The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1901-01-23
Unequal Representation.

Gov. MacLean of Connecticut, a State
which, like Vermont, makes dirt, not
population, the basis of representation
in the popular branch of the Legislature
has suggested as q remedy for the inc
quality of representation that each
town have one member of the House
and one additional member for each
10000 inhabitants. Referring to
this circumstance the Free Press re-
marks that the suggestion possesses
considerable merit, and the Reformer
of Brattleboro would make the whole
subject the basis of referendum. The
Free Press says of the suggestion:
The fact remains that the Legislature
must take the initiative in connection
with any referendum, and the power
of the small town will be felt in block
ing a referendum looking to the sub
stitution of the district system for the
town system just as certainly as if the
House were voting on the direct ques.
ton. However, no harm can come
from the attempt, and it might be
worth trying.
But when can it be tried? Now, or
in 1902, or at some other date? The
matter of constitutional amendment
cannot come up in the Legislature
again until 1910. A referendum now
on subject which cannot be acted
upon for ten years, would be more than
useless. The range is far too long for
effective shooting. The ammunition
would all be spent, the shot would fall
far short of the target And if the mat
ter got to the Senate eleven Senators
could-and probably would-again
block the proposal Of any amendment
looking to change of the existing moss
grown state of constitutional things, as
did the Senators of Chittenden county
at the late session of the General As
sembly. On the proposition of amend
ment to permit an amendment to the
Constitution to be proposed at any
regular session of the Legislature Chit
tenden county's three Senators voted
solidly in the negative. This was the
one important and fundamentally es-
sential proposal before the Senate. Such
an amendment, put into the Constitu-
ton, this matter of unequal representa-
ton, which is the grub at the root Of
the States prosperity and progress, with
others of secondary importance, would
come up tor public short range dis
cussion and legislative action as regu
larly and continuously as taxation, thu
schools, the highways-not to mention
the muskrat, the pup and other thing
which often usurp the place of matter
of primal Importance; but, unlike
these subjects of general legislation
wholesome checks and safeguard
would always prevent too hasty adop
ton Of proposed change in the funda
mental law of the State
II is not so much the small towns @
the State as the small men who ge
into the State Senate, that is the chic
obstacle in the way of removing tn
reproach upon a Republican form c
government the Constitution of We
mont presents. 1t is not credibl
that single one of the three propose
of amendment recently rejected by tn
Senate could have failed in the Hous,
1t is not credible that the Houe
would have usurped the power to d,
eide finally on the merits of one
these proposals, but would have obeye
the spirit of the amendment OF 49,
and suffered each proposal to con
along TO the people for discussion al