Bismarck weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1943, 1888-11-23
MI "A 4 4IAAOODs
Immediate Relief for the Territories
Lies Through an Extra Ses-
sion of Congress.
Otherwise Constitutional C0nven-
tion for North Dakota Will
be Necessary.
1t Will Then he Possible to Get
Into the Union in About
Twelve Months.
ACOmprehensive Review of the Status
of the Territories by a Fam
iliar Correspondent.
The Question of the Hour.

F. A. Carle in Pioneer Press: The way
to get statehood is to ask for it. That is
the South Dakota notion and 1t is good
one. If the other northwest territories
want speedy admission they should
initiate South Dakota and make their
wishes known officially. The only way to
speedy admission is through an extra
session. South Dakota has taken time by
the forelock and is as nearly ready for
statehood as any territory can be without
congressional legislation. But even South
Dakota cannot get in in time for the first
regular session of the Fifty-first congress
without an extra session. If the matter
goes over until next winter, the long and
most important session will have expired
before Dakota representatives are admitted
to the floor of congress. The bill must
pass both houses and become law, proc
lamation must be made by the president.
and an election held. There are climatic
objections to holding an election in Dakota
in midwinter. 1t would probably be held
in the fall of 1890 and the South Dakota
congressman would not take their seats
until the second session of the Fifty-first
congress. True, the act of admission may
be anticipated and a general election be
held in South Dakota next year, like that
of three years ago, but there would be a
difficulty about choosing congressme n.
The number of members which congress
will
ASSIGN TO THE NEW STATE
cannot be positively known, nor can the
state be properly divided into congress
ional districts. Two members at large
might be chosen at guess. This would
be better than waiting year, and trust
it is what South Dakota will do if she does
not get the extra session desired. But even
if this is done, and the guess turns out to
be right, the winter Of 1890 would be we'll
advanced before the act of admission
could be completed, the new state govern
ment installed, and the members of con-
gress in their places. The first session of
the new state legislation would come un-
comfortably close upon the heels of ad-
mission and there would be an indecor-
GUS haste and hurly -burly in the initiatory
vital operations of the new commonwealth.
Nobody knows the exact status of the SEN
atOrsbip-elect until it is determined by the
act of admission, whether they belong to
the two. four or six year class. 1t may be
that the term of one of them has already
expired and that new election is neceS-
sary. Time is essential to all these de-
time is to secure an immediate act of ad-
mission at an extra session. The other
territories ripe for statehood, North Da-
kOta, Montana and Washington, are IN a
still worse case. They must either wait
for an enabling act or organize themselves
Professionally in anticipation Of it, as South
Dakota did three years ago. If they take
the former course, and there is
NO EXTRA SESSION,
the enabling act cannot be passed until
the winter of 1890, their constitutional con.
ventions and elections will consume the
next summer, and they will not achieve
statehood until the winter of 1891. That is
minimum delay Of two years. If they
take the latter course, and hold provisional
conventions and elections next summer,
they may get in next summer with South
Dakota late in the winter of 1890 hat Il
will be under the same conditions Of blind
guess work in the preliminary operations
ana CROWDED ana almost indecent haste
in the earlier movement of actual
state administration that have beer
indicated as involved in sim
liar policy for South Dakota An extra
session next spring would save at least hall
Of this tedious and exasperating loss of time
It could complete the admission of South
Dakota by an act for admission under the
present constitution, prescribing times and
conditions Tor the necessary elections, and
fixing time for the new state government sr
to gointo effect without waiting for farther
legislative or executive action. This would
put the state officers in place before the end
Of the year, and the executive machinery Of
the state might be we'll under way and
working smoothly before the meeting 81
the legislature in January, 1890. The
members-elect of the house and at least
one senator (even if one happens to fall In
the two-year class) might take their seats
at the very opening of the Fifty first con
gress, year from next month. For
THE OTHER TERRITORIES,
the extra session might pass an enabling
act, carefully prescribing the conditions e
be complied with in the constitution con
ventions and elections These conventions