The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, March 9, 1901, Page 6

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SATURDAY, MARCH 9, 1901. Call. SePRt bt MARCH o9, 1900 CThe SATURDAY.. KELS, Proprietor. 8. LEAKE, Manager. ..Telephone P JOHN D. SPREC #é€ress A1l Communicstions to A OFFICE JLBLICATION OFFICE. .. Market and Third, 8. ¥. Telephone Press 201, ROOMS. 217 to 221 Stevenmon St. Telephone Press 202, EDITORIAL Delivered hy Carriers. 15 Cents Per Weelk. Stnzie C x. G Cents. Terms by Mail, Including Postm LY CALL (including Sundsy), one year.. DAILY CALL fincluding Sunday), 6 months. DAILY CALL (including Sunday), 3 months ILY CALL—By Fingle Month CALL. One Year.... CALL. One Year All postmasters are authorized to receive sabreriptions. cortes will be forwarded when reqnested. L ssfizs & the World in Fighty Days.” Opera Company, March 18. * commencing Sunday. streets—Specialties. eville every afternoon and ay afternoon, key Clab (Oakland)—Rac ANOTHER TRACK VICTIM. NE more has been added to the lengthening list ting at the racetracks, and the “responsi ty" sthor of the ordinance permitting gambling at Ingleside has to 1 extent been increased. A young ested on T day upon a charge of burglary jessed himself guilty, and by way of explana- < ctated that after squandering all his money at he became desperate and could find no tunes except through the com- etrack trieve his this were very common in San was running in full bla sible for it, is not going to find ecure. Gambling has a vitiat- left neither a conscience nor He turns from the race- vy means possible. Some- some-- cometimes larceny imes burglary and some- When none of those means of obtain- r gambling are open to him the ing wretch commits suicide. noted that legalized track gambling not of the community where it is s the people i cts to that community the vicious m other localities. Toughs, black- als zre drawn by racetrack gambling racted by carrion. Thus it is not on the very day one broken track ted for burglary it was learned that home on a quiet street in the masked footpads, who demanded 1 when he fled from then. offenses to record while operation as a place of legalized gam- nace of the curse affects every business the city. No one can fore- ted emplcye, what public offi- ed into crime by losses at the n any one tell what home will be next Jars, or upon whom the footpads of the rext assault. The danger is over nmunity, and until the crime has been no one can even so much as guess what re or who will be its victim. In the meantime the public may draw what consola- it can from the fact that the author of the Ingle- ling ordinance has openly and publicly an- nigh the whole & be its na rounced hi s “responsible.” REINSTATEMENT OF PRICE. IEUTENANT PRICE has been not only re- L instated in his former rank in the police service assigned to the duty of suppressing vice and maintain- ing the law in Chinatown. In appointing Price to that duty the Chief of Police has done well. The act completes the vindication of the wronged officer and restores him not only to his rank but to the very work he was engaged upon when removed and disrated. Having been assigned to that work the Commission- ers should now give Lieutenant Price full authority to act and should cordially support him in all that h= undertakes for the enforcement of law. He shonld be given as far as possible a iree hand in order that he may effectually disprove the charges of his secret ene- mies by showing himself exactly the right man for the place. It will be remembered that during the recent inves- tigation by the Assembly committee into the relations of the police with Chinese violators of the law one of the Chinese witnesses swore that a large sum oi money was raised by the highbinders of Chinatown for the purpose of getting Price removed because his activity in suppressing vice in the Chinese district was displeasing to them. That evidence, taken in connec- tion with the fact that the former Police Commission had removed Price upon secret testimony and with- out giving him 2 hearing, Was almost sensational in its effect upon the public. It disclosed the existence of a conspiracy supported by Chinese money to pro- cure the removal of a police officer solely because he was faithful to his duty, and consequently it will ba everywhere recognized that the Chief of Police has done right in restoring Price to the Chinatown work. The conspirators who procured his removal in the first instance will doubtless renew their intrigues against him, and it is therefore the duty of the Com- missioners and the Chief of Police to give him a full and resolute support. If that be done we may see a speedy reform in the purlieus of Chinatown. Lieuten 2nt Price cannot be ignorant that he has an oppor- tunity to make a brilliant record as a supporter of the law, nor can it be doubted that he will do his best 10 make the most of it. % i cases in the annals of crime caused by bet- | but has been intrusted with command of a squad | WAR TAX REDUCTIONS. ESPITE the fears of the public that in the con- | ference on the war tax reduction bill the Sen- ate would force the House to accept the Sen- ate