The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1890-11-26
THE APPORTIONMENT PLAN.
Probability That tho Dunnell Measure
VIII be Much Changed.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 19.-There is
some reason for suspecting that the
Fifty-lirst Congress will not be in such
haste to pass an apportionment bill as
it was few months ago and before it
was imagined that the whole country
was about to go Democratic. At all
events, it is apparent that what was
called by courtesy the Dunnell appor-
tionment bill, but which was really the
Census Bureau bill, will be very unlike
the bill that will be permitted to
emerge as the law of the land.
When Mr.. Dunnell, on September 10.
introduced his apportionment bill, 1t
was said to have been constructed upon
the information that the population of
the States was about 100000. At
first the ratio was said to be one to 49,
600, or thereabouts, and little later, on
the same day, it was announced as be-
ing 10000. The bill proposed House
of Representatives of 354 members.
How the ratio came to be fixed at 49,
COO or 10000 no one could tell and no
one can be found now who appears to
be willing to tell.
Another scheme has appeared IN the
Tribune, which may be assumed to
know what its party intends to DO, al
though it does not readily find out
what its party has done about election
time. Finding ratio of 1S6,078 to ap-
ply to total population much reduced
since Mr.. Portor helped Mr.. Dunnell
to get out his apportionment bill, 1t
shows that the House of Representa-
tives should consist of 332 members,
which is only two more than the men,
bership of the present House.
Under this after election scheme Ne
braska VIII gain three members,
Minnesota will gain two, and each OF
the States Of New Jersey, Texas,
Arkansas, Colorado, Washington, and
Oregon will gain one. New York will
lose two. and there will be loss of one
in each of the States Of Maine. Mary
land, Virginia, South Carolina, Ten
nessee, Kentucky, Indiana and Iowa.
This Is unlike the Dunnell bill, which
gave an extra man to Michigan at the
expense of Virginia This latest
scheme, prepared after the election,
does not give that extra man to Michi-
gan. Instead of giving Pennsylvania
two new members that States repre-
sentation is allowed to stand. But
New York is reduced.
There IS some probability that the
revolution at the polls. by which sever
al States recently Republican have
gone to the other side, may have the
effect upon the Republicans of dissuad-
ing them from forcing an apportlon-
ment at all. Several States that were
then Republican are now Democratic
The state Of things will be better
understood when 1t is observed that
the only States having solid Republi-
can delegations in the next Congress
Will be Colorado. Idaho, Maine, Ne
yada, North Dakota, Oregon, South
Dakota, Vermont, Washington and
Wyoming. The loss of State Legisla-
lures in some OF the States may have
led the Republicans to conclude that
this will be poor time to attempt to
grab anything that may make the
party additionally unpopular.
But il it was fair and just to increase
the representation from $50 to 354 only
two months ago, the fact that the elec-
tions have gone Democratic in nearly
every State ought not to be expected to
be sufficient reason for increasing the
ratio Of representation and lessenlng
the total number of members. If the
Democrats should do that it would at
once be denounced as a partisan out
rage" The public that has listened to
some OF the superior denunciations ot
the Democrats for what they have done
has expressed its estimation Of them.
and there Is no doubt that the public
will bear in mind the Republican course
on this apportionment business unless
it should be straight.