Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1892-10-13

and assembly according to the number
by the other opinions
therein filed. That decision is here
re-aftirmCd, as the law of the state
The requirement that assembly districts
must be as nearly equal III population
as the other constitutional provisions
win permit, is just under such equal
ity, as near as practicable. Hence we
find one assembly district with Only
S,62G inha bitants, while another con
tains %, III; and enc senate district
with only 3O,T32 Inhabitants while
another contains $685.; and there are
numerous other Irregularities, though
less gIaliAg, yet no less repugnant 10
the constitution, running through the
whole act. No attempt has been made
TO justify these palpable and unneces-
sary inequalities of representation,
upon any constitutional basis, save
only that Of legislative discretion. Be
You'd question the enactment of an
appOrtiOument law is an exercise OF
Legislative power; and hence the power
to make the same IS vested in the
senate and assembly. Whatever may
have been inferred, from what has
been said, we believe no lawyer has
contended at the bar that such sup
posed legislative discretion is absolute
and unlimited. Had the trainers OF
the constitution intended to give to
the legislature absolute and unlimited
in, "a of gsI1.I1
tionments, they would simply have re-
Juired them from time to time to
''apportiOn and district anew the mem
bers of the senate and assembly" and
stopped right there; or have said
nothing on the subject. This court
has repeatedly sanctioned the PROPOSE
ton that our state constitution is not
power and hence that the state legis-
lature has authority to exercise any
and MI legislative powers not dele
gated to the federal government, nor
expressly or by necessary implication
prohibited by the rational or state con-
StitutiOn. The state eX rel, Graef vs..
Forest county, "A Wis, 615 and cases
therefore, remained silent as to the
lumber of senators and assemblymen,
the census, the appOrtionmenU and the
formation of senate and assembly dis
tlicts, it is quite obvious that the lcgis-
latuTa would have possessed the lis
cretionary powers suggested. 1t was
because the trainers Of the constitu-
1IpT1 I1nNriIlinrr 70
CretiOnary and unlimited towers in the
legislature that they prescribed specific
methods, restrictions and limitations
upon the exercise of such powers. Thus
the constitution expressly provides,
that: The number of the members of
the assembly shall never be less than
fifty-four nor more than one hundred"
Sec. ,, Art. 4. Here is a discretion in
the legislature in making an apportion-
ment or otherwise, to fix the number of
aSSemblymen at fifty-four or one hun
bred, or any number between these
figures; but should they at
tempt to fix the num-
Der at only fifty-three or
less, or one hundred and one or more.
it is very manifest, that the enactment
would be simple nullity, for want of
power to make it. SO by the same
section, it is provided, that: '"The sen
ate shall consist of number not more
than One-third, nor less than one-fOurth
of the number of the members of the
assembly" Here is a discretion left in
the legislature, but it is limited to the
two fractions named or some inteTmed-
late number, but any attempt to CON
Stltute Il senate of Il greater of less
number than thus authorized. would
obviously be repugnant to the consti-
tuition and void. Leaving out matters
not reyelant here, and section 4 of the
same article. as amended, provides that:
The members of the assem-
oily shall be chosen biennially,
by single districts, by the quail
flied electors of the several districts.
such districts to be bounded by the
county,. town or ward lines, to consist
of contiguous territory, and be in as
compact form as practicable" 1t is
obvious from this, that the number of
districts must be the same as the num-
Der of members; that the qualified cleo
tors of each district have power to elect
one member and no more; that neither
a town nor ward can be divided in
the formation of an assembly district:
so that each town and the whole of it
must be III some one assembly district,
and each ward and the whole of it,
must be in some one assembly district.
1t was determined in the former case
and is now conceded, that no county
is to be broken in the formation of any
assembly district. This section also re-
quires, that each assembly district must
consist of contiguous territory; that
is to say, it cannot be made up of two
or more pieces of detached territory
All admit that these several conditions
are absolutely binding upon the legis-
lature, and that that body has no power,
much less discretion, to dispense with
any one of them. 1t is conceded, that
the act in question conforms to these
several requirements; but it will be
observed, that no one of these require
mentS is calculated to secure or aiu in
securing the equality of representation;
on the contrary their observance must,
necessarily, to limited extent, prevent
such equality of representation; so that
unless there are other provision in The
constitution calculated to secure such
equality within certain limits, then
there is no restriction whatever. 1t will
be observed, that the section quoted.
L.,
other reference to cities. From this.