Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 4.djvu/102

 86 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

" As assistant marshals are appointed under the American system, nice discriminations in respect to industrial relations can hardly be main- tained in a sufficient proportion of cases to give value to the aggregate results." General Walker, being eminent as an economist, and not as a politician, may be supposed to have used his utmost endeavor to dis- courage the appointment of officials for political reasons. That he was, in a measure at least, successful is shown by the fact, testified to by Mr. Steuart and by Colonel Wright, that the enumeration of the rural districts was more thorough in 1880 than in 1890. As showing the manner in which appointments of enumerators were made at the last census it may be proper to relate incidents that fell under the writer's observa- tion.

In that ward of Chicago in which he resided a Mr. W. kept a res- taurant, at which the writer was in the habit of taking his meals. This restaurant keeper, it seems, had been of service to the alderman of this ward by activity at the primaries. As related to the writer by Mr. W., this alderman came to the latter and asked him if he would not like a job where he could make some money, and, on his assenting, obtained for him an appointment as assistant marshal or enumerator. On obtain- ing his commission and schedules, Mr. W. came to the writer to ask information as to his duties, and finally became convinced that he would be unable to do the work. Finding that he could not himself employ someone to do the work for him, he went to the alderman, who at his request had the appointment given to a person keeping a barber shop adjoining his restaurant, who, while undoubtedly more compe- tent than the restaurant keeper, had no especial fitness for the work. In neither case does there seem to have been, by the appointing power, any questions asked as to the fitness of the appointees.

The enumerator in the district in which the writer resided was a superannuated clergyman who had been active as a stump speaker for the party in power. Calling at the writer's place of residence, he was unable to obtain the proper information because the person with whom he roomed was unable to furnish it. Meeting the enumerator on the street, the writer volunteered to furnish the information, and was met by the reply : "Oh! I've got past that."

The writer knows from experience on the Chicago school census that in a large proportion of cases a number of calls at the same place are necessary to obtain such information as was called for by the cen- sus schedule. Paid by the number of names returned, and inade- quately for a thorough and correct canvass, it is not to be supposed