Show r Uncle Sam Prepares to Count His j i Children Children and and How His Family Has Grown Since First Census in 1790 I J By ELMO SCOTT WATSON Rele Md by br Western r Union MIE coming of a new TilE THE year means a big job fort forI for t I Uncle Sam For 1940 is census year and it means that once more he is faced with the task of counting all his children And how his family hasH has H grown since he took the first census of its members r years ogo agol Then there were I only of them This I year it is estimated that there I will be more than I The first census taken in 1790 covered only population The count was made within a year from the date of the inauguration of President Washington and the assembling of the first congress of the United States The enumerators enumerators enu enu- took the name of the head of each family together with the total number of persons in the family classified as free or slave The count began on the first Monday in August 1790 and the law gave nine months for tor the completion work Double this time time elapsed however however how how- ever before all the returns were in Communication then was slow and uncertain The Americans Americans Americans Amer Amer- of that day particularly Inthe in inthe inthe the rural districts regarded the census enumerators with some suspicion and there were those who thought these agents of the thew r w federal government really aimed at getting information on un which iu u to base an Increase of taxes The report of the first census Is contained in an octavo volume of r 68 ISIS pages Discolored and crumbling crumbling crum crum- bling I with ag age this little book is very rare The census bureau has two of the few copies in existence existence ex ex- r and nd the Library of Congress Congress Congress Con Con- gress one Adams' Adams Prophecy u Four years before the first ceni cena cen cen- i a sus was taken John Adams destined destined des des- tined to become the second President Press Pres Pres- s ident of the United States had hada a vision of the potentialities of pro pro- yE a America which led him to predict pre dict diet that the population of the H United States would some time exceed At that time ume such a prophecy seemed little littleS littlemore S 1 more than a wild flight of the imagination and was branded as utterly ridiculous t. t 1 Writing from London where he was minister to the Court of St. St Gl James he said It has ever been t my hobby horse to see rising in i. i America an empire of liberty and a prospect of or orr r of freemen without one noble or king among them r- r It was John Tyler tenth President President dent of the United States blessed J with a similar vision who made madea madet 2 t a similar prophecy though not so extravagant as Adams' Adams but at the same time doubtful of fulfillment t. t y and missed his guess by only a afew afew few years and a relatively small number of millions of population f. f In a letter addressed to Col Samuel Samuel Sam Sam- Ii 1 uel Gardiner of Shelter island r whose son married Tylers Tyler's l. l daughter and dated from the ex ex- I 1 Presidents President's country seat Sherwood Sherwood Sher Sher- wood Forest Va November 26 20 i 1850 Tyler said In a little littlemore littlemore more than half a century a peo peo- j i pie who were regarded as little better than a host of murderers L or sojourners among savage tribes have attained position among the first civilized powers r With a spirit of adventure heretofore unequaled by anything er which has occurred on the map maptin tin of the world there is united adeep a adeep deep plodding sagacity which t crowns the most daring enter enter- with success Such a peo pee pie even had they attained that which is denominated a stationary stationary station- station l ary condition in regard to population lation would not fall fail to attract great and absorbing attention But Out when the reverse is the fact tact when our population is known to double in every period of ty-five ty years when having now nowa a population of that number before the child now in inthe inthe the nurses nurse's arms attains maturity matu rity is destined to reach nearly t and before that same child shall have passed the 4 boundaries of middle age to s J now How Right Were s Now that Uncle Sam is preparing preparing I t ing again to count his children JH r it is interesting to check up on t the predictions of these two Presidents Presidents Pres Pres- and see just how nearly right they were Although Tylers Tyler's Ty Ty- lers ler's prophecy was a bit too optimistic op op- if car he was not far tar wrong f At the time his letter was written written writ writ- 1 ten the population of the country v F i was He lie predicted that I J it would double in the next 25 i years and although there are no figures available for 1875 by 1880 it had reached It had not reached the mark by 1900 as his II II D n S 1 S S I ION O N S ZI l' l 5 T 2 r i s It p o 2 i o t tm H a m j 41 tJ Q vi tV 7 N Ao 0 tm h h u. u t b as w wm EI s M Mb m O y x k f c p pd Z 1 d m o 0 DISTRI DISTRIBUTION TION era 0 1 0 0 I r or nu Q POPULATION 10 OT OP THE TOE WILTED mD STATES I FIRST CENSUS 1790 11 tion suggested for Uncle Sams Sam's