The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1920-03-19
THRILLS OF HISTORY.


our country in 1890 was considered
a tremendous undertaking, but since
then each new census has had new
features added to it, until a small
army is required for the enumera-
ton and at a great outlay by the
government.
When the trainers of the Consti-
tuition decided that population should
be the basis of representation in the
lower House of Congress, provisions
for a systematical national enumera-
ton of the people of this country be-
came a necessity. The Constitution
cred that this enumeration should
be made within three years after the
first meeting of the first Congress,
and within every subsequent term OF
ten years in such manner as Con.
gress should direct. Political neces-
sity thus forced upon the new Repub-
lie the first national census of mod
ern times.
The taking of our first census was
under the supervision Of President
Washington. The work vas delegat-
ed to the secretary of State at that
time Thomas Jefferson. Until the
act of 1850, consigning the work to
the Department of the Interior, the
Department of State continued in
charge. The first six censuses were
all, excepting minor notifications,
taken in conformity with the act of
Congress passed March LIST, 1890.
The act of 1890 made it the duty
of the marshals of the United States
courts in the several judicial districts
to make the enumeration, appointing
as many assistants as they should
deem necessary. Seventeen marshals
and a comparatively small number of
assistants, perhaps six hundred, were
enough to canvas the country then
included in an area of 100000 square
miles. The government seems to have
specified the facts desired all includ-
ed in one schedule and bearing on
one subject, the population, but it
supplied no blanks.
Hence the schedules, which have
not been destroyed and which are
kept in volumes of various size, shape,
paper and ruling far removed show
many vagaries of size from the neat
uniformity of the scedules issuel in
latter years by the Census office.
An enumeration of the census in
1890 in North Carolina used a piece
of small paper upon which to enclose
his returns, and in the second census
a portion of the Edenton Gazette
bearing an essay by Benjaman Frank
lin on the method of relieving in
somnia was used as a cover for one
of the scedules.
The results of the enumeration
were transmitted to Congress by
President Washington, October ~
1891, ina small report containing
ffty-six printed pages. 1t showed
population Of 3,929,215. 1t cost thu
government $44,377 to learn that
with one representative for every 33,
900 people, its lower house would b.
composed of 1O5 legislators.
There were but eleven states in TIL
! Union at the time of the Act of 1870
governing the of taking tn
census was passed but the first enum
Grafton included two states which
came later, Rhode Island and Yer
mont. The 1890 schedules still il
existence are those of Connecticut
Maine, New Hampshire, North Caro-
lima, Rhode Island, Maryland, Massa
chusetts. Ne wYork, Pennsylvania
North Carolina and Vermont.
The taking of a census of the PEG
pie is of very early origin for it /
recorded that Moses numbered tn
tribes in the wilderness and that Sa
tan provoked David to enumerate Is
rael. The word census" comes from
Rome, where long before the Chris
tian era citizens and their propert!
were registered for the purpose o,
taXation.-N. 0. States.