42 Mr. Worcester on Longevity. 
In the three former enumerations, the free people of colour 
were thrown into one mass, without distinction of age or sex ; 
and the same course was adopted respecting the slaves. But in 
the census of 1820, each sex of both these descriptions of per- 
sons, was distinguished into the four following classes. 
1. All those under 14 years of age. 
2. All those of 14 and under 26. 
3. All those of 26 and under 45. 
4. All those of 45 and upwards. 
Another important addition in this census, was a_ statement 
of the number of persons engaged in agriculture, commerce, and 
manufactures, in each state and territory. 
The reasons why all the above divisions, with respect to age, 
were adopted, are not very obvious; nor why different divisions 
were made with regard to the whites, the free people of colour, 
and the slaves. When the next census shall be taken, it is to be 
hoped that a more minute, uniform, and philosophical division 
will be formed. If, instead of the above divisions, the three de- 
scriptions of the inhabitants, the whites, the free coloured per- 
sons, and the slaves, were all divided respectively into classes of 
jwes from the period of birth to the age of twenty years ; and in- 
to classes of tens from that age to the close of life, in the same man- 
ner as the population of Great Britain* in the’table inserted above, 
(page 34) the census would then become a highly interesting docu- 
ment, and would furnish data for various important calculations 
relating to the science of statistics and political economy. And 
although, on account of the migratory habits of our population, 
*In taking the census of Sweden, the population is divided into classes of 
persons under 5 years of age, from 5 to 10, 10 to 15, 15 to 20, 20 to 25, and so 
on in classes of fives from the period of birth to the close of life. 
