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Hawke's Bay Times, Volume IV, Issue 203, 2 December 1864, Page 2

Thf, census for the two years ending the 31st December, 18G4. is now being taken. It is however very much to be regretted that such important, and at (be same time, such interesting and useful statistics should be compiled with so little care and attention, and at such a heavy expense. The persons employed by the Government as enumerators, do not understand what they are about, are mostly ignorant of the locality they are required to enumerate, and in fact the whole business, as is the way with all Government mutters, is conducted in such a lax, unsatisfactory, and

careless manner, that the result attained is likely to be exceedingly questionable as to its correctness. Again, the expense is enormous. It is probable that the cost of gathering the census in this Province amounts to about .£SOO, which with a population 0f4,000 would amount to, a.tjax_of,2s. ..3d...a..Jiead r ...a..very—. heavy tax indeed, under the 1f... then, .the tables,, were. ..properly.....and carefully compiled, 'some'very interesting details as to the progress of the country from period to period might he given, and so far! ; from being a mere dry statistical column of facts and figures, these details could be made to give some exceedingly interesting particulars. We do not, however, anticipate any such happy result; it is not the way of the Government to do things properly, at all events not that we ever heard of, and there- 1 fore in the case of the census, as in every other case, it is probable that it will be done as badly as it can for the money.