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Graphite crucibles-stocks on hand and in transit and estimated requirements for ensuing 12 months.

Iron and steel products-stocks on hand and in transit, consumption, and production.

Jute-stocks on hand and in transit, cost of stocks, consumption, and production.

Kapok fiber-stocks on hand and in transit, consumption, and output.

Leather-stocks on hand and in transit (monthly).

Silk-stocks on hand and in transit, consumption, and production. Wool manufactures-machinery and production.

Commercial greenhouses-amount of fuel used, number of employees, and other data relating to the industry. The commercial greenhouse inquiry is being taken principally for the interest manifested in the consumption of fuel.

Secretary Redfield, of our department, made a very comprehensive statement before the Census Committee of the House, beginning at page 177 of the hearings, giving the reasons for a census of manufactures in 1920, and I shall be very glad to have the committee read his statement.

A census of mines and quarries should also be taken in 1920. The question may be raised as to whether such a census will duplicate the work done by the Bureau of Mines and the Geological Survey of the Interior Department. To this I would say that the purpose of the Bureau of Mines is to increase safety in the mineral industries and to aid in bringing about greater efficiency in the production and utilization of minerals, and that bureau does not touch the subjects covered by the Bureau of the Census in its decennial census inquiry relating to mines and quarries. The Geological Survey and the Bureau of the Census gather some of the same data, but the work is performed through close cooperation and without any duplication of effort. This is quite clearly shown in the statement of Hon. George Otis Smith, Director of the Geological Survey, beginning at page 226 of the hearings before the House committee, to which I desire to invite your attention.

It may be mentioned here that a census of agriculture has been taken in conjunction with each decennial census of population, beginning with that of 1840; that a census of manufactures has accompanied each population census, beginning with that of 1810, with the single exception of the census of 1830; and that an inquiry in regard to mines and quarries has been made as a part of each decennial census sirce and including that of 1840, with the exception of the census of 1900, following which, in 1902, an interdecennial census of mines and quarries was taken.

It may be safely assumed that if the complete census is not taken in 1920 the inquiries not then covered will be made later, since the demand for the statistics yielded by them is so great that there would be little question as to their being made at some time in the not-distant future by some governmental agency. If a census of population shall be taken separately, and later a census of agricul ture shall be taken separately, a great deal of wholly unnecessary duplication of work will result. This is because the field work on both the population and agricultural inquiries is done by the same

enumerators, at the same time, and is supervised by the same supervisors. In many localities a considerable part of the enumerator's time is taken up traveling from farm to farm, and the time thus consumed would be precisely as great as if he were taking a population census alone, or an agricultural census alone, as if he were taking a complete census.

In this connection I also wish to point out that it is extremely desirable to have the population and industrial data all relate to the same date in order that correct per capita figures can be calculated in regard to the output of all classes of agriculture, manufactured, and mineral products.

There are a number of changes which I should like to suggest in the bill as passed by the House, and if it is the pleasure of the committee I shall refer to them section by section and submit memoranda covering each item.

Senator TOWNSEND. May I ask, Mr. Rogers, when do you think that the census ought to be taken, if it is taken?

Mr. ROGERS. I agree with the report of those having the matter under consideration that it should be taken as of January 1, 1920. Senator TOWNSEND. And how many men, or what force will it take in order to do that?

Mr. ROGERS. Do you mean the population census, or the census of these various other

Senator TOWNSEND. No; I mean the whole census.

Mr. ROGERS. Well, I should think that it would take about 85,000 or 90,000.

Senator TOWNSEND. Well, if the war should be in progress at that time, how would you expect to get those men? Would you want to take them from the draft, or would you try to take all of the men who are beyond the draft age or less than the draft age?

Mr. ROGERS. I would not depend upon those who come within the draft at all.

Senator TOWNSEND. You would not ask exemptions for those men? Mr. ROGERS. No, sir; I would not ask deferred classification for the additional employees who would come within the draft age.

