The Brownsville daily herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1897-1910, 1909-10-07
FARM CENSUS ECONOMY.
Director Durand Hopes to Save Sew
eraI Hundred Thousand.


Washington, D. c.. Oct. III. S.
/ Census Director z. Dana Durand
hopes to save several hundred thous-
( and dollars in taking the census of
/ agriculture and also to increase the
( accuracy of the statistics.
The director stated today that at
/ the census of 1900 the agricultural
data were handled by means of
punched cards. For each farm a
large number of cards had to be
punched, as the number of facts re-
corded regarding a farm was far
greater than the number of facts
required regarding an individual in
the population census.
Director Durand said the Stats
ties of population and of agriculture
are collected by a different force
from that employed in gathering
the statistics of manufactures. The
population and agricultural data are
secured by enumeratOrs of whom
there viii be about $4,000 at the
present census, they in turn being
appointed by the supervisors, of
whom there are about $50. The
utlAlCultl VI StAutl AS competent anu
faithful enumeratOrS is very great
The length of service is very short,
) days in the cities and 80 days in
the country districts. The period is
too short to justify a man who has
a good job in quitting it, while on
the other hand it is too long in
most cases to enable such men to
get leave from their regular work TO
take the census. Moreover the pay
is small, averaging perhaps three
dollars per day in the country dis
tricts and a trifle more in the cities,
practically the pay of ordinary me-
chanics Not only, therefore, are
most of those who seek to be emu
merators men who command
moderate pay in their occu-
patlp9s, but many Of them are men
who cannot command regular en-
ployment and who are looking for
odd jobs.
Consideration has been given by
the census authorities from time to
time tc the plan pursued in Germany
and in some other European coun=
tries, by which The census is taken
chiefly or wholly by men serving
without pay, who either volunteer
their service from patriotic motives
or who are requierd to act. Mr..
Durand doubts whether conditions
here are ripe for such a scheme.
At any rate, nothing of this sort
can be done at the present census.
1t may, however, be hoped that to
some slight extent, and possibly to
a considerable extent, men can be
induced to accept the position of emu
merator from interest in the work
rather from the compensation in
volved. He hopes that a consider
able number of the colleges and
universities Of the country may see
fit to give leave of absence to their
students for the short time required
to do this work Of enumeration.
The college student is "a very sue
cessful enumeratOr in some cases,
but it is exceedingly desirable that
enumerators should actually live in
the districts where they work, and
there are multitudes of districts
where no college students reside or
where such students are in insti-
buttons hundreds or thousands of
miles from their homes. Another
class who can render good service as
enumeratOrs are school teachers, but
with the enumeration taking place
in April and May instead of June as
formerly. few school teachers can
be spared from their duties to take
the census.