The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-04-25
DEMoCKA TIC GERRYMANDERING

outrage 10 grosser extent. There is no
justification for the Republican gerry
mander Of Ohio this year, except that the
Democrats committed similar outrage in
1890.
Senator Pasco, of Florida, two years
ago in the United States Senate, COM
plain ed that in the election of 1888 the Re
publicans in Massachusetts cast 1873. 1872
votes and elected ten congressman, while
the Democrats cast Isl, s55 votes and
elected only two congressman. There
fore, concluded Senator Pasco, 1889 Re-
publican votes could choose congress-
man while 1927 Democratic votes were
needed to elect one.
Senator Pasco forgot to state that it took
$4,000 Republican votes in the states of
Florida. South Carolina. Georgia, Ala
bama, Mississippi and Louisiana to elect
one Congressman, while 42s, 900 Democratic
votes in the same states elected twenty
nine congressman, or one to every IA, 755
votes, making one Democratic vote count
for as much as fourteen Republican votes.
Under the Republican gerrymander this
year in Ohio, which is merely re-perpe-
tration of the Democratic gerrymander of
1899, the state is to be divided so that the
Republicans can carry fifteen districts and
the Democrats six districts. Basing the
calculation on the last preslden tial vote,
this would give one congressman to every
27,737 Republican votes and one congress-
man to every 1921 Democratic votes.
But in Missouri the Democratic legisla-
ture in redistricting the state this year
has given fourteen districts to the Demo-
Gratis and one to the Repu blicans, or a
Democratic congressman to every 1910
votes ard Republican congressman to
every 235, 253 votes, making one Demo-
cratic vote go as far as twelve and two
thirds Republican votes IN choosing q
congressman.
In New York state the new congressional
apportionment law just enacted is the
most recent Democratic gerrymander
This new congressional apportionment
law has been so devised that the chances
favor tho election of five Democratic
congressman from Kings to represent
5000 Democi ats, and none to represent
5000 Republicans. Nearly all of the
strong Republican wards have been sepa-
rated from each other and Joined with the
strong Democratic wards, so as to neutral
ize their influence.
In other words, while the Republicans
of Kings county at the last election cast A
per cent. of the entire vote for governor,
nevertheless the districts of Kings are 80
arranged in the new congressional appor-
tionment law that the Republicans cannot
be expected to carry any of them.
Gerrymandering is the art exercised by
the party in power when state is to be
divided into districts of making its own
vote go as far as possible in the election of
members of legislature or of a national
House of Representatives. A state is really
gerrymandered when the vote clearly
shows thst the party making the arrange
ment tried to group into a few districts
counties that gave majorities for its op-
ponents and to distribute counties con-
tanning majority of its own votes
among as many districts as possible by
distorting the boundaries of districts and
forcing counties from their natural posi-
ton. The gross evil of the gerrymander
lies in the fact that it deprives of repre-
sentation in congress or in the state or
local government large minority and
sometimes an actual majority of the peo-
pie. The purpose of gerrymander is to
mass the voters of one party in such dis
triots as to make their strength count for
as much or as little as possible in the cleo
ton of representatives to the state or
national legislatures.
In 1888 the arrangement OF the congress
sional districts in Ohio was made by the
Republicans, so that the party was able to
elect fifteen of the twenty-one congress
men, but the Republicans had a majority
on the congressional vote of %, 2Sl, and
as such a majority will generally carry
enough counties to elect from two-thirds
to three-fourths of a state delegation to
congress, the Ohio Republican arrange
ment of 1SSS was not gross gerrymander,
but in lsS9, when the Democrats elected
Campbell governor by 10,s72 plurality,
they gerrymandered the districts so
grossly that the Republicans were able to
elect but seven congressman, one-third of
the delegation, in a state where the Repub-
licans had clear congressional majority.
This was very gross gerrymander, but it
does not justify the Republicans this year
in treating Governor Mckinley's protest
against gerrymsndering with contempt.
,nla ii
out of congress by a Democratic gerry
msnder which placed him in a district
that had a Democratic majority of over
1900
Indiana has been so gerrymandered by
the Democrats that the Republicans with
a majority in 1Sss of 1878 on the congress
sional ticket elected less than one-fourth
of the delegation, so completely had their
vote been massed in three districts and
the Democratic vote distributed over ten
districts. The situation is still worse to-
day, for the Republicans have but two
members from Indiana in the Fifty-second
congress. and are likely to have but one
hereafter.
The "Shoe-string district" of Missis-
sippi, the BLACK district" of South Caro-
lima are startling examples of Demo-
cratic gerrymandering. The recently en-
acted congressional superintendent act of
Alabama is another illustration of the
grossest sort of Democratic gerrymander-
ing. The Democratic gerrymsnder in
Wisconsin has heen declared unconstitu-
tional by her Democratic sunreme cou-t
The Democratic gerrymander in Michigan,