children then numbered and it was not until 20 years later that it reached the mark of Even though the doubling process which he prophesied did not continue consistently consistently con con- there did take place the amazing growth in the nation of people in half a century or an increase in population of per cent So Tylers Tyler's prophecy was not so extravagant as it must have seemed at the time And when there is taken into consideration the steady increase during the years since John Adams made y 3 F I has one Miss Mass Mildred Keaton has bas one of the toughest assignments In taking the census She covers the Arctic coast from Point Barrow Bar Barrow ar row east to the Canadian Alaskan-Canadian line the route over which she to treat ailing natives as a field nurse for the Office of Indian Affairs known his vision even his estimate estimate esti est mate does not now seem so fan ran The 1930 census gave a total of people under the Stars and Stripes On June 27 1936 1930 the population was estimated at of an increase of in six years or nearly a year The census bureaus bureau's last preliminary estimate of the nations nation's na lions tion's population as of July 1 I 1938 was an increase of in the two years since sine e the estimate of 1936 That meant approximately each year In 2000 A A. D. D Even though the increase seems to be growing smaller there is still a large enough gain each year to justify the prediction tion lion that John Adams' Adams estimate e of may eventually b be e reached On the basis of the increase in increase in crease since 1930 it will take tak e nearly 70 years and we will pro probably b ably reach the year 20 2000 O 0 A. A D D. D before we reach a population o oi of r in the U U. S. S A. A AI I Officials of the census bureau burea u regard the 1940 census as pro probably b ably the most important and far far- reaching since that first one 15 0 years ago For this one will L Le e much more than a mere count counting in g n I of noses As in past years th the e census will cover population occupations occupations oc irrigation drainage manufactures business mines mine y and quarries vital statistics cot col cotton colon ton on production and consumption and financial statistics of states state s and cities In addition the census s takers akers will also assemble data dat a never sought before and these thes e data will bear upon the new s social so eo o- o vial cial and economic situations situation s which have arisen in the last fe few sw w years bringing with them lems ems that are yet unsolved For this census will also be concerned concerned con con- corned with such questions as unemployment unemployment un un- unemployment un- un employment migrations from one state to another and additional addition addition- al vital statistics bearing on public pub pub- lie lic ic health and facilities for treatment treatment treat treat- ment of disease Much of the health data may prove to have a decided bearing upon the vital ita I problem of or national defense For instance the census authorities hope to learn how many men would be incapacitated for military military mili mill tary service by disease Problem of Migration The problem of migration Isone is isone isone one to which President Roosevelt submitted a report to congress setting forth that population shifts From state to state were not of concern only to the one state Into which the great influx had taken place California being the outstanding out standing example but that they affected the whole nation Migration Migration Migration Mi Mi- gration from state to state is a anew anew anew new social movement in the United Unit ed States directly traceable to unemployment In addition to asking his children chil chil- children dren the usual questions about age sex color marital status homes and education Uncle Sam will also want to know about their present economic condition their profession or occupation and whether they are employed or un un- employed Each person will also be asked where he lived 10 years ago so that some measure of migration mi ml- gration may be obtained The most significant data however however how how- ever in the opinion of the census authorities will be the figures indicating the trend of population growth which has been steadily declining and the distribution according to age groups A continuing continuing con con- decline in population will I have a decided bearing on the future economic and social life lUe of the na nation A smaller population foreshadows a reduction in future markets at home and abroad Fewer pupils pupils pu pils pUs in the public schools will indicate indicate in in- a lesser need for schoolhouses school school- houses and other plant equipment and a greater surplus of teach teach- ers An increase in the higher age groups will have important economic effects in the form of a amore amore amore more persistent demand by the higher age groups for a redistribution redistribution button of the profits of industry such as the various old age pension pension pen pen- sion slon schemes that have caused so much disturbance in the last few years That combined with witha a decrease in the lower age I groups will mean lower incomes