The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-03-15
ONE APPoRTIoNMENT MADE.

ONE APPoRTIoNMENT MADE.
II seems that nothing Will move the
Legislature Of Utah 20 do justice in
the way OF aPportiouing representa-.
tion among the people OF this State, ex'
ccpt some imminent peril II was the
duty Of the Legislature that has just
adjourned. aS Il was the duty of It's
predecessor. 10 apportiou this State
into legislative districts. and fair bill
was introduced at The recent session TO
carry out this duty The bin. however,
died In committee. aud there is a per
petuatiou of the old injustice of taxing
the people of this city and cohntv with
out according them the representation
70 which their numbers entitle them.
Taxation without representation is just,
Is resented in the United States, aud
it would be no more than justice if
taxes were resisted in Salt Lake City
and county until fair apportionment
is made that will give these communi.
ties the representation in tho Legisla
ture TO which their numbers eptitlc
them
The population of this county
is lSi,426; the population OF the State
is 313.35l. 1t will be seen that the
population Of this county is consider
ably in excess of onc-third of the total
popula tion of this State. 1t is clear,
therefore, that on the present basis OF
eighteen Senators aud forty.fivc Rep
resentatives in the State Legislature,
this county ought TO have six Senators
and fifteen Representatives. whereas
IT has but five Senators and ten Repre-
scntstives There appears 10 be no
way Of compelling legislators to oh
serve their oath to support the consti
tuition when they make up their minds
that they viii violate that oath, and
not do what the constitution com
mandingly requires. The constitution
is mandatory in the provision that ap-
portlonmeut shall DC made after each
census, but when legislators will, with
practical unanimity, decide to violate
their oaths and To disregard the cousti.
tuition, there is no remedy There ought
to be, however. and that remedy ought
to he short sharp, and decisive.
The Legislature. however. under fear
of losing member Of Congress for the
State. rallied at the last moment and
passed bill dividing the State into
Representative districts for Congress.
sional purposes. The division ms made
puts Salt Lake population Isl, ,426),
Utah population 37,492), Davis (pop.
ulation lo,loD, and Tooelc (popula.
tion 792i) into one district, with to.
tai population of ls7033. The othor
counties, with a total population of
1S6,3ls, form the second district. So
far as population is concerned, the di-
VISION Is as equal as it could be. So
far as the principle adopted in making
this apportionment is concerned, The
Tribune suggestion was followed in
a general way, which allows Of the
sending TO Congress from the main bust
ness district of the State OF business
man. Under the old apportionment, the
sending of business man from the
business part Of the State was out of
the question. The Tribunes s suggestion
to include Weber and Summit in place
Of Utah and Tooele counties in the first
or Salt Lake district would have been
a much better division than the one
made. "a insuring absolutsly1.as live
business man, either from sal317aAe or
from Weber, in Congress. - the di,
vision as made was not so bad.
The first election under this new ap-
portionment will be had in November.
1914. There will be a contest, proba.
bly,. in the Second district, between
Mr.. Howell and Judge Johnson, present
incumbents, as both arc in that dis.
trict. This contest may develop new
man, who could easily he better than
either, more up to date, and more influ.
entail in Congress.
But it took a sense OF serious injury
or loss to wake the Legislature up to
the need of making this apportion-
ment. Would that there might be some
means of waking the legislators up to
the disgrace of their perjured neglect
in refusing to make a fair apportion-
meut for legislative purposes.