Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1859-01-17
ARIZONA, Decotah, and COlOna

The House Committee on Territories has or
dered that the bill for the organization OF Arl-
zona, be reported with boundaries asked for by
the people of the Territory through their dele
gate, Lieut.. Mowry 1t includes all the terri
tory south of the parallel of latitude North SS
degrees 40 minutes from Texas to the Colorado
of the West, containing about 100000 square
miles, represented by population ofsome SlO,-
900. The bill is snort and simple in It's provl'
sions Should it become law, fierce strug-
gle will be likely to break out in Arizona, be-
tween free and serviIe institutions. The bulk
of the people reside in the Mesilla Valley, where
the slavery of peonage has been tested, though
its horrors are slight compared with American
slavery. The gold mines of the Gila will sud-
denly and much increase the free element OF the
proposed territory, which can hardly fail to ul'
timately become free State. 1t is said that the
Territory of Dacotah, west of Minnesota, IS to
be coupled with Arizona, but no bill to organ
ize Dacotah has been reported as yet. That
Dacotah will be free from the start there is no
doubt, and therefore delay in its organization
by the Administration is the more probable.
The bill of Mr. Colfax for the organization OF
the Territory of Colona, and which was refer
red to the House Committees on Territories, has
been thrown out by a partisan vote of five to
four, doubtless because they saw its tendency
to soon increase the number of Free States
President Buchanan has also declared himself
decidedly opposed to the organization OF Colo
ma, and probably for the samereason. It's too
far North for the pet and peculiar institution
The territory proposed to organize as Colo
ma, a name selected by the settlers, embraces
Pixies Peak and nearly all the gold diggings
ND almost to Fort Laramie, the head waters ol
the Kansas, Rio Grande, both Forks of the
Platte. the Arkansas and Grand River. 1t has
also in it Fremont's famous Three Parks, the
fertile San Luis Valley, and according to Mr'
Blair. who is familiar with the country, will
form magnificent agricultural as well as min
eraI State. He predicts that it will yet be the
richest most prosperous and thickly settled State
between the Missouri and California. 1t lies
between the 37th and AID parallel of north lati
tude, and the Rocky Mountains, and the los
parallel of longitude, about four degrees BY
five, very closely corresponding with the size o
Iowa or Missouri. 1t is now quite probable
that there will be from thirty to fifty thousand
people in COlOna by next fall. The settlers have
already sent delegate Congress to bear COM
pariy with the representatives from the unoT
panized Territories of DacOtah and Arizona.
The bill of Mr. Colfax authorizes the Presi-
dent to appoint Territorial officers in the first
instance, but at the Territorial election in
1860, the qualified voters are to choose their owl
Governor and Secretary for two years each
This popular sovereignty is no doubt distastefu
to the President and his supporters, as well al
the provision prohibiting slavery, POlygamy
and peonage. 1t is stated that Mr.. Green, o
Missouri, Chairman of the Territorial Commit
tee, is opposed to the organization of Colona
even if the slavery &c. restrictions were not In
A free State, with two o. s. Senators, in yer.
few years, is the most potent objection OF th'
Southern ruling power at W Washington.