The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1909-10-09
SAVE ON CENSUS
OF AGRICULTURE
DIRECTOR DURAND DEVISEs A
SCHEME WHEREBY HE Ex-
PEcTs TO SAVE U. S. COIN.

Washington, D. o.. Oct. S-U. s..
Census Director e. Dana Durand hopes
to save several hundred thousand dol
lars in taking the census of agricul-
ture and also to increase the accuracy
of the statistics
The director stated today that in 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 recorded regarding a
farm was far greater than number OF
facts required regarding an individual
in the population census.
Director Durand said the statictics
OF population and of agriculture are
collected by different force from that
employed in gathering the statistics of
manufactures. The population and ag-
ricultural data are secured by enum-
orators Of whom there will be about
$4,000 at the present census, they in
turn being appointed by the supervis-
ors, of whom there are about $50. The
length of service is very short, is
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 1t, 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 districts and a III
fie more in the cities, practically the
pay of ordinary mechanics. Not only
therefore, are most of those who seek
to be cenumerators men who are able to
command only moderate pay in their
occupations, but many Of them are
men who cannot command regular en-
Iployment and who are looking for odd
jobs.
Consideration has been given by the
census authorities from time to time
to the plan pursued in Germany and
some other European countries, 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 required
to act He doubts whether conditions
in this country are ripe for such a
scheme. At any rate, nothing of this
sort can b done at the present census.
It may, however be hoped that to induc-
ed some slight extent, and possibly to a
considerable extent, men can be hoped
to acc, pit the position of enumerator
from interest in the work rather than
for the compensation involved. He
hopes that considerable number OF
the colleges and the 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 useful 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 institutions hum
dreds or thousands of miles from their
homes Another -'c5s who can n
der good service as enumerafors are
school teachers, but, with the enumer-
alton taking place in April and May
instead Of June as formerly, few
school teachers can be spared from
their duties to take the census.