The Washington times., 1936-11-21

ing TO geC some Edwin u Hill
specific ideas about it.
The coincidence Of the P. r.
victory and the Democratic land
slide suggests an interesting topic
in the election poSt-morten1.
Some of the most ardent sup
porters of the President note the
imperilment of the tWo-party
system in blizzard Of votes like
that of this past election.
Even newspapers which have
championed the Democratic cause
deplore the one-Sided result and
urge the swift rebuilding of an
effective and constantly challeng'
ing minority. Very wisely, they
acclaim and cherish our tWo-party
system.
But the electors who set up this
historic Democratic majority use
the same ballot booth to establish
in the nations largest city a sys-
tenn which was devised to end
the two-party system. Whatever
else P. R. may be-and most OF
us will have to make out our own
ticket as to just what it is-it IS
exactly that; the end of the two
party system of government.
SEVERE JOLTS
The thing that interested me
was the coincidence of the two
severest jolts which our traditional
electoral system has received. I
recall how Watt Brown, an acidu-
lous old city editor, once rebuked a
clumsy reporter, who was having
a hard time writing his story.
"Dan," he said, "yOu remind
me of an old sheep dog which
comes rOmping in, all over mud
and cockle-burs, dragging in the
leg of a deer. He knows he's
got something but he doesn't
know what the hell it is"
So with most Of us as to this
P. r. thing. If we must take a
look at the package on our door
step, after we pick up the milk
bottle and the morning paper, it
seems to be the Hare system,
whose apostle was Thomas Hare,
eager to fight, bleed and die for
it in England in 1853, which,
believe is the birth-date Of the
plan. The opposed system is the
List system, even more compll-
Gated, which, happily, we won't
have to bother with.
Here is how deep insiders ex-
plain the Hare system-which will
go into effect in New York city
January /, 1898:
Suppose there is an election IN
which there are six candidates and
10000 voters. Under the old sySr
tenn, one side may win with 81 600
votes and $4,000 voters will be
entirely unrepresented. Under the
P. R. system, each voters votes
for only one candidate, but 1ndl.
Gates his second, third, fourth and
fifth choice. When one of the
candidates has one-SiXth OF the
votes, or 10000. he is elected and
any surplus votes go to the can
didates of alternative designation.
The basic idea is to give the MI
nority representation in the WIN
ming government.
Sympathetically stated, the back
ground of Proportional RepreSen-
tation is something like this: The
two-party system of government
makes for machine control. In a
century and half in America, we
have built up in almost every great
American city powerful, ruthless
and frequently corrupt machine
which is always a party machine
built and subsisting on the two
party system.
Proportional Repre- Sc ntation
may be depended upon always to
land in municipal government
enough non-machine men to pre-
vent gang domination.
CONTRADICTORY
Furthermore, under the old sys-
tenn. man wastes his vote If 1t
lands anywhere above the require
ment for election. Under the new
system, his secondary choices will
count and his will will find a fur
ther expression in the final result.
The opposition viewpoint is that
the P. R. system is the enemy OF
the fundamental democratic pro
cess.
F. A. Hermens, Of the Catholic
University, challenged the New
York proposal on the ground that
it was Proportional Representa-
ton, and nothing else, which top.
pied republican Germany and
landed Adolph Hitler in power.
Particularly in America, opposition
is based on the contention that the
straight-outtwo-party system is the
essence of our democracy.
There seems to be much con-
fusion and many contradictions IN
the argument. One may yield to
Mr.. Hermens and at the same time
note that Mussolini, when he was
rising to power, savagely attacked
Proportional Representation.
It seems to work best in small
countries and small political units.
It is being tried out in Galicia,
Sweden, Belgium, the Netherlands,
Switzerland, Rournania, Bulgaria,
Brazil and England. Viscount
Bryce, Herbert Asquith and other