ページの画像
PDF
ePub

MEMORIAL.

To the Honorable,

The Secretary of the Interior:

The memorial of the instructors and friends of the deaf and dumb in the United States, assembled in convention at NewYork, Aug. 29, 1850; respectfully represents;

That it is, in the opinion of your memorialists, highly important to the cause of the deaf and dumb in this country, that a list of all the deaf mutes in the United States be extracted from the original schedules of the census taken this year, and either printed with the usual official abstract, or in some other way made accessible to those interested in the subject of deaf-mute education; the list to embrace all the particulars of residence, age, sex, color, occupation, place of birth, whether able to read and write or not, &c., which appear on the face of the original schedules, and as, in some cases, the same person is not only deaf and dumb, but also blind, insane, or idiotic, it is very desirable that the list asked for should show these particulars whenever they are found upon the schedules.

It is desirable, also, to have in separate columns, the name, place of birth, occupation, and other particulars, (or at least the name) of the head of the family to which each deaf-mute belongs.

Such a list would enable us to solve many questions, not merely of speculative interest, but of deep practical importance, to the determination of which, the abstracts usually printed, are wholly insufficient.

It would also furnish, in many of the states, a very valuable guide to those officers whose duty it is to make public the legislative provision for the education of the deaf and dumb, and to select the State beneficiaries, for in many cases, the parents of deaf-mute children neglect to make application on their behalf, till they are sought out and personally appealed to.

We would further represent, that the enumerations of the deaf and dumb hitherto made in this country, (there is good reason to believe) have been very inaccurate. It is hoped that the enumeration taken this year will be much more accurate; but unless we have a list of names, residences, &c., of all the deaf-mutes returned, we shall not be able to test the degree of accuracy or to apply any ratio of correction even to those errors that are known to be unavoidable.

The labor of extracting such a list, (as it would only embrace ten or eleven thousand names, out of twenty-three millions, and is merely to be copied as the names and figures stand in the original schedules, adding from the same schedules, the name, occupation, &c., of the head of the family in parallel columns,) would hardly be greater than that of making the calculations necessary for the usual abstract of numbers, and classification in regard to age and color; and it is hoped that the interests of the cause of deaf-mute education for which twenty-five out of thirtyone states have already made legislative provision, will appear of sufficient importance to authorize the desired measure.

And your memorialists respectfully ask that the prayer of this memorial be granted,

In behalf of the convention,

CHRISTOPHER MORGAN,

President.

REPLY.

HON. CHRISTOPHER MORGAN,

CENSUS OFFICE, DEPT. INTERIOR,
Washington, 19th Nov. 1850.

President of Convention, &c.:

Sir-The Secretary of the Interior has referred to me for reply your letter of the 14th Nov., relating to the action "of the teachers and friends of the deaf and dumb from the different States of the Union, held at New-York on the 29th day of August last," together with a copy of the proceedings of the convention referred to.

A plea in behalf of that unfortunate but interesting portion of the human family, for whose benefit the interesting memorial to the Hon. Secretary of the Interior is framed, would not be passed lightly over if emanating from the most humble citizen, but coming as in the present instance, from a body of men distinguished for intelligence and liberality, individuals zealously engaged in the cause of humanity and a service the only remuneration for which is an approving conscience, it is entitled to the most serious consideration.

The feeling which dictated the preparation of the census tables to make them available for the uses indicated by the memorial, would prompt to the arrangement of the information for general uses in such manner as will be most interesting to the public, and practically beneficial to that class of persons in whose behalf your sympathies are enlisted. Appreciating the importance of the views set forth in your memorial, I take pleasure in stating that from the materials furnished by the cen

sus returns, those with reference to the deaf-mutes in the United States, will be arranged in a form such as will readily admit of their publication in the manner suggested.

It was, perhaps, not known to the convention that Congress has not yet provided for the printing of the 7th census, and the ability of the Department of the Interior to carry out the views of the convention to their entire consummation, must depend, in no small degree, upon the future action of Congress.

[graphic]
« 前へ次へ »