Note 54 — Chapter VII

The following is the message which he delivered on this occasion.

Gentlemen of the house of representatives—

I have maturely considered the act passed by the two houses, entitled "an act for the apportionment of representatives among the several states according to the first enumeration," and I return it to your house, wherein it originated, with the following objections.

First. The constitution has prescribed that representatives shall be apportioned among the several states according to their respective numbers, and there is no proportion or divisor which, applied to the respective numbers of the states, will yield the number and allotment of representatives proposed by the bill.

Secondly. The constitution has also provided, that the number of representatives shall not exceed one for thirty thousand, which restriction is by the context, and by fair and obvious construction, to be applied to the separate and respective numbers of the states, and the bill has allotted to eight of the states more than one for thirty thousand.