The evening times., 1895-12-12

The transmittal TO Senator Harris by the
Commissioners Of a bill to amend the act
| to regulate marriages, with the statement
| that no time is fixed within which min
isters are requested to make returns. calls
| attention to the fact that there Is already a
law requiring u return more prompt than
the ten days named in the measure pro-
posed, but In about one third of the cases
the law is imperative.
Furthermore, there is nothing in the
proposed bill likely TO make 1t MOre effect
i've Than existing law. The regulation re-
ferred TO was made under authority OF an
| act OF Congress OF June 80, 1873, and be-
came effective August 1, 1874. 1t is
section 2 of the series providing for the
'toflection of vital statistics. under the di-
rection OF the Health Office, and reads u
follows:
THAT it. shall be the duty of every
Clergyman, magistrate, or other person
wh0shah rerform-any marriage ceremony
within tie District OF Columbia, to report
each nIarriAges ceremony sOlennized by
him 10 the registrar aforesaid tthe health
officer) within forty-e;ght hours thereafter,
giving tie full name, age, color, occupa-
ton. birthplace, tState or county, and
legal residence of each person married and
the date of such marriage"
There is attached a penalty us follows:
. That any person who shall violate or aid
OF abet in violating any of the provisions
OF the foregoing regulations, shall, upon
conviction by competent judicial author
ity, be punished by a fine OF not less than
SIS nor more than S289 for each and every
offense -
~ So. THE NUMBER REPORTED.
Under this law there were reported II
the health office last year only 2, 391 mar
riages for 3 $50 licenses issued. This
leaves ,2S9, few more than une-third
OF the tutal, unaccounted for. or these,
the ceremonies in few cases were prob
ably performed at a time just at the cl,se
efthe.fiscak year, s,' as to make the report
come in the following year. but a few also
must have come ,'ver from the preceding
year, so that the failures to make the re-
qaired return must have run beyond 200.
The question, why is Not the law enforced
and the fine imposed and collected? is
answered briefly. NObudy except the de-
iinquent ministers and magistrates them
selves know WIN are guilty. Utmost cases
their offenses are probably due to ignor-
.ince OF the law.
Tue btll transmitted to Senator Harris
makes no provision to discover who per-
.fprnis uf. ceremony. and the whole matter
VIII be LEFT as now 10 the careful or negli-
gent habits and the conscirnces OF ministe-s
and magistrates. Undcr il u third of the
marriages would not he reported. and few.
IL any. fines would W. collected.
Two methods have been suggested for
reniedyiny the defect. The first and prob
ably the best, is to Issue the license directed
Ia a particular minister. whose name is
kept III the record book in the clerks Office.
He Is thus made responsible for the return
of the coupon provided for in the proposed
tjill a clause Is added. making the per
foraance of the ceremony transferable to
some other minister if the one addressed
IL for any reason unable to attend to il.
The other method Is 20 make the groom
responsible for the return. The objection
To this is that the groom frequently al once
goes out of the jurisdiction.