Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-03-21

Germs according to the character OF
their business.
Some idea of the magnitude of this
great statistical undertaking, covering q
three-year period for enumeration, tab
ulation and printing may be gained
from the fact that its total cost will be
about $40,000,000. However, divided
among the population this means only
about 10 cents per year per individual
for great contribution to our knowl-
edge Of ourselves.
The Department of Commerce and
its Bureau of the Census are bending
every effort to make this the best CEN
Sus ever taken. The qualifications OF
each supervisor and each enumeration
have been most carefully tested before
he is permitted to enter upon his duties
The schedules have been framed with
exceptional care and with the aid Of
committees of experts and of practical
business men. The machines used for
punching cards, sorting them and tab
ulating results are better than ever be-
fore. It is hoped and expected that the
results will be available more promptly
than hitherto, and that they will lie
presented in a form more useful to the
public. There win be special emphasis
on the presentation of statistics for
local areas cities, towns, counties,
townships, wards and even relatively
small tracts within the cities.
Earlier Publication Of Data.
A number of new features Of I'M
portance have been added to the popu-
lation census. For example, the super
visorS for the first time will be required
to give out q preliminary statement OF
the total population of each city, town,
county or other political subdivision of
their respective districts as rapidly as
the enumeratorS finish their work, with
out waiting for the more thorough tab
ulation at Washington. The results will
thus be available, subject to minor cor
rection, much sooner than at any previ-
Gus census. Again, for the first time,
the Census Bureau will publish stats
tics regarding the composition and
characteristics of the population of the
rural townships throughout the coun-
try; heretofore outside the cities the
county has been the smallest unit for
which any facts were published except
the mere number of inhabitants. There
are three new inquiries of much sig
niflcance on the population schedule.
The first relates to unemployment, q
subject of peculiar interest to the great
masses of the people. The second re-
lateS to the value Of the home If it be
owned or to the rental paid for it
facts which will enable us to get a most
valuable picture of the economic stand
ing Of the population of different COM
munities and of different occupations
and classes. The third is an inquiry as
to whether the family owns a radio set
Another significant new departure al
the present census is the requirement
that some person in each family must
be designated by the enumerator as the
home-maker. The aim is to give
recognition to women in the home who
hitherto, unless they had some money
making employment, were reported as
having no occupation. BY the method
adopted it will be possible to show NOT
only the number of women whose work
is wholly or almost wholly in the home
but also the number who are both home
makers and bread-winners in some
other occupation.
To Check Unemployment.
The announcement of the population
by the supervisors, to which have re-
ferred, is only the beginning of the
work Of the population census. The
entries made by the enumerators for
each person, covering about Is points
must be examined In the office at Wash
ington to see that they are in proper
form; that no items have been omitted;
that the facts reported for the in
dividual are consistent with each other
The almost innumerable occupations
listed for the 100000 or $4,000, 000