Evening star., 1932-02-04
EIGHTH WINS FIRST
RED|STR|CT ROUND
Virginia House Committee
Reports Out aII-Wright
& g Bill.
BY LESTER N. INSKEEP,
7 Correspondent Of The Star.

RICHMOND, Va, February 4.-The
eighth district won the first round OF
the redistricting fight last night when
the House Privileges and Elections COM
mittee, py vote of Z to 5, reported out
the HallWright bill which would di-
vide the present tenth district among
the districts surrounding 1t and give the
present eighth district four counties Of
the seventh
The committee vote was taken at an
executive session that was held immedi-
ately after the proponents of the Hall
wright bill and the EarlyWatts bill
had consumed two hours in the pre-
senttng of their cases. The latter
measure is one sponsored by the seventh
district and would combine the first ana
eighth.
Speaks for Eighth District
Speakers for the Hall Wright bill,
which was sponsored by the eighth dis
trict delegation in the General Assem-
bly,, were Gardiner L. Booth Of Alex
andria, chairman of the Eighth District
Democratic Committee; former State
Senator Frank l.. Bail of Arlington
County, who was defeated by Repre-
sentative Howard w. Smith for the
eighth district seat now held by him,
and State Senator Robert o. Norris of
Lancaster, which is in the first district.
Booth was the first speaker for the
bill. He dwelt upon the interests that
the present eighth has in common with
the Federal Government and called at
tention to the large number OF Govern
ment properties, agencies and operations
located in the district.
Of ho inf 70 c+ that
the member of Congress from the
eighth has more detail work than any
other Representative from Virginia, and
declared that it would be unreasonable
to expect him to shoulder the almost
equally heavy duties OF the first dis
tricts Representative, or vice versa.
Among the alleged advantages Of the
Wright bill that were pointed out
by him were that it would make fair
distribution of population: would con-
fine the redistricting problem to the
seventh eighth and tenth districts;
would leave five districts untouched,
and would so distribute the remainder
of the tenth district that It would not
politically affect other districts
The principal changes proposed. he
declared. would be the forming OF
Piedmont district and a Shenandoah
Valley district, preserving the homo
geneousnesS of interests, industries, m
habitants and pursuits with due re-
gard to the element of practical equality
Of population"
He contended that one Of the duties
of the Assembly was to consider the
possible future growth OF the terri
tories affected and pointed to the fact
that the Northern Virginia section has
experienced the most rapid growth OF
apv other in the State
The Early-Watts bill. he declared,
would, in combining the first and
eighth, form a district with a popu-
lation far in excess Of the basis that
was proposed and would throw more
work on a single Representative than
it would be possible for him to accom-
plish.
Former Senator Ball who is widely
known in the General Assembly, Ie-
ceived an ovation when he arose and
was loudly cheered throughout his en-
tire speech. He, too, dWelt upon the
probable overwork Of the Representa-
tive that would be elected under the
Early-Watts plan and upon the ad-
Visibility OF forming PiedmOrt district
and a Shenandoah Valley district.
Proponents Contention Declared Absurd.
He described as absurd the contention
of the proponents of the other bill that
to combine the seventh and a part of
the tenth districts would make a Re
publican district, both he and Booth
quoting official figures to show that 1t
would be a stronger Democratic dis
trict than is the present seventh. And
even if it would form a Republican dis
trict," Ball declared, If you cannot
fight your battles on the Democratic
principles and win, you would deserve
to lose.
Continuing, he declared that the
combination of the first and eighth dis
tricts would result in bringing together
two groups of people who had no COM
mon interests. One he claimed to be
a fishing district and the other a dairy
farming and agricultural district, with
the exception Of Arlington County and
Alexandria.