Executive Order 1463

by President of the United States

By authority vested in me by law, I establish the following order for the Canal Zone:

Section 1. A census of the Canal Zone, Isthmus of Panama, shall be taken by the Department of Civil Administration of the Isthmian Canal Commission not later than April 30, 1912, under such rules and regulations in conformity with this order as may be prescribed by the Head of Department of Civil Administration with the approval of the Chairman of the Isthmian Canal Commission.

Sec. 2. The census shall embrace inquiries relating to population, and shall include for each inhabitant the name, location, sex, color, age, conjugal condition, place of birth, citizenship, length of residence in Canal Zone, occupation, whether or not an employe, and if an employe of the Isthmian Canal Commission, the Panama Railroad Company, the United States Government, or of any arm or branch thereof, this fact to be shown, together with metal check number if an employe of the Isthmian Canal Commission or the Panama Railroad Company, school attendance, literacy, the language spoken, whether blind, deaf and dumb, insane, or imbecile, and any other information which, under the rules and regulations referred to in Section 1, may be required.

Sec. 3. It shall be the duty of each enumerator to visit personally each dwelling house in his subdivision, and each family therein, and each individual living out of a family in any place of abode, and by inquiry made of the head of each family, or of the member thereof deemed most competent and trustworthy, or of such individual living out of a family, to obtain each and every item of information and all particulars required by this Order; and in case no person shall be found at the usual place of abode of such family, or individual, living out of a family, competent to answer the inquiries made in compliance with the requirements of this Order, then it shall be lawful for the enumerator to obtain the required information as nearly as may be practicable from families or persons living in the neighborhood of such place of abode. It shall be the duty also of each enumerator to forward the original schedules, properly filled out and duly certified, to the supervisor or other chief census officer of his district as his returns under the provisions of this Order; and in the event of discrepancies or deficiencies being discovered in these schedules he shall use all diligence in correcting or supplying the same.

Sec. 4. The compensation of enumerators and other persons engaged in taking the census shall be fixt by the Head of Department of Civil Administration, subject to the approval of the Chairman of the Isthmian Canal Commission.

Sec. 5. Every supervisor, supervisor's clerk, enumerator, interpreter, special agent, or other employe shall take and subscribe to an oath or affirmation to faithfully execute the duties imposed by his employment.

Sec. 6. Any supervisor, supervisor's clerk, enumerator, interpreter, special agent, or other employe, who, having taken and subscribed to the oath of office required by this Order, shall, without justifiable cause, neglect or refuse to perform the duties enjoined on him by this Order, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not exceeding five hundred dollars; or if he shall, without the authority of the officer in charge of the census, publish or communicate any information coming into his possession by reason of his employment under the provisions of this Order, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall upon conviction thereof be fined not to exceed one thousand dollars, or be imprisoned not to exceed two years, or both so fined and imprisoned, in the discretion of the court; or if he shall wilfully and knowingly swear to or affirm falsely, he shall be deemed guilty of perjury, and upon conviction thereof shall be imprisoned not exceeding five years and be fined not exceeding two thousand dollars; or if he shall wilfully and knowingly make a false certificate or a fictitious return, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction of either of the last named offenses he shall be fined not exceeding two thousand dollars and be imprisoned not exceeding five years; or if any person who is or has been an enumerator shall knowingly or wilfully furnish, or cause to be furnished, directly or indirectly, to the officer in charge of the census, or to any supervisor of the census, any false statement or false information with reference to any inquiry for which he was authorized and required to collect information, he shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not exceeding two thousand dollars and be imprisoned not exceeding five years.

Sec. 7. It shall be the duty of all persons over twenty-one years of age when requested by the officer in charge of the census, or by any supervisor, or enumerator acting under the instructions of the said officer in charge of the census, to answer correctly, to the best of their knowledge, all questions on the census schedules applying to themselves and to the family to which they belong or are related, and any person over twenty-one years of age who, under the conditions hereinbefore stated, shall refuse or wilfully neglect to answer any of these questions, or shall wilfully give answers that are false, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not exceeding one hundred dollars.

And it shall be the duty of every owner, proprietor, manager, superintendent, or agent of a hotel, apartment house, boarding or lodging house, tenement, or other building, when requested by the officer in charge of the census, or by any supervisor, or enumerator, acting under the instructions of the said officer in charge of the census, to furnish the names of the occupants of said hotel, apartment house, boarding or lodging house, tenement, or other building, and to give thereto free ingress and egress to any duly accredited supervisor or enumerator, so as to permit of the collection of statistics for census purposes including the proper and correct enumeration of all persons having their usual place of abode in said hotel, apartment house, boarding or lodging house, tenement, or other building; and any owner, proprietor, manager, superintendent, or agent of a hotel, apartment house, boarding or lodging house, tenement, or other building who shall refuse or wilfully neglect to give such information or assistance under the conditions hereinbefore stated shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not exceeding five hundred dollars.

Sec. 8. The circuit courts of the respective circuits shall have jurisdiction of the offenses herein enumerated.

Sec. 9. This Order shall take effect on this date.

Wm. H. Taft.

The White House,

January 12, 1912.