The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1893-07-13
NOT A GERRYMANOER.
Allan L. McDermott's Mas
terly Defence Of the AS
semblY District Act.
THECoUNTY AT LARGEFAKE
Preeedents in the History Of
Congressional Elections.
Judge Stevens Questions the Jur-
isdiction of the Couft-The
Issue of Equality.
sneciol TO The JERSEY citu Ns,r..

in the attack of the Republicans upon the
Redis,ricting act was continued yester-
cay before Judges Depue. Lippincott and
REID of the Supreme Court. Az the
afternoon session OF the court, john K.
Emery followed Wayne Parker. His
argument was In the same line as Mr..
Parker's. de was followed by Allan. l..
McDermott. in opposition to the applica-
tion.
MIR. McDermett began By saying that
he would confiue himself TO two essential
points-the first, that the Constitutional
Convention of 1874 intended that the cleo
tion of members of the Assembly should
be by districts within the county; and
second. that the question Of apportion-
ment of these districts is political mat
ter with which the Court has nothing
to do.
1.-The right of the Legislature to divide
the counties of the State into Assembly
districts has been exercised during a
period of forty years. and has been hith-
er1o but once assatled
'Undar the Constitution of 1776 the
members OF the General Assembly were
elected by the counties at large, section
8, directing that the counties should an
nually choose memb bers of the Legislative
Council of the colony. and that at the
same time each county should choose
three members OF Assembly. Under this
provision it may have been that all the
members of Assembly were to be chosen
by the county at large. The direction
was that they should be elected by the
county At any rate this plan was
adopted, and until 1859 the members
were so chosen.
"rhe Constitution adopted in 1874
changed the provision to read, The Gen
eraI Assembly shall be composed OF men,
bers annually elected bv the legal voters
of the counties respectively In view of
the fact that the wording Of the provision
is nearly identical with that of the Fed
eral Constitution concerning the House
of Representatives, the Court will find
aid in an almost centemporaneous con-
struction by Congress of the provision of
the national charter.
WHAT THE CONSTITUTION MEANS.
''Article 1, Section 2. of the Federal
Constitution provides:-sThe House of
Representatives shall be composed OF
members chosen every second year by the
people OF the several States, and the
electors in each htate shall have the quail
itications requisite for electors of the
most numerous branchsor the State Leg
islature.' Applied to New Jersey. this is
the tantamouuG to saying that the House
of Representatives shall be composed Of
members elected by the legal voters of
the State. 1t is highly improbable that
the similarity of expression In the Con-
stitutions is the result of chance phrase
ology.
.sW hat is meant by the words in the
Federal Constitution had but recently
been the subject OF protracted and dis
putatious consideration In the halls OF
Congress.
when the reapportiopment of the
House of Representatives was before the
XXVIIth Congress. Mr.. HaIstead,
member from New Jersey. offered an
amendment providing that in every case
where State is entitled 10 more than
one representative, the mum Der to which
each State shall be entitled under this
apportionrnent shall be elected by dis
tricts composed of contiguous territory,
equa! in number TO the number of rep
resentatives to which said State hall be
entitled-uo.one district electing more
than one representative.
THE SAME QUESTION IN CONGRESS.
"The amendment was bitterly opposed,
involving, as IL did, the relation of the
Federal Government to the Ststes-a
question which was somewhat of fire.
brand in those days The Congressional
Globe for that session evidences the in
terest taken in the bill. There were
speeches on il in the Seuate by Benton.
Calhoun, Buchanan. Silas Wright. Mil
Ter of New Jersey land many others: in
the House, by nearly all the leading
members. The bill received ths support
of the New Jersey Senator's and Repre-
sentatives. The latter had bsen elected
on general ticket. Senator Miller of
this State made point which take
pleasure in repeating, In reply TO the at
tacks which were made, as the argument
of the motion for this rule. on this dis
frict system. He said:-
.The single district system will also put
fr.t, ffxrr .t,sfrr
caucus combinations, by which the uu-
worthv candidates too frequently pro-
cure themselves, to be placed upon a
general ticket. We have all seen and
felt the effects of this odious practice.
Men who could not command a hundred
votes when standing alone upon their
own merits have, with the aid OF few
active and Jealous personal fliends, con-
trived TO get themselves uDon q party
ticket along with more popular and
worthy candidates, thus uniting the
good with the bad, and then, by means
of party discipline, riding triumphantly
into power. against the honest wishes of
the very people who vote for them; but,
IL we elect by single districts, everg cau-
tildate must stand or fail upon his own
individual character. He can borrow no
influence from his fellow candidates. no
support from combinations with
Others. He must fight upon his
own hook. aud therefore will not
venture into he canvass unless he has
merits TO recommend him TO the peo-
pie of the district where he resides.
This mode Of election will also give to
the people more direct control ever
their representatives. At each returning
election, ne must go back to his immedi-
ate constituency, meet them face TO face,
aud give an account of his stewardship.
This individual accountability of the
members will strengthen the<confidence
of the people in their representative,
eacn operating upon and sustaining the
other, giving additional efficiency to the
laws and institutions OF the country, by
bringing TO their aid the confiding and
hearty support of the people.
FIRST APP0RTIoNMENT IN 1852
"The apportioument bill with Mr. Hal
stead's amendment. Was passed. When
the statesmen who composed the
convention of 1874 adopted the wording
I'll the Federal Constitution they did it in
the light Of recent construction, giving
t, EN- noouday guidance, and 1t Is almost
iii ulous to say they intended the words
by the legal voters CT the counties re-
spectively.' should preclude the sub
tiiyision Of those counties into Asse mbly
districts, while the words by the people