New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1880-07-21
How England Takes Her Census,

In Great Britain census has been
taken every ten years since 1901, and
the system is now one of the most per-
feet in existence. Until near the close
of the last century, there was no real
method, and all previous estimations
of the population of the United King
dom were mere guess work. 1t seems
the more strange that such should have
been the fact, considering that, in the
American colonies, enumerations of +he
population had often been made by or
der of the Home Government. In 1890,
a beginning was made in Scotland by
Sir John Sinclair, who, through his
personal efforts in enlistiag the CO.
operation of all the clergymen of the
established church, collected returns
which were Of great value, although
necessarily incomplete. After seven
years he completed his compilations.
and published the result in twenty-one
volumes, probably the greatest statis-
teal work ever undertaken and carried
through by one private enterprise.
Under the system adopted in 1851, the
census in Great Britain is now taken ip
one day, the 31st of March. In 1851,
3O,610 enumerators were appointed in
England and Wales by the 2,19O Dis
trict Registrars in those countries, each
enumeration having a distinctly defined
district assigned to him. In Scotland
the thirty-two SheriAfs appointed the
temporary Registrars-generally par
ish schoolmasters-and $3.50 enumer-
ators. For the smaller islands the Gov
eminent appointed 257 enumerators,
and in Ireland the census was taken by
the constabulary. Some days before
the census day printed schedules were
delivered at every house or tenement;
in Wales these were printed in Welsh
for the benefit of the lower classes.
These schedules contained questions
about the name, relation to head of
family, condition, age, sex, occupation
and birthplace of every person in Great
Britain, and also as to the number of
deaf, dumb and blind. Measures were
taken to secure accurately the names of
night laborers, persons out of the coun-
try, travellers, seamen, soldiers, etc.
These schedules were all filed up in the
night of March 30-31, and were taken
up at an early hour on March 81, tho
collector filling up the parts that had
been left blank through their negligence
or inability. All unoccupied houses
and buildings in course of construction
were also noted. The floating popula-
tion-persons who spent the nights in
boats and barges, in barns, sheds, ETC.,
were required to be estimated as nearly
as possible. The enumerators were al
lowed one week to make their returns,
in all transcribed, and the summaries
and estimates completed according to
detailed instructions. The District Reg
istrars had to complete their revision of
the returns of their subordinates in a
fortnight, paying particular attention to
nine specially defined points. These
revised returns were again revised by
the "Superintendent Registrars" and
then transmitted to the census Office.
The census was the most successful, in
quickness and accuracy, accomplished
in any country up to that time, and the
same system has been pursued, with lit
tie variation, ever since. The digestion
of the census reports by the central ALL
thorities is conducted most thoroughly
and scientifically, and the compilations
are of the greatest value to statisticians
and economists. The British system
has served as a model for many other
countries, where the census is now
taken in one day by means of printed
schedules, Herald