What follows is an opinion from a United States Court of Appeals.
Intervenors who participated as parties at the courts of appeals should be counted as either appellants or respondents when it can be determined whose position they supported. For example, if there were two plaintiffs who lost in district court, appealed, and were joined by four intervenors who also asked the court of appeals to reverse the district court, the number of appellants should be coded as six.
In some cases there is some confusion over who should be listed as the appellant and who as the respondent. This confusion is primarily the result of the presence of multiple docket numbers consolidated into a single appeal that is disposed of by a single opinion. Most frequently, this occurs when there are cross appeals and/or when one litigant sued (or was sued by) multiple litigants that were originally filed in district court as separate actions. The coding rule followed in such cases should be to go strictly by the designation provided in the title of the case. The first person listed in the title as the appellant should be coded as the appellant even if they subsequently appeared in a second docket number as the respondent and regardless of who was characterized as the appellant in the opinion.
To clarify the coding conventions, consider the following hypothetical case in which the US Justice Department sues a labor union to strike down a racially discriminatory seniority system and the corporation (siding with the position of its union) simultaneously sues the government to get an injunction to block enforcement of the relevant civil rights law. From a district court decision that consolidated the two suits and declared the seniority system illegal but refused to impose financial penalties on the union, the corporation appeals and the government and union file cross appeals from the decision in the suit brought by the government. Assume the case was listed in the Federal Reporter as follows:
United States of America,
Plaintiff, Appellant
v
International Brotherhood of Widget Workers,AFL-CIO
Defendant, Appellee.
International Brotherhood of Widget Workers,AFL-CIO
Defendants, Cross-appellants
v
United States of America.
Widgets, Inc. & Susan Kuersten Sheehan, President & Chairman
of the Board
Plaintiff, Appellants,
v
United States of America,
Defendant, Appellee.
This case should be coded as follows:Appellant = United States, Respondents = International Brotherhood of Widget Workers Widgets, Inc., Total number of appellants = 1, Number of appellants that fall into the category "the federal government, its agencies, and officials" = 1, Total number of respondents = 3, Number of respondents that fall into the category "private business and its executives" = 2, Number of respondents that fall into the category "groups and associations" = 1.
Note that if an individual is listed by name, but their appearance in the case is as a government official, then they should be counted as a government rather than as a private person. For example, in the case "Billy Jones & Alfredo Ruiz v Joe Smith" where Smith is a state prisoner who brought a civil rights suit against two of the wardens in the prison (Jones & Ruiz), the following values should be coded: number of appellants that fall into the category "natural persons" =0 and number that fall into the category "state governments, their agencies, and officials" =2. A similar logic should be applied to businesses and associations. Officers of a company or association whose role in the case is as a representative of their company or association should be coded as being a business or association rather than as a natural person. However, employees of a business or a government who are suing their employer should be coded as natural persons. Likewise, employees who are charged with criminal conduct for action that was contrary to the company policies should be considered natural persons.
If the title of a case listed a corporation by name and then listed the names of two individuals that the opinion indicated were top officers of the same corporation as the appellants, then the number of appellants should be coded as three and all three were coded as a business (with the identical detailed code). Similar logic should be applied when government officials or officers of an association were listed by name.
Your specific task is to determine the total number of appellants in the case that fall into the category "natural persons". If the total number cannot be determined (e.g., if the appellant is listed as "Smith, et. al." and the opinion does not specify who is included in the "et.al."), then answer 99.

Opinion:
J. E. HANGER, Inc., et al. v. UNITED STATES.
No. 9306.
United States Court of Appeals District of Columbia.
Argued Nov. 25, 1946.
Decided Jan. 27, 1947.
Mr. Russell Hardy, of Washington, D. C. , with whom Mr. Joseph A. Carey, of Washington, D. C., was on the brief, for appellants.
