The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-04-18

the officers elected at the same time had made
inquiry OF the census bureau and had ascortained
by an official declaration OF the director that
the population ot llckaNanna county was.
on the first OF June, 1000. in excess OF 10000
Others made no inquiry upon thc subject and
had no definite information thereof until the
announcement VI che nineteenth OF November
Would those WHO made inquiry be bound by the
fact and those who made no inquiry not be
bound thereby simply because they had not
made inquiry and had not been informed by
scmi.otlcial publication? Surely there could
have been and should be difference. II can
he readily seen that the inconvenience and in-
Justice that would necessarily arise from ac-
ccping any ol!cial guide or haphazard rule
AZ to the classification Of counties for salary
purposes, which the Supreme court says cannot
well be o,er.estimatcd would be equally great
il were to accept the announcement OF the
population under the census rather than the
fact determined thereby. The uncertainty would
be as great Us the inconvenience and injustice.
To be logical, it seems to us, that the plain.
tiiI must go a step farther in his contention and
allege that not only the announcement, but
his knowledge OF the announcement, is necessary
in order to bind him. Why should he be bound
by the announcement Of the nineteenth Of No.
yc,rber Of a fact which existed as OF the first
OF June, if he never saw the announcement
which is not made by law the evidence OF the
which makes such an announcement in any legal
sense official binding. II is presumably for
the information Of the public, but is not made
authoritative as n notice, so as to bind indi-
viduals, nor is IL made evidence OF anything for
any purpose. II he is bound by anything buc
the fact, his knowledge of it, and not the an
nouuccment Of. should govern. The absurtlity Of
such proposition, however, is manifest upon
its face
TAKE JUDICIAL NOTICE.
Courts take judicial notice OF the results oil a
census. See numerous authorities cited in Bon-
yier's Law Dictionary, Rawlcs Revision, under
the head ns Census OF what is judicial no
ticc to he taken? Oi the fact AS its exists
surely and not Of its announcement When did
the TACT exist? The law says June I. 1000, not
Nov 10, when the announcement was made
through the newspapers. The ahsurdity of any
other rule becomes apparent from very slight
consideration OF The consequences. Ihc hnat
official publication OF the census OF the United
States will contain the announcement OF the
population of the several counties OF this com.
monwealth. Nothing therein contained will
probably show the time at which the announce
,nent OF the asccrtainment of the population
thereof was made public. How could this court,
for example. takc judicial notice Of the fact
that the population Of Lancaster county was
announced as OF one date, OF Montgomery county
as OF another date, and Of Lackawanna county
as OF a third date: surprising. Of course, that
the announcement Of these several counties was
made at different dates, which is entirely pos
siblc.
From every consideration. ii seems to lis that
the only reliable ,alc and the only safe practice
iS to determine tn. population OF any given
county or municipality Tor any purpose which
it is necessary to determine it as OF the date
fixed by law for its determination, without ref.