Senator NEW. And since the draft age is now from 18 to 45, you would be limited to those men who are of pretty advanced age for the taking of the census, would you not?

Mr. ROGERS. Well, there are a great many men who are not within the draft age-or I should say that there are a great many men within the draft age that will not be drafted.

Senator NEW. But the perception is that they will be exempted because of their unfitness for military service.

Mr. ROGERS. As you gentlemen are well aware, those who are in the deferred classes may never be called-or we hope that they never will, for we want to win the war before the time that they would be called. There are thousands who could do work of this character that would not be physically fit for the front.

Senator NEW. Well, some of those who are exempt-I will say that the question of Senator Townsend suggests a thought to me that it might be well to pursue-most of those exemptions are, if not on the ground of physical unfitness, are on the ground of the particular employment of the individual, on the theory that he is

employed in some essential work, and consequently he would not be available for service in the Census Bureau as an enumerator.

Mr. ROGERS. As I said to Senator Townsend, I am not dependent upon those within the draft. However, I can use many of them. I think that there are a great many young men, or boys-that is, those who are termed as boys-who are in the graded schools and are of school age, and I think they could be employed; and there are a great many teachers who would be acceptable at that period of the year-that is, January. The bureau would also have to rely more on women in taking the next census.

Senator NEW. Do you think that a census taken by a boy under 18 years of age would be a very reliable or efficient one?

Mr. ROGERS. Well, Senator, I find that there are a great many bright boys in the high schools who are under 18 years of age-bright enough to act as enumerators—

Senator NEW. Yes; they are bright enough; there is no question about that. But the question is, would they be

Mr. ROGERS. And they would be reliable enough.

Senator NEW. Well, it would seem to me that they should have a certain amount of experience, more experience than a boy of that age probably could have, in order to make him valuable as a census

enumerator.

Mr. ROGERS. I do not want you gentlemen to feel that I do not realize the difficulties under these war conditions, when the draft on our man power is so great. I know that there are very serious difficulties. Whether the war continues or not, I think that it would be the most difficult census to take that has ever been taken, and I am not going into it feeling that it is an easy job; it is not an easy job; there is no question about that if it is done successfully and done thoroughly.

Senator TowNSEND. And do you think that it is at present-I realize that you know better than I do-that this matter should be done. this year or in 1919?

Mr. ROGERS. I think that it is highly important, Senator. I know that it will be difficult to do it. Under the war conditions it will be more difficult to do it, but it would be still more difficult to do it if we do not make provision for doing it.

Senator TOWNSEND. And what provision would you make now, if it was to be done now; that is, to take the census in 1920? What would you do?

Mr. ROGERS. To get ready for the census?

Senator ToWNSEND. Yes.

Mr. ROGERS. Well, I would know what the legislation directed me to do or required me to do. I would proceed along the lines of preparation to take the census. I would undertake, at as early a period as I could, say in July, 1919, to create an organization.

The CHAIRMAN. Do you mean by July 1, the beginning of what is known as the decennial census period?

Mr. ROGERS. I mean to say that the decennial census period begins July 1, 1919.

The CHAIRMAN. And continues three years?

Mr. ROGERS. And continues three years thereafter. The enumeration date that I have been referring to is January 1, 1920.

Senator ASHURST. Is that when you take the enumeration of the population?

Mr. ROGERS. That is the date of the enumeration referred to. It would be done as of that date.

Senator SUTHERLAND. When I was in the Census Office it was taken on the 1st of June.

Mr. ROGERS. Perhaps you are right in regard to that. I think that was in 1890

Senator SUTHERLAND. That was in 1890. It was taken June 1, 1890. I was then chief of the division of population.

Mr. ROGERS. That may be true as to that, but this is proposed to be taken in January, 1920.

Senator TOWNSEND. I will say that I have not given the matter very much attention, although it has occurred to me that there might be and probably would be more obstacles in the way of taking the census and in making it anything like reliable in the midst of the war, but I will say I have not gone into it. You are giving your reasons for that, and I will be very glad to hear you.

