Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1880-07-21
NO. no.
miscellaneous.
TAKING THE CENSUS.
SOME ADVENTURES OF ONE ENUMERAToR
INA Down Town WARD.

Thomas j. Rrosnan, n census enumera-
tor. who was assigned to the Thirty-nin
District. which comprises Park street and
City Hail place ana is densely populated,
related to World reporter yesterday.
some of hts adventures
Il was driven out OF houses number
of times, he said, "by people who did
not seem to mderStad what wanted.
asked 4 woman at No. 81 Park street the
usual questions and she at once grabbed
stick which she was using in stirring up
cloths in wash tub and cleared me out
of the room. while her mother gave me Il
ongue-lashing. They didn't want to give
me any information. but afterwards some
one told her that she was liable to arrest
and when saw Der again talked through
| the key-hole of the door with her and
she told me what wanted. When she
had told me all she called me scoundrel
and blackguard | happened into
Park street garrct where a Young fellow
was beating his mother. a very old wo-
man. and when | intertered both turned
on me and drove me out. In another
house in Park street | found the woman
who occupied the room intoxicated. |
questioned her little daughter, and the
child was answering me when the moth
er awoke and demanded my business. |
tried to explain. but before | had finished
she seized a carving-knite and tried Ia
| stab me. The knife cut my waistcoat, but
| disarm"d her before She could do me
any further harm. Cne old lrishwoman
TO whom explained that was the enu-
merator of the district for the tenth census
looked at me in surprise and said. When
| | wint to school in the ould coun-
thry they taught me that there
were only five sinsis an now
understand yer to say they're
tin. Git ont of here | had TO explain
TO her that census and senses were differ
ent words before she would answer my
questions. \ good many women deceived
me about their ages. One old woman.
who am willing to make an affidavit is
sixty years old if day, said she was
thirty-two. Women. particularly unmar
ried ones. tried to conceal their age. es-
pccally if men were present. Some wo-
men of thirty said they were eighteen and
the men standin. around would laugh at
them One Irshwoman said that she did
not know her age. but that she knew she
was born Oh the night of the Big Wind
In some of the hotels | visited the servant
girls were all young, so at least they said,
and many of them divided their ages by
two, At first the Cinnamon gave me
trouble. but when | threatened to bring
Tom Lee. the Chinese Deputy Sheriff.
down upon them, they helped me as much
rs they could. The Italians were the
hardest to get information from. rs many
could not speak English. adopted the
plan of telling them that was a wealthy
gentleman, q philanthropst, and that l
was taking their names so that could
send them tons of coal and barrels of
flour when the cold weather came. They
all then showed me their papers very will
ingly. A good many tried to make me
believe that they had more children than
they really had. | am afraid will have
to keep away from those Italians, for they
will be looking for their flour and coal.
Some people seemed to believe that was
making up draft list of their male rela-
tives. One old woman whom asked if
her husband was alive said "If it's for
to draft him, he's dead if it isn't, he's
alive In many places ! was treated
kindly. and some young women invited
me to call again. In nv rounds met a
lunatic who had escaped "a number Of
times from asylums. We are paid cents
for every lunatic or idiot, and this lunatic
knew that. I'm a lunatic. he said, put
me down 1000 times if it will do you any
good and you'll get 5 cents every time.
One German referred me to his wife and
she sent me 10 him. This was repeated
seven times before got the information. -
-NeW Iork HDrid