The Sentinel=record., 1912-09-27
WILL BE STRICTLY ENFORCED BY POSTMASTER GENERAL,
 ITS ANNOUNCED.
WICkERsHAM GIVES OPINION
FIn5t Reports Will Be Called for on October 1---Includes the Names of
 Owners and Managers and
 Sworn Circulation Report.

Washington, Sept. 26. -- Attorney General Wickersham today sent to Postmaster General Hitchcock wrss- ten opinion on certain ..hases os the new federal law reqdi ng daily spd weekly newspapers and some other publications to present :c the postmas- ter semi-annual sworn statements of circulation, ownership # their stocks and bonds and other inforina- ion un- der penalty of denia. of the use of the mails.
 The attorney gene ral holds with the r)srmaster generate consss sae.ion that t Is immaterial whe.atc subscriptions a~e individual or n tu's. aud tha. the provision of the law covers the nnm- be- of copies of publication djstri- buted to certain paid subscribers hy any means. Mir. WicxergEam does not touch upon the conssi.uticnality of tho law, which is part of the postoficc appropriation bill enacted at the last session of congress.
 MT. Hitchcock inquired whether the law shall be limited to pail iniivii- uaI subscriptions or aha'l include pur- cnases in bulk oy news agents or cshers for re-distribu-.nE also wLe;h- er.jn your opinion. the provision GOV CTS paid circulation Of daily newspa- pers not distributed through the iaoIIs"
 Attorney General Wickc+sham re- D, ed categorically and definitely to these inquiries. holding that:
 q. It Is immaterial whether or not the subscriptions are individual or in bulk. The statement should include the average of the number of copies of each issue of such publications sold or distributed co all persons who have subscribed; that is. have agreed to take and pay for one or more copies Of the publication for definite period of time and have paid for such sub otltPttohcf dhht
 "2 In my opinion, tho provision covers the number of copies of such publication distributed to such paid subscribers by any means, whether by the mails or otherwise"
 We shall administer the law justly and impartially as we find it. said Mir. Hitchcock today. The opinion by the attorney general apholis the construction placed upon the law by officers of the postoffice department. We have no alternative we mvst tn- force 1t.
 To-day we are beginning to mai. to 120000 editors, publishers and others interested, forms to be flled out in compliance with the law. These vii reach their destinations by Oct. l, when the law becomes effective. Un- der the act they must be filled out and returned as soon as practicable. In the event of failure to comply with the provisions of the law, publishers may be liable to the penalty provided by congress"
 Attorney General Wickersham S opinion begins with review of the law itself and the questions raised by the postmaster general. He refers first to the provisions requiring sworn statement of subscription, and writes as follows:
 "The provision is highly penal in its nature, as a consequence of failure to comply with It is punished by denying i to the publication the privilege of the mails; not merely the privilege of be- ing carried in the mails as second class E mail matter, but the privilege of be. ing carried in the mails at all Being, therefore. in derogation of common right. the provision should not be zconstrued to embrace anything more fhan falls clearly within it's terms and z5sbv those terms the requirements of the statement are limited to the av- erage of the number of copies Of each Issue of such publication sold or dis Iributed to paid subscribers during the Preceding six months.
 Then MT. Wickersham goes on to sn extended discussion of the defini.
 lon of the verb ito subscribe" and