Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-07-28
COUNTING MILLIONS A DAY.
The Total Population Of the Country
May be Known in Three Weeks.

There has been received at the Census Office
about s5 per cent of the census returns for the
entire country. The supervisors who receive
the returns and send them on to this city have
assured Superintendent Porter that the returns
Will all be in by August l. At the present rate
OF counting Mr.. Porter estimates that the
rough count will be completed within the next
three weeks. IL all the returns are in there
viii be no difficulty about ascertaining
the results. as under the present plan Of
work now in use in the Census Office every
twenty-four hours about three and one Quarter
millions of names are counted. This represents
the sum total of the double count. so that the
actual count is only one-half AS great If the
count could go on wIthou: interruption the re-
suits would soon be asccrtained, but there are
various causes of delay which may arise to pre-
vent the announcement OF the results of the
rough count as early az would otherwise be
practicable.
ST. PAUL AND MINNEAPOLIS.
The recount that has been ordered in St.
Paul and Minneapolis will not delay the work.
AS it is expected the new enumeration will be
completed in four or five days. Mr. Jas H.
Wardle, who has been placed in charge of the
work IN st. Paul. will leave for that city We'd
nesday. He will at once proceed to redistrict
the city. appoint the enumerators and begin
the work of taking the census as il no Gunner
alton had been attempted. The SAME plan
Will be adopted III Minneapolis. The returns,
when received. will be quickly counted and
the gap in the census returns will be filled
THE COUNTING MACHINES.
As is known. the counting of the names on
the census schedules is done Oh machines.
which are worked in somewhat the same way
As typewriter, the difference being that the
keys when pushed down make an electrical
connection by which a record il made on small
dials. There about one hum
dred OF these Hoiierith machines, as
they are named from the inventor, in
operation in the Census Office and they are
kept going night and day. The day force is
composed of ladies and the night force OF men.
fhe former make better record than the
latter. some OF the ladies have attained as
high a record as 10, 900 names in one day. but
this is a squirt, and the average is much lower.
PUSHING THE WORK
While the energies of the Census Office are
mainly directed toward ascertaining the results
OF the count OF the people, yet the other inqui-
rles connected with the census are being pushed
forward Ar. Porter expects within the next
few days to begin the publication of bulletins
One bulletin will give the bonded debt of S5s
cities and that OF ten years ago. As showing
how well in hand the work is as compared with
ten years ago, Mr.. Porter states that about this
time ten years ago, chief of the division of
wealth. debt and taxat on, he was Just issuing
the schedules. Now the office is getting ready
to announce results of this inquiry. Bulletins
will also soon be issued giving the statistics of
state production, quicksilver, insurance and
sire ct railroads