for the younger Americans The job of securing all this information in Information Information In In- formation will require the services servIces ices of approximately persons per sons 0 oJ of whom will be employed em in Washington compiling the data gathered by the enumerators in to the field The cos cost t of this task is estimated at 20 History tells us that the tit hi In- In census ever made was taken by Moses Take ye the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel after their families bythe by bythe bythe the house of their fathers with the number of their names every male by their polls from twenty years old and upward all that are able to go forth to war in Israel Thus spoke the Lord to Moses and Moses with Aarons Aaron's assist assist- assistance ance collected the figures for the first census report which may be found in practically every home and hotel room It is appropriately appropriately appropriately entitled Numbers the fourth book of the Bible Dible By its breadth of scope the census census cen cen- sus William of Normandy ordered for his new kingdom of England resembles modern surveys He commanded his people in 1085 A.D. A.D. A.D. A. A D. D to record every lord and peasant peas peas- peasant ant every acre every ox every mill every manor every weir and every plow the value alue thereof there there- of and this and this is forward looking looking- the natural resources woods fields and streams capable of development de do- and revenue The report report re re- port to William the Conqueror became became be be- came the Book unreadable un un- unreadable readable today except by scholars scholars schol ars yet protected in the public record o office Ilce at London as one of the most precious possessions of England Uncle Sam was one of the pioneers plo pie in this business of counting his children scientifically Sweden Sweden Swe Swe- den took the lead before our first census in 1790 but Eng England and France and Prussia did not seethe see seethe seethe the necessity of regular counting of noses until 10 or 20 years later Russia took no census until 1897 The first American census taken taken taken tak tak- en in 1790 was very limited in scope and was directed by the United States marshals They were allowed 13 months for the job and when the totals were added up our population was less than That census related solely to population The name of the head of the family was taken together with the number of persons in each family classified as free or slave The whites who were free were classified as free whites as male or female and the free whites males as over or under 16 years of age That was about all aU there was to it The marshals who supervised the 1790 count numbered only 17 and the enumerators The cost was The deeply rel religious gi us settlers of America nearly neatly upset our first census when they harked back to another less fortunate Bible cen- cen v Taking information from a census schedule by means of acard a acard acard card puncher Facts are translated trans into figures on this ma ma- chine sus Satan stood up against Israel Israel Is Israel Is- Is rael they pointed out to the marshals marshals marshals mar mar- and provoked David to number Israel from Beersheba even to Dan What happened God was displeased therefore he smote Israel The Lord sent pestilence upon Israel and there fell of Israel men men Fears that our first census would bring similar destruction upon the nation did not materialize materi materi- materialize alize so the marshals delivered their reports to President Washington Washington Wash Wash- ington within nine months for all the original states except Ver Ver- mt m nt Rhode Island and South la Ia Vermont and Rhode Is- Is Is md and i u the Union later The marshal of South Carolina found workers scarce at 1 per heads counted With the exception of a Ively few when the vast total is considered the original records of every family enumerated inthe inthe in inthe the 1790 and subsequent census are on file in the census bureau The missing records have been lost or destroyed by accident However the file on John Hancock Hancock Hancock Han Han- cock has been preserved and his family was reported as being made up of two white males over o sixteen years of age three white females and seven other free persons not white In the taking ol ot the 1860 census census census cen cen- sus each person was for the first time asked to give the value of his or her real and personal prop prop- erty The records for Illinois show that Abraham Lincoln's family comprised Mr Lincoln his wife his three sons and a boy fourteen years old named Philip Mr Lincoln said he was worth of which was the value of his real estate the remainder being personal proper proper- ty In the same Sime census James Buchanan listed his household as i consisting of himself his niece i Miss l Harriet Lane and 11 employees em em- employees I and servants all of the latter being of foreign birth The system of ent- ent en was adopted ft it the census census cen cen- sus of 1850 and at the same time timea a number of new classifications were added Illiteracy added illiteracy school attendance at occupation place o of birth age etc |