The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1880-05-25
SUMMARY OF CENSUS LAWS.
What In Expected of the Enumera-
tors and Heals of Families, &c.

.eQuiicu ny law eaCl Vi tUetn Will nave
, duly executed commission, and ia un-
Ter oath to do his duty faithfully, and is
subject to penalties Of fine and impris
if be does not. The answers he
gets from heads OF families or business
men, or from those who act for them ARE
,mmunications, and are not
% be divul ged to any one except his Of
icial superiors, and these are under the
same oath and suhjSct to the same pen
alties it they make Unauthorized COM
nunications concerning the answer they
get in the line of their duty. The max
ng Of false returns by the enumerators
Or supervisors is also punishable by fine
and imprisonment.
sECREsY IN CERTAIN CASES.
The provisions OF the census law are
mentioned to remind the public that,
while the Government provides for maxi
inquiries as to personal matters for the
purpose of enliehtening the law making
powers in the exercise of their duties, it
lakes care that information of personal
nature OF touching individual business
shall not he revealed by the officers en-
ployed to collect it. For this, as well as
other reasons, the census takers should
he aided and expedited in their duties
Census statistics are capable of being
used to the highest advantages OF the
people as guides to legislation, and. in
deed, there is a wide range of subjects
upon which there can he no Intelligent
and possibly no safe legislation-with-
out such statistics collected at short in
tervals. The law also imposes duties. on
heads OF families and heads of business
houses, or their authorized agents, in the
matter of giving information asked for
by law. Every person over twenty years
Of age belonging to any family, in an
district, is required by law
to give census information, if requested
10 do so by the enumerator, supervisor
or superintendent, and is punishable by
fine for refusing to do 80.
FAMILY AFFAIRS.
Among the personal and family mat
ters about which the enumerators are
required to ask heads Of families, or in
their absence, the nearest accessible per.
son over twenty years of age, who can
give the information, are the following :
Name, age, sex. color. and place of birth
of every person dwelling in the house
or with the family; the trade, profession
or occupation Of every adult male over
ifteen wears of age, and whether the
adults are married, widowed or single
and il married, whether married within
the year; also the school attendants. OF
the children within the year; what mem
bers of the family (if any) over twenty
years of age who are unable to read and
write; whether persons in the family are
or unemployed, and during
what portions of the year; what relation
each person in the household bears to
the head OF the house the place of birth
OF the parents OF each person enumera
ted; and the mental and physical health
OF each person, whether active or dis
abled, married, crippled, bedridden, deaf
dumb, blind insane or idiotic.
BUSINESS CONCERNS.
Some of these are close questions
concerning matters that most people do
not care to talk about to strangers; but
when il is considered the communica.
tions are needed by the government fol
its uses, and are made confidential by
law, there should be no hesitancy in
giving them freely to the enumerators
In matters of business, trade, agricul
ture, manufactures, commerce, mining,
other transportation, insur-
ance, expressing, telegraphing, and kin
dred subjects, the inquiries take broad
range, and In some respects the informa-
tion to be thus collected will be an i'm
provement on all former censuses. This
it may be repeated, is guarded in The
same way as to its privacy as family mat.
ters are. The enumerators are bound by
oath, and under severe penalties of fine
and Imprisonment, to reveal 1t to TO one
except in their official reports to Official
superiors, and they are bound in the
same way. There are provisions also
for collecting the valuation Of real ant
personal estate. By aggregates from
towns cities and counties the aggregated
of taxes assessed for all purposes; th,
number of colleges, academies, schools
Of all kinds and schoolfunds; the mum
ber, character and condition of public
libraries; statistics of newspapers ant
periodicals; the seasons and the crops
prices Of labor; matters relating u re
ligious worship; aud of pauperism ant
crime. Some Of this, as we'll as mucl
that relates to mortality, railroad. tele
graphs, insurance, DC. taxes valuation
and real estate. is to be got throug
corporate authorities or other agencie
outside of the enumerstors. All of it i
important for governmen. purposes. ant
should be given promptly and cheerful.
to those authorized by the law to max
the inquiries and collect the information
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