, 1869-11-20

AMEhlCAH 4huuHIh1 Aa AdE VENau6s
Tho numerical ponderosity Of ths United
Sntes ct1sns invests that authority with
REGULAR cLu1m fur the seIni.statistic1l
gtuinsea aho foutlly ]il:g to their Losoms
the tlelnsion- That " Figures cannot lie."
Economists of eli sorta, writing AMI speak
ing on every side Of every question, and
Csngr. sAuen who VETO not economists, |
have deemed an arguncnt as cffectually !
cliucLcd by q reference to tho "ceusus Of !
1~'"." as p]cany inspiratioaist would
ly a text from Paul to Timothy. We con-
ftss that ve baye ourselves occasionally np-
preached near enough to this i1nmoaHurahle
cctan of figures to feel impressed by sense
II its iu,,nensity, but not until now were
NE fully apprised Of its trcacherous uncef-
tainties, It's shoals and breakers, and the
Danger incurred by hose who put their
trust in il.
Mr.. F. 4 Walker, nov, we believe, the
Presiding siatisticiaa Of the Treasury De-
pa.t1neut, publishes in the last -1iltntic
-Nunthiy IN exposure OF the errors
and failures Of this last census,
especially in lis pretended enumeration Of
the "a Products Of Industry which goes to
prove thai one must know all that is in tho
census, and much that is not, before he can
venture to rely upon its statements for any
tLirg. 3Ir- Walker asserts TINT while in
the volume On - Population, under the head
Of - Occupations Of the People, there up
rear to he 450,GJ4 artisans in the four
t:1u'es # coepering, blaeksmithiug, carpcu-
tcrirg, md painting. yet in the Volume On
Manufacturers ~be1e it is proposed to
give tsc total psodnct of these four
lrMcacs Of industry, tho product Of only
::a,::;;>, nrtistns in all il accounted for, or
less than . Fer cent Of the whole II the
excluded Ill, ,1sJ artisans had produced ns
u.,:ch, man for nun, rs those whose pro-
.lrcts were admitted to the census tables,
.iarxruduct uf manufacturing industry would
have ls+cu Increased by Sis:, 75,, ,95l, OF
,la,<f,,G1,l of the amount actually reported.
al.lr the net product would have
been increased by about oae-third.
f,1c tf The reasons Of this discrepancy Is
that tEr censns-takers were allowed to
fu!, r. III returus Of artisans whose annual
1,.o1ue. was less thaa $500, and nnothe,
WIS, tlst they procured returns only from
these uhr.e industry rcsul.e1 in am@rehant
allt r,t1ucs. wholly overlooliag the mncl
larger class whose industry was rendered il
tho form. Of services for employers. Thus, i
! blacksmith or cooper kept 4 shop of LII
o1n, ard sud his product, and If hs chos
u return it US more than S:stn o yeuz,
figured III the ccnsrs; hut il both artisan
worked IN the employment Of manutat
turcr, though their "services" might l
wo.tA several thousand dnllrrs e yss1, ths
ase no. 7etu.red under The head Of produc
of Ll:.eksra,thing and cooperage- N
Walkers criticiem would have been mo
e!.ar 10 this respect II lie had shown II
the pre.auct Of their "ser.icesT y
not returned IL tho product
the manufacturer by whom th
were employed Certni11y tho value
..sr1,iets" il Ill occupations should he
turned IN a,',ue fos1,a but it would Tequl
care in such Case to avoid counting the p
,lnct If such services twice. II, for
stance, newspaper establishment retu1
!; ;,s annun1 product, md each editor a
nrin,er employed upon it returns also
s.rx;ccs which result in that product,
latter vonld need 10 be expunged from
.sh,pa,e Of the total, or the product oi
establishment wonld DO counted tElee.
It urged that MI mechanical and ma
f,c,uripc industry should be ennn en-
pitbout regard 10 any limit of predae.''
- ,hst the value Of services, as well as o1
croducts in which they result, shoald
rsn and that IN equally careful Gel
Il.