Mr. George B. Haddock, Sp. Asst, to Atty. Gen., with whom Mr. George Wendell Berge, Asst. Atty. Gen., was on the brief, for appellee. Mr. Maurice Godin, of New York City, was allowed to appear for appellee, pro hac vice, by special leave of court. Mr. Charles S. Weston, Attorney, Department of Justice, of Washington, D. C., also entered an appearance for ap-pellee.
Before GRONER, Chief Justice, and WILBUR K. MILLER and PRETTY-MAN, Associate Justices.
WILBUR K. MILLER, Associate Justice.
On November 14, 1945, an indictment was returned in the District Court of the United States for the District of Columbia against eighty corporate and individual defendants resident in many states and in the District of Columbia. They were charged with having been engaged since 1933 in a conspiracy to fix the prices of artificial limbs in violation of §§ 1 and 3 of Title 15 U.S.C.A., Sherman Anti-Trust Act. These defendants, except for one which was a trade association composed of certain of the other defendants, were manufacturers of artificial limbs or parts therefor or suppliers to such manufacturers. The record shows that the operations of the defendants were relatively small and that in many instances the proprietors were amputees. Due to the fact that the maker of an artificial limb and the purchaser must be brought together, in order that the fit may be as nearly perfect as possible, and in order that adjustments may be made from time tó time, such businesses are necessarily somewhat local in nature and limited in possible volume of sales. Contrary to the usual order of things, the manufacturers are small' but most of the purchasers are large, in that the principal customers are the Veterans Administration, rehabilitation agencies of the several states, and railroad and insurance companies.
Sixty-three of the defendants entered pleas of nolo contendere to the count of the indictment which charged a conspiracy in restraint of trade and commerce between the states and the District of Columbia. As to nine defendants, the indictment was dismissed upon motion of the government. The remaining eight, including five corporations and three individuals, were tried to the court without a jury, and were found guilty under the second count of the indictment. They are the appellants here.
At a pre-trial conference, government counsel indicated that at least ten days would be required for the presentation of the evidence for the prosecution. When the trial came on, contrary to that prediction, the government rested after about two and one-half days of testimony. Thereupon counsel for the defendants requested that the case be recessed over Thursday and Friday, the remaining court days in the week, until the following Monday in order that he might have an opportunity to marshal his witnesses. Among them, he asserted, were many of the seventy-two defendants who had pleaded nolo contendere or had been dismissed, and had left, or had not come to, Washington.
At the pre-trial conference the trial judge had said, “If it developed during the course of the trial they had to have someone here to contradict the testimony of the witness, I certainly would not hesitate to give them an opportunity to get the witness even if it delayed the trial a week, or ten days.” In spite of this assurance the appellants’ motion for a continuance of two days was overruled. They then moved for leave to take the depositions of the witnesses and that motion also was denied. The appellants’ counsel then stated, “If Your Honor please, that renders me helpless in the defense of these defendants, and I have nothing else that it is possible for me to submit.” Immediately thereafter the court found each of the defendants guilty. Later he announced that he would be in Washington on the following Monday. The court’s refusal to grant the continuance is assigned as error.
Ordinarily to grant or refuse a continuance is within the discretion of a trial court, and that discretion will not be disturbed by an appellate court unless it has been plainly abused. In this case it seems clear that there was an abuse of discretion and that it was prejudicial error to deny the brief continuance sought when the appellants were taken by surprise at the sudden termination of the government’s evidence.
The appellants also complain that the District Court erred in depriving them of the right to cross-examine one James Edward Dellinger, an employee of one of the corporate appellants, who testified for the government. The prosecution sought to prove by him that certain government exhibits came from his employer’s files. His direct examination covers about seven pages of the typewritten transcript. Although the trial judge said to Dellinger, “Mr. Witness, you are a reluctant witness,” he later said, “I don’t think there is a bit of doubt about this being taken from the Hanger file, * * Moreover, at the conclusion of the direct examination of Dellinger, the judge stated, “Of course it is very apparent from this witness’ testimony and Mr. Feller’s testimony that they know these are instruments from that ■place and that they are reluctant witnesses to testify as to the truth about it.” So, Dellinger’s testimony was regarded by the court as tending to accomplish the purpose for which the government introduced him. But when counsel for the appellants sought to cross-examine Dellinger, he was denied the right to do it. The colloquy on the subj ect between the court and counsel is shown in the margin.
