New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-04-01
THE NETWORK CENSUS CASE
MAJORITY AND MINORITY REPORTS BY THE
SPECIAL ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE.
THE MAJORITY RECOMMENDS THE TAKING OF
AN ENUMERATION IN THE STATE IN MAY
THE MINORITY DEFENDS THE FEDERAL
CENSUS. AND SHOWS THAT THE
PROPOSED ENUMERATION is


CENSUS, AND SHOWS THAT THE
PROPOSED ENUMERATION is
UNCONSTITUTIONAL.
Albany. March 81 (Special).-Wrght Holcomb
the chairman Of Senator Hills featherweight
| census committee. appointed BY speaker
| sheehan solely for the purpose OF max
ing political capital ont of inquiry into the last
Federal Census handed in his report to the Assembly
this morning The report does mo more thah was eA-
pected of it, 1t simply endeavors to excuse the senator
for his demand that the Legislature shall do an I'M
constitutional act and pass an enumeration DILL con-
trary to the mandates of the Constitution In the rs'
paragraph of this report the Featherweght SHOW now
utterly absurd Senator HIPS proposition to pass suoh
bill as lie would like, by quoting from the Constitution
itself the provision under which State census can DC
TAKEN Directly after this the majority OF the committee
procaim the bad faith with which they went into TINS
Investigation by declaring that the committee was ap
pointed TO consider the legislation necessary to carry
out the Constitutional provisions. This does not mean
that the committee had the right or the authority 70
Dry into the Federal But Wright Halcomo' Ior
senator Ill., whO perhaps, is bigger than the Con-
stitution declares that it is the undoubted consul
| tutional duty of the Legislature to provide at once
for an enumeration of the inhabitants OF the state.
The provision of the Constitution that an enumeration
Of the inhabitants of the State should be TAKEN begin
ming with 1850 and at the end of period OF ten
years thereafter according to Hacomb, us merely
| technical and unworthy Of serious consideration"
The report then goes into the investigation OF the
Federal census and recurs TO the testimony given by
Robert p Porter, the Superintendent Of the Kiln
Census General Francis A. Walker superintendent
Of the IXh and Xth Censuses; and Charles ii. Mur-
ray, of NewYork the local supervisor in that city OF
the Xlth Federal Census to show that census. to DO
| correct, should have been taken either in May or
October and that to obtain simply the names OF the
inhabitants of the State together with the number All
| questions as to diseases, debts, ETC., should be
eliminated The majority Of the committee then mako
| these recommendations:
First, That simple enumeration OF the Inhabitants Of
this State should be taken and that such enumeration
should include merely the citizenship or aenage
and the occupation OF the inhabitants.
Second That such enumeration should be taken in the
month dAMay, 1891.
various county clerks throughout State The appoint
~~,merators the OF the State by the
Secreta State might naturally be favored by the Demo-
cratic party which is and probably will be for many
years come, the dominant party in the State but it
seems TO your committee airer and just that the
should be appointed by the county clerks
method appointment which would give enumerators 10
PARTIES evidence before committee shows
thrce.fourths Of the county clerks in this State Re-
publican. Vesng the power OF appointment in high
Official and concentrating the responsibility, would
TO be ideal method Of appointment but in prac
ce advantage Of such uncatCn of the OF selec
ton than counterbalanced by the more init
acquaintance with the fitness Of the individual to be
pointed necessarily possessed by the county clerks OF the
| various counties.
Fourth That returns OF each enumerator should be
| fled with the county clerk o; his county.
Accompanying the minority report is bill making
provision for the taking OF the this year. 1t
| is similar to the measure introduced some time ago
| by Assemblyman Bumenthal, which came from Sen
| ator HILL This bill applies only to taking an emu
| mcration on which to eapporton the Assembly and
| a
| ing tho Congress districts.
| Asscmblyman Hdrcth for the minority members
| Of the committee, sent up report. The minority re-
port holds first that the committee was not justified
in going further than to determine whether or not te
Legislature had any duty to discharge under secuon
OF Article Of the Constitution. In this question
| had been answered in the affirmative, 1t was within
the province of the Legislature TO determine to what
number of representatives in the Assembly each county
is entitled and to divide the State into Senate and
| Assembly districts. The minority report declares
that TO the first proposition there should have been
negative report. section of the Constitution Is
there provision authorizing in any form the taking OF
State census other than at the end of every ten
years 1ee5 In this respect the minority report
declares, the Legislature has done its daty.
"There remains power" 1t continues, under
which IL could make such enactment until the conclu-
sion of the period specified in the Constitution when
a new enumeration and apportlonment should be had
| "An the authority necessary for taking over an
enumeration be found in the act passed by the
Legislature in 1855, and no further legislation Is
necessary nor can under the Constitution any be had
until the termination Of the period within which new
| enumeration should be made adds the report
| The members of the minority continue, that q tho
| committee not authorized to inquire into the
methods followed in taking the Federal census in New
York City last June. Inasmuch, however, as tho
majority Of the committee increased the scope OF In
ouiry 10 that extent it is only justice TO the Federal
authorities to refer few facts which were brought
| ont during the investigation" Regarding this, the
| minority report says:
"A large number Of police officers, including In
| spector Byrnes. appeared before the committee dc
Tending the enumeration of the police and ATTACKING
that made by the United States Census ONCE but III
cur opinion this testimony, which includes much That
was practically the that given before the Con
gressonal Committee IN Washington, docs not lmpeach
the Federal census Of NewYOrk City, for the reason
that it relates only small portion Of the territory
of the citya ward containing population, according
to the Federal census Of 002, out of total population
| of over a million and a half This ward VIZ, the
| second which was selected by the opponents OF the
Federal census on which base their attacks on that
enumeration has been shown by the testimony OF the
| Superintendent Of Census - be I'll
| gratory ward and consequently an en-
umeraton of its inhabitants in october would not be
| fair test of the accuracy of prior enumeration
| taken in june The superintendent testified among
other things that 24S persons enumerated In the fcd
era census were not found by the police 1t also was
ELECTED by the testimony of the Superintendent that
had the next ward Ward Three had been taken by the
city as ward 1t would have appeared that there
was less number found by the police than are re
ported by the Federal enumeratOrs. Tho supern-
endent OF the Census further testified that In such
| districts as he had been able to get police census
figures for-whlch difficult to DO, in consequence
OF the fact that the city authorities have made no
official statement whatever Of population by Assembly
distIcts-the returns made by the police SNOW, III many
Inv the Federal census OF june showing that this rule
is a safe one TO apply TO a large aggregation vi