The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-07-29
STATE ANXIOUS FOR
ACCURATE CENSUS
Enumeration of Children Of
School Age
NEGROES HELD JEWELRY
Montgomery County Negro Had Bag OF
JeweIry Worth $500 and Is Placed
In Jail---Another Negro Is
Implicated
NEGROES HELD JEWELRY

Montgomery, July 2S.-(Special) huer
section 7775 of the code, any officer or
other person reporting or tabulating any
false enumerations of persons Oh scnoo'
age may be fined 500 to $500, ana may
in addition be sent to hard labor for the
county from to IL months. AS re-
l,sult of the general understanding of TINS
penalty the department of educatioh
hopes to get, and tho officers believe tneS
will get, the only correct school census
ever taken In the state.
No county. district or city is excepted
from the act. Every subdivision of what
ever kind must take the census at the
same time and in the same way, on
blanks of the same kind. which blanks
must show name of the child, age color,
residence and name of parents or guard
ians The second census under the law
Is now being taken, that of 1908 being the
first As this was just after the law
Ind been put into execution it was more
difficult to get accurate figures than
now. with closer study and better ac-
quaintance.
Prior to 1908 the census rolls were made
up carelessly and padded fearfully. lndi-
eating this the figures for 1907-S, the
last year of the old acts, showed enum-
Grafton of 702.s34 In the fact of the rap
idly increasing populations and the nat
uraI growth which the state was showing
In every line the first census under the
new law developed only 6S7.s74, decrease
of 15,4e0 Hardly a black belt county
failed to show falling Off Lowndes, for
instance, dropped 300, and Dallas about
1000
No man at all posted will deny that the
children of the state increased in great
numbers between 1906 and 1908. yet the
enumeration for 1906 was $1,000 and that
of 1903, 6S7.374 Thus it is shown that
there never have been in Alabama as
many as 100000 children of school age.
Perhaps the census now being taken will
not show that much, taking in every per-
son from to 81. Last year there were
in school at some time in the year 4O5,226,
not including the students at the normal
schools, the university, Auburn. the nine
agricultural schools, the Girls school at
Montevallo, the East Lake institution. the
High schools and the innumerable pri-
Vate and UNCONVENTIONAL institutions,
whose enrolment the state has no way
of keeping up with.
Desiring to make the enumeration this
year as nearly correct as it is possible to
make 1t, the state superintendent is send
ing out a letter to county supeiintend-
ents, urging the greatest care He says:
This office Is extremely anxious to
secure this year the most accurate school
census that has ever been taken in Ala
bama- 1t is believed that the census two
years ago was fairly accurate, but this
year II should be more nearly So"
1t is then pointed out that 1.-The census
must be taken In every district, including
the cities and towns in your county dur
ing the month of July" Also that all re-
ports must be In the office of the county
superintendent by August TO- and the state
superintendent by August TO- Special at
tention is called to section 7745, under
which punishment for any sort of fraudu-
lent returns may be secured. Concluding
the letter says:
This office hopes that every person of
school age In Alabama will be enumer-
ated, but the enumeration must be ac-
curately taken and no false or fraudu-
lent enumeration should be allowed. 1t is
your duty, as county superintendent, to
see that the law Is enforced, and to care
fully Investigate any district in which
you think an accurate census has not
been taken.