Milford chronicle., 1904-10-14
0UGHRCHY
Spirit of the Constitution Vi0Iat-
ed-VOters' Rights Destroyed
In Centralized Power.
Tohu Sharp Williams In Congress on | ,433
Votes - Speaker Cannon Has
2z,94l-SOme Facts.

It has been asserted that the Repub
lican platform in demanding that rep
resentatfon in congress and in the elect
oral colleges lie reduced in states where
the elective franchise has been limited
/ by special determinations is raising
tile race question. This is not true The
/ platform does not touch the race ques-
/ tion. The clause in question has to dc
with more vital and important mat
ter. the equality Of voters.
The constitution Of the United States.
Article l. Section II. 5. defines the basis
Of representation as follows:
Representatives and direct taxes
shall be appartioned among the several
states which may be included within
this Union according to their respective
numbers. which shall he determined
by adding to the whole number of free
persons. including those bound to serv-
ice for term Of years. and excluding
Indians not taxed, three-tifths of all
other persons"
According to the fourteenth amend
uent:
Representative shall he apportion-
ed among the several states according
to tEeir respective numbers. counting
the whole numl er Of persons in each
state, excluding Indians not taxed"
Now. obviously if 5y scme such plan
a3 the Wholesale acknowledgements Of
a certain class OF the population the
entire population of state, voting and
nOnvOting. can be made to count in
the representation Of that state in CON
gress while other states are there rep
resented in proportion to their number
OF voters, there is an inequality which
tends toward the establishment Of Just
such an oligarchy as existed in the
antebellum congress, only instead Of
counting thrce-hfths Of large non
voting population certain southern
states now count the whole Moreover.
their representation is vested in men
who are committed to Il policy not only
Democratic, but essentially local and
In many respects directly antagonistfc
to the interests not only of northern
Republicans, but of northern Demo
Gratis as well. The perception of
similar condition of things made the
war Democrat of forty years a.,.
Under the present Mississippi consti-
tuition one voter in Mississippi equals
ten i'm Connecticut len in Ohio. twelve
in Massachusetts. sixteen in California.
seventeen III Iowa and twenty in
New York. How do you like that, cit
izens!
Let us look at the matter in detail.
john Sharp Williams, the Democratic
leader Of the house. was asked some
time ago whether he would accept the
nomination for president. He said:
My nomination would no sooner be
than it would be heralded
far and wide that my platform consist +
ed of the constitution Of Mississippi
and the amendments thereto"
Mr.. Williams knew he could never
win on that platform. He was elected
to the Fifty eighth congress without
opposition. receiving l 433 votes. his
district, the Eighth Mississippi. having
a population of 19O.SsJ In the First
district of Connecticut, having a popu-
lation Of 220,O03. II per cent more than
that of the Eighth Mississippi. f.
stevens Henry received 202S9 votes.
and had that district been Of the same
size as Mr.. Williams district Mr..
Henry must have had 1852 votes to
secure election more than ten times
as many as it took to elect the Demo
cratic leader of the house. Moreover.
N opposition TO Mr.. Henry, 17.211
Votes were east for William O'Nen. .
Democrat; 392 for Edward Agard
Prohibitionist; 7Os for Jameson, Social
st, and IA for Joseph S. Powell. .
Socialist Labor More than ten times
Is many votes We're cast in Connect
'ut as We're cast in Mississippi for
candidate. Tie scattering vote
amounted altogether to 1,244-within (
700 votes Of the total vote in the Eighth
district, for Williams was
without opposition. If this scattering
'ote had united for the Socialist can
lidate, and all the other voters in the
'irst Connecticut district had been dis
ranchised, chat candidate would have
'een elected in conditions very nearly
SO far as numbers are
oncerned, to the conditions of the Mis-
issippi election which put Mr.. Will
ians in the house of representatives.
And Mr.. Williams is arguing against
on the ground that the
philippines are governed without rep
esentation.
In the Eighth New Jersey district
representative Wiley was elected by