644. [Sec. 2.] All declarations now required by law for registering births, deaths and licenses to marry shall be made under oath.

Who Shall Report Birth.

645. [Sec. 9, Act 80, 1877, E. S., p. 119.] It shall be the duty of the attending physician or midwife, at the birth of any child in the parish of Orleans, to report the same to the office of the Board of Health within twenty-four hours of the same; and it shall be the duty of the father, or in his default, of any person present at the birth of any child, to report within twenty-four hours from the date of said birth at the office of the Board of Health such birth, which report shall be recorded in presence of two witnesses, and shall as nearly as possible show the date, hour, street and number thereof, of such birth, the sex of the child and its name, the names of the father and mother, their nationality, age, occupation, and residence, and the name of said witness.

Who Shall Report Death.

646. [Sec. 10.] Every death in the parish of Orleans shall be reported at the said office within twenty-four hours after it has occurred; such report shall be made by the nearest relative, or the husband or wife of the deceased, if present in the parish; otherwise by the executor, if designated, or landlord of the deceased, or the officiating undertaker. It shall be the duty of coroners to report all deaths coming to their official notice; and of the president, manager, or superintendent of any State, parish, municipal, charitable, or benevolent institutions; said report shall contain, as far as possible, the full name, sex, age, occupation, residence, color, or race and nativity of the deceased, the cause of the death, the street and number where it occurred; shall show whether the deceased was married or unmarried, the name of surviving spouse, if any, and where residing; also the name, age, and residence of the declarant and his relationship, if any, to the deceased, and such other particulars as may be required by said board. No body shall be removed from said parish until a permit shall have been obtained from the president of said board, under his official seal, showing that the requirements of this section have been complied with.

What Death Record Shall Recite.

647. [R. S. 343.] The record of deaths shall contain the name in full, age, trade and residence of the deceased, the name

in full of the surviving consort, if the person deceased was married, or a widower, or a widow, the name, age, profession and residence of the declarants, and if they be relatives, their degree of relationship. The same record shall contain, as far as the same may be ascertained, the Christian names, profession and residence of the father and mother of the deceased, and the place of his or her birth.

What Marriage Record Shall Recite.

Every mar

648. [Sec. 11, Act 80, 1877, E. S., p. 120.] riage celebrated in the parish of Orleans shall be recorded in said office; such record shall show the full name of the contracting parties, their age, nativity, date of license of marriage, and by whom issued, the names of the parents or tutors of the contracting parties, the name of the officer, priest, or ecclesiastic celebrating the marriage, with the date of its celebration and the names of the witnesses thereto, and any such facts as the board may judge necessary for vital statistics. It shall be the duty of the officer, priest, or ecclesiastic celebrating any marriage to return the license authorizing marriage to said office after having endorsed on such license the date of such celebration; these licenses so returned shall be preserved among the papers of said board.

Recording Marriages Celebrated Prior to Passage of Act.

649. [Sec. 12.] It shall be the duty of the president of said board to cause the registry of any marriage celebrated prior to the passage of this act on production of a certificate duly attested of the celebration of such marriage, and in case of the loss of such original certificate such registry shall be made on the production of the affidavits of the contracting parties, and at least one of the witnesses present, or of the officer, priest, or ecclesiastic celebrating such marriage, and a certified copy of such registry shall be prima facie evidence of such marriage.

Fees for Recording and for Certificate.

650. [Sec. 13.] There shall be collected for recording under this act of any birth or death the sum of fifty cents, and like fee for any certificate of such record, and for recording any marriage the sum of one dollar, and like fee for certificate of the recording of the same.

ORLEANS EXCEPTED.

Doctors and Midwives to Report Births and Deaths.

651. [Sec. 1, Act 162, 1900, p. 245.] It shall be the duty of all physicians and midwives throughout the State of Louisiana, the parish of Orleans excepted, to file with the health officer of every parish a quarterly record of the births and deaths which may have occurred in their practice and in the event of death, setting forth the cause therefor, and in the event of there being no health officer the record shall be filed with the coroner of the parish wherein the births or deaths occur.

Return by Health Officer.

652. [Sec. 2.] It shall be the duty of said health officer, or of the coroner if there shall be no health officer, to make a quarterly return of said vital statistics, to the secretary of the State Board of Health on blanks to be furnished by the said secretary and a record thereof shall be kept in the State Board of Health office in a separate record book, marked: "Vital Statistics for the Parishes of Louisiana," and compiled at the end of every year and included in the biennial report of the president of the State Board of Health.

