The Detroit times., 1910-04-07
CENSUS WORK TO
COST s15,000,000
Army Of Clerks Will on April Is
Count Noses of All Who Live
81 Under Stars and Stripes.

( shadow OF the capitol. Is low, ram D.
\ ling, red brick structure, which Is
noisy neither In appearance.- nor IN
the days news at present Yet the
occupants of this building are getting
ready TO spend In q single day the
sum OF sfa0OO.OOO
The day is April 15-census day.
The building is occupied by Director
e. Dana -Durand and his census
bureau. e-~
II Is a big Job spending $4,000 600
all IN a-wad like that, and already
there are. sure indications or the
activity. to come. Each day sees new
faces among the crowd OF clerks III
the building. and new faces will con
tinue TO appear until on April 10 there
will be 1000 clerks, stenographers,
typewriters, machine operators and
experts crowded about the machines,
benches and desks. counting the
noses of all of US who live under the
stars aed~stripes from Porto Rico To
I the Philippines.
Only In theory is the counting all 10
be done and the money spent on cen
\ sus day.. In reality Durand began
spending. his appropriation last fan
and it will be the middle OF 1912 be-
fore the last column of statistics Is
footed UP.
But so-far as the figures are con-
cerned they apply only 10 April 10.
The baby--born April 16 will not get
into the 1910 census. The man who
dies Aprill4 will not be reckoned In.
II Is going to be a mighty task
counting the noses. The 1000 clerks
and experts are but a small group OF
the actual number TO be engaged. The
field work is in charge OF $50 super
4 visors, who will direct some 10000
enumerafors-the ones who will sc
z from door to door. Then there will
y be 1900 special agents garnering
statistics OF various sorts and other
agents enumerating in Hawaii and
a Alaska --.
Incidentally, II may be noted that
B the census In Alaska has nearly all
been taken. The count there began
Jan. /. because then the miners and
prospectors were all gathered into
towns easy OF access.
The constitution directs that a cen.
sus be taken every 10 years 10 de-
termine how many men each state
may send TO the house of representa-
/; tives. And In early times this was
the extent OF the census: merely a
count of heads.
But now the tallying has a much
broader worth. This year each man,
woman and child in the land will be
asked 80 questions. II is the most
F complete census ever attempted by
this OF any other country. The fig
ures compiled from the totals of the
80 answers will be of the highest i'm
y portance to all of us. Legislation OF
various sorts may be expected to fol-
low. -s.,s,--....,-
For instance each person will be re.
Quired to tell his correct age under
penalty of 500 fine. In another col
umn he will tell whether he is en-
ployed or not So a child of II years
may say In another column that be is
employed. Thus would be shown
K violation of the child labor laws.
or course, information given the
census enumerators will be held in
strictest confidence, and no prosecu-
lions of any sort can follow the Civ
4 ing Of census information. But. for
the first time in history. we are GO
Ing to get accurate information as 10
the numbers of children employed by
American manufacturers.
As result OF this census we will
know whether there is an exodus
from or TO the farm, we will under.
:. stand American labor conditions bet.
\ ter than ever before, we will probably
receive interesting side light upon
the high cost OF living.
Great care Is being taken to make
this census, the thirteenth in our his.
(, tory, the most complete and accurate
II is the first time the human machin-
cry for the count was not chosen
politically. This time employment in
the service has depended upon ones
ability to pass the test examinations.
This year the census totals will be
found by census machines, designed
and patented by men in the census
. Office. The machines are expected 10
revolutionize the work. One machine
is built like a typewriter with 240
keys. Each key is a symbol, instead
of letter, and a touch of the key
punches a hole OF special shape in a
card.
With these machines the whole
! census win be reduced TO a card in.
dex system. With a machine one
clerk can punch 5000 cards a day.
There are 800 of these machines
ready to begin on the 10000 600 cards.
From the punching machines the
cards will 60 TO electric tabulating
Pins passing through the
required holes. will make electric
connections, printing the fluctuations
on tape such as comes from a stock
ticker. Hundreds of power adding
machines will assist TO complete and
total the big count.