The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-09-20
REINFORCEMENT.
One of the First Questions to Come Up
in Congress.

Washington, Sept. 20.-One of the
first questions with which the APP
preaching session of congress will be
called upon to grapple will be to de-
termine when the next apportionment
of members of the house of represen-
tatives under the recent census shall
be made.
The constitution requires that a re-
apportionment shall follow each de-
cennial enumeration of the people, and
accordingly a redistribution of seats
in the house membership has taken
place hitherto soon after the conclu-
sion of each census.
Up to 1890 the reapportionment was
uniformly postponed until the first
session of the congress succeeding the
enumeration, but after the eleventh
census a change was made and the
apportionment bill for the eleventh
and twelfth census were brought in
and passed in each case during the
short session of the current congress
Immediately following the census. 1t
will rest with the approaching session
to determine whether it shall follow
the old or the new precedent. Poll
tics may determine the choice.
Before the time for the meeting of
congress the result of the November
elections will have become known. If
the Democrats should come into con-
troll of the house for the Sixty third
any effort to have the change made by
the present Republican congress. while
the Republicans would be as anxious
to have the service performed while
they were in &C 1trol of legislation in
both houses.
How Apportionment Is Made.
Apportionment in itself can be used
for party advantage only through the
manipulation of population fractions
in the various states. If the present
day plan of fixing upon a definite
number of members as the first step
In the distribution is followed. many
states will be found to have a consid-
cradle number of citizens over the
number necessary to give them the
number of members assigned them.
The size of the house once determin-
ed, the representation of each state is
arrived at by dividing the aggregate
population of the country by the total
membership of the house and then
dividing the population of any iiVen
state by the quotient thus obtained.
Almost inevitably there ensues upon
each of such divisions a remainder,
large or small. Aside from arbitrarily
fixing the representation on the votin g
rather than the actual population, this
remainder, or fraction, affords the
only base of manipulation of the APP
portionment of members.
loss of membership would be by
no means a new experience to many
81 the SJdIeS. In the nrSL dppOrt1on-
ment, made after the census of 1890,
when the house numbered. all told,
only los members, Virginia was given
10, or almost one-fifth of the entire
membership. and in 1900 that number
was increased to %. Then there was
a gradual falling away until 1870
when there were only nine members
from that state. Since then there has
bean gain of one
Barring the first apportionment
Connecticut began with members
and now has 5. Maryland has beer
reduced from to 6. and New Hamp-
shire from to 2. Vermont, which in
1910 had members now has 2
while Maine with 8 in 1880 has beer
reduced to 4. Massachusetts has the
same number with which she started
in 1890. In 1900 the number was
Increased to IT, but by the next ap.
portionment it had fallen to 10, and
the original figure of IA was not re-
gained until 1900
After Virginia and Massachusetts
Per asylvania, with 10 members. had
tho largest representation in the house
in AyeO. New York and North Caro-
Inns followed with 10 each The lat