Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1881-02-17
SPEECH or HON =. =. cox.
~ REGARD TO TnE ArrogrioNNIST BILL
SOW BEFORE CoNoKEss.

~ REGARD 10 the AFFoRTioNNLST BILL
SOW BEFORE coNGRtss.
Mr.. Cox explained aud advocated
the provisions Of his bill. Under it
the slave States would gain eight and
lose two members the Middle States
would lose three aud the New Eng
land States would lose three, aud the
Western States would gain ten and
lose two. The old slave States would
make n net gain Of two: that is. the
West would gain eight, while New
England, New York and Pennsylva-
MIA would lose six. If any one claim.
ed that that was sectional or partisan.
he might calculate the net gains North
and South from the numbers 300 to
3l9, and the South had a net gain
over the North. Under the late cen.
sus the general increase Of IT, country
had not differed from ante.bcllum time.
more than thirty per cent. Ii might
not be accurate To say the Southern
States had increased more than the
Northern, though practically they
had done 50, owing to the defective
census of 1870. Whether true or not.
such divisions Of the North and South.
bad lost their significance. In any
event, the North continued TO exceed
the South in Congress. in the Electoral
College, in the Senate, and in popula.
tion. But the wonderful increase of
five States west Of the Mississippi was
the salient feature of the census. In
twenty years they had doubled their
numbers, leaping from one.tenth of
the population 10 one.ffth. These
five States had increased 81 per cent.
No State east Of the Mississippi had
attained to 80 per cent, while the Pa.
ciiic States had gained 5S per cent.
during ten years The orb Of power
might be departing from the East, but
vet with its radiance full il was the
star of empire holding its western way
for new conquests. Along with it rose
above the horizon the Southern cries
to add its symbolic cluster TO the con.
stellation. The Federal representa-.
ton of this country was in every sense
republican in fact, form and spirit.
1t might be said that with all that
popular basis and its results the people
of the United States had the same
greed for gain, ambition to excel. love
TO rule, desire for intrigue aud play of
unruly prejudice, jealousy and passion,
that had made the history of other
nations tragical even to their decline
and fall. Still. in spite of that de-
moralization in it, worst aspect the
answer might be made, who shall
compete with us in our abundant har-
vests our rich balances of trade; our
increase in commerce and our mex
haustible mines of coal, copper, gold
and. silver; our unexampled exporta-
tons aud importations our attractive
forces our stupendous inter.communi.
cations and their incomes and outgoes
by rail, canal, lake. river and sea our
inventive faculty with its miracles of
manufacture; aud above all and be-
yond all, what can rival the star
which, rs it moves westward, from ever
renewing centers of restless popula-
tion, has in a century added 47. .000. 900
to It's active energiesi These extraor-
dinary advances in greatness and glory
we're due TO the representative system
which struck no name, however hum
bic and dependent, from its roster of
nationality. France and Spain nigh.