Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1895-05-15
CATTLE INSPECTION.
Some Disputed Points in the Law as
Construed by the Solicitor
General.

The following opinion of interest t
cattlemen of New Mexico is announce
by the solicitor general:
Hon. W. H. Jack. President Cattle Sanitar
Board. Silver City. n. NJ.
/ Dear Sir:-I am in receipt of your lette
of recent date in which you request m
official opinion as to the meaning of sec
tion 13, of the cattle sanitary law, ap
proved February 2S, 1889, and especial
as to whether, under that section, be
tween March and November l, cattl
may be admitted, after inspection, from
Presidio county and other sections II
west Texas. The act of which this sec
tion is part was amended in 1891, b,
further extending the powers of the sani
tar. board to the inspection of all cattl
intended for shipment or to be driver
beyond the limits of the territory, ant
also respecting the inspection of hides
and slaughter houses, Qaws 1891, chapter
34) and this amendment WAS itsel
amended in 1898, by giving additiona
authority to the board to borrow money
not exceeding $4,000, and to issue nego
table paper therefor, the same to be
paid out of the revenue accruing to the
cattle indemnity fund from taxes levied
and assessed upon cattle only, and from
fees accruing from the inspection OF
| cattle and hides, ETC., claws 1898, chapter
81 and by an act of the last Legislature
| approved February 8, 1895, which simply
increases the number of members of the
board and enlarges its powers 30 as tc
| include diseases other than Texas OF
splenic fever, the prevention of which is
one of the chief purposes of the act OF
| 1889. (Laws 1895, chapter 29.)
The act of 1889, as amended, is not par
ticularly lucid in its phraseology and the
difficulty surrounding its Interpretation
on this account is not lessened by the fact
that not few verbal inaccuracies are
present. A careful consideration of the
question inquired about leads, however
to the conclusions hereinafter set forth
The section in question provides in effect
that every party having in charge cattle
destined for introduction into this terri
tory during the existence of any prohibi.
ton against such importation under the
act of 1889, may secure it's admission by
applying for and receiving, after e1amina-
ton, certificate of health from the
proper parties designated by the cattle
sanitary board. The question then fol
decision is whether under this section
parties having cattle in Presidio and
other counties of western Texas can solve
che question of their admission into this
territory between March and November
l by simple presentation to the cattle
sanitary inspectors of such cattle for the
purpose of securing certificate of health
! In settling this question it must be noted
that the act under consideration relates
to several classes of cattle. It provides
first, that all cattle shall be inspected be.
fore being brought into the territory
second, that cattle in certain portions OF
Texas and Mexico shall not be brought
into the territory between March and
November 1; and third, that cattle from
other portions of the country, where con-
tagious diseases may become prevalent,
shall by proclamation of the governor,
be sub bjected to such quarantine regula-
tions as may have been provided by the
cattle sanitary board. Taken by itself
section Is is probably broad enough to
include all three of these classes and thus
to permit, after inspection satisfactory
to the officials, the admission OF all cattle
into this territory at all times. In de-
ciding, however, what the legislative in
tent ia the other portions of the act must
be looked to. II will be noted that the
preamble sets out in detail the purposes
of the act and declares very fully
the reasons that actuated the law
makers in it's passage. This preamble
is of no little assistance, therefore,
in determining the legislative intent as
to the regulations governing cattle
brought in from the parts of Texas and
Mexico therein so carefully described. 1t
will also be noted that after detailing the
portions of the country just named from
which it is subseq provided that
no cattle shall be "driven, conveyed or
transported" between March 5 and No
vember l, the preamble gives the reason
for this absolute exclusion of such cattle
in the statement that "the fact has be.
come we'll established that such imported
cattle 60 as aforesaid communicating such
Texas or splenic fever, never show any
symptoms Of the disease from which the
same may be determined by an inspec-
tion thereof" The legislature having
thus declared that the presence of Texas
fever can not be detected by inspection
it can not be thought that it would there.
upon Immediately enact law which
would allow cattle suffering with such a
snbtle complaint to be brought into the
territory after an inspection. An in
spection being of no value, certainly it
would be absurd to presume that the
legislature intended to admit such cattle
upon an inspection, and it is familiar
rule that construction that will impute
ahsurdity to the acts of the law-making
power is always to be avoided. The leg
islature framed this law largely for the
purpose of keeping out Texas or splenic
fever, and a construction that would alb
solutely defeat that purpose can not con-
scientiously be given. As sustaining the
very evident intent set out in the pre-.
amble, is to be noticed the latter part of
section II, where it is expressly set forth
that permit shall be refused in the case
therein mentioned wherever the facts and
circumstances warrant the presumption
that such cattle are from that part Of the
state of Texas and the republic of Mexi-
90, from which the Importation Of cattle
is prohibited by the act. The exceptions
made of cattle suffering from Texas or
splenic fever" in the latter sections of
the act, where the question of the treat
ment Of cattle held in q quarantine is con-
sidered, shows also that the legislature
considered its prohibition in the impor-
tation OF cattle from the sections where
such fever prevails, to be absolute be-
tween the dates named.
For the reasons lust stated I An. of the