Litchfield enquirer., 1873-01-09
A CONVENTION,

s<er those articles in every detail, but will refer briefly to the chief arguments adduced therein:
 1. That tovns should be represented in one branch of our Legislature; Popula. ton, in the other.
 This really raises the question wheth. CT the basis of representation should be territorial or popular-a represents. tive to a given number of people or to given number of square miles But for the historical fact of town repre- sentation we do not imagine that any one would now think giving the towns of New Haven and Union--one with popula. ton of 6S7, the other with population of 50. .8S6-equal representation in either branch of our legislature. That in 1888 a plan of representation should have been devised that gives just dissatisfaction in 1872 is very natural. In the first place there were not originally those great nu- merical differences between the popula- tions of our towns and cities. In the next place representative government was then in its infancy, ,and popular representation, such as now prevails throughout the Uni ted States, had not yet come into exist ence. The people of that day were too glad to be allowed any representation to stickle for equal representation. Since that time the theory of representative government has been worked out to it's logical conclusion; that the people are not only all to be represented, but all to be represented alike Upon that plan our National House of Repre- sentatives, and both branches of nearly every State legislature are elected. A few of the New England States still cling to the old plan of territorial representa-. ton, to greater or less degree, and Ma ryland still has constitution that gives minority control of its state government to the great and increasing disgust of the majority.
 The chief argument of "Civis," and of others who favor territorial representa- tion, is the constitution of the United States Senate. It must be remembered, however, that the framers of our National constitution were compelled in that as in many cases to take not what they wanted but what they could get. The small states were then full. of what has since proved to be most unreasonable jealousy of the large states. The fear that the lat- ter would combine against the former in the popular branch of Congress has never been justified by experience. Large sec tions of the country have often complain of other large sections; the small states, of the large, never. On the contrary the undue preponderance given New England in the Senate has repeatedly caused great and, as it seems to us, just dissatisfaction in other parts of the Union. Nor does experience show that small municipalities within state have any reason to fear combinations of large ones against them. We have never heard complaint of such a result in any state where popular repre- ssntation prevails in both, branches, and the citizens of country towns in Connec. ticut who imagines that Hartford and New Have& wnnld h~ found combining aoainst them in a reformed House of Renresautasives csnnbt hasi~ z-s..aieu tnd Vemper of those cities very carefully.
 Another objection to the present sys- tenn of municipal or territorial representa- ton is that under it there can be no rep resentation of minorities. In another place we shall make further reference to this reform, the justice of which has been long conceded, and np tn whieh popular opinion is rapidly moving throughout the country at large. - S4 7 --.-
 2. That we hnss, or can have. popular repress..tataon in the Senate. t
 That we now have popular representa- tion in the Senate is not claimed. Let us see how near the present Constitution will allow us to come to a just measure of that kind b4.tlr
 The constitution prescribes that there shall not be more than twenty-four sena- tors, that of these no county shall have less than two, that in forming districts no town shall be divided, nor towns from different counties united into one district, and that no change shall be made in the number or boundaries of districts except by the legislature sitting next after the completion of e national census.
 We should be obliged to wait, therefore, till 1881 for any reform, and the nearest ap. proach topopular representation than prac. ticable would be by an increase of the number of senators to twenty-four and by division of the eight remaining aftel giving each county two, among the more populous counties. On such Q division Holland county would have two Senators on population less than the average re quired for one senator. The city of New Haven could have but one senator on s popuiation probaoly by that time three times as large as that of Tuifand county Moreover, the idea of . popular branch oi only twenty-four members raises an inyol. untary smile. If there is to be any class ol municipal representation it should be ir the smaller House, leaving the greater to those it can better represent--the people. When it is asked what advantage there is in two popular branches of the legislature, we answer, there is thus ensured double examination of measures before the legis. lature. as security against nasty lsgisla. ton. which is all the advantage practic- ally derived from the present system 3. The eeil in,suence, direct and tnds. rect. cf our cities.
 We are unable to see why, if New Haven has larger population than Litchfield county, it should not have as many repre. ' -AA~