New-York tribune., 1868-03-16
TEYIH.

The division Of Texas into three States IS
said to be measure resolved upon In Con-
gress. Some of the papers speak of it as new
idea, and charge that it is another p" Radical
outrage" They forget, or do not choose to
state that when the annexation OF Texas was
first agitated by Col. Benton, who claimed that
he was the father of the measure, the plan
was to divide the new territory nearly equally
between the slaveholding and nOn-slaveholding
sections-that is, the principles of the Missouri
Compromise were to be extended, with the
necessary notifications of boundary, to tie
then nearly empty wastes of the young Repub-
lic The debate on this annexation occupied
large share of the session OF 1S45, and enlisted
many Of the great leaders of the day. 1t de-
veloped a strength until then unsuspected on
the part of the Northern opponents OF Slavery,
and set the sharp politicians of the South to
the invention of measures for intrenchlng
themselves in Congress, where the rapid IN
crease OF representative power OF the Free
States began to threaten their section with
an ascendancy that might soon shake OIL
the tradition of half-and-half and share-and-
share between the slave and non -slavehOlding
sides of the Union. To favor their scheme and
which the patriarchal institution might be
spread, Mr.. Benton's bill was killed. and i'll
place thereof joint resolutions declaring the
terms on which Congress will admit Texas
into the Union as a State were proposed and
adopted. Having provided for the admission,
the transfer of forts, harbors, and other public
property, the far-seeing managers of the plot,
in view of the inevitable loss of equality OF
representation in the United States Senate by
the rapid growth of the North and the neces-
sary admission of new States from the teemlng
West foisted into the annexation resolutions
the following provision:
New States OF convenient ske not exceeding four 10
sufficient population may hereafter by the consent Of
said state be formed out OF the Territory thereof which
shall be entitled to admission under the provisions OF the
Federal Constitution.
To this was added the mockery of pro-
vision to the effect that north of line So 80
Slavery should be prohibited, while south OF
that line it should be or not be according to
the pleasure of the people. We say mockery,
because every foot of Texan soil is south OF
the famous Missouri Compromise line.
This idea of making five States instead of one
was master stroke of policy on the part of the
Southern leaders there were then but q States
IN congress, OF WHICH, Ii Wtlc duu
10 were free. But Wisconsin, Iowa aud Min
nesota were growing apace, and the balance
was pretty sure to fall on the other side
within a few years. SO they provided against
these dangers by authorizing such slicing up
of Texas as would counterbalance the free
side, and preserve for an indefinite period the
saveholding predominance, or at least equality
in the Federal Senate. But Texas did not
grow as rapidly as they had hoped; they over
reached themselves in fastening human bond
age upon what had been free territory, and
the stream of immigration that would have
tended toward free Texas, with her rich soil
and lovely climate, turned away to the snowy
prairies of the Upper Mississippi.
Now that the fortunes of twenty-tlree years
have quite changed the political situation, now
that Texas is once more free territory and now
that her loyal people are anxious for restora-
ton to the Union, it is proposed to put IN oper-
alton the clause above quoted not to its full
extent, but to make three States i'll place OF
one. The population is there; and as for ter
ritory, there is abundance. The following
table, compiled at the Land Office shows the
order of the States and Territories, from the
largest to the smallest:
stats, squar. Miles, States Square Miles.
aJt Nar Nnrl