The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1881-03-24
The Apportionment Bill.

This Bill, passed by the House on the
SOth inst, fixes the number of Represen-
tatives in Congress at 319.
Section l provides:
'sThat from and after March the Sd,
1883, the House of Representatives shall
be composed of 319 members, appor-
toned as follows: Alabama 8, Arkansas
| 5, California 6, Colorado l, Connecticut
4, Delaware l, Florida 2, Georgia 10,
illinois 20, Indiana 13, Iowa 10, Kansas
6, Kentucky IL, Louisiana 6. Maine d,
Maryland 6, Massachusetts -, Michigan
II, Minnesota 5, Mississippi Z, Missouri
IA, Nebraska 8, Nevada l, New Hamp-
shire 2, New Jersey Z, New York 35,
North Carolina 10, Ohio 81, Oregon l,
Pennsylvania %, Rhode Island 2, South
Carolina 6, Tennessee 10, Texas 9, Yer
mont 2, Virginia 10, West Virginia 4,
Winconsin s.
The present membership is 293. Some
of our exchanges are already deploring
the increase Of the House by 26 mem.
bers, which it is gravely contended will
so enlarge the chamber as to make con
fusion worse confounded."
This is q striking illustration Of how
printers ink disturbs our common sense.
Why does not every Que at all familiar
with assemblies or large public bodies
know that the inte1ection of 26 members
| into house of 293 would not be appre-
ciable to the eye or ear OF the most
accustomed observers? Again, we can
not see WHY house of 500 members IS
not just as easily managed under the
| rules necessary to preserve order IN all
assembly of 250 men as 250 would be.
So far as other civilized States are con-
cerned, they seem to get along quite as
we'll as we do in their legislative bodies
with much larger numbers.
The British House of Lords consists OF
479members; the House of Commons
of658. The French assembly has over
200 members, and the German Reich
stag consisted in 1873 of 1872 members.
1.-THE Reichstag is elected by universal
Fdirect suffrage and by ballot at the aver
age rate of one deputy for every OO,00O
inhabitants. This body is very much in
the nature of our Congress, coming from
the several States of Germany. 1t is
hard to sse why the people of free Amer
lea should not have representation
coming as near to. the people as prevails
in the German Empire. If we had the
same representation that the people OF
the German States have, the representa-
l,tionin Congress would be some 500. II
.lswe, had proportionate representation to
the British House of Commons, we would
have one in about SO, 900 Inhabitants, or
1000 members of Congress; and with
the representation of the French people,
about the same membership of 1000, or
rather more. A house Of Thousand in
order can be readily addressed, and one
of 293 in confusion is rs utterly beyond
reach as if it were 1000.
The true matter Of representation is
the sufficient proximity of the represen.
tative to his constituency as to make him
familiar with the people and their more
immediate wants and wishes.
With the rate of representation of the
German Reichstag, South Carolina
would have some 10 representatives in
Congress, and the local interests be much
better represented than it can be now.
One representative to every 100000
inhabitants, if the people are to have
representatives. of their own, seems to US
not unreasonable; and finding this rate
of representation recognized by great
practical Empire like Germany, seems to
20 very far in justifying an increased,
rather than q diminished representation
in Congress.
But somebody gets notion in his
head and then it gets into newspaper,
and is mechanically handed around
from one to the other, without the exer-
| else Of any brain at all, until it turns out
to be foolish or unnecessary abridg.
ment of popular rights put forward in
the name Of the people.-C0lumbia Reg
| ister -.