which they are
afflicted and just why their houses are
mortgdgci If 40 all
ut is "a well-knowu fact said Mr.. Horn
blower. ~that the jurisdiction of the Fed
er.ll Government is absolutely limited 90
the powers which the Constitution dele
yates toit. and beyond them 10 cannot 90.
o. is perfectly proper that the age. color,
sex. and place of birth of each citizen should
bee recorded. but amy questions that go
further than this iWperl the individual
rights of the citizen The questions which
Won show me smack of the bureaucratic
Governments of Russia and France, and 10
becomes "a dangerous precedent M TINS
country. 10 is the opening wedge which m
time might possibly lay bare every man $
personal affairs, which he has an iuaiien-
ab'erieht tO screen from his fellow citizens.
THE plan of asking man about the
chronic and acute diseases with which he Is
suffering is very ill-atvised one, and IN
any event viii not result In furnishing any
statistics of value They viii be 50 mani
festlv imperfect that they Will be worse
than useless. in fact, absolutely mislead-
iue 10 would bee better 90 have none az all.
and the theOriliug of the stat.sticiaus upon
the data furnished Will Dee valueless.
II. et us carry out This iiueof questioning
90 its LOGICAL conclusion Suppose ] go
around to every man iiv.ugou my block and
ask him whether he has ever been mtoNica-
ted. and then go to work and prepare sta
t.stics ON the subject But iu our country
the rights of the Individual are sacred, and
hi, home is AS well
The coustitutiouaitv OF the measure
would have to Dee decided 10y law, ami
would probably 20 up t0 the United States
Supreme Court for final decision. The de
ti..ou would boz Almost important one 20
every individual. AS there never mas been
occasion tO raise the question before.
.It appears % me that "a ground of action
for false Imprisonment for refusing 90 am
,,vcr the specific questions concerning dis
eases and mortgages would exist. The
euumcrltor, however. is in du unfortunate
for hc must take the pre-
sumption that the law holds,
FREDERIC D. CoUnERr
The United States Government is "a
Government of limited powers, said Mr.
Frederic r. Coudert when state
makes am act pertaining t0 one of IT, Uu-
zen, the presumption is that 10 is legal
ACT. because 10 is that Of "a sovereign state,
but when the Federal Government under
takes au act with reference % Individual
citizens. then the burden of proving the
right to perform that act lies with the Fed
erA Government or It's agents. Applying
this principle to the present situation,
continued MIR Coudcrt, cit Will he CON
coded. of course, that the Federal Govern
ment has right tO takca census. But then
the question arises What is census 10
the Government goes beyond the authority
defined iu the census act and undertake., io
extract from citizen Information not in-
v0lyed Boa TO-, then 10 is acting without au-
thoritv DO is abusing lts power
Vow. "a census. continued Mr. Cuudcrt,
..i. a reei ,ter of the number Ol citizens ln
this country. aud D. also may oea statement
of property oft the citizens. SO 70 is possl-
blr that citizen may uc bound io state
what property he may have. and whether
ID b.. uortearcd or not 80 ] have 90 dis
tneuish between the right of the Federal
Government to inquire as tO mortgage and,
ON the other hand. -S tu his health. In my
opinion the United state, Government Will
exceed IT'S authority it % should ask "a man
Oh disclose either hi, own physical condi-
ton or taat of his wife and children. 10
would be- Ia useless question. Ihe unscru-
uulous citizen would no Do Dr. icit Ike ~
lnl the answer would be- worse than use
less The conscientious citizen would am
sver correctly and boz srievcd 40 the ques-
tiou.
As 90 tho question whether a citizen
NAV he arrested IL he should refuse 20 re-
ply 90 such inquiries as his having been an
inmate Nl "a lAialN "'f .Atti '- " l"..' "'f
plv is that &c the arrest should bee made
then his remedy would hc to get cut a writ
of habeas corpus. think the JUDGES I'm
our courts would not have much difficulty
I'm diSp0sing of the matter
"Fiualiy, Us % the question whether a
citizen arrested and prosecuted ON author
itv aftcrward held On be unconstitutional
would have ground Of action Tor false I'M
prisoumeut. do not believe he would have
any cause of action against the officials. be-
cause IL would be- pleaded for the officials
that they acted IN good faith az the time of
the arrest
BOURNE COCHRAN.