The southern press. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1851-12-11


have been engaged As marshals, and 1921 as
sstants-to each of whom, in addition to tn
schedules, were sent pamphlets of pr nted in
.tructions, together with form" schedules read
filled up for their guidance.
Payment has been made TO these officers i
two portions--the first, on the receipt of III
marshal's certificate that the assistant had mad
proper returns to this office; and, the second
after an examination of every item of tire wor
in detail by this office, and adding to or abatin.
the amount certified to be his due, as the result
justified The entire number of payments mad
to marshal and assistants, has been So $50. Ii
some cases the assistant has preferred to re
ceive payment at one time, after the examination
OF his returns.
In the compilation of the seventh census, it
has not been deemed necessary to divide tht
population Gas has been done heretofore) into
divisions, other than by counties, cities, wards
or boroughs. Each county in the United States
possesses copy of its own returns, and for its
own purposes it enjoys facilities of arriving al
the interests Of the separate towns or town
ships-divisions, embarrassing to the commu
nifty at large. Each separate State possesses
also copy Of the complete returns of the
whole State, and from these may be able easily
to ubdivide, for State purposes as infinitely as
desirable. To include all the sub. divisions OF
each State would make the work, if not. now
very soon, entirely too unwieldy. The sub
divisions are, however, laid down in the orr.
ginal returns, ard if it should be deemed desra.
BILE, may easily be designated in the general
work
The original returns should be" carefully pre-.
served hereafter, and should, as heretofore, be
bound for their better preservation. 1t seemed
IL Al.
authority to expend more in the preservation of
these valuable records, than would secure them
from injury, while in actual use for pre- pairing
the census. The only expense incurred for this
purl ose, has been for book boards, which can be
used for binding them.
Duty to coming generations, requires that
documents containing so many proofs relating
to the history of the present, should be carefully
guarded from injury or harm. While they con-
tain the last record Of the dead for one year,
they comprise no Insignificant portion of the
history OF every man, woman, and child living
and long after all those whose names they con
tain, will have passed from earth, will they be
appealed to in proof Of our once having lived,
for our place of residence, our children, an /
our property. Those now living use them to
learn whether friends or relatives long unheaTd
of, may not be found, and the search is not al
ways made in vain; they have led to the dis.
covery OF lost relations, and their Developments
have brought happiness to many families.
1t would be well worth the expense TO have
recorded in volumes, alphabetically arranged, the
names of every adult citizen or he ad of
family, as it appears in the return, with his oc
cupation, and with n reference to the schedule
upon which it may be found. This would furn
ish facilities of search hereafter; and save un..
necessary handling of the papers The advan.
tages of such plan would be somewhat analo
gous to that in practical operation in England,
with respect TO the registration of their deaths,
births. and marriages. Names to the number
of 100000 have there been registered during
the past twelve wears, in the ordinary course of
events, in one office alone. The returns are rem.
dered the more valuable for future reference, by
the incessant vigilance exercised tothe detection
of errors. .
The utmost c,re has been exercised to ensure
correct returns, and the manner Of taking our
cen US has been calculated to effect such re.
suit. In connection with every variety of Stats
lies given the name of each person to whom
every entry on the tables applies, has been furn-
iShed. In all cases where error or inconsistent
cv could be detected. real or i'm ,gnary, the in.
dividua has been written TO, in order that the
UlHNl be CpTTttlcu. lie TPpHes
have been, for the most part, prompt and salts.
factory. il has been necessary, in only three
cases, to call the attention Of an United States
district attorney to rpquir enforcement the act
Of Congress for refusal to reply to the interro
cations of the assistants. In all but one of
,hess cases, return has been eventually made,
without the necessity Of making costs 10 the
pIrtieS-in that excepted, the individual paid
costs before appearance. and made satisfactory
return TO the office. These facts speak loudly
in favor of the general intelligence of our PEG.
pie, and their Difference 10 the laws, and prove
that as liberty and intelligence are diil'used,
these Investigations, made for the benefit Of the
people, cease TO be deemed inquisitorial. Here
no fears of an excise duty or tax deters individ-
uals from contributing 10 q stock Of knowledge,
the dissemination of which must lead TO the ben.
eft ofall
The seventh enumeration Of the inhabitants of
the United States exhibits results which every
citizen Of the CT untry may contemplate with
qualification and pride. Since the census Of
1870, there have been added TO the territory Of
the republic, by annexation, conquest and pur.
chase, S2I.969 square miles: and our title 10
region covering 81 1853 square miles, which,
before, properly belonged 10 US, but was claimed
and partially occupied by foreign power, has
been cs 'ablished by negotiation, and il has been
brought within our Acknowledged bouudaries.
BY such means the area Of the United States
has been extended, during the past ten years
from 2,055.l63 TO 1921 ,595 square miles, with.
out Including the great lakes which lie upon our
northern border, or the bays which indent our
Atlantic and Pacific shores all which has come
within the scope Of the seventh census.
In the endeavor TO ascertain the progress Of
our population since 1870, II will be proper TO
deduct from the aggregate number Of inhabi.
ian,s shown by the present census, the popula-
lion Of Texas in 1870, and the number en-
braced within the limits Of California, and the
new territories at the time Of their acquisition
From the best information which has come 90
hand, it is believed that Texas confined. in |
1910, $4,000 Inhabitants: and that when CALI |
Fornia, New Mexico. and Oregon, came Into our
possession, In 1876 they had a population of