The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1872-01-23
IIIiteracy in the United States.
The Great Unlettered...What
the last Census Shows.
Five Millions aud Half who Can
not Write.

Correspondence Of the New York Post.
WARRINGTON, january IS, 1872.-The
annual report OF the Commissioner of
Education will soon be in the hands Of
Congress. It's publication has been some.
what delayed in order that the results Of
the census in regard to "Illiteracyp might
be embodied in the report Through the
courtesy Of General Walker, Superin.
tendent of the Census, the Commissioner
Is thus enabled to anticipate the publica
tion of the census tables, and to give the
statistics from the ninth census bearing
upon topics OF interests to all educators,
and which furnish food for serious thought
to all citizens.
THE "LLITERATEs" NATIVITY.
These tables are not w complete MS
they WILDE when the census is published;
but they furnish many data Of impor-
lance, and have been made use Of by the
Bureau In tables prepared for the report
by DR.. Charles Warren, showing many
highly interesting lacts about tho number,
race, sex and geographical distribution Of
the "illiIerates" In this enumeration Of
the illiteratc population Of tho country
the marked superiority of the present
over any former census will he readily
seen The census of 1910 gave simply
the total number of illiterate persons over
twenty years OF age, with no attempt at
further classification. The census Of
1850 and 1860 gave the nativity, race and
sex OF this class Of persons over twenty
years OF age. The census OF 1870 makes
II record OF "illlterates' from the ages Of
ten years, and divides them into two
C2sses-lhOse who cannot read and those
who cannot write; the last being thought
pretty lair test rs to their making any
practical use Of their knowledge Of read
ing. The adult and minor "illiierates"
are given separately, and they are still
further subdivided into native and for
eign, rs well rs into race and sex
For convenience the States have been
grouped, in making these tables from the
census, in three divisions The Northern,
which comprises all the present States in
which slavery did not exist in 1850, TX.
Ccpt the three Pacific States tho Pacific,
which consists Of the three Pacific States
and all the Western Territories; the
Southern, which includes the remaining
States and the District OF Columbia. The
total number of "illterates' is shown in
the following table, III which, also. the
native and foreign are classified:
NUNBER 10 rEARB OLD AND OVER UNABLE TO
.. WRITE
DtyIsOns. Native. Foreign, Total.
Northern ...... 6g0,ll1 Bj5,gSh l,35G, l0a
PSs;ES MsS1 aSS2s II II S S9l
United statss.. .4,Ssa,9lO 1854 5.GGO,OTi
This is an appalling record, when we
rGCollect that the total population OF the
United States is but 80, 1888.
In tracing these statistics by States we
find that New York has total Of Hitter
ate population numbering 241, 16e, OF
which number 7e,6S3 are native and
$4,000 are foreign; while in Texas, which
has a total of 29i ,703 "illiter0tes," there
are 203 1884 native and only Is, 800 foreign
Missouri, which has 292,411 "illiteratcs, -
has 20G, S27 native, and only 1854 foreign
Notwithstanding its large foreign immi.
grafton; while Massachusetts,, which las
an illiterate population OF 07,749, has
$3.50 foreign, and only 7,9l2 native,
WHITES, NEukOES AND CiLNESE.
From table l., on page 81 of tue APP.
pendix to the Commissioners report, the
following summary, showing the relative
proportion OF the different races In oul
population Is derived. It may afford some
consolation to those timid people who
have been troubled lest tho whites should
be completely overrun by negroes or thu
"heathen Chinee," The table below
gives the number of each race in every
10000 of the population
White. Colored Chinese. Indian
States. ....,,S1ll 1862 10
W vsbot IISiCns7iI MIN !Gs la ID q;
From the same table the relative pro
portion OF tho races in each OF the south
crn States ia shown. Inonly three States
Louisiana, Mississippi and South. Carolina
are the blacks In the majority, while II
the whole sixteen States the whites have
amaiority of four million eight hundred
and eighty.two thousand live hundred
and thirty.nine over the blacks, n major
ity Communicating by little tho tota
number OF the blacks With this fact II
mind, let us look at the following table
which shows the races of the "illiicratea
and where they are to be found:
NuuBER 10 YEARS OLD AMI own r,H,r,r p
WRITE -
Divisions. White Other Races. Total
Northern. l,962,ll3 g3,sS9 sS Ia
Pacific. ..,...... i0l,09i 1900 ni'oO
sOuthern" lSlSfs9 ",G1a,Gal I,isS,T
United states. .s,sTo,5Is 2,7SO,Gll $500;
It is only, the cOlored children Of Al,
c....,n. ,InH,oo u,hOsn nIlurnttn,, :, . !