, 1870-02-02
REPRESENTATIVE plsrRIc rs.

We learn from members Of the
Constitutional Convention that the Com
mittee on the Legislative Department
did not intend by their report to require
that Representatives should in all cases, rs
suggested in our editorial comment there
OIL, be elected from separate districts-one
Representative from . district-so as to e1
clude minority representation. Ona second
reading We perceive that the report is open
to different construction, and We can See
that the interpretation put upon it By Us
may not have been that intended br the
Committee The question arises upon the
sixth clause:
SEC. 8. Every county shall be entitled to one
;a1ec isos Of !ss,o: los Is ,aan sntse Ii % t. II
ratio, II kh21 be attached to the next n4iIo1n,np
county to which no other couotS has tor the SAM
reason eeen Att1chsd. and the two shl1! cousrsat-
Bepls1tc district Every counsJ h4ri7g po2u-
nucn tqna1 to one ratio a-d three ionstrs crrr
shall Be entitled 10 Two Repre.ent.useA E'es,
ent,tled TO three Representatives, and 20 90, st
qulriE 9, after thr ns1r two, An cntre ratio To-:
counties having over tao landed thousand 10
rAp,tantx nn, be divided into separate aias11ct-
OF pot 1ess than three nor more tnau nre Repre
tentatlyes In each district
The above section does not state that
every county that is entitled to one OF
more Representatives shall form one dis
trict. Nothing in the report shows whethel
county that elects more than one Repse.
sentative shall elect them in one district, OF
In seve1a1, unless the absence of my re-
qui1ement on that point should be. con-
strued as requiring the county to vote as I
single district. Doubtless the COMMITTEES
assumed that in such cases the practice al
Present e1isting would bo followed, - t.,
thEt the Legislature would not subdividc .
[ county into separate Representative dis
| tricts.
But inasmuch IS the report provides to-
the subdivision Of counties that elect sev
eral Senators into separate Senatorial dis
sricts, we had inferred that counties electin{
serezA Representatives wonld also be di
v'ded into separate Representative districts
as m the Gaze ia Nev York and Wisconsin
Tho Language Of Section is:
Ut mt e1nnnes 90 eontain,nz mose than o1e AMI
tafo efoaTafs dtsssefs. atd ahan be eutiied to II
sesasosrs ,po ~ nsauJ s,dlsonal s-nators q thc
CONAN iull fAIos over sHo tasaoa OF population
As one aud th1ee-{ourths Of Sepstoria
. ratio would amount to about one hundre
! thousand popnlation, We presume the Abov
clsuse will at present require the division {
. Cook County only into separate 6enatori,
districts. The division Of Cook Count
: into separate Representative districts havin
been provided for by the last clause Of ST.
, ton 6, tho two provisions would be hsrme
! nious in this respect. But il any 9TH
| county should attain 10 more than loo, ,00'
, and less than COX, 600 population, it will
: seen that under tbs sbove clauses ii ri
| have too few to be divided into Reprcsent
! tire districts, but too many to form OF
I Senatorial district; ths requirement II
. division OF Representative districts be'r
expressly zoo. 600 population, vhile that f
. Senatorial districts il about 100, 900. v
o would then have the anomaly Of I count
Z thas formed moro than one Senatorial dts