The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1881-04-07
THE NEXT NEW STATE.
Gov. Ordway Interviewed Regarding the
Present and Future of Dakota.

.0SonLiy Aau an extended interview with Gov.
Ordway, of Dakota, and that gentleman's views
on the prospects of the territory are given at
length below. As it is among the possibilities
that at least one state, comprising portion
OF the present territory of Dakota, will seek
admission to the Union during the present
Congress, the views of the governor will be
found worthy of record:
-" My experience as governor, and especially
That in connection with the legislature of the
Territory, is directly and intimately connected
with the formation of one or more States from
the present Territory, and it has led to the
formation of some pretty wen defined ideas
IN my mind of the action which should be
preliminary to the passage Of any enabling act
Dy Congress. The Legislative assembly con-
vened at Yankton on the 18th of January. It
was composed of twenty four members in one
house and twelve in the other In my annual
message recommended that all our laws be
reviewed, and that legislation be enacted look
Ing to the division Of the Territory and the
admission of states. also made recommend
atoms that appropriations be made for peni-
tentlar\ an insane asylum and for some other
local matters. The appropriations were made
wAsTEFUL LEGISLATION.
The legislature then went off on tangent
and INDUCED in some harum. scarum egslation
which would have been amusing If it had not
been SO serious. The assembly of 1879 had
funded the indebtedness of Lawrence county.
under which about 1915, 900 of 10 per cent.
bonds were issuedupon certificates and county
warrants which had been issued by the county
commissioners in the most reckless manner,
IN many instances going at the rate of 81 for
81 of value received. This enterprise placed q
load Of about half million dollars upon the
Black Hills region, more than half which was
fraudulent. With this experience before me, I
determined to make stand against any such
legislation during my term of Office, and to
require that all measures mourning county
debts should be submitted to the people before
becoming laws, and that in any event bonds
should not be issued exceeding per cent. of
the assessed valuation of county property for
public buildings, and2H per cent for bridges,
etc. About thirty of the thirty-six members
OF the legislature were interested in the loca-
Ton OF county sites, in some instances in
remote corners OF the various counties, and in
Issuing bonds for building county buildings,
normal schools and agricultural colleges,
thus giving more than two-thirds of both
branches direct interest in overriding nv
restrictive policy in regard to county indebt-
edness. During the first half Of the session I
vetoed large number of bills for the erection
ofpub4ic buildings and for other local improve
ments, because they did not contain any pro-
vision Tor allowing the people to vote upon
them. Many of these bills, however, were
passed over my veto.
subsequently the people began to send in
their protests against the course of the legisla-
ture and sustaining the position had taken.
and during the last half of the session differ
ent state OF affairs prevailed. Supplementary
bills, submitting the question of issuing bonds
Tor public improvements to the people of the
various counties, were passed, and many of
the wild schemes brought forw ard earlier were
abandoned, thus probably preventing the is
n q m 6p11 in
would otherwise have been laid u pom the
people OF the new counties without their con-
sent, and which would practically have de
stroyed the credit of the Territory.
| ANOTHER VERY REMARKABLE MEASURE
was br. ught forward and passed, which will
:. serve to illustrate the extent to which small
Legislative body, not having that sense OF re-
sponslblllty which comes only from expert
ence, will go in framing mischievous leRisla-
ton. This bill provides for paying one Of the
federal judges in the Black Hills district 49,
400 year in addition to his regular salary as
federal judge, the amount to be assessed ar
bitrariy on the people of his district L sent
copy of this bill to Attorney General Devens
and asked his advice about it. He replied that
it was highly Objectionable and certainly
ought to be vetoed. OF course I vetoed the
bill, and embodied Gen. Deven's message in
my. veto message; but to my surprise, the
legislature passed the measure over the veto.
thata supplementary bill, amending the origin
al measure by striking out the word "hun-
dred' was passed; SO the federal Judge gets
'Iahly $A year from the people of his district.
: More than 800 bills were introduced and about
one-hal of them were passed. Some of the
court houses, which members wanted to pro-
vide for, were in new counties where court
had never been held. At the close of the ses-
sion better feeling prevailed, and the legisla-
ture passed unanimously a resolution referring
In very complimentary terms to the executive
DUTY OF CONGRESS.
This experience shows that it will be neces-
sary Tor congress, before passing an enabling
act for the admission Of Dakota, to take steps
to prevent the early legislatures of the new
State from plungingil head and ears in debt.
The mania for issuing county bonds seems to
have subsidized, but spirit of responsibility
prevails to such an extent that great mischief
T. may be dore IN other ways. We have, for ex-
ample 5,ooo,O 600 acres of school land, worth
To-day between ten and twelve million dollars,
: and constantly Increasing in value. If prop
erly guar ed, they will found as complete a
system of public schools for Dakota AZ can be
found anywhere. At the recent session they
+ established eight normal school and two agri-
cultural colleges, in counties which had
hardly anybody in them. There is an oppor-
tunity for al enormous amount of frand, and
schemers have already shown their plan of
operations to get hold of this land. They
want to establish schools in all parts of the
= state, put up buildings, appoint at high
salaries school officers, sell the lands and ex-
pend the pl oceeds for these purposes in nd.
vance of any possible necessity for the
schools. When the lands and the money are
gone, the schools will be found to have gone
also.
What steps should congress take in the
matter asked the correspondent. Congress
should provide early in the next session for
the election of a new legislature, to be COM
posed OF at least one-hundred members in the
lower house and twenty five or thirty in the
.pper house. It should require that these
Z should be chosen by the people Of single dis
tricts with well-defined boundaries other
wise they may all be elected from few cen
tral localities. In the last legislature the
city OF Deadwood sent all but two or three of
he members from the four counties CON-
- orlsing the Black Hills district, and they
we're all residents of Deadwood. I would
hlow the people to determine how the terri
Dry is to be divided, and would submit ques-
ions relating to local financial matters, such
ss issuing bonds for jails, insane asylums,
to-, to the people. The school lands given
~ congress should be placed in the hands OF
state board of education. and sales should
.'e made gradually at fixed prices, the pro-
leeds to be invested in permanent securities,
nd the interest used to establish a n, M