The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1892-08-12
THE ApPoRTroSMHyr QUESTION.
The Courts and Uneon.utuUop., Acts OF
tho Legislatures.

The Courts and Uneon.titu,,ou.i Acts OF
tho LeEtslnture.
To THE EDITOR OF The SuS-Sir: Tho view
generally taken By able lawyers, qualified by
knowledge and experience to express an
opinion on the subject is that Judge Rum sey's
decision declaring Unconstitutional the new
apportionment will not stand the test OF an
peal to the highest court In the State. ! do
not think 1t makes very much difference. In
political sense. whether the apportionment
made by the recent Democratic Legislature be
overturned or no. Tho State OF New York Is
always close In Presidential elections. and
'here Is no particular advantage to either
party. so far as the Assembly is concerned In
the new apportionment. for. while It does
away with host OF inequalities p.cjudiclal to
Democrats. 1t adds materially to the number
OF doubtful districts. hitherto Democratic. In
New York and Brooklyn. Many OF these the
Republicans may be able to capture.
But there Is one phase OF the matter which
is Important. and that is the claim raised by
some Democrats that the courts have n right
to interfere in tho matter OF apportionment.
The World, always prominent In every evil
effort to bring rtdicule and reproach upon the
democratic cause. AYERS. with characteristic
| recklessness. that II tho courts be asked to
perform duty dcvolving on the Legislature,
or to set aside an act OF the Legislature on the
ground that 1t involves an abuse OF discretion,
wide political field Is open to the Judges"
so lar from this being the case. 1t Is q we'll
established principle. and ono OF tho bulwarks
OF Democratic party faith. that q Legislature
mas power only to enact such laws as the Con-
stitution creating such Legislature authorizes
Tho Congress OF tho United States has no
| power to enact q law which contravenes the
| provisions Of the Federal Constitution. Should
| 1T attempt to do SO. appeal is at once taken to
the courts. and their right to declare void the
statute which they find to be unconstitutional
is known to every schoolboy and recognized by
every voter. 1t is hardly necessary to quote
instances OF the acknowledgment Of this
| power. but three cases will serve: the legal
tender case. the original package case. and the
| civil rights bill.
The Legislature Of the State Of New York
has no other and no greater power in the mat.
ter Of apportionment than the Constitution Of
tho State gives it. Its members must follow
that Constitution. and they cannot override OF
| ignore it. II they do. the right OF the courts
| to declare void their acts is undoubted. and |,
| would DO serious matter indeed for the
Democrats Of the State Of New York to be put
in the position of claiming that the action o.
their representative In the Legislature wns
superior to the Constitution and the courts.
The Constitution says that the Leg stature IL
to divide the Assembly into 1913 districts. Say
for instance that tho Legislature, distrustfu
Of tho wisdom OF this provision. establishes ar
| Assembly OF $50 members. According to thu
World. there would be no redress for such ar
act The Legislature could do as it pleased
| II 1t could ignore the Constitution, SO far as t.
change the number OF districts, or to ignor,
the provisions OF that instrument In dividins
them. 1t could abolish the Legislature alto
gether and who would there be to appeal to
Such proposition Is alike untenable and ri
diculous. and no more serious evil could be
fall the people of a State or OF a nation tina,
government by an independent body of Leeis
lators. having plenary power to make Law
without appeal to any tribunal-a tyranny O
the worst and most un- American sort,
In thus writing do not for moment see]
to uphold or to Justify the claims OF unfair
ness made by the Republicans. but I do con
tend that they are right in claiming that IN
courts have the right to review and to pro
nounce void legislation which is in confic
with the Constitution. With its usual reck
lessness. the World says that the courts o
this State have been asked Ito perform a dut,
devolving on tho Legislature" They hav,
been asked to do nothing OF the kind N,
one has asked the courts to make an appor
tionment OF legislative districts. and such
request would be preposterous The right t.
apportion belongs to the Legislature and mo-
to the Judiciary: but it can only be exercised
within constitutional limits. and any attemp
to so beyond these is subject to review.
The Democratic party in the United States 1.
It is the party which Yields prom Mt acouies