The Wichita daily eagle., 1901-01-06
FOR NEV COUNTIES
important Proposal Which
May Come Up.
THREE PLANS PROPOSED
Which Contemplate SIicing
Western Oklahoma Anew.

Guthrie, O. T.. Jan. Though no one
/ has come forward yet as an advocate Of
/ the making Of new Oklahoma counties
out Of old ones, and no one has yet ar
rived in the territorial capital who viii
admit that he has a county -tinkering
bill in his pocket; nevertheless, it is in
I evidence that in one or two cases there
/ are interests potentially antagonistic
which, if they are not actually after
something they would positively like, are
I ready to bowl over any proposition they
/ positively do not Ike. So far as can be
/ gathered, any proposition 10 re-countyize
/ Oklahoma, partially of course, starts with
/ Woods county, geographically speaking.
1 There have been al least four different
schemes canvassed, upon which Woods
county might be changed TWO of viii b
would not affect adjoining Counties while
at least one other would occasion a re-
construction Of the county map in all the
territory south of Woods county to the
Kiowa and Comanche country would
probably considerably affect the drawing
of county lines eventually, even there
The present artic is less a statement Of
what is actually at present proposed than
a view of what has at various times in
the past been proposed and what may be
proposed again in one combination or an
other.
Woods county is comDos sed Of town
ships 20 to %, inclusive % being short
two miles by reason Of encountering the
Kansas boundary line, drawn upon the
37th parallel. Tt is thus forty-eight miles
east and west, and ffty-elgh, miles north
and south 1t could be halvei either way
or quartered; in either event the result
ing parts would be practica ly equal AMI
exactly so in case of halving into
eastern and western parts 1t has no
natural boundary line at any point but
the Cimarron river enters it exactly On
the median line perpendicular to its
western boundary, and leaves it through
its southern boundary about seven miles
west of the southeast corner This river
cuts figure in schemes foc future coun-
ty lines. The fact. also, that Grant and
Garfield counties from Woods county's
eastern boundary, each a half. or to be
exact, Garfield thirty miles of it and
Grant twenty-eight miles, is also TO be
borne in mind The different. schemes of
all Of those which have been considered
divisible heretofore, might be set forth
thus
To bisect Woods county on its med an
east-and- west line Those who have
favored this division do not contemplate
the reconstructng of other counties as
incidental thereto. The north half would
remain Woods and the county seat would
remain Alva The south half of it has
been proposed to call Mckinley, and Cleo
has been prominent for county seat hon
ors, Advocates of this division have
argued a sufficiency Of taxable wealth in
either half for the ample support of
county administra tom that the resident
of southeastern Woods is farther from
bis county seat than from The territory's
capital; that the great distance to rail-
road imposes a hardship which could be
sooner alleviated by the efforts Of the
interests which would center about a new
county seat and by the mere fact that
there was a county seat 20 run to and
through. and they have offered other
arguments based on remoteuess from ths /
centers Of commercial and political ac-
tivity. These say that the natural lines
for railroad building indicated are from
Alva on the Southern Kansas. to Enid. /
on the Rock Island; Missouri Pacific /
extension from Kiowa southwest between !
the Southern Kansas and the Rock
Island: an air line extension of the Choc- /
taw north, probably from Geary, through
Watonga on through Wo ds. into Kan /
sas to Lyons. The survey for this lat
ter. they point out has already been I
made Cleo expects to catch any or all
of these lines, should they be built and
Cleo be a county seat A bill FIR this +
division was got through both houses at
the last session. hut was vetoed by Gov /.
ernor Barnes
To divide Woods county into three coun- f
ties. This proposition first cuts the com /
ty into eastern and western halves The I.
western half would be sun Woods, the
county seat Alva- The eastern half +
would be again divided in half 1t has
been proposed TO call the north half
Banner county. with Erwin the county
seat, and The south haIt Roosevelt with .
Ringwood the county seat. These towns
are near the respective centers. tt do s
not appear that this triple division would
be formed by concert. bur rather trat
either the northeast or the southwest /
quarter might begin it and the other
quarter follow the initial movement with +.
one of its own. TWO years aso Senator /
Havens introduced a Roosevelt county /
bin and Garrison Banner county +
bin. but neither was passed.
Scheme No. 3 is more elaborate. and IS +
the one which would tear up county lines /.
by the roots clear down 90 the Indian
country It's advocates would have So ~
Ell the opportunity pre- snted In division
No o TO attempt 10 construct one huge
county from parts of Woods Woodward
and Blaine and al Of Dewey, an small
er though SIN am-le % De formed Of
parts Of Woods Blaine ana KiurHsher .
ana third from parts of Blaine King +
lsher and Canadian counties ana part
Of the Wichita country Takng .hese i1 F.
order thes would De composed as fol-
lows
First. take together au that portion ~
the new Woods colnty-tha we=- half
soaeh ~ the Cimarron wz- IF that
inc t1w1sh rs in square out f ths
southeast corner 81 Woodward corn,y. +
soath az obese All of Dessey urty ex
Woodward county SQUARE ana rts--
tour miles II V5-h 17rth and s74-h ess-
- Devsr county = n1rt--suI-zruth w
ef four consr ra. townships aux -
-h northwest portion at Esln to Qr
c-r wrh ha eate-n aae rr tfe -rsct
-ssn II m Woods. The county s-s- p-
ges tor this has been Chester IA Woods +
,7a-J sou trwes- c-uer township ~
uama FIR th-s -egl-y aas se=r rrcs=
sd ,aAa al that rort 90 II tae