The French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1896-1912, 1905-02-16

Debate of MANY Hours in the Senate
10 Original Fin Proposed Before q
Definite Agreement Could Be Settled
Upon Will Be known as Oklahoma.
Washington, D. Cat the end OF a
continuous debate that lasted almost
nine hours, the Senate at $40 o'clock
at night tentatively added two stars
to the American flag by passing the
joint Statehood bill admitting Okla
homa and Indian Territory to the Union
as n State, to be known as Oklaho-
ma, and ~elevating New Mexico to the
dignity of another State, to bear the
name of the present Territory. Ari-
iona was eliminated from the provis-
ions Of the bill, so far as statehood is
concerned. The action Of the Senate
must be c%oncurred in by the House be.
fore it can become effective.
The long session was characterized
by exciting incidents and many sur
prises.. Beginning promptly when it
wa ~AtNO ct u NIOSNS INC OChdlC pIOo
ceeded to consider the various amend
ments which had been suggested by
the Committee on Territories and
which bad been passed over. One of
the first Of these taken up was the
amendment prohibiting the sale Of in
tOXicating liquors in what is now In
dian Territory for the next ten years,
and this was displaced with 4 substi-
tute offered by Mr.. Gallinger, which
extended the amendment to the entire
State for twenty-one years. The sub
stitute was adopted.
The first surprise of the day came
when the committee accepted Mr.. For
aker's amendment, providing for a sep
arate vote by each of the Territories of
Arizona and New Mexico on the Con-
stitution to be adopted by the proposed
State of Arizona.
That provision had scarcely been
made a part of the bill, when Mr.. Bard
presented his amendment, which had
been originally offered by Mr.. Patter-
son, and which provided for the admis-
sion of New Mexico as q State without
the addition Of Arizona. This amend
ment proved to be the point around
which all the subsequent proceedings
of Importance revolved.
1t was at first adopted by the close
vote of fOrty-tWO to forty. This vote
was taken when the Senate was sitting
in committee of the whole, and was re-
versed in the Senate proper by the tie
vote of thirty-eight to thirty-eight.
Subsequently the Senate decided 10y a
vote of thirty-eight to thirty-six 10 elm
mate New Mexico and Arizona entire
ly from the bill. and thiG result had
hardly been announced when Mr.. Bard,
in slightly changed form, renewed his
proposition for the admission Of New
Mexico as a State, and this, in the
form Of the amendment, prevailed by
the vote of forty to thirty-seven. One
of the affirmative votes was, however,
cast by Mr.. Beveridge, in charge of the
bill, for the purpose of moving the re-
consideration of the vote.
He was prompt in entering this mo-
ton as soon as the result was an
nounced, but the motion was laid upon
the table by a vote OF thirty-nine to
thirty-eight. The effect was to elimin-
ate Arizona from the bill and to estab-
lish a State Of New Mexico and anoth-
err of Oklahoma and Indian Territory.
In this form the bill passed.
The defeat Of the Bard amendment
in tbs Senate after it had been adopted
i'll committee of the whole gave rise to
some interesting incidents. Mr.. Bailey
intimated that there had been a
trade regarding the adoption of an
amendment adding a portion of Ari-
Zon to Utah.
The Mormon question also received
an airing during the day. While the
provision for the separate admission
OF New Mexico vas under considera-
ton Mr.. Burrows, Chairman Of the
Committee on Privileges and Elections,
announced his opposition to the bill,
and stated that it was due to the prac-
tice Of polygamy in thai Territory to
such an extent that he considered it
unwise to take the administration away
from the Federal authorities.
Mr.. Dubois, Mr.. McComas and Mr..
Platt, Of Connecticut, referred to the
question of polygamy and to the reve-
lations before the committee. The bill
in the House and will go to
conference.
Oklahoma City, Okla.-The
ment that the United States Senate
had passed the Statehood bill provid-
ing for joint admission of Oklahoma
and Indian Territory, created great IN
here. Public demonstrations
Of rejoicing took place in nearly every
city and town Of both Territories.