The citizen., 1920-10-21
APPoRTIoNmENT siLL WILL BE
PREPARED WHEN COMMITTEE
GETS CENSUS FIGURES.
THESE ARE NEARLY COMPLETE
Congress viii Discuss Changing the
Number OF Representatives and Also
the Old Time Issue OF Southern
Representation.
BY JAMES p. HoRNApAY.

resentatives with the complete 1921
population figures for the United
States soon after congress reconvenes
In December. With these statistics In
hand the committee will prepare bill
for new house of representatives ap-
portlonment. Under a provision Of the
federal Constitution this apportion-
ment must be made every ten years
Immediately following the decennlal
census.
II will be incumbent ON the various
state legislatures to reapportlon the
states for congressional purposes In
accordance with the basis Of represen.
tation fixed by congress. About 10 per
cent Of the state legislatures will meet
next January and congress will agree
ON the new basis OF representation In
time to enable the legislatures to make
the state reapportionments before
their sessions.
Two questions will present them
selves TO the federal legislators IN
dealing with the subject. The first
and the really important one will be
whether the size OF the house OF rep
resentatives shall be changed. Under
the 1910 apportionment the house OF
representatives is made up OF i35
members The membership Is 50 large
as to make the body unwieldy and II
is reasonably certain that there will
be argument put forth I'm favor OF re-
ducing the membership 10 about 400.
On the other hand there are advocates
Of larger house, and the committee
on the census when II sits down to
write the new apportionment bill will
be confronted by demand that the
membership be Increased TO 500.
Basis OF Representation Higher.
The present basis OF representation
is 21l.s77. This is to say that under
the 1910 legislation there is one mem
ber OF the house for every 2ll. ST. In
babitants. The basis Of representation
will undoubtedly be increased In the
new apportlonment. II will probably
60 up TO 100000 or 10000. The 1920
population statistics for large num-
ber of the states are now complete by
congressional districts and they show
that a number of states, under any
such apportionment as congress IN
likely TO make will lose members. The
census bureau unofiicially estimates
the total population of the United
States at l06,O00,OoO. This would be
an Increase OF approximately 1900
600 In the ten years. II any states are
to lose representatives under the new
apportionment, then IL Is evident that
some 60 or 40 new members must be
added to the 435 now provided for
Every decade since 1870. with the ex.
ception of 1910, the house membership
has been enlarged to keep pace with
the growing population. Now the house
floor is crowded when all the members
are present. SO It will be seen there
is a physical problem to be dealt with.
Southern Question TO Come Up.
The old issue of Southern represen-
tatIon I'm congress will be raised when
the new apportionment bill is brought
before the legislative body. IL is a sub
ject that has been brought up and de-
bated In connection with every con
gresslonal reapportionment since the
Civil war. Ten years ago Il. ID. Crum-
packer OF the Tenth Indiana district
led the fight for reduction Of South
ern representation. lie was chairman
Of the house committee on the census.
He was supported by large number
OF representatives, but failed to gain
sufficient support to get the legislation
through.
Up to this time the present commit
tee ON the census. so Representative
Siegel of New York, It's chairman, says,
has not given any thought to the ques-
tion OF Southern representation. The
public men who advocate a change In
the basis of representation would en-
force the fourteenth constitutional
amendment. Such change In the
basis of representation would, OF
course, cut down the representation In
a good many of the Southern states.
To Hurry Proftesr Trials.
The department OF justice is be-
ginning concentrated drive to
clear dockets al over the coun-
try OF the 1,40O indictments OBJ
tained against merchants In food fuel
and wearing apparel for profiteering
or violating the Lever law In some
other way. The dOckets Of courts In
nearly every state in the Union are
crowded with these indictments,
which have been carried over from
the spring terms OF court. No cases
are pending In the District Of Colum-
bia.
Prohibition has caused flood Of
cases brought for violation Of the Vol.
stead act. and these have tended to
"crowd out" 10 a certain extent the
profiteering indictments. hinderlng
their trial. Every influence will be
brought TO bear by the department Of
Justice. II Is understood. 10 bring con.
yictions on these indictments, and
publish the results broadcast In the
United States as warning 10 mer-
chants that DO profiteering will be toll