The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1883-09-19
Obey the Constitution.

PAN'Se SAsA'N1 CAScttSlOu- bltct
Democratic leaders stood aghast and
protested that slavery was protected
by the constitution. When extern
sion was prohibited and civil rights
sought by the Republicans, the DEM
ocratic leaders scanned anew the
constitution and quoted it against
equality before the law; when the
Republicans sough. to reconstruct
the government after the rebellion,
the same Democratic leaders with
ponderous emphasis quoted the
constitution to show that the Union
could only be restored as the south
wanted it, inst as a few years before
they had incontestably shown from
the same constitution, that secession
could not be prevented by coercion.
And when manhood suffrage was
finally proposed the same old Dem
ocratic leaders threatened to rebel
again in defense of the constitution
al right of the white man to do all of
the governing.
Whenever a great wrong is to be
justified or promoted, the Democrat
ic leaders simultaneously get out
their constitutions, and with these
go through the forms of deceiving
their own followers, and then seek to
befuddle the ill-informed every
where. They hope 10 catch with
sound where sense cannot apply. If
they were Cinnamon they would
carry their measures through the
noise OF their tom-tOms. The plan
works reasonably well with the most
ignorant of the Americans for a
short time, but once let the noise
attract universal attention, and that
thought follows which inevitably
destroys Democratic calculations.
Governor Pattison knew, or ought
to have known, that he was doing
an imprudent, harsh and oppressive
act, when after five months of failure
in regular session, he called on ex-
traordinary session with a view to
compel the passage OF apportion-
ment bills. No other Governor, al
though there have been repeated
lapses, ever before called an extra
session for such a purpose, though
the language of the constitution
since 1888 has been the same, to
wit" the Legislature shall, imme-
diately following each decennial
census, apporlion the state :" and
the districts shall be composed of
compact and contiguous territory, as
nearly equal in population as may
be.
This direction to the Legislature
land il should be marked that it is
not to the Governor) has by all
courts been construed to mean that
it mag apportinn, and that it should
apnortion where possible. But
granting that the shall is imperative,
that it is a command even above
the conscience of individual Mem
bers and Senators, then the other
command, that " the districts SHALL
be Of compact and contiguous terri
. tory. as nearly equal in population
as may be-" is equally impera-
tive.
Now then, the Republicans have
thrown away their doubts and obey
ed the Governors view of the con-
stitution by meeting in extra session
and they have done more-they
have obeyed It's second command as
to TIE formation of districts, and
have passed bills in exact accord
with the letter and spirit Of the con-
stitutiOn. In fact they have passed
bills in such exact accord with the
language of the constitution that if a
million Others were drawn, not one
could approach so nearly its mean
ing. This is admitted by ali who
have examined the subject. The
Republicans have sought only the
Right, and the Right as directed by
the Constitution, and there they
stand, refusing to yield, and at the
same time putting to the test Demo
cratic professions of love for the con-
stitution, by inviting them t. accept
Just what the constitution COM
mands.
The Democrats have not accepted,
but instead have shifted from day to
day, and in all ways sought to shirk
that obedience to the constitution
which they at first invited. Their
methods of shirking have been so
costly that the state has already
been mulcted in expenses far exceed
ing a quarter of million dollars,
with a prospect ahead of paying at
least double salaries to the men
guilty OF a most useless and criminal
prolongation of the session.
The Democratic demand briefly
and truthfU,ly ly stated, is for divis-
ion Of political power based upon
their best vote. The constitution
and the law say that this shall not
be, but that the apportionment shall
be based upon population and con-
tiguity and compactness ofterritory.
This is the position taken by the
Republicans. They have thought
of no other position, and will con-
cede no other. They said so hon.
estly and openly from the beginning
and from the beginning have asked
the Democrats either to come up to
the support of the constitutional
idea or adjourn, and save waste of
public moneys. Over and over
again the Senate has passed resolu-
tions providing for final adjourn
ment. and all of them have been
buried by the Democratic House,
so that, in the estimation of all fair
minds, the Democratic party of
Pennsylvania stands condemned
first, for falsely invoking the con-
stitution to promote only partisan
ends second, for refusing to respect
the mandates of that constitution as
to the character of the apportion-
ments to be made third, for will
full and woful waste of the money
of the taxpayers of the State.-Me-
dia AmerlOdn.
The Germans of Iowa are starting
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