amendments, the result was a distinct triumph for the House. The bill 25 adopted is much more like the original bill as reportad from the Committee on Ways and Means than that sent down to the House by the Senators. If in its present form the measure be not wholly satisfactory, it is’certainly much better than | what was threatened when the conference was ar- ranged. The new bill is to go inte effect on and after July 1—that is, at the beginning of the next fiscal year. ! In his inangural address President McKinley esti- mated it would reduce taxation by about $41,000,000, | or $1,000,000 more than was provided for in the orig- inal measure. A summary of the bill agréed upon by | the conference shows the following changes: | Tobacco—Twenty per cent discount of the original tax | of 12 cents per pound, as against 2 per cent reduction, | as fixed by the Senate. The rate agreed upon will make | the tax $9 8) per one hundred pounds. | Cigars—On those weighing more than three pounds | per 1000 the House rate of $8 per 1000 was retained, as against $3 60, as in the present law. On those weighing !less than three pounds per 1000 the Senate rate of 18 cents per pound was allowed to stahd, as against the | rate of §1 per 1000, as fixed by the existing law. | - Cigarettes—On those welghing not more than three pounds per 1000 the Senate action fixing- the rate at 18 | cents per pound prevailed. g eer—The House rate of $16) per barrel and repealing 71 per cent discount was retained. Bankers' capi- | tal—Present law retained. Commercial brokers' tax— Repealed, Certificates, of stock transfers—The rate of 2 cents for each $100 is retained, and the Senate amend- ment making the law include the transactions of bucket shops were acceptad by the House conferees. Sales of products at exchanges—The Senate amendment exempt- | ing gales of merchandise in actual course of transporta- tion was accepted, but the rate of 1 cent for each $100, as fixed by the present law, was retained. Bank checks— Repealed in accordance with the House agtion. Certifi- cates of deposit—Tax repealed. Promissory notes—Tax repealed. Money orders—Tax repealed. Bills of ex- | change, foreign—The' rate fixed at 2 cents for each $100, | in accordance with the Senate amendment. Bills of lading for exports—Repealed. Express receipts—Repealed. Telephone messages— Repealed, Miscellaneous bonds—Tax repealed, except upon bonds of indemnity. Certificates of damage and certificates not otherwise specified—Repealed. Charter party—Repealed. Conveyance—Exempted below $2500; | above $2500 25 cents for each 3500, in accordance with | Senate action. Telegraph messages—Tax repealed. In- | surance—Tax repealed on all kinds of insurance. Leases—Tax repealed. Manifests—Tax repealed. Mort- gages—Tax repealed. -~ Steamship passage tickets—Ex- empted below $i0 in value, and the rate fixed at 50 cents for each $50 in cost for that price and over. Power of attorney—Tax repealed. Protest—Tax repealed. Ware- house receipts—Tax repealed. Proprietary medicines— Tax repealed. Perfumery and cosmetics—Tax repealed. Chewing gsum—Tax repealed. Legacies—Law modified S0 as to exclude from taxation legacles of charitable, religious, literary or educational character. 1t is to be noted that the amount of the reduction is far in excess of what was originally proposed. Sec- retary Gage recommended a reduction of $30,000,000 only. The increasing prosperity of the country, how- eevr, has been such as to make the revenues much larger than was expected, so that the reduction of £41,000,000 is not likely to hamper the Government in any respect. - Major Blakeney is of the opinion that any effort on the part of Uncle Sam’s soldiers to tell the truth would be in the nature of a fatal operation. He is probably also assured that some of the witnesses at the Rio investigation will never die from the cause he suggests. THE NEW STAR. ROM a popular point of view the new star that suddenly made its appearance on February 22 in the constellation Perseus has not been so great | a success on this coast as in the East. It has received | here a handsome but passing notice from the press, and that has been about all. In the East, however, it appears to be a bigger attraction than anything at the theaters, the Presidential inauguration or city politics. Journalists write about it, society talks about it, science studies it, and young men and maidens go forth in the evening to gaze at it. From the reports that come to us it seems the star makes its appearance in the skies of our Eastern States at a time propitious to popular entertainment. Boston reports seging it almost directly overhead at sunset and high up in the northwest at 9 o’clock. Those are hours well fitted for star-gazing, and even Mrs. Grundy can hardly complain of young folks who start on their strolls for astronomic study at early twi- light and get home before 10. With thg social aspect of the matter, however, we have little concern and hardly any interest. The slight- est words of astronomers are worth more to the peo- ple of this coast than the enthusiastic babbling of forty lovers on a subject of this kind. When we turn to the talk of-the