Penalty for Failing to Report.

653. [Sec. 3.] Any violation of the provisions of this Act by any physician, midwife health officer, coroner, or any other person or persons charged with its execution shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall on conviction, pay a fine not to exceed Fifty Dollars ($50.00) or imprisonment in the parish jail for not more than sixty (60) days, or both, at the discretion of the court, for each and every offense, and prosecution under this Act shall be in the name of the State of Louisiana, but the Louisiana State Board of Health shall have power and authority to institute and prosecute such prosecutions. (Amd. Act 166, 1910, p. 250.)

Fees for Reporting Births and Deaths.

654. [Sec. 1, Act 60, 1914, p. 151.] The registrars or health officers or others charged by existing law with the collecting or reporting of vital statistics shall be entitled to have and to receive, in the manner hereinafter provided, the following fees: For each birth reported to the Louisiana State Board of Health, twenty-five cents;

For each death reported to the Louisiana State Board of Health, twenty-five cents;

For each monthly report to the Louisiana State Board of Health showing no births and no deaths, twenty-five cents;

Provided that the provisions of this Act shall not apply to, or be operative in, the Parish of Orleans, in which the fees for recordation of vital statistics are otherwise fixed by law; and Provided further, that the Parish of Orleans and the City of New Orleans shall continue to fully report vital statistics to the State Board of Health.

Fees, by Whom Payable.

655. [Sec. 2.] The fees hereinabove specified shall be paid by the parish, police jury or local municipal treasurer upon the warrant drawn by the President and Secretary of the Louisiana State Board of Health in favor of such registrar or health officer or other person charged by law with reporting vital statistics.

Enforcing Payment of Fees.

656. [Sec. 3.] In the event of the failure or refusal of the parish, police jury or local municipal treasurer, to pay such warrant the Louisiana State Board of Health shall have the right to compel such payment forthwith by mandamus, or other summary process, in any city, justice of the peace, or district court; provided, however, that there shall always be affixed to any warrant drawn under the authority of this Act an itemized, detailed statement of the deaths and births reported by the person in whose favor the warrant is drawn, which statement shall show the name, residence, age, color and date of death of each person whose death is reported, and the name, residence and color of the parents and date of birth of each child whose birth is reported.

Fees for Copies. 657.

[Sec. 4.] It shall be the duty of any registrar, or other person in charge of vital statistic records, to furnish any applicant a certified copy of the record of any birth or death registered in the records under his charge or control unde the provisions of the Sanitary Code and of this Act, for which he shall be entitled to a fee of not more than fifty cents, to be paid by the applicant. Any such copy of the record of a birth or death, when properly certified by the State or local registrar to be a true copy,

shall be prima facie evidence of the facts therein recited. For any search of the files and records, when no certified copy is made, the State or local registrar shall be entitled to a fee of fifty cents for each hour or fractional hour of time of search, to be paid by the applicant. The local registrar shall furnish the State Board of Health with duplicate copies of all certificates issued.

Board of Health May Enforce Compliance.

658. [Sec. 5.] The State Board of Health shall have the power, right and authority to force the compliance with this act upon the part of those charged with duties hereinunder, by writ of mandamus, or other appropriate summary proceedings and in any court of competent jurisdiction and any failure to comply with the terms of a judgment or order, in favor of said State Board of Health issued by a court of competent jurisdiction shall be punished as contempt of court.

BLIND INSTITUTION.

Louisiana State School for the Blind Established.

659.

[Sec. 1, Act 145, 1898, p. 257.] There shall be established and maintained, in the town of Baton Rouge an institution for the education of the blind, to be known as the "Louisiana State School for the Blind." (Amd. Act 238, 1908, p. 356.)

Membership of Board.

660. [Sec. 2.] The Governor shall appoint, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, seven resident citizens of the State, who together with the Governor, (who shall be exofficio President of the Board) shall constitute and be known as the Board of Trustees of the Louisiana State School for the Blind. At the first appointment of the Board under this act two of the members shall be appointed for two years, two for three years and three for four years, and thereafter appointments shall be made for the terms of four years. (Amd. Act 238, 1908, p. 356.)

Board Incorporated.

[Sec. 3.]

661. [Sec. 3.] The Board of Trustees is hereby declared and constituted a body politic corporate, and shall have full power to sue and be sued, to make contracts, and acquire and hold, by purchase or donation any real or personal property necessary for the use or for the benefit of said institution.