Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-05-05
THE ANTI-GERRYMANDER BILL.
Reports Made by Both the Majority and
the Minority of the Election Committee.

Representative McComas reported to the
House Saturday from the committee on cleo
ton Of President, Vice President and Repre-
sentatives in Congress 'his bill to pre-
vent gerrymandering. After stating that
state legislatures have made members of
Congress grossly unequal representatives
of the people, Mr.. McComas' report said: The
effort to restrain the zeal of political faction by
requiring that Representatives shall be elected
by districts composed of contiguous territory
has not restrained the state from sitting the
voice OF the minority party in each state by in
genious gerryman dering. The majority of the
committee believe in the light of recent his
tory that Congress should exert its constitu-
tionai power to RESTRAIN these abuses in redis-
tricting the states, to secure first staple and
equal representation of the people in Congress
and then to prevent intimidation or bribery at
the elections for Representatives in Congress
The majority OF the committee believe that
Congress has power to spportion Representa-
tives and to divide each state of the whole
United States into congressional districts
but do not think it expedient that
Congress should now district the states"
Under his bill the states shall still prescribe the
time, place and manner of electing Representa-
tlves, but the districts to be formed by the
states shall be, as to territory. contiguous. ad-
joining and as FAR as practicable compact, aud
as TO population as nearly equal as practicable
Next 1t provides that the districts shall be
stable for decade. as the trainers OF the Com
stitutior intended. The report saws that all the
states should be brought back to the same basis
by undoing these gerrymanders COM
mitted Just ninety DAYS before the new cen
sus is consistent and fair to all parties
Provision is made for duplicate returns to be
made by local canyassing boards to the clerk
OF the House to be used in determin-
ing election cases where state executives or
boards bay tn de nd
will Of the people by certifying wrongly or re-
fusing TO certify rightly Representative
elected
THE MINORITY REPORT.
Representative Tucker submitted a report of
the minority, which stated that the bill simply
proposes to transfer a system complained of as
evil from the states to the national theater
where its highest development may be wit
messed and its ripest fruits reaped- 1t proposes
to prohibit gerrymandering by the states. but
invites its adoption by Congress. 1t denies to
the state the right to change the districts for
members OF Congress, except once in ten years,
and reserves that right exclusively to Congress
to be exercised at its pleasure upon the de-
mand of party exigency. The practical opera
ton of such law, the minority SAYS, would re-
suit in a system of corruption, abuse of power.
q disregard Of the rights and wishes of the
people. before which the iniQuities OF politi-
cal bosses and the evil of machine poll
tics would pale into iusignltcance.
The report protests against the enlarged pow
ers proposed to be conferred upon the clerk of
the House, usually a strong partisan. The
most Objectionable feature of the BILL however,
in the eyes of the minority, was the bold claim
that after Ohio and Maryland have designated
new districts Congress cannot only dictate TO
the states what they shall do in the future. but
can actually nullify the laws of the states al
ready passed, and which it is not denied they
had right to pass.
A DISSENT.
Mr.. Frank Of Missouri signed neither the
majority nor the minority report He has
framed dissenting report, in which he sets
forth his views, taking the ground that the bill
is very wide in its scope, but very narrow in
its purpose. II was intended. he said, TO cover
a political exigency for the purpose Of per-
petuating party in power.