astronomers, however, we find them | engaged in a dispute in which they fling around ref- | erences to a hundred years, more or less, as if time were no object. Even worse do they treat space. They put on or take off some billions of miles from the estimates of one another as if space were a mere matter of speculation. One authority says the star is about six million times as far from the earth as the sun, or “about 560 trillions of miles,” and he estimates that the illumina- tion we now sec must have occurred in 1803. In other words, it has taken this light something Jike ninety-cight years to travel to our eyes. The same ex- pert adds that if the explosion which caused the light also gave rise to sound loud enough to traverse the aistance to this globe it will be heard here somewhere about 70,000,000 years from now, and will no doubt greatly astonish the natives who happen to be here at that time. | Such figures are large, but they are not the lar- i gest that have been estimated. .Another astronomer |is quoted as having said: “What are we witnessing? | A phenomenon that occiirred on the 22d of February, | 1901? No. We are perhaps looking upon that which | took place in the dawn of the history of man upon earth. That which we see now is no more in exist- '; ence; we are witnessing that which occurred in the | lcng distant past. Is it the burning up of a world? ' The spectroscope shows all such conflagrations, if ! such it be, to be caused by the brilliant incandescence of hydrogen gas. May it have been caused by the - falling of a planet into a sun, or a star colliding with a star in its course through the heavens? Science reaches out to solve the mystery. Some day we will | know more about it.” ; | .Of all the speculations on the subject that which is | of most interest to us is the suggestion that the new | star may be some huge burning and blazing mass | traveling* in our direction from tke far-off regions of | space. If such be the case the fiery wonder will yet | be a'menace and make things warm for this planet, so | that Alaska will be the pleasantest place of residence within the wide territories of the United States. For- tinately we need not be alarmed for the present, Those who believe the star to be coming our way | have made calculations of its speed and have arrived i at the conclusion that if it be journeying in our direc- ltian it will not get as near to us as the sun in less than 30,000 years. 5 ¥ l Finally, it is to be noted that this is not the first nor 0 - | these cases it openly and flagrantly violated the law. | interstate corporations, but the powerful hands of | the brightest unexpected star that has blazed out in the heavens within the records of history. Such a stav made its appearance in 1572 and grew to such bright- ness it was visible in full daylight. ,Perhaps the visitor now flaming in Perseus will give us a similar exhibi- tion and prove a recoid-breaker. SENATOR NELSON'’S ' EXAMPLE. HILE the people of San Francisco and of the State generally are congratulating one another upon the passage by the Senate of the China Basin bill they should not fail to give due credit to Senator John H. Nelson of the Twenty-fifth District, who dyring the whole controversy stood firmly on the side of the people and was largely instrumental in obtaining the victory over the antagonists of the measure. The attitude of Senator Nelson in the contest is ir striking contrast to that of the notorious “Eddie” Wolfe, who, by the grace of the bosses, misrepresents the Twenty-first District. While Wolie was doing the work of the bosses in a coarse way and was denouncing right and left all the advocates of the bill,’ including in his sweeping condemnation every com- mercial organization representing the business inter- ests of the people, Senator Nelson was working with an equal zeal but with much better manners on thz side of public interests. He represented the senti- ment of his constituents and was faithful to their wel- fare. Nothing that the opposition could do was able to shake him in his firm resolve to be true to the peo- ple who had elected him to office. : The fidelity of Senator Nelson is not unexpected to those who know him. He is one of the Republicans against whom the bosses fought during the campaign. They knew he would not do.their bidding and they tried to defeat him. Fortunately for the city and the State the voters of the Twenty-fifth Senatorial District were not to be deceived. The event has proven that they voted for the right man, The China Basin bill is a measure of great importance to San Francisco, and the defeat of the bill by the votes and the intrigues of San Francisco representatives in the Senate would have been in the nature of a public disaster. It would have delayed for many years an improvement in our transportation facilities which is of iniperative urgency. Therefore, in all our satisfaction at the pas- sage of the bill, we should not forget to give due credit to the fidelity and efficiency of Senator John H. Nel- son, TRIUMPHANT TAX SHIRKING. HE action of Wells, Fargo & Co. in settling the swits brought against it in this city to compel it to pay its war taxes indicates