New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-07-24
POLITICAL AND PERSONAL.
PUBLIC MEN AND AFFAIRS.
THE WARD BOUNDARIES AND REArrorTIoNMrNT

THE WARD BOUNDARIES And EXTRAORDINARY
-REPUBLICANs ACTIVE.
The arrangement Of the boundary limos of some OF
the wards 20 -abc certain Democratic leaders to con
tNol the new Assembly districts tOto which the city
wa o. - DIVIDED became law by Che signature OF
Mayor Body Just In time r the Supervisors 70 carry
into effect the most audaious gerrymander OF the
population ever attempted As soon As Il became
.pparent that a new spportionment wond BE- made
Ns Dsnocrltr leaders from the various wards began
TO nod coN fcrnces 10 decide how best 10 subdiVlde
the territory o. assist the personal aSgfahu1e-
msn, Of each Steps had already been taken 10 divide
the Eghte.th ward into thre. parts "a II had become
unw:sty In its Aggregation Of population In order
10 sitecrve tho interests ID John Delmar me south
BROOKLYN leader who aid the foundations Of fortune
In tho C.puty C1erk's ONCE. but who lived In ward
which has Republican ma iority. hll vac duced
in The I~at Aiure rsarran gng the boundaries 81 cer
tain south Brooklyn wards. protest was made by
Ah.rmen Mc,;arry because slice OF the Tenth Ward
which he controls. taken OF by The terms OF the
bill and N appeas> him the scheme was devised OF
putting II IN the power Of the Board OF Aldermen TO
alter ward boundaries they saw III, AZ II was
thought hat this might he exceedingly conveien upon
occason tho Bill was approved and be- anne a law.
To suit the demands u local leaders and also 70
prevent tn. necessity ~ subdiyidng tho largest two
wards Of a. city beior. another redistrcimg, Che
boundaries Of the Twenty second Ard the Twenty ih
wards vcre materially altered. protest against The
char " In tie Twenty h'th Ward. As arbitrary and IN
allied Tor va, made hy The residents Of the portion Of
tho ward affected They were represented before iae
Mayor by Jes,s johnson. Of the abl"st lawyers IN
tn. city, who Is now Hing the Office OF United states
District Attorney. lie laid stress upon the point that
the law lndcr which the Aldermen acted was IN
constitutional. This point wa referred by The Mayor
to Corporation Counsel Jerks and no said that bis de-
oisiou would De governed by the opinion OF General
J-nks.
A. might 10 exported, the Democratic Corporation
Counsl found the weight Of authority to support The
oonstfu'ionality Of an act passed by Il Democratic
Legislature and signed by Democratic Governor, and
furnished the Mayor an elabOmtc opinion TO that
effect according 20 which the Mayor signed the r,so
buttons But for fear that The action ~ the Aldermen
would not become valid IN time. steps we're taken 10
have the Supervisors pas similar resolutions altering
the ward boundaries. supervisor AT Largo kink" did
no, wait or protest against N" action but promptly
signed the resolutions The dilemma is nov pre-
,cnicd that II he Aldermen, action right, That
Of rhc supervisor, nugaiOry while. K the action
If the Aldermen I. void that Of The supervisor, cannot
BE- regarded rs cncrtual, they acd 20 comply with
The plain provl. u the law governing tie a!tcrL
ion Of town boundaries.
Mr. Johnson is carefully studying the law points
in the case and, proposes to carry the matter into
Aldermen TO slice IN portion Of a ward and annex
Il TO another political parlI,anship The whole
question Of the grrymandcr Oi tho Assembly districts
- involved In the action taken Inst week. and Mr.
Johnson that the injustice and Inequality Of the
apIortiOnmcnt which gives 10000 people IN one ward
equal representation with three times the number In
other wards, because the former Is Dcmocmlic
and the latter are Republican,, are such that they
should not he tamciy submitted TO. lie compares the
ACTON Of the Democratic authorities 10 the methods o
Tweed In New ork. and says: " III "" lie down ana
let that appDrtionmcnt through without appealing
TO the courts, make Ourselves abjcct under outnGe
think this present wrong can be Hglted In IN"
courts but whether We succeed or fail, We must test
the question or iamey submit to be- trolden upon
The Law Committee u the Union League Club is also
looking into the matter and will cooperate in the legal
steps to be taken.
By the new apportIonmcnt The Democrats gain six
Assembly Districts in addition 10 the ten theS "ir"ay
controlled and the Republicans are left with the two
now represented BY mcmbcis OF the party. IN any
fair division Of tho city the Republicans should nave
received half Of the increase, which would stu have
given the Democrat, twice rs many members OF As
scmbly ns TO the Republicans. But now they VIII
have eight times a. many and It looks rs II. had the
possibility existed Of controlling all the eighteen ais
trcts the Democratic greed would have been sufficient
10 have taken thom all II the test OF the constu-
tonailty Of the act of npporonmen begun IN koches
ter Is successful the whole matter may hiNe 10 oo
gone again.
The change Of ward boundaries affects the Kepubll'
can associations In several parts Of the city III Tue
Twenty second Ward both the president ana s'rte'FS
of the ward association live In the part annexed 10
the Ninth Ward and some Of the members hold mat
they are thus ousied from Office But by the r"i'hs
in the General Committee in the matter % the division
Of the Eighteenth Ward lat spring, the qhesuoh VIII
have to remain IN allowance until the next meeting OF
the General Committee. TINS il set down i"i Tue
second Tuesday In september. and no meeting VIII be
held before that time unless called by President "o
rich for especial purpose In The Twenty MIN
Ward the association IL holly opposed to the a''lol
which takes large number Of members away ana
Mace. them IN the Twcntyihird Ward but the RepnD
ilcan, In the latter ore welcoming them with open
arms and In order 10 receive the new applicants Is
fast al possible the Investigating Committee has been
increased from three 10 nine. over 100 Applications
wero received last week from the new portion of the
ward David A. BALDWIN, OF that ward, says 1t VIII
become once moro the banner Republican ward OF tho
city ny liz aaaexslQ9. u could grow " W SRaes