The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1920-04-24
WILL TAKE A NEW
CENSUS OF THE CITY
Plans All Made at Public Meet
ing Held Yesterday Gen.
eral Dissatisfaction.

A meeting at the City Hall yes
terday afternoon called by the Brook
haven Board of Trade and the City
Council to take action that would
correct the apparent incorrect CEN
sus of the city as given out by the
| government completed plans that will
in due time place Brookhaven with
the proper figures that are due.
The official report gives the city
| 400 population, or loss of IL per
cent in the last 10 years, all this
Notwithstanding the fact that the
corporation limits have been extend
ed and that the city has been grow
ing all the while. All citizens agree
and know that with the proper e.
numeration the figures will show a
population Of from 5000 upward.
Plans to correct the figures given
were fully made at the meeting.
Mr.. w. H. Seavey was called to
the chair as temporary chairman, af-
terward being superseded by DR.. I.
w. Cooper, president of the Board of
! Trade, as permanent chairman, with
Mayor R. S. Butler as secretary. The
/ object of the meeting was stated by
Mr.. W. H. Seavey, who explained
] that all the city wanted was to be
! given an exact and fair count on its
| census.
On motion committee Of I'VE were
appointed as official census enume-
rators OF the City with full power to
act and take whatever means neces-
sary to get full and accurate CEN
sus of the city and to employ and
use all the means necessary to get
such census and have the city emu
merated on the books as 1t should be.
This committee was appointed by
the chairman as follows:-
Ward IL. H. Bowen.
Ward 2-W. H. Seavey.
Ward 3-A. A. Cohn.
Ward Al. M. Wood.
! Ward ST. H. Hartman.
City-at-Large-L. H. Baggett.
SIDELIGHTS ON THE MEETING.
A call of the opinions Of those
present as to the number of persons |
in the corporate limits ranged all the |
way from 5000 to 5000.
The City Council is in full sympa-
thy with the gathering of the data |
that will put Brookhaven in it's pro-
per column of figures and will foot
all Of the necessary bills to give the
city its proper rating.
F. D. Hewitt, supervisor of the
census for this district, has written |
letter to Mayor Butler citing that |
he will do all within his power to
| correct any and all errors that are |
shown.
Alderman Bee stated before the
meeting that one of the enumerators /
who took the Brookhaven census ap-
peared before the Board of Aldermen
in rather arrogant attitude and
that all efforts of the Board UP the
present had been unavailing to get |
any change in the figures.
City Clerk Byrne forcib1y set forth
that as one Of the former street hand |
litsers of the city, that he believed |
that the main deficit was due to the |
failure of the enumerators to get all |
of the negroes of the city listed in
the census. He believed that most of |
the negroes were afraid of getting |
their names listed on account of su-
perstition or on account of the fact |
that they did not understand what |
they were being listed for and would |
be getting into trouble" If they gave |
their names to a solicitor.
Hon. Hugh v. Wall introduced
resolution that the committee be en-
powered to draft whatever resolution
it saw fit as to protest against the |
enumeration that had been given the |
city,.
Senator A. A. Cohn stated that on
account of the size of the meeting, |
representing as it did people from
all sections of the city and wards,
that opportunity should be given the
candidates to speak. Those who re-
sponded in apt ways were Clyde Day,
Pat Farrell, ]. H. Case, j. Sidney
Penn, Chester Byrne and R. S. But
Ter.
Among those who made suggestions
and talks were: w. H. Seavey, Supt. |
Byrd of the City SchoolsI Hon. H. v. |
Wall, j. M. Wood, e. Mccormick,
E. M. Bee, A. A. >Cohn, City Clerk
Byrne and Mayor Butler.