The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1872-02-02

lit would be impossible" says the
report, "to find language too strong
for the embarrassment which the ser
vice has suffered from this inadequacy
of the provisions of law in respect tc
mpensatiCn. Probably not less
than 1000 assistant marshals have
been kept from throwing up their DO
sitions solely for the fear of iucurring
the penalty fixed by the fourteenth
section Of the act of 1850 Before the
enumeration had well begun, it be-
came necessary to refuse to accept
designations upon any whatever,
except of protracted sickness. In
some districts a perfect panic arose
when the difficulties of the work and
the meaGerness of the pay became
known, and but for q rigid refusal to
accept designations, q general stam-
pede would have occurred, which
would have made it simply impossible
to carry forward the work. In cases
where death or the protracted sickness
of an assistant made it absolutely nee
essary to fill vacancy, the difficulty
providing for the continuance of the
work has been extreme. Some dis
tricts have remained for weeks, and
even for months, without q person be-
ing found Of any condition or cbarac-
ter Who would undertake the duty.
In single Instances marshals have
been obliged to compensate assistants
out Of their own insufficient fees. In
one instance, even, it has come to the
knowledge OF this office that the mar
shaIofa Southern State, after trying
in vain by correspondence to find a
single person, black or white, who
would accept the office, has Oeen driV-
en- to advertire for an assistant in the
public prints. 1t is not at all imprOb-
able that this disgraceful incident may
have been repeated in other districts.
The extension OF the iiliteracy
schedule to ascertain the number over
ten that can not read and write. In
stead of over twenty, affords the ma
terial for table which will show the
number of those from ten to twenty
who may yet be benefited by legisla-
ton directed TO their education. The
total value Of farm productions is Sc
cured by another important change.
a division of inquiries in the manu-
featuring schedules has resulted in the
collection, for the first time, of mate
rialS for 2 report of the steam and
water power employed in manufac-
turing Ofthe whole country. In the
schedule for social statistics the col
uma for seasCDs and crops was replace
ed by one for "pubiic debt" OF towns,
cities, counties and States, as being of
great npOrtance at the present time
CT the public credit.
Some of the defects Of the law can
not be c0unteTacted by any efforts Of
administration. With some of these
defects, however, there has been
hsFd struggle, resulting in some evil
dent improvements. In the returns
of occupations this has been especially
marked.
Similar efforts, with like good re-
suits, have been made TO improve the
statistics of mortality. 1.-THE unknown
causes of death returned at the pres
eDt census aggregate but II ,l68, being
:. 81 per cent, OF the total deaths, not
violent, reported. The unknown
causes OF death reported in 1860 were
80, ,707, being 9. 81 per cent of the total
deaths, not violent.
The manufacturing statistics have
been corresp0ndingIy improved by the
Instruction to enum orators. In 1850
only about 5 per cent. of the returns
Of ''kiuds aud quantities" could be tab
ulated. The result of administrative
efforts has been to secure so much i'm
provement in this particulaC as to in
sure that from $4,000 to 100,0 coo manu-
featuring establishments will be tabu-
lated, with all the fuilness of inforEna-
ton, in respect to materials, mRChin-
cry and production, which could be
desired. The Information thus obtain
ed is not only important in itself, but
is st the present time exceptionally
desirable on accoUBt of the distur rbaAce
of value aud exaggeTatiOn of prices.
The results of the ninth census will
under authority of the joint Tesolu
ton Of April 13, 1871, be published in
three quartO volumes. The number
of volumes thus authorized CORES
ponds to toe most obvious division
of the statistics of the census, viz: l,
Population; II, IndustTyj III, Vital
Statistics. In the publication great
3eal OF space has been saved by print
ing in double or treble measure tables
Which before have occupied whole
pages. So that, while the tabulation
of resul IS is greatly in excess of any
census before, the bulk Of the volumes
willnot be more than two-thirds Of that
Of the four volumes Of 1850. 4 re-
publication Of the results of prior cen
sUses in table I and II was found to be
desirable, and the totals have been
compared with and corrected by the
manuscript returns deposited ia the
census office. a curious result OF this
examination is referred to in the re-
port, as follows:
"a single result Of these examina-
tions into the earlier csHsuses has
enough OF curious and perhaps of sub
stautiai interest to be noted here. The
State of Vermont was, IN the publica-
ton of the first census, that of 1870,
put down as numbering among its
inhabitants sixteen slaves. In subse
quent publications this number was,
by a clerical or typographical error,
changed to seventeen; but with this
accidental variation, the statement Of
the first census has passed unchanged,
aud antiquaTisns have even taken
pains to explain in what manner it
was that this small numeer of slaves
should have been found in a State 9TH
eFwise through all its history a free
State. The re-examination of the
original census roll Of Vermont at the
census Of 1880, for the purposes of this
republication, brought to light what
had never before been suspected-thaE
these sixteen persons appeared upon
the return Of the assistant marshal as
free eolOred.' By 2 simple error Of
compilation. they were introduced into
the column for slaves; and this error
has been peTpetuated through nearly
the whole history of tne Government
until corrected ia the accompanying
tabies.'' ~
The report gives a history Of the or
ganizatiOn of the census Office, which
was also embodied in the report Of ex-
Secretary Cox q year ago. As evi-
deDce OF the value of appointments to
~ ,.fv
mentioned as an additional cOnfiFn5a-
ton, ia q high degree, Of the aeoura-
cy OF the test above detailed, that Of
the sixteen applicants who passed
upon examination above 700 that Is.
the seventeen higbestl, and were ap-
pointed to first class cleTksbiBs, thiF-
feall. have sirica han nrnnanfad %