Proceedings of the deputation to the Local Government Board advocating a quinquennial census of the United Kingdom.

  • Royal Statistical Society
Date:
1904
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Proceedings of the deputation to the Local Government Board advocating a quinquennial census of the United Kingdom. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    'Reprinted from the Journal op this Boyal Statistical Society, Vol. LXYII, Part II (30th June, 1904).] Government Board, Friday, 13th May, 1904. Sir Francis Sharp Powell, M.P., Bart., in introducing the deputa- tion said : “ I have the higli honour and privilege of introducing to you a deputation in support of the principle, and I hope the practice, of having a quinquennial census of a limited character, namely,' dealing with numbers, sex, and age. The deputation, as you will see by the list which I have handed you, is eminently representative in character. It was initiated by the Royal Statistical Society, a society which deals chiefly with figures, and we have been fortunate enough to conciliate a huge body of learned opinion represented by Societies highly competent to express with authority an opinion on this subject. It is eminently a non-party question. Mr. Ritchie and Mr. Chaplin both expressed in the House of Commons their opinion that a quinquennial census would be of great advantage. Mr. Shaw-Lefevre has spoken in the same sense, and hoped to have been here to-day to advocate his views. As regards the two remaining Presidents, your predecessors Sir Charles Dilke and Sir Henry Fowler, T have distinct authority from them to state their regret at not being able to be present and their desire to support the views of this deputation. As regards the places represented, we have representatives of England, Wales, and some from Scotland. As regards the Metropolis, I need not say a single word, because here we have a quinquennial census, and so far our principle has been adopted. I need not enlarge on the importance of the subject, but I just wish to make one remark, and that is to show the necessity of a quinquennial census. We find in the report of the last census, 1901, that there was a discrepancy between the estimated and enumerated population of England and Wales of no less than 701,843 in 1891, and of 142,000, an error in the opposite direction, in 1901. Then when we come to deal with towns I find that in West Ham the estimated population for 1901 was in excess by 58,278, entailing an error in the estimated death-rate of 3'5 per 1,000. Taking Burnley, in