The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-11-21
NOT AN EASYTASK
RediStricting of the State Again
Being Considered.
Mr.. Stubs Will Have Trouble
in Securing Committee.
CAN'T SUIT YER ONE.
That Much Is Admitted at the
Outset.
C0ngressman-at- Large Little
More Than Figurehead.

One Of the hardest jobs that w. r.
Stubs will have to dc the coming win
ter, as speaker of the house, will be to
name a committee on congressional APP
p-ortionment that will be satisfactory to
all the parties concerned, and at the
same time one that will work in har-
mony with the senate committee on the
same proposition.
The Republican state platform
pledges the coming legislature to redis-
trict the state into eight congressional
districts. For the past twelve years the
state has had eight congressman, but
only seven districts, so there has been
g congressman-at-large each time.
There have been so many conflicting
interests that no legislature has been
able to agree on a plan for redistrict-
ing The coming legislature will have
the same trouble.
In fact, it will be absolutely impossi-
BILE to make a district that will suit all
concerned. All of the present congress-
men will wan to remain and there are
twice as many more who want their
jobs. Each will want the distribution
of districts arranged to his best per
sonal advantage, and it will scarcely
be possible to carve out eight districts
so as to send twenty-five or more men
to congress.
In the First district Congressman
Curtis Will want to hang on, of course,
dflu there are a nuElDef Oh OCIlGIS WlO
would like a seat in congress. In the
Second district other people have been
talking about the retirement of Con-
gresham Bowersock, sat MIR. Bower
sock has exhibited no great anxiety to
give up his job. Among thCse in the
present Second dist rict who want to go
to congress some time are H. j. Allen
of Ottawa, Henry McGrew of Kansas
City, c. N. Cory of Fort Scott and per-
haps otehrs. Congressman-at-Large
Scott also lives in the present Second
district, and he will have strong claims
to consideration in the redistricting
o.. P. Ergenbright. of ~Independ-
ence, and W. H Sproul, of Sedan,
whom Congressman Campbell beat to
the nomination two years ago doubt
less would like to have things arranged
to give them another chance. There
are fewer avowed candidates in the
Fourth district than perhaps in any
other. but there are doubtless several
gentlemen who will watch the con
gressional apportionment the coming
winter to see if it will make an open
ing for any congressional aspirations
on their part
1t is generally understood that there
will be trouble in the Fifth district in
two years, regardless of any apportion-l
Inent. A number of candidates are
spoken of in opposition to Mr.. Calder
head, among them F. L. Williams of
Clay Center, T. D.. Fitzpatrick of Sa-
lima, c. n. Peck of Concordia, Robert
u oAl0 ! =. !
Up in the Sixth district there is-also
likely to be trouble two years hence,
and the new apportionment is not
likely to make any difference with it,
but in the Seventh it is different. One
of the popular schemes of apportion-
ment is to put Congressman Murdoch
In the new Eighth district. which
would leave the greater part of the
old Seventh free to pick out a new
congressman. When Victor Murdoch
was first nominated he won over a
field of eighteen candidates, so it can
be easily seen that there is an abund-l
Rnce of congressional aspirations in
that part of the state. Fred Dumon
Smith of Kinsley, Judge F. c. Price of
Clark, Frank Nelson of Mcpherson,
and c. E. Branine of Harvey will be
opportunity is presented. There is a
possibility that Nelson will be thrown
Into any one of four districts. He
may remain in the present Seventh;
he may be put into the new Eighth,
into the Fourth, or into the Fifth.
Branine would probably go either into
the same district as Murdoch, or into
the Fourth.
The statement is frequently made
that a congressman-at-large, such as
Kansas has been having for theOlast
twelve years, is little more than a
hgure-head. 1t is argued hat a con-
gressman-at-large has no positive con-
stituency as has a congressman who
once held the place for one term but
refused a denomination, and il is
known that Congressman Scott would
much rather have q district of his
own than to represent the state as a
whole 1t is not true, however, that a
congressman-at-large is necessarily a
hgure-heed. 1t is true that he has no
postmasters to appoint but that does
Congressman Scott. for instance, be-