Several countries in Europe have some such complete and constantly corrected registration of the whole population. It has shown its utility in war; and, what is more to the point, it has con tinuously shown its value for more than a genera tion in peace. Beginning with any federal census year, when the whereabouts and the social status of the whole population are known, it would only be necessary to distribute the original enumerators' schedules to some local census authority, probably the health department, and for the latter (after transferring the information presumably to 5 x 8 cards) to provide for keeping up the record by in corporating the reports of births and deaths, al ready required, and securing reports of removals as they occur. If a finger-print accompanied every registration, and each person were supplied with an identification card containing his name, date of birth, and finger-print, the system would be complete.
The operation of election laws would be simpli fied by a complete, constantly corrected, regis tration; thousands of persons arrested for petty offenses, now thrown into jail, could be allowed to go until the time set for the hearing, for they could always be found when wanted if they failed to appear. School attendance, school planning, the
enforcement of child-labor laws, would all be simpli fied. No honest man would have anything to lose by such a registration. Homeless, irresponsible people might not get the full benefit of it, but all would reap advantages innumerable from the wiser 9 plans which could be based upon it. If those who do not at first like the idea will let it sink in, digest it by thinking about it in relation to social prob lems, they may come to realize how harmless it is, how fair it is, how democratic it is, how much less expensive than it seems at first sight because of the other registrations it would save or simplify, how much it would contribute to a policy of social con struction. It is a problem of maturity in the sense that heads of families would be responsible for the registration, voters would have to authorize it, able administrators would have to work out the details of it, and it takes a somewhat maturely social-minded citizen to consent to it.