Mr. ROGERS. I will be obliged to you, Senator. I find there is such a demand for the very things that we have that I believe it would be a very great loss not to have the statistics as they are called for, and then, perhaps, be called upon with one inquiry after another

Senator SUTHERLAND. How long have you been director there, Mr. Rogers?

Mr. ROGERS. Three years. I qualified as director on the 16th day of March, 1915.

Senator KING. Have you given any attention to the amount of duplication that is being practiced in the different departments of the Government in the way of census statistics-that is, by the Bureau of Mines and in the Department of Agriculture, who are taking the statistics that are also included in the general census?

Mr. ROGERS. Well, I find that there is some duplication, especially in these disturbed times. However, I think that we are eliminating that since the new boards and commissions and agencies have come to us; they are now coming to us for the information that we have. We undertook some little while ago to make an inquiry of just what the other bureaus were doing. That was done in cooperation with the other statistical agencies, and we have eliminated a great deal of work that might have entailed unnecessary duplication.

Senator KING. It always seemed to me that in maintaining this Census Bureau all matters of statistics should be left to that bureau instead of having some departmental investigation of statistics which are required in that way; it always seemed to me that it should be done through the Census Office, and not have all the duplications, which are, I suppose, quite numerous.

Mr. ROGERS. Well, I think that the more the census statistics and work are considered the more they are appreciated, and that the more the other agencies gathering statistics find that it absorbs their time the more they are using our office. I agree with you that if the duties of this main statistical office-the statistical office of the Government-were more largely used and its usefulness extended

that there would be a more general understanding of the value of the statistics.

Senator KING. It would seem so to me.

Mr. ROGERS. Decidedly so.

Senator KING. It looks to me that there has been a good deal of confusion in the various departments, when we have this bureau that is prepared to furnish all of these data.

Mr. ROGERS. I would not want to point out, for it might be discourteous to those gentlemen who are doing that work, and they are very competent, that there are a great many things they are attempting to do which they are not organized to do with the best results.

Senator KING. There is another feature of it that appealed to me strongly. When those independent investigations are made and statistics are ordered and gathered, they are generally done with some specific information in view, and as a result you do not get all of the facts as you would if the work had been done by an impartially organized body created for that purpose. You would not get that information to conform to the view or the idea of the man that has it in mind. With those investigations we never get the information right, and there is seldom any dispute about the information furnished by the Census Bureau.

Mr. ROGERS. That is very kind of you to say that. The Census Office is the statistical office of the Government. It ought to have but one view, and that is to get the figures and statistics that are accurate, and let the results simply be the analyses of such statistics and not the results of anybody's particular viewpoint. Its results ought to be impartial and without any bias at all.

Senator NEW. Unless it is done in that way it makes the information absolutely without value.

Senator KING. We had a man investigating with reference to coal and iron and labor, which was an ex-parte investigation by the way, and the information was obtained for the purpose of upholding a particular view which had been formed in advance.

Mr. ROGERS. Just along the lines of your remarks, Senator, it may be interesting to the committee to know that earlier in the war the Census Office volunteered to make itself useful in war work; that is, statistical war work, in addition to performing its current work, and the office pushed its current work right up to date. I tendered the services of 100 men for six months for war work. I was slow to get an engagement, but to-day we are turning out a number of pieces of important war work for the war boards and agencies. We now have 231 of our employees who are engaged on war work. During the fiscal year ended June 30, 1918, we have done war work equivalent to the services of 44 men for a year. We did that quickly through the organization that we have. I am not depreciating any other bureau or any other agency that may be engaged in the gathering of statistics, when I say that that work was practically a clear gain to the Government service; I refer to the saving in cost.

The CHAIRMAN. Do you feel that you have given us sufficient reasons for the taking of the census in the usual way, in the usual time; that is, the decennial census, or is there any information of that kind

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