On page 1 of this morning's (August 6, 2001) edition of the New Orleans Times Picayune, there is a column written by Angela Rozas, entitled "Cajun ranks decline sharply", which starts with the sentence: "The number of Louisiana residents who identify themselves as Cajun dropped tenfold in the 1990's, according to new data released by the U.S. Census Bureau." The article indicates that both the Acadian (Cajun) and French Canadian descendants , dropping from 407,319 in 1990 to 41,942 in 2000 Even thje total of people claiming French heritage either Acadian, French Canadian or French has dropped from 898, 716 in the 1990 census to 669,823 in the 2000 census, dropping from 21% of the strates population to about 15%. Some say that the survey may not be accurate. This is a gross understatement. For one I don't remember having been asked the question. I am a mixture of Acadian descent and French Canadian descent, and I know there are many like me who do not remember having been asked if they were French, Cajun or French Canadian. If this is true, factors that may account for this decline is: The Oil Bust causing many Cajuns to move out of state seeking employment. The same for the drop in the economy job oportunity in the state. Smaller families over the past 40 to 50 years. Acadians or Cajuns (and other Catholic families) tended to have large families. What do you think? Write to the Times Picayune if you want more information. or send an e-mail response to Staff writer Angela Rozas at: arozas@timespicayune.com Don Landry don2717@aol.com