The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1904-02-23
B. S, M'CU|RE'S
ARGUMENT
Hearings B e fore Territory
Committee Have Ended
EXHAUSTIVE TREATMENT
Oklahoma Delegate Covers
the Situation Fully.
EXHAUSTIVE TREATMENT

ings before the House Committee on Ter
,itorias for the admission of Oklahoma
to the Union have been concluded Dele
gate p s Mcclure made the closing ar
/ s,,roent. II was not an oratorical effort
but strong statement of the reasons
why Oklahoma is entitled to be admitteo
as a state now 1t was an argument such
as an able and careful lawyer is capable
of making and created favorable I'M
preston with every member of the COM
mittee. Delegate Mcclure indicated that
he is thoroughly posted on conditions in
Oklahoma and knows what the situation
is in the Indian Territory.
He has made an untiring fight for sep
arate stateh hood for the territory lie has
labored with persons who have things 10
say about legislation in congress II
there has been anything neglected, 1t has
not been noted.
DELEGATE Mcclure confined himself
/ largely to statistics in making his clos
! ing argument before the committee. A
| synopsis of his remarks. giving the sta
tistics used is presetned as follows;
The present area of Oklahoma is SSS30
square miles: larger than Indiana or
! Maine, and about the size or a little less
| in size than the state of Ohio; larger
! than New Hampshire, Massachusetts,
Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey
/ and Delaware combined; larger than
West Virginia or South Carolina, and
larger than Maryland and Vermont to-
! gether oklahoma has a population of
not less than esq., 600. Her wealth is be-
tween S40O, 900 and $5o0.00o,00o She has
/ seven educational institutions of higher
| learning under control of the territory,
and many schools and colleges under the
supervision of religious denominations
She has more than 25000O children or
school age, and 5000 young men and wom-
min the institutions Of higher learning
There are in the territory at this time
tabout 200 churches valued at SlO0OO0,0Oo
dollars: 1900 Sunday-schoois with coo
officers and teachers and 100000 pupils
We have 3 daily newspapers; 260 weekly
newspapers, besides many quarterly
monthly and semi-weekly publications.
We have 2.2O0 district school houses,
worth one million and half dollars. The
total amount of land reserved for the
common schools, universities and public
buildings for the future state of Okla
home is two million fifty-two thousand
acres a large part of which is leased
and at the present time brings an in
come to the educational interests of the
territory of one thousand dollars per day.
Within the next year and before Okla
horna can be admitted as a state this
sum will be increased to a half million
dollars per annum. Every city and town
has it's womcn's clubs ana musical. So
cial literary and chautauqua societies
It is the meeting ground of many prog
ressive and intelligent people from every
state in the Union. 1t is there that the
civilization of the north and the south.
the east and the west are blending and
uniting TO form the most progressive and
enterprising people on earth. We are fast
becoming an ideal commonwealth. Our
climatic conditions are superb, and We
are one of the most healthful countries
in the world. The average annual tenn
perature for the last ten years ranges
from $50 degrees in the north to g. de-
grees in the south. We escape the risOrS
of the northern winters. and the extreme
sultriness and heat OF the southern states.
Not only is our climate unsurpassed for
heaIthfulness. but we have a soil which
produces more abuHGantly than is found
i'm the latitude of North Carolina and
Tennessee. and yet the maximum temper
ature is seldom greater than that in Ne
braska, Iowa and the Dakotas. due pre-
sumablv to our latitude. Oklahoma pro-
IL ,..-r. I . l,.,
people of every other state in the Union.
OF the three great staples. cotton. wheat.
and corn. we are unexcelled both in guam
tity ard quality in proportion to the num-
ber OF acres planted. we are developing
into one of the ri hest oil fields in the
world and recently large quantities u
coal has been discovered in the eastern
portion of the territory. We produced last
year. or during the year Of 1905. 5s.g4.eyo
bushels Of wheat: - G00o0 bushels OF
corn: 10e10,cl0 bushels Of oats; 3.eooe 60
bushels OF kaffircorn: 10000 pounds Of
broom corn, and 220oGo bales Of cotton.
In 1890 ONLY three states in the Union out
ranked US in the production Of broom
corn. they being Illinois. Kansas ard Mis-
souri,. Corn. oats and wheat are the sta
pies in the northern portion. and cotton
and corn in the south half Of the terri
tory. Stock of all kinds. including cattle
and horses. are raised at perhaps oae-half
the expense they cost in the northern and
as;ern states. We nave s0rg09 horses.
10000 mules: c6 sheep: 25oeoo swine.
and 10000 cattle. worth S31,9o0. 30 Fruit
fourIshes in almost every section. There
were more than IGo miles of railroad
completed IN oklahoma in l-e twice -
much as was built by any state IN the
Vrion. and cue-sixth "a murh as Tss
buflt IN the United States for the same
period. We have more than seer miles
OF railroad in operation at this iirnc. with
NJ abatement in railroad construction
from what il has been g. l21 ard l%9
There are in Oklahoma about 10 Ter-itcr-
sal and National banks. With a combined
ca1itaI II more than S5.9los'3. snd deposits
amounting q se5!sDaas
ANY one of four countries iu Oklahoma
is larger than either q the states q con
ueciicllt. Delaware OF Rhede Island
some shree million aeres Of land known
a o-iginaI .klahoraa were thrown oFSa
to settlement AprI =. Isss. The Sac and
Fox and PCtta uaf0Hsie reservations n
the eastern Part Il sh@ terrsseFy veTe
opened 10 settlement f. sspteEaheE. ls.'i
n. reservations contained I. - t5s acreE
Ths Cheyenne ard Arapsho reseryatiozs
embracing ses7.-1I was opeaed n Aprsi.
Use The Cherokee StTiF containing s5is-
- acres zas opsnsa on Sepses1ber =. Tss2
The KirEar-eo reservation E5s orerea ID
1855 and coutsiued 7s.ss2 acres TIE E1bo-
va Cosnancise. Apache and wichita res
er4afars comprising sorne Slso.pa ac-es
ist 1871