The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1859-03-12
The Apportionment Bill.

! When the recent session Of our legislator,
was abruptly broken up by the Republican.
vacating their seats, there were before then
some GOO bills which had gone through al
the stages of introduction, reference to and
examination by committees, epgrossing, pas
sage through one Of the two houses, re-re
ference in the other to and examination by
committees, and one or two re-readlngs.-
/ These bills embraced about all the necessary
work of the session, and two or three work
ing days would have suf1iced to finally Gis
psse Of the whole of them. All this work
was rendered useless by tho revolutionary
course of the Republican members. The
whole labor and expense of session were
destroyed and wiped out. Even the appro-
priation bills were defeated, SO that the ex-
pense and inconvenience of an extra session
must be incurred, to keep the wheels of
government in motion.
The only miserable apology the republi-
cans have to offer for their reckless destruc-
tive and high-handed course is, that, had
they remained at their posts, the democrats
would have passed the "infamous apportion-
ment hill,' as they call it. Had that bill
even been "infamous," as they alege, we do
not see how a minority can justify revolu-
ton rather than let the majority take the re-
spOnsibility of their own "infamous' mea-
sures. But how much mere uniustifable
will the case Of the Republican members ap-
pear, when it is shown that their outcry
against the apportionment bill is all pre-
tenee? To show that the bill was not that
m0nStrum horreHduHs they pretend i. was,
speech of Mr.. GoUDY, a democratic member
Of the Senate, in its defence. We have here
but few paragraphs from speech OF eight
or ten columns in length, and when we as
sure our readers that every point Of he bill
was as thoroughly defended as the one en-
braced in this extract, they will Judge how
much weight should be given to the fiinsy
charges Of the republicans against it, and
how excusable they were for destroying the
work Of the session, and rcsorting to Lynch
law to compass It's defeat.
We contend that this bill is founded on
the rules oi tie constitution, and shat Il i
fair and iight, and that il can be sustained
without reference 10 politics, as well ss any
previous apportionment that has been made
in this State | desire, Mr. Speaker, in or
der 10 get rapidly over the ground that is
before me, to call the attention of the Senate
to the estimate submitted by the honorable
Senator from la Sale, (MT Cook in his
speech on Saturday. That statement Iur-
ported 10 give list OF all the republican
counties il the State, with the population OF
cach-al those that were Democratic and
then twelve coun les which he clas>ed as
doubtful" lie states the aggregate popu-
lat.oa Of the republican counties at s3G, SIS,
that OF tho democratic counties at fSl $40,
While the doubtful counties confirm lSs, ,2GJ.
The honorable senator has. in compliance
with the promise hc then made, furnished
me a list of the counties called doubtful,
and find that il corresponds with a state
mcnt published in the Chicago Tress amt
Trijuhc, and reprinted in the state JourH1(.
Hence | read from the .j0grHGi, as 1t coin
cides exactly with the statement made on
the floor VI the Senate.
Mr.. Co9k-I had not seen the Journal
whc-. | spoke. had seen the Pres and
Iribune.
Mr. GouGy-lt = iIUmaterial about that,
if the statements correspond. The senator
has adopted the statement OF facts contained
in this article. and see fit to comment upon
them. How i il asceTtained IN this list
which are republican, which democratic,
and which doubtful counties, Ii Is stated
that the doubtful counties are those which
went for one party in 1886, and for the
other party in 1858. The list of doubtful
cnun,les AID their nonnla alton Is as follows