Uncle Sam Calling (Feb 11, 1940)

  

 (knocks, doorbell rings) Uncle Sam Calling, Uncle Sam Calling, Uncle Sam Calling....

Uncle Sam calling on you and the whole nation for the greatest census in American history.  (footsteps)  An army on the march, but not an army of destruction.  It's an American army of construction, 120,000 strong,  marching one by one during the month of April, to millions of city homes and country farms, calling on you at your door, and yours and yours, to gather vital information that
enables you to know your nation.  One-half as large as the  standing army of the United States.  This is the peacetime army of census takers.  You can know your country only,  if your country,  knows you.

Moderator: Hello everyone.  Here's a man you'll want to meet, a representative of the United States government.  He and his 120,000 co-workers will be calling on you during the month of April to interview  you and  your 132 million fellow American.  He is the census man.  He's here and I'm going to ask him to help me to explain to you what's  back of this program and why we call it,  Uncle Sam Calling.

Census Taker: The name explains itself doesn't it?

Moderator: Yes, I guess it does because it's true that about 120,000 of you fellows are going around ringing doorbells and asking questions all during the month of April.

Census Taker: Yes, that right. More than 100,000 of Uncle Sam's census takers or enumerators as we're called.

Moderator: But what kind of questions are you going to ask.  I know it's not a national poll of public opinion like those newspaper and radio surveys ...

Census Taker: Just a moment, would you mind telling me your age?

Moderator: My age?

Census Taker: Uh huh.

Moderator: Do you mean to say you are starting on me already?

Census Taker: No, but I have a good  reason for wanting to  know your age.

Moderator:  Well, I'm 24.

Census Taker: Then  you probably don't  remember much about the last national census
taken ten years ago in 1930.

Moderator: Sure I remember.  It's the  census taken every 10 years by the federal government.  The decennial census, wasn't that it?

Census Taker: Yes, and since ten years have passed, it's time for Uncle Sam to take another census, and,  it's not in any sense a poll of public opinion, nor is it a survey to determine what America's probably thinking.  It's a census and a census is undertaken to get facts, not opinions, not probabilities, but the exact truth.  It's a serious subject this national census,  and once you begin to understand it, it gets mighty interesting,  because every person in the country has something to gain from it.

Moderator: Well, maybe  so, but it always sounded pretty dull to me.  Every 10 years you count  noses, that's the law, so you do it, and everybody answers the questions.  It's a nuisance maybe,  but it has to do done.  Now, isn't that all there is to it?

Census Taker: Oh no!  What about WHY we do it?

Moderator: Well, I know it's called for in the Constitution but thats only to find out the number of people so we'll know how many representatives each state gets in Congress.  Uh, where do you get all the other questions I hear you are going to ask?

Census Taker: We get them from the people themselves.

Moderator: How do you mean?

Census Taker: Well, people are clamoring all the time for basic information about their own fields of activity.  Contractors want to know about the  housing situation, for instance.  Social workers want to know about conditions in the American family, and the cosmetic people want to know how many blondes,  brunettes, and redheads there are.

Moderator: Well, what's that to the census taker?

Census Taker:   Well, what the people want to know means everything to the census taker. It's the way democracy works.  The  government acts in response to public demand. All sorts of  people come to the Census Bureau and want to ask the public their particular question.   In the past year we considered  about 10,000 different questions,  and then we sifted them down to just a few.  The most important, the most essential, the most significant.

Moderator: Uh huh.  How do you decide which are the most important?

Census Taker:   We call in all sorts of experts, both in and out of  the government and they consider which questions can be used  most widely.  For example,  we are asking questions about housing, and about the situation in the American family, but we're not counting the redheads.

Moderator:   Uh huh.  Well tell me, will education make any difference?     I mean, will a college professor be able to answer the census question any better than, well, say the average housewife?

Census Taker: Not education but truth, and an accurate memory, will be the only things necessary to correct answers.

Moderator: I see, but suppose I didn't want to answer the census questions.  Thought they were too, well, too personal perhaps.  Would I have to answer anyway?

Census Taker: Before replying to that question, I'd like to say this.  Your answers are held strictly in confidence.  Employees of the Census Bureau are under oath not to reveal them.  They can be sent to prison for doing so.  Besides,  they don't think about them as  your personal replies, but as statistical units to be tabulated for the common welfare of  the nation.

Moderator: Then the Federal Bureau of Investigation, for instance,  isn't allowed to see the census records, nor the tax people?

Census Taker: That's right.  No one has access to your census record except you yourself. Moderator: What would I want to look at it for?

Census Taker: Well, literally hundreds of thousands of people have found their old census records of great value to them personally.  They wanted to prove certain facts about themselves in order to get some insurance, say, or inherit some money, or qualify for pensions.  You know, things like that.  Now, in regard to the question, "are you required by law to answer census questions?" .... the  answer is,  yes.  But it's nothing new.  Answering census questions has been compulsory since before you were born.

Moderator: Well then, I suppose Uncle Sam imposes certain penalties on those who refuse to answer.

Census Taker: Yes, and against those who knowingly give false information to the census taker.

Moderator: Well I shouldn't think anybody would want to do that! It seems to me that we should all welcome census questions and answer them as a, as a  patriotic duty and privilege for the common good.

Census Taker: We have a saying down at the Census Bureau that every American should memorize,  especially for April 1940.

Moderator: I bet I know what it is.  You can know your country only if your country knows you .  Right?

