The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1879-05-07
OUR PRESENT POPULATION.

HG7rord Crimson.
OUR PRESENT POPULATION.
) And the Census of 1880.
From the New York Tribune.1
The present Congress has few more
important duties to perform than to
provide for the taking of the new census.
Very useful suggestions have been made
to the committee by Prof. Walker, who
superintendent the last census, and who
is specially qualified, both by experience
and scholarship, to point out the defects
in the mode hitherto adopted. No effort
should be spared to make the next
enumeration more thorough than any
taken during the first century of the
republic. It is particularly desirable
that the many and obvious defects in
the method of collecting industrial sta
tistics should be removed, for it is well
known that the statistics thus far OBJ
tanned have had but moderate value.
But the important political interests
which depend upon the enumeration of
population also make it exceedingly de-
sirable that the work should be more
accurately and faithfully performed than
has been possible under the old system.
It is notorious fact that in many local
tiles the rivalry of towns has had some
influence upon the thoroughness of the
work, and the results will inevitably be
distrusted as long as returns from one
place can be held back for revision until
those from other places have been for
warded and made public. The plan of
dividing the work so that the actual
enumeration can be performed within a
very short time, and simultaneously in
all parts of the country, on many &C.
counts deserves especial consideration.
It is singular that writer's and speak
ers, contrary to the usual American
habit, have almost without exception
understated the population of the coun-
try for some years past. Probably the
nation is now growing too modest, as it
formerly was too much inclined to
Boosting. But those who have occa-
sion to refer to the present population
almost invariably mention number
which the. country has undoubtedly
passed several years ago. It is Gus
tomary to speak of the population as
about 100000 or 45,0OO,OO0. Butthe
calculations of Prof. Elliott, of the
Census Bureau, which thus far have
been singularly sustained by facts, give
47,983,00O as the probable population
July l, 1878, and 49,395,000 as the prob
able population July l, 1879. These
calculations, based upon the principle
of constant second differences, give an
increase of about 80 per cent. for the
decade now approaching an end. They
are strongly confirmed by the census
taken in fifteen of the States by State
authority, during 1874 in Michigan
during 1876 in Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana
Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New
Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode
Island, South Carolina and Wisconsin
and during 1876 in Missouri and
Nebraska. With allowance for the I'M
avoidable incompleteness of every cen
sus taken by defective State machinery
it must be granted that the actual in
crease for the whole country to 1879
must have been at least as great as the
increase apparent in the returns from
these States of the dates named. The
population of the fifteen States in 1876
was 14,61O,636, and, according to the
census taken by the States about thu
middle of the decade, it was 16,963,O2
the gain being 1871 per cent. in abou
five years, or at the rate OF 1922 Pc
cent. for the decade. It is, therefore
probable that the estimate of Prof
Elliott will not prove greatly in erro
and that the present population, Jan. !
1879, is not far from 100000.
The question of greatest political in
terest connected with the census is il
regard to the reapportionment of repre-
sentation. Taking as guides, first, til
increase ascertained about the middl
of the decade in some States, and, sec
ond, the wel-estabished fact that sine
the panic of 1873 there has been yer
important readjustment in the occupa
ton and location of laborers, with ez
traordinary increase in the population
Of the newer agricultural States, W
have prepared an estimate of the prob
able population at this time by States
and find that the aggregates for tn
several sections are as follows:
Popula,o,
Eastern and Middle States. .3O3 OC
Western and Pacific States. y7O Ol
Former slave States .16S 900
otal States ........ Al, 56s, Ot
Territories. OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. 662,U(
Total population. ...................4s AS, O35, OF
If Prof. Elliott's estimate is fully sus
tanned, the population of each Of thes
divisions should be slightly increased
the Western States and the Territorie
the most. It is possible that the ALLOW
ance made for recent increase in Texs
and Arkansas is too large, but the gal
in those States and Western Louisiar
has certainly compensated in part tt
retarded growth of older Southe1