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Show IK REPUBLICANS NEW I PUN FOR 1916 Hi ; K Chairman Hilles Makes Public m Proposed Method of Deft De-ft creasing Representation, i 'ASK STATES TO RATIFY I Each State to Be Sounded Out Committee Expecting Ac-I Ac-I tion to Meet Approval. I-' New York, April S. Charles D. Ip; ' Hilles, chairman of the Republican I''i (National committGO. tonight made ,)t roubllc the proposed plan to decrease In the percentage of the southern and 1); territorial representation In the Re-l Re-l l publican national convention in 1916, I I and thereafter from approximately 35 N per cent of the total voting strength 1 to less than 1G per cent, as provided in resolutions adopted by the com-p com-p mlttee at its meeting Inst December. Is The plan Is addressed to the Re- publican conventions of the several r states, which are asked to ratify the action of the national body before January 1, 1915. A special commlt- iteo composed of Charles B. Warren I f Michigan, Senator William E. Bor- &h of Idaho, and Governor Henry D. 1 1 , Hatfield of West Virginia, drafted the report of the action taken In Decem-j Decem-j obcr which embodies other resolutions Ir adopted by the national committee. These guarantee: 1 Recognition, in the call to be is-1 is-1 sued for the next national conren IH tion, of the right of any state to pro-I pro-I vide for the election of delegates in ) direct primaries. I ' The right of any state to elect all I; 1 delegates from the state at large, or It .part from the state at large, and part I from congressional districts, n These provisions were adopted with a view to eliminating contests before ft the national body such aB in the past H have produced discord and dissen-H dissen-H sion. H Special Convention. Some members of the national com-M com-M mlttee, spurred on by the insistent ; 1 demands of a large body of voters, sought to have the committee call a I special convention for the purpose I of adopting a new basis of representa- ttion, but the opinion prevailed to those who maintained that Inasmuch as no methods prevailed of those who maintained that inasmuch as no methods Were provided by the existing exist-ing laws of the various states for the election of delegates to such a convention con-vention in direct primary elections, the special convention might not represent rep-resent the sentiments and desires of a majority of the party. It was resolved that the national committee consider the question, formulate for-mulate Its conclusions and submit the result of its deliberations for ratification rat-ification by state conventions. In reciting re-citing the views that actuated the national na-tional body the special committee of three says: - -"Thc committee helleved . that should conventions of delegated representatives rep-resentatives of the party, convened In the number of states entitled to cast a majority of the votes in a national convention, ratify the action taken by the national committee in this respect, its action could be assumed as-sumed to fairly express the sentiment Df the great majority of the party, far obviously such state conventions when taken together would consist of more representatives of the party than would be assembled in a national na-tional convention. "The plan adopted and recommend-sd recommend-sd for ratification provides that the Republican voters in each state shall hereafter be represented in a National Nation-al convention of the party by four dclogates-at-large: two delegates for each representative-at-large in congress; con-gress; one delegate from each congressional con-gressional district, and an additional ielegate from each congressional district dis-trict in which the vote of 1908 for any Republican elector or for tho Republican Re-publican nominee for congress in 1934 shall not have been less than seven thousand five hundred (7500). "Alaska and the District of Columbia Colum-bia under the- plan presented will sach be entitled to two voting delegates, dele-gates, while Hawaii, Porto Rico and the Philippine Islands will each be sntitled to two delegates without the right to vote." The- result of this change in the aasls of' representation, if ratified by the requisite number of state con-rentions, con-rentions, will be a decrease of 89 rotes as follows: Alabama will lose 5, Arkansas 3, Florida 4, Georgia 11, Louisiana 8, Mississippi 8, New York 2, North Carolina 3, South Carolina 7, Tennessee 3. Texas 1C, Virginia S, Hawaii 4. Porto Rico 2, and Philippine Philip-pine Islauds 2. Under the plan presented a congressional con-gressional district not entitled to two delegates on the vote cast in the presidential pres-idential election in 1908 will qualify for two if 7500 or more votes as are cast for the Republican nominee in the congressional election this fall. Anticipating criticism from those who believed that a still greater de crease should have boon provided In southern representation, the special committee In its recital says it is within the province of a majority of the convention of 1916; If it so desires, de-sires, to establish another new basis for future conventions. The plan can be ratified by any Republican convention for the purpose pur-pose of nominating candidates for state offices, or for the purpose of adopting a party platform, or by any convention called by the Republican state committee and held before January Jan-uary 1, 1915. The statement of the special committee that drafted the plan for presentation to the several Republican state conventions concludes, con-cludes, wlth the following: "The committee appointed to present pre-sent the proposed plan to the state conventions believes that it is desirable desir-able from every point of view that the action of the national committee by ratified and made effective. All who are. opposed to the fundamental principles, of the Democratic party should join in the election of delegates dele-gates to the national convention to be convened in 1916. The basis proposed pro-posed for the election of delegates assures as-sures the states having the greatest number of Republican votes a larger proportion of voting strength in the supreme council of the party, and by the changes made in the rules, the way is open for the separate states to enact laws for the election of delegates dele-gates in primary election, and for the majority of the voters participating in the primaries to elect delegates who will voice the sentiment of the majority." |