as many votes as there were seats to be filled, but he
could not only give them to any candidates on any list, but he could
also give as many votes as he liked to any one candidate. Thus if there
were ten seats to be filled the elector could give ten votes to one
candidate, or one vote to each of ten candidates, or five votes to one
candidate and divide the remaining five among others, and so on. The
only condition necessary was that his votes added up to ten. The
aggregate votes given to all the candidates of each party were then to
be taken as the basis of proportional distribution among the parties and
the highest on each list to the number decided were to be elected.

It was not till the year 1890 that this scheme was actually put into
practice. The election of 1889 had resulted so unjustly to the Liberal
party in the canton of Ticino that an insurrection broke out. This
forced the hand of the Federal Government, which had to quell the
disturbance, and proportional representation was recommended and
adopted. Several other cantons followed suit, and it is expected that
the whole of Switzerland will soon adopt the reform.

A modification of this plan has lately been adopted by the Swiss
Association. In this later plan electors can give a single vote only to
individual candidates, but if they do not use all their votes in this
way they may cumulate the balance on any one party list by marking at
the head of the list. Thus if the elector in a ten-seat electorate gives
five votes to individual candidates, and places a mark at the head of
one of the lists, the balance of five votes will count to that list. The
aggregate votes given to individual candidates on any list, plus the
votes placed at the head of the list, will form the basis of
proportional distribution among the lists. This is the plan adopted by
the American Proportional Representation League as most nearly suited to
American habits, and recommended by Professor Commons in his book on
"Proportional Representation."

Belgium has also quite recently adopted a scheme of proportional
representation. As in Switzerland, its advent was hastened by political
disturbances. The Catholic party, not satisfied with exerting a
preponderating influence in the country districts, wished to obtain also
its proportionate share of representation in the cities, and proposed a
scheme of proportional representation for them only. This caused such
ill feeling that riots took place