conclusively that the corporation did not care to meet the issu~ squarely. If it was not worth while to litigate the | matter the suits might have been compromised imme- diately after being instituted; but skillful attorneys have been paid handsomely for carrying these actions into the United States courts and back again, and for devoting.a great deal of valuable time to obstructing the wheels of justice it ‘conjunction with them. Moreover, the fact that, according to statements of the parties interested, the corporation has liquidated the judgments in full and all the costs is a practical | confession that when it refused to pay its war taxes in In short, notwithstanding the indignant denial of the attorney for Wells, Fargo & Co., we consider the set- tlement of these suits a confession of judgment. Indeed, the action is something more than a con- féssion of judgment. It is a confession that during the past two years Wells, Fargo & Co. has been, through technicalities and with the aid of its attorneys, rob- bing its customers of large amounts of money daily. At the beginning of the controversy over these war | taxes it was estimated that by refusing to stamp its receipts and bills of lading this express company alone took from its patrons in the neighborhood of $10,000 | a month, Therefore successful evasion of the law has netted the company in two years about $24e,000. This sum does not seem large when it is remem- bered that it has beea taken from the people in the shape of cent pieces, but the principle is sufficiently | important to merit further consideration. When Con- gress passed the war revenue act it intended that the express corporations of the country should contribute a small sum toward carrying on hostilities with Spain and paying the expenses of the conquest of Porto Rico and the Philippines. Not only have these organ- izations succeeded in defrauding the Government of this money, but they have done so with insdlence and defiance. The statute Mas now been repealed, however, and the burden has been taken off the backs of the people; but notwithstanding it ought to be somebody’s duty to ascertain whether or not the express companies of the United States owe any duty to the Government the performance of which it can enforce. Laws are passed to discipline the railroads, the trusts and other Uncle Sam seem to be paralyzed when he attempts to take from the express companies a small sum in taxes to be used for the defense of the nation in a foreign war. . The Democratic members of the United States Sen- ate are raising a row because,a Republican member has been given a seat among them. They should con- sole themselves with the thought that if they pretend to be particular in reference to the company they keep he certainly is not. —_— The row and rumpus and babel of tongues which accompanied the opening of the first Legislature of the Territory of Hawaii indicate that the island solons have at least one advantage over the rest of us. They are at liberty to swear in several languages at once. The Pacific Mail Steamship Company has offered a reward _ol $1000 to uny one who will find the wreck of the Rio. This is one way of shirking a solemn duty imqotgd upon the corporation by death and the corporation’s own appalling negligence. —_— An American firm of canners is being.censured for placing only nine.oysters in each can shipped to Mexi- can consumers. The offenders must have had some reason to believe that our Mexican friends intended to start.church fairs on the wholesale. Wir'elen telegraphy is now in practical operation among the Hawaiian islands. This is bringing the system near enough home to suggest a fear that ths local yellow sheet will soon announce the fact as a discovery of its own. The Silver Republican party of Idaho has formally been disbanded. The sad affair seems not to have possessed the dignity even of a respectable fune-al, The party had been dead so long that its burial be- came a sanitary necebsity. Queen Wilhelmina is being overwhelmed with gifts which range in variety from a tea set to a railroad train. It is unfortunate that bounteous nature was not so kind in her presentation of a husband. | sion with reference to its population. PAPERS ON CURRENT TOPICS | PREPARED BY EXPERTS AND SPECIALISTS FOR | THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL. Wonderful Inventive Genius and Practical Talent Displayed in Taking the American Census. By Dr. Frederick ¥H Wines. ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF THE CENSUS. * (COPYRIGHT, 1901.) IV.