Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1885-12-30
HOW MICHIGAN GOT IN.
a Brief History OF the Circumstances Sur
rounding the Admission of Michigan to
Statehood.

a Brief History OF the Circumstances Sur
rounding the Admission of Michigan to
Statehood.
Detroit Free Press.
The adoption of a.state constitution,
the formation of state government and
the election of United States senators
by the territory of Dakota before its
statehood has been acknowledged has
created considerable discussion; not
more, however, than did similar de-
mand by the territory of Michigan for
admission to the Union. The contest in
congress was unusually obstinate, one
debate running for twenty-five consscu-
tive hours. This was partly due to the
application for Arkansas Tor admission
at the same time, both sides insisting
that the admission of slave state
should be balanced by the admission of
free state, or the reverse. The con.
vention to erect all the territory east of
lake Michigan into a state met IN De.
troit, April, 1885. A rational constitu.
tion compared with the later one of 1850
was adopted, and by the people ratified
in October. In November Stevens T..
Mason was elected governor and Edward
Mundy lieutenant governor; courts were
organized and the legislature at its
meeting chose Luclus Lyon and John
NorveIl United States senator's. Presi.
dent jackson, who was not much in
favor of the admission of the state, re-
moved Mason from the secretaryship Of
the territory and appointed Mr.. Horner,
of Virginia, to that position, with
orders not to recognize the al
legged state officers. But the
people refused to recognize him, and at
meeting in Dedroit requested him to
leave, which he did afterward. If Mich
igan was state, it was state out of the
union; had no legal status, and could
have none until congress admitted it,
Arkansas was finally admitted uncondi.
tlonally; Michigan on condition that her
people would ratify the Ohio boundary
about which there had been some talk
OF war-and accept in place of the ter
ritory thus given up the upper PENN
sula with it's mines of copper and iron
then undiscovered. 1t was on the eve
of presidential election, and neither
party wanted to offend the comparative.
ly powerful states of Ohio, Indiana and
Illinois by acknowledging Michigan's
strong claims to more southernly
boundary than she finally got. A state
convention ct Ann Arbor in September,
1886, rejected this condition, but another
convention, called there in October by q
few prominent citizens of Wayne coun-
ty, ratified the action of congress-. 1t
was called "the frost bitten" conyen.
ton, because its members were COM
posed entirely of those in favor of ac.
cepting the conditions laid down by
congress. There was some opposition
in congress- to accepting this as the act
of the people of Michigan, but on Jan
26, 1897, congress admitted the state by
organizing the convention as elected
by the people for the sole purpose OF
giving their assent" When thus ad.
mitted the existence of the state was
reorganized as beginning November
1885, or more than two years previous
There was some Inconsistency in this
however, because the vote of the state
for Van Buren was not allowed to be
counted even though the two senators
subsequently helped elect Richard M
Johnson vice president, there having
been no choice for vice president by the
electoral college. If Dakota is as lucky
as Michigan, therefore, it will be two OF
three years yet before 1t is acknowledged
as state. The people of that territory
might have facilitated matters ani
avoided all partisan controversy b,
electing one democratic and one reprb
| lican United States senator.