CENSUS TAKING

Evening Star, Issue 22194, 23 November 1935, Page 32

CENSUS TAKING

PRELIMINARY WORK BIG CHANGES SINCE 1926 DATE NOT YET FIXED 1\ ith the tremendous economic and social changes that have taken place within _the_ last 10 years the coming census in New -Zealand is bound to disclose some highly interesting and significant features of community development and trends in the Dominion (says the Wellington ‘Post’). This stocktaking qt the human wealth of the country is not only of extreme importance to the Government and its advisors, but it is*of inestimable value to the trader, as it acts as a base upon which he can adjust his business operations. Plans for the taking of the census are well forwards, but*before the full details are completed they have to receive the approval of the Minister in charge. No indication was ascertainable as to the nature of the schedule that will be issued to each: household, but it will, of course, be just as inquisitive as usual. While it might ask a number of highly personal questions, there is comfort in the thought that you can confess everything and that nothing will be used in evidence against you. The contents of each schedule are kept a close secret. They are known only to the officials directly concerned, and they are under oath not to reveal any information detailed on the schedules. As soon as the particulars are transferred to cards, and the authors of the schedules reduced from names to numbers, the final accounting takes place and the schedules are destroyed. A sample of the personal schedule used in the 1926 census gives an indication of the variety and scope of the questions asked. There are 16 major questions on this, and a little note at the top of the sheet reminds one that there is a penalty of £2O awaiting a person who does not answer the questions completely and accurately. NATURE OF QUESTIONS. Alter the orthodox questions relating to name, address, age, and sex, the schedule becomes a little more personal about one’s domestic status and character of occupation, and so on. Occupations are graded. Tf yon happen to be an employer you put clown the letter E; if you are in business on i your own -account you are known as 0; if you are a regular wage-earner you take W; and if you happen to bo relatively working for nothing you are simply A. _ • In another section you are asked to denote the number of working days lost during the previous 12 months, ami the cause of their being lost—whether sickness, accident, injury, or unemployment not due to strikes or lock-outs. Your birthplace and length of residence in _ New Zealand are required, along with your religious pro--fession and your nationality, and you are asked to indicate the category in which your income falls. Altogether it is a comprehensive document. Those responsible for it did not leave very much out. An assurance that all the information will be treated confidentially appears in more than one place on the schedule, and on the back of the 1926 schedule is the following: “The Government gives an unqualified assurance '■< that the information obtained will be used only for statistical purposed. As on previous ocasions, when the information from the census schedules is transferred to the punched machine cards, where the identity of the individual is quite lost, the schedules themselves will he destroyed by fire under supervision.” The personal schedules were used for all persons except such members of the family of the householder or occupier .of a dwelling as ordinarily resided in such dwelling. In addition to a personal schedule a dwelling schedule was issued. •. , HOUSING CONDITIONS. In addition to particulars of a person al nature, information about housing conditions, a feature of every census since 1916, is sought, though in certain respects the quantitative analysis practicable in a census does not supply all the information necessary for a comprehensive survey of housing conditions. Work of this character is to he undertaken independently. No definite date has yet been selected, though the Minister in charge (the Hoti. A. Hamilton) intimated some time ago that a date in April has been set aside. This has yet to he confirmed. For more than six years autumn has been the chosen period for the taking of a census. Three factors govern this choice. In the first place the date must he late enough in the season to avoid any undue dislocation of population - as a result of holiday-making. The date of Faster, of course, has to be considered in this connection. Climate also enters into the question. While there are certain advantages in favour of a midwinter census, there would be certain other difficulties and expense. In April'it is generally found that the weather is more settled, and. of course, the days are longer. Then there is the question of uniformity with other countries. At the 1920 Empire Statistical Conference it was resolved that all countries should aim at a census date falling within two months of April 15, unless local conditions were such as to prevent this. While it was the custom for many years to collect the census statistics on a Sunday, they were collected last time on a week day—on a Tuesday—and this day has been set aside for the 1936 census, according to. the last announcement made by the Minister. The widespread growth of the week-ending habit was responsible for the departure from the Sunday., It was felt that there would bo more stability of population on a working day, and this, of course, is essentia! if the collection of data is to he facilitated.'