—TAKING THE CENSUS. The foundation of census-taking is geo- graphical. It consists of the divislon nl‘ the territory to be canvassed Into dis- tricts of proper size, having regard both | to area and to population. The number| of enumeration districts in the present census was about 53,000, and the popula- tion enumerated was 76,304,799, 50 that the average number in each district was ap- proximately 1500, although there were great differences in detall, according to the varying density or sparseness of pop- ulation. In general the boundaries of the districts correspond to those of political | divisions, beginning with the States and descending to those of townships or of voting precincts, according to locality. The determination of these boundaries in advance necessitates a vast amount of ex- amination of maps and of statutes, to- gether with much official correspondence, and is a troublesome undertaking. A de- scription of the district was pasted in each portfolio for the enumerator’s infor- mation; also, wherever practicable, a map showing at least its outline. This detail was new and serviceable. The only inno- vation of Importante in this branch of the work was the requirement that the erumerator in a_city should return the porujation of each block separately. A more striking novelty was the use of “street books,” in which not only the pos- ulation but the dwellings and other build- ings, or even the vacant lots, were entered in détall. This system served as a valua- ble check upon frauds in the enumer: tion, besides insuring a thorough canvass of the district and furnishing a record which enabled a vigilant Supervisor to keep track of “call backs,” where houses had to be revisited on account of the ab- sence of families on the occasion of the first visit. In addition to the street books, in cer- tain large cities lists of the houses and of the vacant lots, by street numbers, in each enumeration district, were prepared in advance for the enumerators’ use by the aid of the fire underwriters” maps. These were in the nature of a notifica- tion of the character and amount of work to be done by each of them, and enabled the supervisor to satisfy himself that no occupled dwelling had been overlooked in the house-to-house visitation. Choosing a Date for the Enumeration ¢ There is no satisfactory date in the en- | tire year at which to take the census. If the date is too early the northernmost portions of the country_are inaccessible on account of the continuance of the win- ter season. At a somewhat later date the | farmers in rural districts are busily en-| gaged in the preparation of the ground | and planting. By June 1 many residents | of cities have left their homes for the summer and are temporarily absent. There are objections to a date in the au- lumndalso which need not here be men- tioned. The fact that there are so many ab: sentees in cities at the time of enumera- tion is the occasion of much dissatisfac- tion and complaint. There is probably not a growing town in the United States of any size which does not cherish mixx-l many of them the exaggerated ideas en- tertained as to the actual number of in- habitants are based upon the more or less fictitious estimates given out by the pub- lishers of directories, who multiply the number of names contained in each of them by some assumed number. This number is_invariably too large. But in the twelfth census, taken last year, an attempt was made to include absentees in the enumeration as far as possible. Elaborate arrangements were devised with this end in view, including in cer- tain cities postal cards’ left at each house in advance of the summer exodus, inqui ing whether the family there residing an- ticipated leaving the city, and, if so, what would be their probable address on June 1. Much correspondence was had with absentees whose addresses could be pro- cured from any source, and they were af- forded the opportunity to fill and return by mail a special blank giving replies to the questions upon the population sched- ule. Large additions to the population were thus secured, and the result must have been a certain amount of duplica- tion of names, which was not a serlous error, in view of the unavoidable omis- sions’ on the other hand. A perfectly ac- curate enumeration is, of coyrse, impos- sible. By the combination of the methods and devices here described a more perfect and accurate enumeration of the population was secured than in any previous census. The amount of criticism In the press has been surprisingly small and but few at- tempts have been made to secure a re- count of any ecity. Statistics From Farms and Factories. | The agricultural and industrial census resent difficulties peculiar to each. auite Blfferent from those encountered in the listing of inhabitants. The number of farms to be enumerated approximated 6,000,000, and of manumcmrh{l&) establish- ments it was very nearly 650,000. Each of these was reported on a special schedule. Few farmers Keep books or accounts. This is true of many small mechanics. The larger firms and corporations are often most reluctant to disclose their | businets, even to the Government. Much | tact and patience and some slight show of authority are necessary in order to secure the desired information, and part of that secured is only an estimate, after all. The manufacturing statistics were | chiefly collected by special agents,. the schedules having been withdrawn in all manufacturing centers from the enumer- ators. The number of special agents was more than 2500, and the cost of field work in this division of the census ex- ceeded $400,000. The number of nts and cost of service in the agricultural division | was far less, because the farm statistics | were gathered by- the enumerators. Getting Figures on the