St. Paul daily globe., 1890-12-07
MAP OF MINNESOTA SHOWING THE SEVEN CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS

more. Under tne terms Of the bill introduced
into the house by Congressman Frank, of
Missouri. at the opening of the session last
week. the membership of the next house is
fixed at 500, OF which number Minnesota is
given seven. Such gerrymander as was in
flicied upon this state ten years ago is pre-
vented by the following section of the act in
troduced by Mr. Frank:
The population of no district shall be
greater nor less than the average population
of the several districts of the state by more
than 5000.
The Last ApportiOnmen
The total population of Minnesota by the
census OF S9i was l 1,3O0.Ol7. This num-
Der divided by seven, the number OF con-
gressmen awarded the state, gives 1918 as
the ratio for each district, and no one shall
have more or less than this number than
{. .OuO-that is no district can have less than
177,7l6. and none more than 1876. In
the superintendent bill passed ten years ago,
Congressmen Dunnel. Strait and several
Minneapolis aspirants for congressional
honors took hand in the matter. and the
districts as turned out by the legislature
at that time ranged all the way from Ill
s77i. the population of the Fifth district, TO
1862, the population of the Fourth dis
trict. In detail the population OF eacn OF the
five marvellous districts which so thoroughly
demonstrated the love OF the Republican pol
jticians for Justice and fair play and their
hatred of gerrvmandering was as follows:
First district 16S.l12
Second district, 159,31S.
Third district, l55,1Sl.
Fourth district, l76,521.
Fifth district 121.7I4.
+ Thus it Will be seen there was the slight
difference of 81, 747 between the number of
people that elected member OF congress IL
The Fourth district and the number that per-
formed q similar act in the Fifth district IL
took only Il, ,O0J more people for congress
man in the First district than ii did in the
Fifth. This is readily explained by glance
at the First district as it now stands: Had
Freeborn been placed IN the Second district
where il belonged for then the population of
the First district would have been but 5000
less than the ratioo, the district would have
been doubtful, and that was just what Mr..
Dunneii did not desire.
Again. take the famous ''shoestring dis
trict''-the Third-reaching from the Missis-
sippi to the Dakota line, hardly twenty miles
wide in one place, there is an interesting
story connected with its making. Congress
man Strait resided in Scott county. Although
defeated in 1875 by Hon. Henry Poehler and
the treachery of several Republican leaders,
he tried il again in 1880, and was successful.
His county was surrounded on nearly every
side by counties strongly Democratic. all of
which, Oh account OF their being contiguous,
belonged in the Third district. These were
Sibley. LIE Sueur, Carver. Mcleod ana
Dakota counties. "A bill was intro,
district. 1t was subsequently amended and
the Third district made Republican by plac
ing Sibiey and lie Sueur with their heavy
Democratic majorities, in the Second district.
where there was Republican majority of
1O,OUO or more to spare. In Ohio this would
have been dubbed by Minnesota Republicans
as an outrageous gerrymander had il been
done by the Democrats.
But did any one hear of the Minnesota
Republicans, who were so indignant over the
.'0hio outrage last year. saying word about
the eerrymander of Minnesota, which gave a
party with 10000 more votes than its OPP
ponent all five of the members of congress
to which the state was entitled? Not one
even whispered that it was anything but
right.
GerFymander Is Unpopular.
However, it is matter Of congratulation