The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1914-10-24
Black Race Forms Ten Per Cent
of the Population of
the Country.

Washington, Oct. IA bulle-
tin on negroes in the United
States will be issued at an early
date by William j. Harris, direc-
tor of the census, which will con
tain all the principal information
obtained through the census re-
garding the number and distribu-
ton of the negroes, their rate of
increase, their sex and age distri-
button, and their marital condi-
ton.
The bulletin will show that the
number Of negroes in the United
States (exclusive Of the outlying
possessions in 1910 was 9,827,763,
and they formed 1917 per cent of
the total population. In 1900 the
number of negroes was 1888, 1894,
or 11.6 per cent of the total popu-
lation of that date. The increase
among the negroes during the de-
cade was 1913, 769, or 11.2 per cent,
as compared with an increase of
POS per cent among the native
whites and 30.7 per cent among
the foreign born whites. The
growth of the negro population
results from their own natural
increase, while the growth of the
white population is accelerated
by the great influx of immigrants
and the high birth rate in immi-
grant families.
OF the total number of negroes
in 1910 about one-fifth were re-
ported as mulatto; that is, as hav-
ing some white blood. The pro-
portion that mulattoes formed of
the total negro population in
creased from u per cent in 1870
to 1872 per cent in 1890, and to
20.9 per cent in 1910.
Urban and Rural Distribution.
Nearly three-fourths of the ne
groes (7,138,534, or 72.6 per cent?
were rural dwellers, while about
one-fourth (2,6S9,229, or 27.4 per
cent? lived in towns or cities of
at least $500 inhabitants.
OF a total of 1858 counties in
the United States there were only
1 40 in which there were no ne
groes, and there were fifty-three
counties in 1910, as compared
with fifty-five counties in 1900, in
which seventy-two per cent of the
4 population was negro. There
were 263 counties in 1910 in which
fifty per cent o f the population
was negro.
In 1910 there were 1885, 881 ne
gro males in the United States, as
compared with 4,941, $50 negro fe-
males, the number of males to 100
females thus being $50, as COM
pared with a ratio of JOG for the
whites. The negroes were the
only race in the United States in
which there were more females
than males.
The negro males in the United
States of voting age numbered g.
4S5,S73 in 1910, and the negro fe-
males of voting age numbered g.
427, 742.
Of the negroes 6 to 9 years Of
age 4S8,9 54, or 1913 per cent, were
reported as having attended
school during the school year
1909-10; of those 10 to IA years of
age, 791, 1895, or 66.6 per cent, were
so reported; and of those Is to 20
years of age, 338, $50, or 26.5 per
cent. In each age group the per
centage of school attendance was
much lower for the negroes than
for the whites.
Percentage Decreased.
Of the total number of negroes
10 years of age and over, 1921
731, or 30.4 per cent, were report
ed as illiterate among the whites
the percentage of illiteracy was
five, being three among native
whites and 1877 among the foreign
born whites. The percentage of
illiteracy among negroes decreas-
ed from 57.1 in 1890 to AS in
1900, and to 30.4 in 1910.
The total number of farms OPP
Grated by negroes in 1910 was
893,370; of this number, 1889
were operated by their owners,
672,964 by tenants, and 1,434 by
managers. The number of farms
owned by negroes increased by
31,175, or 1875 per Get, between
1900 and 1910, and the number of
negro tenants increased by 49,
100, or 20.S per cent, during the
decade. The total value of farm
property operated by negroes in
1910 was 81, IA, ISL 900, as com.
pared with $499, 941 900 in 1900
indicating that the value of agri,
cultural property operated by ne.
groes increased considerably more
than two-fold during the decade
The statistics show that 1,906,727
negro males and 1,050, $40 negro
females were engaged in agricul