El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-08-23
FREDERIC HASk|h
IN THE GERMAN
EMPIRE
Continued from Page SixD

Continued from Page Six.)
n,en+arr constituency meets and each
chooses one elector. Then the three
electors. as chosen by the three classes
Of voters separately, meet ana chooSe
the DEPUTY 10 represent the constltu-
ny in The Irussian diet. As NAT
ter If course the first and second class
electors. representing only 10 percent
of the voters, outyOte the one elector
repre senting IS percent OF the people
That is the reason that the SOCIALIST
democratic party. by far the largest po-
&C. o-e,anization in Prussia, never
w. sole TO elect even a single deputy
20 the Prrssian diet until the last cleo
+fon when a verita5le landslide captured
the second class voters in seven CON
erituencies and seven socialists were
elected
Electoral Reform Agitation.
ro,,r Years ago the agitation for cleo
+oral reform reached the point Where ~
no longer could be ignored, ana d hiou-
crate reform bill granting very lie"
--s,,or concessions received strong sup
nm a. 81 dfet. AS finally passed the
I'm was emasculated, and it did nothing
a-con+ create ten additional seats not
recognition of the disproportlona1e
. concentration of the urban coIilliiu
+iee bu+ in order to facilitate the ma
chinery Of election .L;,e
The passage of this bill ala notniiIs
~ Ear the flames of the popular re-
-. Iact autumn the king IN ms
-oaob from the throne told the oieI
80 The electoral system must De re-
fo~r,ad This deceived the masses lhto
+t,e l,eaief that their demands We're aoOu1
70 he granted. But when the plli nIeuo
,+s anpearance it was fouho 10
the Objectionable three-class s. SER q
tar,r4ing TO propitiate the anger Oh tne
-oito+.rio+ nv substituting direct Ior
5-,dirac+ ballot As the three-cldSS
-, vas not materially affected o.
-, oTIeo-a6 reform bill, the people were
f,,rious in their disappointment 81
-ioting demonstrations took place ~ a..
narfS of the kingdom Inc question: =
farther from peaceIul
than ever before
German Conservatism,
oo-,-..5s,,, in Germany often is rep
-o.o-,+ed nv aggressive champions VIII
dafinite reactionary programs OIe VI
A. chief r,enaces TO German oehioO
- is +ne increasing agitation among
the tory agrarians and the other aIhto
cratir and plutocratic elements lOI
form of the imperial sulIraSe
1 - universal suffrage and sub
stituting for il in the whole eIhPILe INC
p,,ssfan three-class system ms "a
advocated of course, as means "
.4a,,nofno the rising tide OF soclallsn.-
Tho Conservatives know that even VIZ
fine ingenious gerrymanterS anu -
other means of preventing d true -
~ Yqorular sentiment, the country can
NJ 1one- remain out of the hands OF the
.,e;aI;e4s # their present ratio OF IN
crease IS maintained
democrats, whether socialists or oIilS
liberals, in other states than fruS So
are opposed to the present ~ s a.
electoral system not only as sympaIn%-
ers with the Prussian peopFe, pul ~
cause Of the potent menace TO their own
1sbaraI electoral laws. The aggressive
res rtionaries in the Prussian dlet' rep
-eeentinp the landlords Of East prussia
and the aristOcratic Junkers' nv
adonted 2 policy which is dong more
than anything else to foster the grO"In
of the social democratic party IN lne
non-Prussian states, as well as IN their
own kingdom
The Gerrymander system
The system which gives to a majority
If TX percent Of the Weather classes
IRE right TO outvote and to exclude 1foin
characterization in affairs or govern
rnent all of IS percent Of the people woulo
seem 70 be in itself a sufficient proteC-
ton OF the privileged ar1stocracy Ifo1ii
the attacks of the practically dlsfran-
cElE6Q
famous system Of what americas i
would call gerrymanders aggravates the
tneoualities of the Prussian system In
the Prussian diet there are now 40"
DEPUTIES In the province OF East Frus-
sia where the landlords still MAINTAIN
feudal states and where the peasants
ore kent in a condition of practical
slavery. the ratio of Inhabitants to each
denutv is $4,000. In Berlin, where the
,,or,,Iat;or is large and the people are
nrospercus and well educated, each
deputv represents 100000 people.
When the present distribution OF seats
was made the rural population OF the
country was Y percent ana the u ga
noDulation only % percent or the WhoIe.
At this time the ratio is So and 40
nercent. vet the representation OF coun-
FRY and city remains the same ms
Gives the Iandowning agrarian element
complete mastery If the diet, even VIII
on. the taree-class system Ihe com-
hination makes assurance doub9y sure
In the las election but one. the so
cialists polled 20 percent of the vote IN
Prussia, having a majority Of all the
votes in 81 separate constituencies, ana
vet did not succeed in electing single
deputy.
Germ of RESOLUTION
II is probable that the democratic ele-
ment in Prussia would be willing to ac-
,,a-,+ : pronosition to reform the cleo
,-oral system on more equitable basis,
even if properly qualification still were
TO remain the determining factor IN
granting the privilege to vote But the
people VIII not be satisfied with pre-
tended reforms such as those Nouch-
safed within the past few years. the
prussian suffrage problem contains the
germs of a revolution
Tonorrow-The Burden OF Taxation