7 
CHAPTER VI 
Limitations in Comparison as between Centres or with Previous Years 
90. The use of the sampling method imposes certain limitations 
where only a few hands are employed in some section of a mill, as some- 
times happers when as pointed out on a previous page there are several 
hundred different vecupations in a cotton mill. The averages for several 
occupations containing a small number of workers differ widely from 
the averages for similar occupations in the results of the 1921 and 1923 
enquiries. In some cases the differences may be due to faulty grouping 
of occupations in the returns of the 1921 and 1923 enquiries but in most 
cases they are due to the inadequacy cf the sample obtained from the 
1926 Enquiry. These remarks, however, only apply to the figures for 
those occupations which cover very few workers in each case, and even 
chen not in all cases. For all the main occupations the sample was 
shoroughly representative in view of the great care taken to secure equal 
cepresentation for all types of mills. For example, in the case of Ahmeda- 
oad, the sample included nine mills paying medium or the predomin- 
ant rates of wages with a representation of 22'8 per cent. of the total 
number of workers in all the Ahmedabad mills, two mills paying low 
wages with a representation cf 4-3 per cent. of the total number employed 
and five mills paying high wages with a representation of 4 per cent. 
of the total number employed. The averages for the main groups of 
workers are therefore irreproachable. But if a particular occupation 
group only contains a few workers from a high wage paying or a low 
wage paying mill the sample becomes defective and the resulting aver- 
ages do not represent the actual averages which would result if all the 
anits in a particular centre were covered. This is what actually hap- 
pened in some cases in Ahmedabad and in Sholapur. It is not neces- 
sary to delete such cases from the tabulation because they should rightly 
be included in the figures regarding Attendance, Absenteeism, ete. 
The earnings of such workers have also been included in arriving at 
group and centre averages, which would otherwise not be representative 
of the selected sample. It should also be pointed out, that in the case 
of Sholapur the results of the Enquiry in respect of the Winding, 
Reeling, Warping, Sizing, Drawing-In, Dyeing, Yarn Bundling and 
Baling, Cloth Folding, Mechanics and Maintenance Departments only 
relate to one mill because the other unit covered did not furnish any 
figures for operatives in these Departments. Figures for the main 
lepartments, i.c., Spinning and Weaving, were, however, returned by 
oth mills. 
91. With regard to the question of comparability of the results of 
this Census as between centre and centre, it may be pointed out that 
this Report is not concerned with the reasons why the averages for a