Death Rate. The Government altempts to secure a statement of the number of deaths which occurred during the year prior to the cen- sus. Could it do so this would furnish one of the elements needed in order to formu- late the law of growth of population. It grows by births and by immigration, but diminishes through thé operation of 'emi- gration and death. The aggregate change noted from one decade to another is due to the differences ir_the rates at which these two groups of antagonistic influ- ences operate. The minor changes noted are due, on the otner hand, to removals from pl{nce to place within the territory | of the United States. Experience has shown that no accurate return of deaths can be secured through the enumerators. In the present census additional information has been obtained from the records in tae offices of the State and eity boards of health, so that a more probable estimate of the death rate in par- ticular localities in the country at large can be deduced from such figures as aré avallable. The returns of the population in citles by blocks will no doubt be of much benefit by enabling city health offi- cers to locate with fiener accuracy than ever before the precite plague spots which need watching and purification. . Preparing for the Tabulations. all the census that B (u‘.l Let ow suppose that :: o mpguma. tables of the office at Washington. What hap- pens next? - s The first effect of the completion of the is the sudden and enormous growth of the office force. What a task this involves “;u'in wfl of quick organiza- tion and trai of raw recruits be ima, . There are no on for this army like at ghlohm- of n'.'e"gp."',.'i of 3 in card- punching. - It still numbers, however, be- tween 2500 and 3000. The total cost of the clerical service to date has been in round numbers $2,000,000. ut what of the count to be made by these clerks in a limited time, since the act orders the publication of the final vol: b - ‘by .hlxly & 19027 ¢ 'st, a8 to the population. The popuia. ton achédules ure arranged in alphapett cal order by States, and in numerical or- der by supervisors’ and enumerators’ dis- tricts and placed in an immense fireproot vault built for their special accommoda- | tlon. Before they can be used they re- quire more or less edittg to supply pal- pable omissions, correct obvious errors, and to see that the population of incor- rated towns and villages is clearly dif- erentiated f 5 # et ‘rom that of purely rural dis. Then begins the labor of transcribing | all this information upon punched cards. There is a card for every man, woman and child enumerated, and these cards if placed in a pile one on top of ancther would reach to a distance of ten miles above the earth. The answers to the in- quiries contained in the population sched- ule are indicated by the respective si- tlons of the holes punched. One thou- sand clerks were employed in this par- ticular work, and were able after acquir- ing factlity to punch 1,000,000 cards, more or less, In a day. The punching was com- pleted 'in practically four months. Each card is so marked as to admit of iden- tification and comparison with the orig- inal schedule from which the recorded facts were taken. # Counting by Electricity. The counting of the entries of each de- scription is done by a most ingenlous elec- trical machine Invented by Mr. Hermann Hollerith, himself an emp{aya of the cen- sus office in 1880. The essential parts of this machine are: (1) a pinbox, with fine needle points set on delicate spiral springs in such manner that all or any number of them can be shoved back into the box when brought down, by the aid of a hand lever, upon the upper surface of a card; (2) as many sets of dials and auto- matic counters as are required for a sin- gle run of the cards; (3) the necessar Telays and eloctrical copnections. . EHach card {s-successively placed in position be- neath the pinbox, the lever is pulled by the operator, the box is brought down and wherever there Is no hole the needle is shoved back and there is no count; but wherever a_hole is directly over a’ hole in the card and passes through it an elec- trical contact ensues and the current, passing over the pfoper wire or wires, 18 connected to the proper counter or count- ers and the pointers affected make a pudden jump on the face of thelr Fespect- ive dials. he advantages of this meth- od are that it is rapid; it is automatic and involves no waste of brain energy on the part of the operator; it is cer- tain; it allows of counting several sets of replies to questions at one time, and, above all, it admits of counting these re- lies not singly but in combination. Thus, or example, instead of counting separ- ately tite number of males, that of whites and that of persons over voting age, we are enabled to count at one operation the | number of males who are also white and also of voting age. Without this machine the tabulation of complex results would be too difficult and too expensive to be | made at all. The scope of the scientific work of the census is thus immeasurably enlarged. Detecting Errors by Machinery. The machine count is divided Into what are known as “runs,” of which