Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1903-01-14

MANI Nj |||| ! |. 0 4 |
REDIsrRIoTING BILL MEETS NTH
vnRr LITTLE FAVOR.
CHANGES Ct. TO TO BE AN TA 1. &C q!
Five plstrlets Affected All East Of.
Mer,dinn L,ne-a7,n2a Les. voter.
IN Western Hall Of state-rhird
Loses Mapche.ter ana Chester.
neld. Getting Charlie. City and
Caroline countie. in Exchange.
CHAN Es TO BE IAN TAG QNlzED.
Five Dlstrirts Affected All East of
Caroline Counties In Exchange.

AS4A. #4OS1tAHH sSl4aIASS ~ - t1iaa0
Caroline conntie. In Exchange.
Hon. S, Gordon Cumming, Of Eliza beth
City county, offered IN the House Of
Delegates yesterday afternoon the long
expected, much talked-of bill to redistrlctEi
the State for-representative in Congress
Various changes have been rumored, and
from time te ting *pthers than tnoss
recommended were Under consideration,
but owing to strenuous objection, they
were abandoned.
The bill as offered affects but FIVE OF the
ten districts Of the State, and these five
are all east Of a meridian line dividing
the State into two equal parts. The dis
tricts. affected by the plan proposed are
the First Mr.: Jones), the second l4'lr.
Maynard'e1, the Third Captain Lambs.
the Fourth tN1r. southall 81, and me
Eighth CHR. Rixey,s). The Eighth Is only
slightly changed.
Here are the changes proposed in the
composition OF the districts by the Cum
ming bill: James City, York, Warwick.
and Elizabeth City counties, and the cities
of Newport News and Williamsburg {all
on what is known as The Peninsula,
that strip of land between the James and
the York rivers are taken from the
Second, which is by long. odds the most
;populous district in the State, and are
added tostf1e First district tN1r. Jones),
which is below The average in population.
Charles City county is cut off the Second
and added to the Third. This brings The
Second down to the average.
The First district, enlarged by the
addition of the peninsula counties and
cities, would be too large, and 50 spotsyl=
yania county and the city of Fred ericks-
burg are cut off and. added to the Eighth
district, and Caroline is cut of the First
and added to. the Third or Richmond
district
THIRD DISTRICT CHANGED.
The Third district would lose in the
event of the adoption Of the Cumming
plan, the county of Chesterfield and the
city of Manchester, which. would be added
to the Fourth or Petersburg district,
but there is compensation for this by
the addition OF Caroline from the First,
and Charles City from the Second dis
trict.
The only change in the Eighth district
ericksburg and Spotsylyania county.
Il the proposed changes are made the
population of the districts affected ny
the bill will be as follows:
First-To tal pcpula ton. 4s,2 5z, instead or
of s7,773, as at present.
Second--Total population, 5354s, instead
Of 1893 as at present.
| Third-Totsl population, 1888, instead
Of 49, as at present.
Fourthr-Total population, H,55s. instead
Of 1885; as at present.
Eigf1th-Total popula ton, 41:loa, instead
of 81 *, as. at present.
Here arc the population Of the other
districts:
| Fifth-Population IS, 764. Unchanged by
| the bill.
sixth-Populatlon q, GIL. Unchanged by
! the bill. =,
| seventh-Populati ton, ss,547. Unchanged
by the bill.
Ninth-Porulatien. 5l,s25. Unchanged by
| the bill.
Tenth-Populaticn, 1855 Unchanged by
| the bill.
VAST DIFFERENCE IN POPULATION
| If the plan of Mr.. Cummings IS adopted
/ in its entirety and without additional
changes the population Of the five DIS dis
I tricfs comprising the eastern hall. OF the
| state will be 22s, 439; that of the western
| half, five districts, lS9 3d. an excess OF
| population represented by the five east
ern congressman over that rePre s e. icy!
| by the Ave eastern Congressman Of 73tz6.
/ While this is regrettable it has been found
/ by the trainers of the bill almost impossl-
| BILE to euualize population among the
] western districts and those Of the east
/ er1l without sacrificing the compactness
/ Of the districts and the contiguitys Of coun-
ties com prised in the districts. The
! pressnt plan under consideration IS now
/ ever an Improvement over the spresen'
1 districting in that it brings the i've east
ern districts almost on an equality, where.
as now the Second has $4,000 people and
/ the First, Fourth and Eighth, each but
i 81 0Go. or lust half that of the Second
/ All efforts to increase The population OF
the Fifth and Sixth and reduce the sur
] plus in the Ninth have been seriously op'
posed. The Ninth and Tenth are abeti
! that of the districts of the western halt
! and the Fifth and Sixth are far belo"
! the average. Amendments may be pro
i posed looking to the ren1edying OF TINS
j Inequality, but it is difficult 70 Success e:
1 solution that would not meet witt
i vehement opposition from the people O
i the counties affected by the proposition.
i It was originally intended by the
/ framera of the bill to gut off Pulaski ane
Smyth from the top-heavy Nint4 and adt
Il them to the light Fifth, and shift Floyc
4 county from the Fifth to the Sixth, thus
nearly equa1izing the population amons
the three districts affected. These propo
! sitions may be renewed when the Oh
4 comes up in committee, or on the fool
w WILL BE VIGOROUSLY ANTAGo-
MED.
l Even some of the changes proposed vii
5 be vigorously antagoni5ed by members
s Of the General Assembly REPRESENTING
q the counties and cities affected. Some @
4 the First district members will Stout.
oppose the addition OF the peninsula coun
ties and cities, and the transfer Of Caro-
. line, spotsylyania and Fredericksburg t
the Third and Eighth districts. Mr.
Toney, of Manchester, is earnestly in ia
n rer Of the transfer Of Manchester: an
Chesterfield from the Third to the Fourth
and CAPTAIN Baker is thought to be Il
{, favor of the change. Senator Cogbill'
position IS not known positively. no
! indeed has Captain Baker publicly e1
pressed himself
Mr.. Bowers. Of Caroline, IS opposed T
d shifting that county from the First t
the Third district. Other First eistrle
members Will oppose some Of th
changes proposed. The members from tn
q second district appear 70 be satlsfle
with the recommendations.