The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1891-03-03
hing for tho purpose Of. in any way, avoiding

thing for the purpose Of, in any way avoiding
f FonTth"stSte fully any and all personal pro
perry, including bonds. n9ies. soGk ,.S ~ ~
Ionged TO you or In which you had any lnteISstt
whatsoever on the Ant day OF Apfl! iMt' ,t tsiH
which you have not already listcd loi SnI,iII'
and describe all such properly hoIe"' NNHNs'
stocks OF evidences Of debt ...,.. ,.,,.
Fiiih-ALsWeT fully. AID Ehnw nndei y0uf
oath. By giving 4 complete list thereof, all debts
owing 70 you Of any aud every soLt e.
sIxih-AnSwer fully. by giving e c9mPt icy,
llst thereof and thereby showing all depN o NV
ibS by You, Of any aud every Kind, showing me
amounts thereof, respectively, where ContIAc,eu'
when contracted and when due and pgyaple,
and ia each case stating IpecineAlly Whe Is..
~ contracted for bona ode value or conAldefn
ton And the Auditor. IN furnishing bIa I,,I y
the ASSESSOR, shall include all the above ques
lions In such blanks.
II would be hard to conceive any
thing more unjust than a proposition 70
place upon public record the details Of
private business transactions, mat:
ters with which the public has and
ought to have nothing TO do. There are
many reasons why every business man
should resent such proposition, and it
Ia matter OF surprise that any man Of
intelligence should seriously urge Its
adoption. Yet that is what the auther
OF the above measure has done. Isl
possible that the members Of the Legis'
lature have twice allowed tho bill to pass
a reading without having considered
what the effect would be in the event o.
It's becoming a law? How many mer
are there in the Legislature who are
willing to place upon the public records
their private business affairs, their pri
yste indebtedness, aud all debts owing
to them Of any any every sort whatever
What business is 1t Of the State to know
the name, business, &c, Of the man thai
owes another money, when the deb
was contracted and when 1t becomes
due? The proposition is more thar
preposterous-it is outrageous and ar
invasion OF private rights, against which
the constitution and the law should pro
tect every citizen.
Il has been scarcely six months since
Colonel White, the rsputed author o
this outrageous measure, then a candi
date for office, was denounCing as i'm
pertinent certain questions concerning
Indebtedness, &C., propounded by the
United States Census Office; and yet II
was intended by tho Census office tc
keep in strict confidence the names O.
all persons answering the questions, and
to only use the information gained ii
compiling statistics. Now heintroduces
a bill which goes great deal farther in
it, provisions than the Census law, and
ia hundred times more offensive than
the imaginary evils complained of in the
latter by the widest partisan.
The proposition Should not pass the
Legislature, but, If it does, We believe
that Governor Fleming is lawyer enough,
and understands what the sacred rights
Of citizens are well enough to withhold
his approval. Should 1t become a law,
no mans private business transactions
would be safe from the prying eyes ofthe
curious public or his interested compsti'
tors, and his only means of protecting
his private business affairs would be by
perjury. Let the infamous measure die
in the House Of it's birth.