five or six are required in order to complete it. At each run a different group of facts 1s counted. The first of these is known as the “verifieation run.” Its primary aim is to discover errors in the punching, of which nine-tenths can be detected by the machine, which ceases to operate when- ever a- card Is placed under the pinbox that 1s inconsistent with itself or contains any one of certain inherent inconsistencies which the machine i wired to throw out. The rejected cards are compared with the original schedules, and new ones made to take their place. At this preliminary run a count is made of tbe native and foreign population, the negroes and whites, and the males and females. The data for the published census Dbulletins showing the population of the several States and Ter- ritories by minor civil divisions were thus obtained.” Each “run” consumes nearly or t“x!ls three months. The number of machines in operation is 150, for the use of which a heavy royalty is paid; but the saving in the cost of clerical labor is reat, as well as In time, and a higher uexrge of accuracy in the result is in- sured. The Hollerith mackines are used in the division of agriculture also, but there they are of a different type. The record made on the punched cards, of which there are two sorts—farm and crop cards—is one al- most exclusively of figures, so that a dif- ferent punching device is required, and the machine for counting out the resuit is an electric adding machine of marvel- ous capacity, both in respeet of the vol- ume of work accomplished and the rate of speed at whieh it eats up the cards. As soon as the count for any subdivision of territory is completed the result is copied from the dials upon ‘“resuit slips,” which are handed to the clerks engaged | in tabulation, by whom the copy for the printer is prepared. Triumph of the Twelfth Census. - From this brief account of the work of the Census Office it will be seen that it Is | })artly a scientific bureau, partly a manu- acturing establishment and partly a pub- lishing house. scale so vast, and are in themseives of such interest, that a number of repre- sentatives of foreign governments have closely observed them, with a view to the improvement of their own statistical methods. The great success of the iwelfth census i§ another triumph of American inventive genius and practical talent. When the four principal reports shall have been given to the world in the form of final volumes, Congress has authorized the director to take ug a list of specified topics formerly included in the census, but which can be Investigated wi the aid of enumerators, by ence and by special agents. vestigations will supplemental reports. Instead of dis- missing the entire force, as heretofore, the best of them will be retained. and a nucleus of experts will be on hand when the time for taking the thirteenth census arrives; so that more and better thought will be given in advance to its or- nization, and the heads of subordinate ranches of the work will not be, to so large an extent, no without experi- ence in their dutles or special training for them. This is a consummation de- voutly to be wished, and public opinien is rapidly crystallizing in favor of a per- manent Census Office. 5 FRED H. WINES. correspond- These in- A CHANCE TO SMILE. A gentleman found his little daughter crying bitterly because she had had a tumble. ‘‘Never mind, Wynnie,” he said, “won’t a chocolate make it better?” 'No,” sald the child between her sobs, ut two would do ‘Woman's Journal. “Who married you?’ asked the justice of a colored citizen who had been brought before him for some domestie trouble. “You, did, suh,” was the reply: “but I ain’t never voted fer you sence!”—Atlanta Constitution. Teacher—How many pounds to the long i s an:oclou- Pupil—Twenty-two f¢ B And how many .to the short ton? Precocious Pupil—Depends on the coal dealer.—Puck. ‘Ah,” the beautiful rl cried as an; t that the hara poetry in your soul h‘.‘l repiled, ; but if you Its operations are upon a | hout | be published in certain 100king at th ooking at the waste vour business you can there.”—Chicago Times- PERSONAL MENTION. ©O. O. Webber cf 3anta Rosa is at the Lick. .. A. Hockheimer of Willows fs at the Lick. F. H. Wheeler and wife of Stockton ars at the Grand. J. E. Rathbun of Willows s a guest at the California. Ferd K. Rule of Los Angeles is regis- tered at the Palace. Carl E. Lindsay, a lawyer of Santa Cruz, is at the California. R. H. B. Collier of San Jose is regis- tered at the California. L. Isaacs of Los Angeles is staying for a few days at the Palace. | Thomas Fox. ex-postmaster of Sacra- | mento, is staying at the Lick. ! T. Hourthan, a merchant of San Luls Obispo, is a guest at the Grand. J. W. Forgers, an <il man of Santa | Cruz, is a guest at the California. | Lewis T. Wright, manager of the Kes- wick mine in Shasta County, Is staying at the Palace. James W. Morrissey, for many years manager of the Madison Square Garden and Garden Theater. New York, is here in the interest of La Loie Fuller, who is to appear in conjunction with “The High- | wayman” at the Columbia next week. | —_——————— | CALIFORNIANS IN NEW YORK. | NEW YORK, March 8.