Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 15.djvu/638

 624 "^HE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

This change will not only permit a more precise definition of occupations, but it will also be possible to group those gainfully occupied in two different ways : first, according to the profession, trade, or craft which they themselves pursue ; and second, accord- ing to the industry or business with which they are connected. Thus, a blacksmith may be employed in a village shop or in a railroad machine-shop or in a shipyard. Under the old schedule, if all blacksmiths were reported as such, the ship-building in- dustry or the railroad business would not be credited with its full number of employees; whereas, on the other hand, if the blacksmith were reported merely as a railroad-shop worker or a shipyard worker, the total number pursuing this particular craft was not shown. The new question distinguishing employers from employees and from those working on their own account, although it involves some difficulties and will probably not result in strictly accurate returns in certain cases, will nevertheless throw much-needed light upon the actual industrial status of the people of the country.

In this connection also, attention may be called to the changes in the instructions with regard to reporting the gainful occupa- tions of children. The widespread agitation as to child labor makes it desirable that the statistics on this subject should be placed on a more scientific basis than has been done in past cen- suses. Important as it is that the abuses of child labor should be done away with, it is nevertheless essential that the extent of child labor in this country should not be exaggerated. The danger of such exaggeration arises principally in connection with those children who work for their own parents. A very large propor- tion of the children of the country, and particularly of the chil- dren of farmers, are employed more or less of the time outside of school hours and during school vacations in assisting their parents on the farm, in the shop or store, or in housework. To distinguish between those whose employment in such a way is sufficiently extensive to justify reporting them as having a gain- ful occupation, and those whose work is too unimportant or discontinuous to justify classifying them as gainful workers, is very difficult. It seemed desirable to adopt a somewhat arbitrary