The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1911-01-26
BILL INTRODUCED YESTERDAY
DIVIDES OkL A H OMA INTO
EIGHT DISTRICTS.
WOULD MAKE ALL DEMOCRATIC
State So Divided That All of the Dis
tricts Would Show Democratic Ma
jorities-CarIer in Third District.

Oklahoma City, Okla. 26.-Congres-
sional redistricting, the biggest sub
ject that could come before the pres
ent session of the Oklahoma legisla-
ture, appeared Wednesday in a bill
introduced in the house by Represen-
tatives Barrett, MaXey, Carson, MIS-
bet and Senator Eggerman.
Not only do these five legislators
the Shawnee and Pottawatomie coun-
ty elegation-propose to redstrict
Oklahoma into eight congressional
district, but at the same time they
solve the Chinese puzzle and submit
plan whreby all eight congressman
will be democratic. That is, the ter
ritory embraced within each of the
eight proposed districts returned good
democratic majorities in the 1910 gen.
eral election.
But the authors of the bill do not
claim credit for the ingenious ar
rangement of the counties, whereby
jority is assured in each of the pro-
posed districts. Instead, they cheer
fully give all the credit to Editor ].
II. Reigner of the Antlers News-Rec-
ord, who last week editorially divided
the seventy-seven counties into eight
districts, all of which were democrat.
ic. His plan was Gifted" bodily by
the legislators in framing their bill,
for, so says Representative Barrett,
it cannot be improved on.
Oklahoma at present has FIVE con-
gressional districts, two of which are
now republican and three democratic.
Under the bill in the national con-
gress by Congressman Crumpacker,
which fixes 1,S77 as the basis of
population for e-apportioning the
states, Oklahoma would have eight
congressman, or three more than
now. The democratic politicians of
Oklahoma have hoped to devise, and
have worked strenuously on a plan
under which six and possibly seven of
the eight new districts might be made
democratic.
The arrangement of Editor Reigner,
whereby all eight district are made
democratic, therefore is hailed as a
discovery of the greatest merit and
it is probable that the bill introduced
will have strong chance of passing
in its present form.
The introduction of such a bill was
not expected now. A majority of the
local legislators have gone on the
idea that the national congress would
not pass the apportionment basis bill
until about March 3, and it was
thought that the Oklahoma fight
would hardly begin until the national
bill had passed.
Representative Barrett, however,
received from Congressman Scott
Ferris at Washington copy of the
bill by Congressman Crumpacker,
which, said Congressman Ferris, has
just been unanimously reported out
of the census committee. and will
probably pass. Editor Reigner's edi-
torial was taken up, together with
the Crumpacker bill, and the first
Oklahoma congressional redistricting
bill results.
It is anticipated that the redistrict-
ing bill will cause the biggest fight |
in years in the Oklahoma legislature.
Probably 100 Of the legislators have
aspirations of one kind
or another. and each wants a district
cut out for the particular benefit OF
himself or the man he is backing.
So far, Speaker Durant has not ap-
pointed the congressional redistrict-
ing committee, and it is said that 6S
of the 1O9 representatives have ap-
piled for a place thereon. The bill in
troduced Wednesday will force him to
appoint that committee. 1t is thought; |
az least everybody will listen anxious
" when he refers the big bill to COM
mittee. after second reading Thurs
day.
-0~rxr,D ~, nAnn ErHryr