Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1885-12-23

Press Opinions Concerning Dakota's
Admission.

oNiueHuly puusieu on one point. he ls
made to represent the admission of Ten.
nessee as having occurred during the
| administration of President jackson. Ii
Is entirely safe to say that he made no
such mistake as that. Tennessee was
| admitted to the sisterhood of states in
l'96, while George Washington was
president. The only states admitted
during the eight years of Andrew Jack
sons administration were Michigan and
Arkansas, the latter in the summer of
| 1886 and the former IN the winter follow
ing. The admission of California, the
only other state alluded to by General
Harrison, occurred IN the fall of 1850.
vi course senator Harrison did not trip
and blunder on so plain matter of his
tory. The correction is made to pre-
vent others from being mlsled by what
he was reported to hvve said. but OBJ
viously did not say.
Tennessee had an early experience
presenting both close analogies to south
Dakota and sharp contrasts also. The
people attempted to organize as state
without being first territory, and here
In lies the comparison, but IN 30 doing
1t attempted to set up house keeping on
it's own responsibility in open defiance
| OF the parent state of North Carolina
and contemptuous disregard of federal
| authority, and right here the contrast
| comes in. The first state of Tennessee
took the names of Franklin. Or Frank
| land, for both terms were officially used.
| Its governor elect, John Sovier, under
took to exercise the functions of COVER
nor. The legislature, which met at
Jonesborough in 1885, passed laws and
performed general work Of legislative
body. 1t is true that the constitution
bad been adopted by the people, but
North Carolina had utterly refused it's
| assent to the separation and the body
had no shadow of federal authority.
Governor Sewer continued to main
tain his claim of governor until 1888.
The muddle seemed to be very serious
matter when the parent state, to cut the
Gordon knot, ceded the territory west
| OF the mountains" to the United States
A territorial government was thereupon
organized under the name of Tennessee,
and the people accepted that adjustment
as satisfactory.
One objection urged against south
Dakota ls that 1t is proposition to Gre
ate state out of part OF the territory.
This objection Is not we'll taken. Even
II north Dakota, like North Carolina, op-
lected to the division 1t would no doubt
| oe effected IN the end, but as a matter OF
! fact the propriety of the division is
| equally and iulIy recognized by the peo-
pie OF both sections. The proposition
| Is IN accord with the general policy of
| the coantry. The northwest territory,
OF which General st. Clair was once gov
ernor, embraced several states, and In
diana once included two or three states
| besides the one state which is now
known by that name. There are many
| precedents for making two or more
states out of one territory.
The democratic case, as presented yes
| terday by Senator Vest, lost It's legs, as
| it were, when the precedonts IN Mime
| sofa and Kansas were called up. The
| debate on the Butler resolution has
strengthened the cause of south Dakota,
and has shown the enimus of the demo-
cratic party.
Politically speaking, the persistent re-
fusal of the democratic party to admit
south Dakota would be a good thing.
Refusal by this congress and the next to
admit the state land there is no objec-
ton now that would not apply Two or
| three years hence) would be an exhibi-
tion of partisan unfairness which the
country would be likely to resent. The
hundreds Of thousands of Dakotaians
are not by any means an isolated people,
They represent families and neighbor-
hoods scattered throughout the north,
| and good many sOniherners even are
among them. They have friends in tbs
states to whom their grievances, in the
event of persistent lookout, will be
| told, ,sand who will be likely to sympa-
| thize with them, especially as the sub
stantlal disadvantages of being terri
| tory are very considerable. If the dem.
ocratic leaders are not blind they will
see that their party cannot afford to GO
before the country in 1888 upon the re-
cord which the continued exclusion OF
south Dakota would make, with all Its
collateral considerations.
"It may be that the more far.seeing
| democrats will be able to shape the
policy of the party In this congress on
this subject, but if it expires without
granting admission the fiftieth con.
gross will have to be appealed to. There
| is nothing discouraging in the outlook
Kansas was five or six years gaming re-
cognition, and some other states had to
suffer delay, but no state has ever been
permanently shut out. "Knock and it
| shall be opened unto you" is the pro.
mise made sure and steadfast by an un.
broken line of exactly analogous pre-
cedents
The Northwestern Magazine The
proposition to divide Dakota and create
new territory from the northern part
thereof, has been pending in congress
since 1872, when it was first introduced
by senator Ramsey. 1t has passed one
house or the other of congress at almos
every session since first introduced, but
| failed in the other usually from lack o.
time to reach it during the closing hourt
of congress. Once it had passed the
house, and failed in the senate because
of and amendment adopted, for the fur
of it, probably, providing for woman'
suffrage. In 1888 it failed the house fol
political reasons-because Mr.. Randall
and others believed that If the bill were
allowed to be taken from the table il
would be so amended as to provide TO
the admission of south Dakota, and thu
give to the republicans three add1tiona
votes In the electoral college. So th
motion to suspend the rules and place
the bill upon its final"passage was lost
Up to that time the opposition had come
from the eastern states without regart
to party
The people of both sections of Dakoti
have asked for the division of the terri
tory, adopting almost every possible
form of petition. They have asked i
through memorials adopted by theslegis
ture. and almost without exception with
ont opposition; they have asked i