Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-08-21
1892 VOTING GRIPS
WRART|ES' INTEREST
G9EbW -.
Extreme Effects of Reappor-
70
tionment Apparent From
Census Figures.
BY MARK SULLIVAN.

IN the inner circles of party manage
ment there is almost as much figuring.
and rather more concern, about the
Congress to be elected two years from
now than about the one to be elected
in November. The reason is reappor-
tionment. Party managers and also
leaders of the wet and dry movements
realize that their respective fortunes
will be affected much more by reappor-
tionment than by any possible outcome
Of the immediate November elections.
Their realization of the Importance OF
reapportionment is no new thing. 1t
has hung over them for 20 years. That
is why they failed to obey the mandate
of the Constitution 10 years ago and in
1920 failed, for the first time in our
history, to take decennial census,
When the 1890 census approached, Con-
gress tried to avoid certain trouble after
the event by voluntarily tying their own
hands before the event. In advance of
the census Congress more than a year
ago laid down a rule which would cause
the reapportionment to go into effect
automatically on 4th of March next.
Now however, that the census has
been taken, it is apparent that the vary
ing effects on party and faction fortunes
will be even more extreme than was
originally supposed Under this condi-
ton, ever since the result of the census
became known. about the first of this
month, there has been increasing talk
of Congress reversing its action of a
year ago and taking up reapportion-
ment as if 1t had not already decided
the matter.
Several States to Lose.
The principal complaint is that sew
eral States will each lose some repre-
sentation in Congress. The groups of
NhipHU the
South and Middle West. These two
groups of States seem destined to lose
about IS members of the House. 1t
will be observed that this territory Is
approximately the territory represented
by the Democrats and the progressive
Republicans, who make up majority
of the Senate. That Senators and Rep
resentatives from these two sections
will be reluctant to accept the reduc-
ton of their strength in the House goes
without saying. The territory that will
chiefly gain is the Pacific Coast, the
industrial East and Michigan.
AS between wet and dry, it is COM
monty said, and is undoubtedly true, !
that the change in representation in
Congress will favor the vets strongly. |
This must follow because the shifts in |
population revealed by the census have |
been from country to city That is
the same as to say from dry territory |
to wet territory. Nevertheless, there |
are important qualifications to the as |
sertion that THE changed reapportion-
ment will wholly favor the vets.
BY the rule Congress adopted in adj /,
vance of the event, California appar- |
emily would gain nine members of the |
House. Presumably this gain is re- |
suit of the very great growth OF Los |
Angeles during the 20 years since the |
last census. If most of the nine add |
tional Representatives from California |
come from Los Angeles or its environs |
1t would seem to follow that they might !
be dry. 1t has been generally assumed !
in the past that Los Angeles is dry |
city and is the only really large city |
in the country that is dry. Apparently |
also, three of the additional members |
of the House will come from Texas. |
And Texas has always been counted as |
dry State.
Six for Michigan.
On the other hand, Michigan would
get six new members. Presumably this
reflects mainly the growth of Detroit
and its environs during the 20 years /
since the last census. Since Detroit /
is wet presumably the additional Con- |
greSsmen assigned to that territory !
would be wet.
The various ways in which the reap
portiontment will affect the fortunes OF
Democrats and Republicans, OF vets
and drys of farms and other industries,
is being infinitely worked out by the
leaders of these various interests. APP
parently all of them find fault with the
working out of the rule adopted in
advance of the census. One would say
the very probable result is that the
session of Congress which meets in
December mag throw overheard the
rule 1t adopted a year ago and may
lay out the reapportiontment on wholly
new basis. If this is done, one Incl
dent of the effort will be an attempt
to increase the size of the House. To
increase the size of the House is the
one means through which more ele-
ments can be satisfied than through
any other. /
Another proposal is to refrain from
counting unnaturalized aliens when
estimating population for the purpose of
reapportiontment and representation in
Congress. To do this would deprive
several large cities of members to
which they would be entitled other
wise. This proposal was fought out in
Congress last year and the decision |
was to count aliens. 1t is certain the
proposal to ignore aliens will be
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