The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1899-06-29
NUMBERING THE PEOPLE
HOW THE MAIN FACTS WILL BE
QUICKLY TABULATED.
Wonderful Work Which VIII be Accu-
rately Performed by the Automatic
Machines


facts contained i'm census taking says
the New York Sun, was by laborious
system of hand tallying. Every fact re-
lating to each person was indicated by
a pencil mark under the proper heading
in big sheets provided for the purpose.
This plan was clumsy, slow and exceed
ingly liable to error Toward the end
of the last census 1t was superseded 10y
the new method of mechanical compil-
alton. Every process formerly executed
by hand is now carried out by the Hol-
lerith machines, many times more rap
idly and with much greater accuracy.
Their higest recommendation, however
is that they enable us to count combi-
nations of facts.
In compiling the results of the enum-
Grafton, every person in the United
States will be represented by card
The facts recorded concerning each
person are shown by holes punched in
the cards. Experience has shown that
the average number of records that can
be transferred from the schedules to
the punch cards by each clerk in one
day is 700, 1t is the intention of the CEN
sus authorities, as soon as the schedules
are received to set 1000 clerks a work
with the punching machines. This will
mean something like 100000 punched
cards day, and should exhaust the en-
tire number of 100000 or thereabout
in approximately 100 working days. OF
course longer time may be required, or
little less.
The punching machine, which is the
principal time and labor saver of the
new apparatus, is something like
typewriter in appearance. The punch is
attached to movable key, which plays
over a perforated keyboard, arranged
like the keyboard of a typewriter. 1t
10 r n
exact duplicate of the cards employed
to contain the statistics of each person.
For the most part these symbols con-
sist of figures and easily understood
authorizations, and the labor of learning
to operate the machine is hardly any
| greater than that of mastering the
| typewriter.
| AS fast as they are punched and sort
ed according to sex, nativity or color,
the cards will be taken to the machine
room and run through the electric tabu-
lating machines. To take off all the In
| formation contained on the cards they
will be run through the machines four
or possibly five times. Each instru-
ment is capable of disposing of about
5000 cards a day, and it will therefore
require 140 of them to keep up with the
| punching machines.
Roughly described the electric count
| ing machine consists of box of needles
! set on spiral springs. lneSe needles ueS-
cend on each card as ii passes through
the machine. Where there are holes,
| they pass through and dip into a cup
of mercury placed underneath. This
completes an electric circuit and sets in
motion an indicator upon dial, which
moves forward exactly like the second
hand of clock, the various dials thus
enumerating all the facts and combi-
nations of facts wanted. From the indi-
Gator dials the figures are copied off on
result slips and filed for the compiling
clerks.
II is estimated that each of the taDu-
lating machines complies and registers
! nforma ton that would require the SER
vices of twenty clerks under the old
! system of tally sheets. A consideration
| of even more importance is its greater
accuracy The machine automatically
! throws out any card that is wrong. For
example, If one of the details, say SEX
has not been indicated on the card the
| plunger will not register and the bell at
the side of the machine which rings TO
| indicate the correctness of each card
remains silent. 1t is then a compare
| lively easy matter to go back to the
schedules and supply the missing infor-
| nation, whereas on the tally sheets
such a mistake would hardly be dis
| covered.
The third stage in preparing the facts
! and figures for publication is the tabu-
latng. This will be in charge of a force
of 1000 clerks and copyists, whose work
will be the preparation OF statistical ia
bles and copy for the printers. The
fourth and final stage is the typeset-
ting, printing and binding, from which
the bulky volumes will emerge ready
| for distribution.
Not only will the coming census have
| superior mechanical appliances for pre-
pairing its results, but it will probably
| be the first in this or any other country
| to have the advantage of a building
constructed especially to meet the
needs of census work. The plans for the
| building are already drawn, and it's
erection, 1t is hoped, will begin within
short time. The lack of such a building
was one of the impediments to the work
in the census of 1890. At that time the
census bureau paid out in rents more
than $150,000. 1t occupied a number of
different buildings, and different floors
of buildings none of which was espe-
cially adapted to its use. At the recent
session of Congress no action was taxi
en- on the question of a building and no
appropriation for the purpose was
made.
The matter of proper supervision is Of
great Importance in work of this kind.
For example, the 5000 clerks employed
i'm the bureau will each receive an aver
age salary of about 5000 a year. They
will not be paid so much at the start
This will involve an outlay of 81. 700 900
year for clerical work alone. The en-
ployes work six and one half hours a
day so that the loss of one minute
day i'm the work of the bureau would
cost the government $1,000 a year. This
example is only one of many illustra-
tons that could be given of the import
ance of having efficient and rapid work
Taking into account the saving of time
and the increase in efficiency, a build
ing costing $4,000 would pay for itself
in one year, and in five years, or the
duration of one census, would save TO
the government three fourths of a mill
lion dollars.
While ii is impossible to estimate be-
forehand the expense of taking the cen
sus, 1t is pretty certain, on the most
economical basis, to amount to more