The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-05-11
THIRTY-NINE YEARS AGO TODAY
MINNESOTA WAS ADMITTED TO
STATEHOOD.
INCIDENTS OF THAT TIME
RECALLED THROUGH THE RECUR.
RENEE OF THE EVENT BY SOME
PEOPLE.
SOME OF THE EARLY HISTORY
Preliminary Work Have Passed
Away.


Away.
Today is the thirty ninth annivers-
airy of the admission Of Minnesota To
statehood. May II, 1858. Minnesota be-
came a state.
Although no formal celebration has
been arranged to mark the interesting
event, the fact Of the passage oil time
will no doubt recall in the minds OF
those who still live the incidents and
difficulties surrounding the efforts OF
the then territory to gain admission to
the union. During the first great epoch
in national history from 1889 tn 1861,
the motives Of governing the admission
of new states appeared too often to be
based upon policy and expadiency
rather than justice. The partisan or
sectional advantages or disadvantages
likely to accrue were scrutin:zad with
much greater care than the constitu-
tional and legal requisites for ad'nls-
sion. It has been asserted that even
in these latter days the admission o.
state is not entirely free from the faint
of partisanship. When the constitution
was adopted, seven of the thirteen
states had abolished slavery, and i'll the
remaining six that institution still ex-
listed in varying degrees OF vlsor.
glance at the states in the order OF
their admission shows that slave
holding state alternated with a nom
slave-holding one, and that very rarely
were two of the same character ac-
mitted in succession. This, the as
sertion is made, is the result OIL sue
cession of compromising, the OBJECT
then being to maintain as far as JOS
sible an equilibrium in congress be-
tween the opponents and advocates CT
slavery. So carefully was this nc
tictious balance maintained that after
the admission of Wisconsin, IN lS47, AID
until California came in two years
later, there were fifteen states In winch
slavery was fostered and as many In
which it was prohibited by law.
When in 1850 California was admitted
as a free state as part of the ccln-
promise of that year the equilibrium
was destroyed and has never been re-
stored. The struggle was renewed with
increased force by the Kansas-Nep-
raska act Of 1854; and, when in 1856,
Minnesota applied for admission the
two contending forces were striving In
every way possible to gain the mastery
over disputed Kansas. Such auspices
as these were by no means favorable
for the admission of a state, and for
a long time the "Kansas question" and
other political obstacles hung like
milestone about the neck of Minnesota.
troy
statehood was not destined to be very
easy one.
It, was ON Dec. "a, 1885, the day before
Christmas, when Henry M. Rice, dele
gate from the territory of Minnesota
introduced bill to authorize the peo-
| pie Of the territory to form const1tu-
ton and state government with view
to admission to the union. The bill,
which was referred to the committee
| on territories, Of which Galusha A.
| Grow, of Pennsylvania, was chairman,
was reported out at the end Of January
with a substitute which differed in sew
| eral particulars from the Rice bill, and
which afterwards became the enabling
act to finding the boundaries of the
nroposed state as they now exist.
This act, which was passed by con-
| gress Feb. 26 Of that year, authorizing
| q state government, in addition to de-
| fining the boundaries, provided that
Minnesota should have concurrent )u'
risdiction over the Mississippi river
| and all other waters forming common
boundary; that, during June, the voters
| should name two delegates from each
representative district, and instructor
| the United States marshal, in case the
! constitutional convention voted for ad-
| mission. to take a census of the popu-
| lation to determine the representation
| to which the new state was entltleo.
There were also included number
of additional sections providing for the
| government of the new state in de-
tail. The territorial officers, who
served until the passage OF the ena-
| bling act, when the state was ADMIT
| ted, were: Governor, Samuel Medary;
| secretary of state, Charles l.. chase;
treasurer, George W. Armstrong; au
| ditor, julius Georgii. attorney general,
Tafavette Emmett William H. WEIGH
was chief justice.
In July the Democrats and Republic
cans held separate constitutional con-
| yentions for the adoption Of the con-
| stitution passed by congress in the
winter July 13 was the day fixed
met in the hall Of representatives
| of the old state capitol. 1t was plain
| to be seen from the outset that all was
not to be smoothly conducted, and, on
the second day, Tuesday. July IA, c.
T., Chase, temporary secretary for the
territory, gentleman hailing from
Hennepin county, met the delegates at
the door and advised them that the
hail of representatives was in the
| hands Of the enemy-meanfng the Re.
publicans-and thereafter the Demo-
Gratis held their deliberations in what
was then called the council chamber,
corresponding to the present senate
chamber Gen. H. H. Sibley and st.
| A D. Balcombe were the presiding Of
| ficers of the Democrats and Republi-
/ cans respectively, and the session,
| which lasted for over a month, had
| few dull and undressing moments,
and was marked by the proceedings
which characterize legislative bodies of
| the present day. On Saturday, Aug
| 20. after each branch Of the conven-
| tion had "done enough" to fill up
good-sized journal, the differences were
put aside and the constitution adopted.
Gen. Sibley was elected governor, beat
ing out his only adversary, Alexander
Ramsey, by small margin, the total
| vote cast being 35,340.
Gen. Sibley was the first governor Of
| the state The first legislature con-
sisted Of thirty-seven senators and
eighty representatives. The body,
I~4..