Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1856-10-24

Cor. =F.'lD- ~ a.. Er.n lr-s.
HR T7E.r:-The publication in Your paper, Of
The two l,s. weeks, of two several articles in favor
If tie al.cutt.us ir the constitution of thi, State
propose By the l.'c Council of Ccnsor., signed
" No'o-.a-." imn,'s mo t, crave tho favor Of your
columns fora few r"mar in review Of the arcu-
mer's induced ty him in support Of lis position.
To cauae directly f.. tie point, Permit me 20 obscry
M reference to- the first ui actior which the write
ur-os o%eaj,st the town representation system, which
rorus q pant Of our constituted State organization.
as being unequal anl therefore unfair, bv PLACING
tho smaller towns on o rtrwith the more roouIors
oa.s iu the matter Of voice md weight in the
T7rsa, permit mc o. obs rye thatT say 7 dis Ont
( oH and deny his n summit %, that this eluali1inr
tho voice ami weight Of the Sc oral towns in tho
popular branch OF the Legislature is unequal and
unfair; contend it Is this very fact # the smaller
towns, such ae Huntington, Bolton, and st. George,
h1yir, the same weight &C an individual rcprCson-
tati,n as Burlington, Milton, and Essex. which
makes the thing equal and fair, which would not be
the case were those three last towns to be entitled
to more representation, on the score Of population;
or, if he rlease-, moro weight If influence in choose
ing one, There is no more unfairncss or unjust IN
equality, no more unjust proportion Of influence in
'IA- - Eh ga W '.IhAA representation W NNNNN III
such n state as Vermont, than there i. the crcum.
stance Of the members Of the United States Senate
being equally divided in proportion (vcry fairly. |
am sure) Of two to each Statei thus giving Rhode
Island, New Jersey, and Delaware, the three small
est States in the Union, an equal voice there with
the three largest States, New York, Ohio, an Penn.
sylyanis. If this equalization, as I consider it, of
representation in the House, in allowing the several
towns small As well as large, to send one member
and but one each, is unequal and unfair in the one
case, it must be SO in the aupor comment Of the Fed
eral Senate, as it now stands The fact that our
State Senate Of Thirty members is apportioncd
among tho respective counties. according to popula-
ton, giving TO one county (Wiudsor) four, others
three, some two, and some one only, is a good rea.
son why our coordinate branch, the Representative
House, should be constituted az it il, on Il more
equalizns basis, that Of an equal representation by
towns, q one member each.
Another objection which 3" Noicstus " grayely ad-
duces against our present system Of town reprosou-
tati,u in tho House, rs an argument for the pro-
posed alteration in the constitution affecting this
point, j., hat they are not corporations which are
properly .cr.. scented In our Legislative bodies, but
the people in their opacity at large; at least this
seems 20 be tc ilel implied, as he has stated t.
NV IL strikes ne, Mr. Editor, that this j. a strange
aud inconsistent assumption for one to set up who
pretend q, believe a., all in a republican represent
ativo sys'cm OF legislation. would like to know
IN tho maine o' consistency and common sense ifthe
people Co.,. the individual states are not represented
iu some d. Elective corporate capacity, first in Con.
grcss, aud s4L.rliua,cly ia their respective local
L'li .atura-, 10 vh4, other respect ought they to be
nrr. .n..1 r.-n....4.rn E..1 81. .--.l f.