The evening times., 1897-12-16
EXCESSIVE COST Of CENSUS
Commissioner Wright Supports
His Statements With Figures.
A WASTE OF ABOUT $4,000, 900
He Makes Compa risons Between the
Work OF the Department of Labor
and the Eleventh Censns-Advo-
Gates Appointments Under Civil
Service Rules.

Commissioner Of Labor Wright's reply
to Senator Lodge, regarding the formers
statement tina. the last census cost
$2,OO0.0OO more than was necessary,
has been sent to the Senator, and is us
follows:
My Dear Sir: In response to your note
lnquiring whether had made the states
lnent that the work OF taking the last
census cost s. 900 900 more tnan it would
have cost II the appointments 5 in the Census
Otflce had been made under civil service
rules, and, II l had made such statement,
say that the statement was made by me
In an official report on "a plan for a per-
manent census service made In accord
the Federal census" % Sa anpTo%ed EMar March ,s 50
1886. the report was submitted Decem-
ber Z. 1886, and is known as Senate Docu-
session. The statement alluded to is on
page of this report, and Is as follows:
The absolute necessity. OF bringing the
whole census force into the classiIied ser
vice, in accordance with the act o 4 ia mliary
l6, 1883, and the amendments thereto
and rules tnereunder, seems to me per-
fectly apparent. Had TINS been the rule
In the Eleventh Census there would have
been, In my opinion, saving OF at least
S2,OOO, 900 and more than years time"
the staiement msds reaiivpp pgterSSe ~ fSe snat
Ing of at least S2,00O.UuO could have
rested as matter OF opinion, but as you
nave Cdlleu IOE tHt u1td WHICH i Dase
this opinion, shall furnish them. In
doing tnis i am obliged to make comparison
betw cen the work Of the Department of La
Dor ana that of the Eleventh Census Office,
and thus place nyself in an attitude which
may subject me to some captious criti-
tisIn. The comparison make is one be-
tween systems, ana not between admin
istrations under the two systems; for, in
the case in Laud, while at he head OF the
Department of Labor, was for four years
in charge OF the Federal Census Office
Tins. whatpypF cnnnariSpu IL in
wolves, In some degree, my own admins
tration of the Census Office, as wen as
that OF the Department of Labor.
The work OF this department and that
of the Census Office is OF the same general
grade. The racts on which reports are
based are gathered by enumerators or spe
cial agents In both cases, correspondence,
as rule, being used simply for purposes
OF explanation or verification- when needed.
The qualit y of the work performed by the
Census OFFICE, and by this department need
not be brought into comparison, beyond this:
That all the Investigations conducted by
the Department Of Labor are quite as dif-
ficult as the most difficult Investigations
conducted by the Census Office but the
cost OF securing results may be compared.
The facts exist for fairly just comparison
OF the cost OF production under two sys-
tens, the Department of Labor operating
under civil service rules, and the Census
Orfice being exempt therefrom.
The cost OF production can beascertained
by learning the time and money Cost OF
specified unitsO OF production. 1ne efficiency
or labor IN production can Deueterf1i1ned by
the same method. To ascert ain the cost,
and thus the efficiency, of production under
the two systems, like elements must be
brought into comparison. statement OF
the cost of production under the two sys-
tens will enable you to determine Whether
the opinion l expressed in the official
report on permanent census ofrice Is
1 submit the following table, which
covers the productive period OF tue Census
Office, and embraces the total production
md nf q r ffTa mt ~
Labor for the same period. l have not in
Guided in the following tabular statement
the bulletins nor the compendium published
nv tina Census Office, nor the bi-monthly
bulletin and large amount of material
prepared by the Department of Labor for
report ON the wages of the commercial
countries of the world. The bulletins and
the compendium Of the Census Office are
to a large extent, the material
being dra wn from thetabulatOns made fOf
the final reports. The comparative tablets
as follows: