The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1879-06-19
the CENSUS or 1850.
IntervIew win the superintendent Of
the Two Last Censuses-The MOdus
OpeFandl for Next HeAr-GFeat linz.
pF0Vement ON the Old Method.

IRtsFvieW With the superintendent OF
the Two Last Censuses-The MOdus
OpeFandl for Next HeAr-GPeat Inn.
pF0Vement ON the Old Method.
The Chicago Tina publishes an inter
view with Gen. Francis A. Walker, Super.
lntendent Of the Ninth and Tenth United
States Censuses, in the course of which
the general said that the law under which
he was obliged to act in 1870, was as in.
adequate to the work to be done as q sickle
would be for reaping the grain Of West
ern States. Last March a new law was
Obtained which was a vast improvement
on the old one, and the census Of 1880
promises to be a thoroughly successful one.
There would be one hundred and fifty
Supervisors Of the census, appointed by
the President and confirmed by the Sen.
ate. They wouldappoInt the enumeraters,
who would not number less than ten
thousand, and might number fifteen
or twenty thousand. Objection was
made by some Congressman TO hav.
ing a large number Of enumeratorS,
on the ground that the census was
to be taken in the year OF Presidential
campaign, and that the taking Of 1t might
be made an electioneering engine. But
the General argued with them that the
greater the number OF enumeFatoEs the
shorter would be their period Of service,
and the smaller therefore would be their
total compensation. As a political factor,
the more there were OF them the less dan.
gerons they would be. A small number
serving four or FIVE months during Pres
idential campaign would doubtless be val.
liable wheels in the political machine.
But BY employing large number they
would be occupied but three or four
weeks, and their places would not be
especially desirable, nor would they be in
office long enough to accomplish much
politically. Furthermore, the work OF the
enumerators would be completed in the
month OF June, before the campaign got
very exciting.
The gentleman said the law gave him
sufficient control over the enumerators to
insure their discharging their duties well
enough. Under the old law he was una
Ule " eLuplOS SpeCLhl euuI1eTAtOES anu eX"
perts, but he had that privilege this time,
and this would enable him to obtain very
much more correct returns from manu-
featuring industries than he could get in
1870. The present law still required emu
merators to ask manufacturers how much
capital they had. There was no use in
asking this question, for, as q general
thing, the manufacturers couldn't tell cor.
reCtly il they wanted to, and in many
eases they wouldn't have answered cor.
reCtly il they could. The old law required
enumerators to ask every man the amount
Of real and personal property held by
him. Men wouldn't answer such ques.
tions truthfully, and the returns under
this head in 1870 were so worthless that
the general didn't have them added up.
In the present law this question was omit
ted, and the valuations would be obtained
in less direct but more reliable ways. He
had the means OF assuring iniormants
that their statements were TO be confiden.
tial; this he didn't have in 1870. and this
would enable him to obtain more accu.
rate returns than he did then.