Omaha daily bee., 1908-08-23
TAKING THE CENSUS OF 1910
An Army OF Seventy Thousand Men
Will Be Employed in the
Huge Task.

'H iCpuiio an army OF fO,OUO IeOple
to take the thirteenth census in 1870. The
task Of making an enumeration OF the 90
OO'OO people in the United States, Alask
Hawaii and Porto Rico and in Guam
samoa and the Panama canal gore viii b.
one of enormous proportions. II will be the
most gigantic work Of enumeration tina.
has ever been attempted in this or any
other country, and II is intended to reach
the acm of correctness and thoroughne ss.
Not merely a count and complication con-
corning the population alone, It will in
clude a census Of agriculture, manufac-
lures, mines and quarries.
Director s.. N. D.. North of the census
bureau is already getting ready for the
thirteenth census. He has been planning
on it for a year or more. 1t was hoped by
Mr.. North that the ~Crumpacker bill to
provide for the thirteenth and subsequent
~decennial censuses would be passed 1.-THE
last session of congress. But it failed of
enactment along with numerous other
measures of Importance by reason of the
rush at the close of the session and the
anxiety of the congress leaders to hurry the,
session to an end.
1t will cost about $4,000, 900 to take the
thirteenth census, but this is not carried in
the Crumpacker bill, as it is on the house
calendar. 1t was in the bill at first, but the
speaker and Chairman Tawney of the
house committee on appropriations though
it unwise to make so large an authorize
ton a year before it would be used, and
there was also "a feeling that the appro-
p%riation should be put in one OF the regu-
lar appropriation bills, as the legislative,
executive and judicial bill. The coming
session OF congress will no doubt appro-
pirate literally for census purposes.
aang,,a 80 III nlEIg--s--- ..atN -. =
included in the coming decennial census,
for the reason that one was taken in 1903,
and it is doubtful whether the Phi ipp.ne
government would care to bear the cost
of another enumeration 30 soon.
Important changes in the taking and
compilation OF the census and in the
method of publication of the returns will
be made. For one thing, the returns will
be greatly condensed. The twelfth census
required ten volumes. It is the expectation
Of Director North that the thirteenth CEN
sus Will De published in six volumes or
seven at the outside. The mortality sta
tistics OF the last census will be dropped.
They were found unsatisfactory as col.
lected at the last d~ecennial census. The
reduced number OF volumes will consider
ably lower the cost Of the thirteenth CEN
sus.
A change that Is believed to be in the
interest of accuracy and completeness will
require the enumeration Of population to
be made as OF April Is, instead of June l.,
as has beer the case heretofore. The
reason 70. this is interesting. The popu-
lation of the United States is exhibiting
more and more a tendency to 90 TO the
seashore and the mountains and the lakes
to avoid the hot weather, and it is going
much earlier than formerly. The result is
that enumerators, who are set to work
June !, are certain to find many houses
deserted and their occupants gone away
for the summer. II is thought April l
will be a much more satisfactory date for
this reason. At that time OF the year the
exodus to the rearts will not be begun.
Provision will be made for $3.50 district
supervisors ard there will be several thou
sand in the clerical force in the census
bureau establishment in Washington. The
number Of enumerators will be $500. AS
already mentioned, the total force needed
10 do the work will approximate 1000.
The clerical force will be under civil serv-
ice, but 1t is thought to be impracticable
to attempt to make the enormous force of
enumerators subject to the civil service re-
quirements. Mr.. North considers II out of
the question to try to select the
tors by civil service methods, though OBJ
]jections have been raised by friends OF
the civil service TO the propositiln that it's
workings should not be extended to CEN
sus enumerators. 1t is apparent that those
politicians who are hostile to the civil serv-
ice see excellent opportunities in the Sc
lection OF a vast body of enumerators in
the old-fashioned way, through political
! prefermPut but there Is unnuaaffNnah1 Nr
room for doubt whether a workable civil
service scheme could be devised TO meet
the Observation-Disclosures Telegram.