The Pioche record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1908-1925, 1909-10-23

the collection of statistics OF manurac-
tures for the year 1909 on Jan. l.
Three hundred Of the regular enumer-
ators will carry schedules of manu-
factures In certain districts.
New Compiling Device.
About 1900 clerks in addition to the
permanent force of the census bureau
viii be employed In Washington to
compile the statistics from the sched-
ules. Uncle Sans up to bitterness In q
mechanical way In the present case is
attested by the new equipment which
is to be installed to facilitate the labor
OF compilation The use OF machinery
has made 1t possible to enlarge the
scope OF investigation included In the
schedule. because 1t Is now possible to
deal with a mass of data which could
not hare been handled by the old
method Of making taliies. In 1900 the
mhedule Of population alone contained
twenty five questions Take the popu-
lation Of 1910 at 00.000.000. with the
same number of questions. and this
will mean no less than 250.000,Oo0 or
items to be counted, 10 say nothing Of
combinations.
The present system Of tabulating re-
TURNS was first used In the census Of
1890. The vital factor Is a simple
thing. a card about 3 by 6h inches,
with holes punched in IT, A position or
combination of positions is assigned to
white" .colored," etc. SO that every
possible answer is provided for.
The schedules are all transferred to
cards with. the help Of a punching ma
c,iire This has u keyboard much like
a typewriter The cards are fed under
tho punchc# from pack and elected
automatically These machines, Of
which 500 have haen ordered, can be
operated II tie rae fiU:.i $50 to 500
cards m hour with an average OF thir-
teen or forr,es.i strokes to the card.
How Tabaia'ing Machines Work.
There VII IL 4 hundred tabulating
machines 'Ftrg somewhat resemble
an iipriehi liian III appearance. In
place cf the keyl,aara there Is feed
plate and an arm carrying a pin box
near one esid. IS card may have be-
tween COO and 3G0 positions and as
tahulaling misg hine has only sixty
counters. 1t Is necessary to run a card
THROUGH several times In order to get
all the information.
After deciding what data are wanted
the little cups IN the feed plate affect
ed are filled with mercury. and cleo
trio connections are made with the
counters. Then when a card Is fed
the pin box descends and wherever
holes have been punched for the an
swers required the pins dip into the
mercury and an electric current
causes the counters to register. The
card itself is sufficiently rigid to pre-
vent all the other pins from dipping
into the mercury. II will be seen.
then, that the principle governing the
operation OF the tabulating machine is
simple. This mechanism can be fed
by hand at the rate Of $500 or 4,000
an hour
In tab;llaiing The population sched-
u!e alone aNn 600 cards viii be pass
cd six times through the machines.
When an enumeration district is com
pleted or when desired the totals
shown hy MI he counters are printed
on paper taMes al single operation,
, and these M, drawn out and the mum
bers transcribed The agricultural
| schedule will have machine adapted
to its special needs, which will regis
ter and add the value Of farms. stock,
crops. etc
Many tyrewriters. adding machines,
| combined writer's and adders ard ma
/ chimes for computing percentages and
performing other arithmetical opera.
lions will be used. Heretofore much
leased tabulating machinery has been
used at large expense. For this cen
sus very little will be required. and II
IL estimated that this change Of policy
will save many hundreds Of thousands
Of dollars.