—The following | Californians are in New York: From San Francisco—L. F. Seissler, M Herrin, W. F. Herrin, at Hoiland: R. McKenzie and wife, at St. Denis; H. F, Price, at | Albert; A. J. Scott, H. T. Scott, at Hol- land; E. A. Seifridge Jr. and wife, at Park Avenue; J. P. Young, at Holland; C. B. Dexter, at St. Denis; J. C. Connell, at Herald Square; J. Freeman and wife, at Grand Union; A. Schumacher, L. A. Schumacher, at Plaza. From Oakland—Mrs. Broadway Central. ————— CALIIOBNIANSLX WASHINGTON WASHINGTON, March 3.—The follow- ing Californians are registered at the Ra- leigh: Mr. and Mrs. J. S. Chapman, D. J. Brownstein, Los Angeles; Willlam Hall, San Franeisco. SLIGHT DELAY IN COMPLETING ATLAS . A slight delay has become impera- tive in the delivery of The Call's premium atlas, but what is lost in time will be more than compensated for in the added value of the splendii work which will be offered to sub- scribers of this paper. The atlas is not only to be absolutely accurate but will have the latest official statistics obtainable. The Federal Government has been slow in compiling and re- vising the census, and The Call atlas, | which must have this latest informa- tion, has necessarily been delayed. The following telegram explains the situation: CHICAGO, March 7, 1901. John D. Spreckels, Proprietor of | The Call, San Francisco: Owing to delay of Government in compiling and revising cemnsus it will be im- possible to ship first carload of atlases ordered by you before March 30th. They will go forward promptly that day by fast freight. GEORGE F. CRAM. ANSWERS TO QUERIES. HURTLEBERRY—S,, City. Hurtleberry 1s only another name for whortleberry. SERIN—S., City. The name given to a kind of fine rain or heavy dew which falls sometimes In a clear sky is serin SECOND HOMESTEAD BILL—P. E. H., Lonoak, Cal. The second homestead | bili became & law by the act of June 5, 1900. ' THE HUMAN SKULL—C. T., City. The growth of the human skull after the sev- enth year proceeds very slowly, but a slight increase goes on to about the age of 20. BERLIN AND PARIS—K. L, City. The population of Berlin, according to the cen- sus of 1900, was 1,843,000; that of Paris, ac- cording to the census of 1896, the latest, | was 2,536,834. PUZZLES—M. B. D., Petaluma, Cal. To ascertain if a magazine that publishes “puzzles, conundrums, etc.”” pays for contributions of that character you should write to the magazine that publishes such. This department cannot advise you as you do not name the magazine. S. G. Nye, at COLOR AND TATTOO-R. R, City. Any first class dealer In paints and colors will furnish colors that are not polsonous. The Chemical News says that tattoo marks on the human body will disappear by being first well rubbed with pure acetic acid and lard, then with a solution of pot- ash and finally with hydrochloric acid. | SPANISH COIN—W. €., Weaverville, Cal. The coin you describe In your letter of inquiry is a dos reales plece of the reign of Carlos 111 of Spain. Such a coin does not command a premium from dealers in colns. Spanish coins of the .face value of %, 1, 2, 4 and 8 reals are not wanted by d¢alers, though they date back 200 years. | A dos reales piece can be purchased from | dealers for 40 cent | A LEASE—Interested Reader, City. 1f a lease contains the following words, “for | a period of two yvears, with the privilege | of extending the same for two years more | at the same rental’” it means that the | lessee at the expiration of two years may | renew the lease for a term not to exceed two years at the same rental. If a leasa runs for a specified time it expires at that { time and must be renewed. SMUGGLERS—O., Oakland,,Cal. The records show only one case of opium smuggled In which any party by the name of Gallagher was said to be implicated. | That was in 1889. Gallagher and several | others were indicted for smuggling 2224 five tael boxes of opium. This was on June 11 of that year. The warrants were returned unserved and a nolle prosequi ‘was entered February 2, 1895, HOMESTEAD PURCHASE-P. E. H, | Lonoak, Cal. If a homestead settler does not wish to remain for five years on his tract, the law permits him to pay for it with cash upon making proof of sett ment and cultivation for a period of no less than fourteen months from date of entry to the time of payment. In such a case he will be required to pay 312 per acre for minimum land or $230 for land within railrdad limits, called double mini- mum land. 3 Cholce candies, Townsend's, Palace Hotel.® Cal. glace frult jc per Ib at Townsend's.* to the ont- . Specfal information supplied daily business houses and public ‘men o; Press CHDDM'}’ Burcau (Allen's). 510 gomery st. Telephone Main 1042. Statistical Information may be dull, but it is riotously humorous and sensational com| with some pages of the Con- gressional Record. ——e—————— Cheap to Bakersfleld. The Santa Fe will sell you a ticket to Bakers- field and return at the very low rate of $io. Good to leave San Francisco Masch $th. Side rides to the Kern County ofl wells at very low Secure your sleeping car reservations and make all arrangements at the company’ office, 641 Market street, or at Ferry depot. by }