Just as in Alford v. United States, “the trial court cut off in limine all inquiry on a subject with respect to which the defendant was entitled to a reasonable cross-examination. This was an abuse of discretion and prejudicial error.”
Cross-examination is a matter of right and not a mere privilege. In Lindsey v. United States, 77 U.S.App.D.C. 1, 133 F.2d 368, 369, Mr. Justice Stephens, speaking for this court, analyzed the decisions concerning the right to cross-examine and clearly stated the rules deducible therefrom. “It is often stated,” said the court in the course of that opinion, “that the control of cross-examination is withiii the discretion of the trial judge, but it is only after a party has had an opportunity substantially to exercise the right of cross-examination that discretion becomes operative.”
Because it is our opinion that the trial judge abused his discretion and acted arbitrarily and in a manner prejudicial to the substantial rights of the appellants in refusing to grant a brief recess and in denying the right of cross-examination, we reverse the judgments without stopping to notice the several other assignments of error.
Reversed.
Guardian Assurance Co. v. Quintana, 227 U.S. 100, 33 S.Ct. 236, 57 L.Ed. 437; Bradshaw v. Scott, 7 App.D.C. 276; Harrah v. Morgenthau, 67 App.D.C. 119, 89 F.2d 863.
“The Court: You ssay 30 ahead. (Addressing government counsel.) Where is your man that got those instruments ?
“Mr. Godin: I don’t see him in court.
“The Court: Have him here. Bet’s excuse this witness (Dellinger) now. He won’t be helpful to you.
“Mr. Godin: All right. We will excuse this witness.
“Mr. Hardy (counsel for defendants): May I ask him some questions ?'
“The Court: No, sir. You may later, if you see fit.
“Mr. Hardy: I would like to cross-examine him.
“The Court: I am not going to let you do it at this time. Have your other witness here and proceed with the other witnesses. I will let you do it later.
“Mr. Hardy: May we—
“The Court: Now, Mr. Hardy, you have an objection. You won’t complain about an ample opportunity to examine as soon as we get through here, but -this man Dellinger has testified to very little on his direct. He identified three or four-added a little to the further identification — and I am not going to waste any time on cross-examination. You will have to take your exception.
“Call your next witness.
“Mr. Godin: I would like to recall Mr. Feller for just one question.
“The Court: All right.
“Mr. Hardy: If Your Honor pleases, may I make an offer for the cross-examination of this witness?
“The Court: No; when we get through, if I have overlooked giving you a fair trial, you call it to my attention. But we are not going to waste any time. That man didn’t help the case a bit. If you want to put him on as your witness, you can put him on at any time.
“Mr. Hardy: If Your Honor pleases, I think he could help all right. I think he could help my case.
“The Court: Put him on then, at the proper time.
“Mr. Hardy: I have the right to cross examine, do I not?
“The Court: You do not now, and it is your exception.
“Mr. Hardy: All right.
“The Court: That is the way we are going to try the case.”
282 U.S. 687, 51 S.Ct. 218, 220, 175 L.Ed. 621.
Alford v. United States, 282 U.S. 687, 51 S.Ct. 218, 75 L.Ed. 624; The Ottawa, 3 Wall. 268, 271, 18 L.Ed. 165; Lindsey v. United States, 77 U.S.App.D.C. 1, 133 F.2d 368; Heard v. United States, 8 Cir., 255 F. 829.

Question: What is the total number of appellants in the case that fall into the category "natural persons"? Answer with a number.

Choices:

Answer: 0