Census Taker: Right.  Uncle Sam has organized the greatest fact-finding agency in history just to know you, so that you may know him.  Incidentally he has 150 years of census taking experience behind him.  He ought to know what he's doing by this time.

Moderator:   I should think so. That  means then that Uncle Sam has taken the census 15 times.  Say I'd like to introduce you to a friend of mine who has seen six of those fifteen.  That number I dare say, is a few more than you've seen yourself, even though you are a census taker.  This is Mr. Dawson, Mr. John Dawson.

Census Taker: How do you do Mr. Dawson and welcome to our program.

Farmer: ... Proud to know you sir.

Census Taker: You've really seen six of the decennial census Mr. Dawson?

Farmer: That's right, seen six of  'em.  All on the farm.  You see I'm a farmer, that is, I was a farmer, retired now and taking it easy.

Census Taker: Well, we are very glad to have you here Mr. Dawson. You'll be interested to know that the farm census will be 100 years old this year, but its still mighty frisky. In fact a lot of experts on farming say this years farm census will give a better picture of where the American farmer stands than any we ever had before.  It comes in April too, you know, and will cover about 7 million farms.

Farmer: Sure, I know. The farm census comes every 5 years.  It's twice as often as the one about population, but this year they just come at the same time.

Census Taker: I can see you are going to be a big help to me.  I wish you'd tell these people about your experience with the farm census.

Farmer: Well, it meant a lot to me for over 20 years.  I used to go down to the public library and lookup how many acres of each of my crops were put in by all the farmers in the country, and then, by how many and each state.  I did the same with my stock.  Made me feel a lot surer about what to do the next year.

Census Taker: That's great Mr. Dawson.  I don't imagine many farmers were smart enough to think of that in those days.

Farmer: Well, not very many.  More of them do it now, though. But they have to.  It's harder to get ahead now, and that makes the farm census even more important then it was then.

Census Taker: ...Well there's the answer I guess, to anybody  who asks "why an agricultural census?"

Farmer: Say, I've heard someone say there's a housing census in April too.

Census Taker: Yes, for the first time in the history of census taking.  It'll cover 33 million dwelling units.

Moderator: Are there any more forms of the census? ...So far I've counted three for April: population, housing, and agriculture.

Census Taker: There are a few others, but of a more of a technical nature.  Right now, for instance the census of business and of manufacturers, and of mines and quarries is going on.

Farmer: Well, he's not missing a thing is he...Uncle Sam I mean.

Census Taker: No indeed. He's painting a statistical picture of America, and not missing a single stroke.

Moderator: What's the reason for all this?  Why hasn't the Census Bureau gathered all this statistical information before?

Census Taker: It has.  For example, we have had a farm census for 100 years.

Moderator: Oh?

Census Taker: But during recent years, important changes have come about in our economic and social life.  Generally the world is in an upset state, a state of change. Physical frontiers have disappeared.  There's been a migration from the farm to the city. There's no new land to explore and develop, and population increases are slowing down.  In short, Uncle Sam is getting middle aged, in settling down and developing complex economic and social problems.

Moderator: And the census may be called a, a diagnosis of those problems. Is that it?

Census Taker: Exactly, and like any problem, the cause must be determined before the solution can be found.

Farmer: Funny, I always had an idea that census taking wasn't much different from just counting noses.

Census Taker: Well originally it was just counting noses Mr. Dawson, but society has developed many problems that only concrete statistics and accurate information will solve.  For instance,  are the experts right when they say that within twenty years we'll have a static population, a population that neither grows nor diminishes? We discover the answer to these and other questions through the census.   Uncle Sam counts the visit to the store and, well, not to be grim about it, he also checks up on the undertaker.  He knows that in 1930 there were 6000 births every day and 4000 deaths.  But that was 10 years ago.  What will the figures be for 1940?  Is population growth slowing down or increasing?   We'll know in a few months and so will you.

Farmer: We'll, this being a radio program, reminds me, I suppose you'll also going to ask how many people own radios?

Census Taker: Why not?  And when we find out, it will be the most accurate checkup anyone has every had of the number and location of radios.

Farmer: But just why do you have to find out things like that?

Census Taker: Well, educators are interested in the answer and the radio industry,  and the entire advertising field.  Every question on the census list is being asked because important and significant groups of  people   have come  and convinced  the government that  they need to know the answer.

Farmer: Hey, I hope you folks will find out something about the unemployment situation.

Census Taker: Why, you're  not looking for a job, are you  Mr. Dawson?

Farmer: No sir, but I have a grandson who needs one mighty bad... been out of work ever since he left college a couple years ago.

Census Taker: The unemployment question will be thoroughly canvassed Mr. Dawson,  and the employment status of every person in the United States, 14 years or older, will be determined.

Moderator:   I'd like to hear about a few of those questions  but I guess we 'll  have to wait for a later program.

Census Taker: Yes, they'll be another one coming along soon.  We'll preview several interesting census questions then and we'll also tell Mr. and  Mrs. Citizen  how they may recognize their enumerators or census takers.  So until the next program then, so long, its a pleasure to have been with you.

Moderator: Goodbye and thanks Mr. Census Taker.  When we're back on the air next time, we'll have more news about the 16th decennial census.  The Census Taker and Mr. Dawson, a retired American farmer, will also be with us again, along with a  young homemaker and housewife, who will join us in another chat about the census.

Uncle Sam calling is produced by the United States Office of Education in collaboration with the United States Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce.  Your station announcer will tell  you when you will hear the next broadcast of Uncle Sam Calling.