Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1906-06-21
Tho stnta Of Oklahoma.

mo state OF OKLAHOMA.
TWhilc tho law admitting the new State
Of Oklahoma has been duly passed, il is
not probable that the additional star 20
denote the admission Of the iorty-siath
State 20 tho Union will become d part Of
the national flag until July Attn, 1907
The preliminary work 20 be done by the
people of oklahoma and Indian Terri
tories to make their joint Statehood COM
pleio viii consume much time
The first work TO be done is the app
portionment OF each Territory into fifty
five election districts. for the choice Of
delegates to the Constitutional Conven-
tion. The 40 delegates elected from
these districts. with one 20 be elected ia
the Onge Indian Reservation will
formulate the Constitution Of the new
state. The apponionmont is 70 be made
by the governor, the chief justice and
the Territorial secretary for Oklahoma
and by the commissioner 10 the Five
Civilized Tribes and two judges Of the
United States Courts for the Indian
Territory, the judges TO be designated
by the President When the apportion-
ment is finished the governor Of Okla
homa and the senior United States Judge
for the Indian Territory will unite in
issuing proclamation ordering the
election. This proclamation must be
made within six months from the day on
which President Roosevelt signed the
enabling act
AT the election for delegates TO the
Constitutional Convention all men over
p who are citizens of the United
States or members OF any Indian nation
or tribe in either of the Territories and
who have lived there six months will
have votes. The election will be CON
Quoted in accordance with the laws Of
Oklahoma, under the direction Of the
apporioning boards, which are to APP
point all the election officers.
The Constitutional Convention will
meet on the second Tuesday after the
election of It's members at Guthrie, Okla,
that city being designated as the tenn
poary capital Of tho new State, to be
used as such until 1918 After organiz-
ing the members must declare in behalf
of their constituents that they adopt
the Constitution of the United States
Tho State Constitution to be adopted
must contain the usual guarantees of
religious freedom and must prohibit
polygamy forever. It must also contain
clause prohibiting for twenty-one
years the manufacture, sale or adver-
tisement for sale of Intoxicating liquor,
except for medicinal or mechanical pur-
poses, in any part of the present Indian
Territory, the Usage Indian Reservation
or any parts of the State which were
Indian reservations on January lst of this
year, The enabling act specifically per-
mits the new State 70 separate the negroes
from the other races in the public schools.
When the convention has agreed on
the Constitution il Is 20 provide by
ordinance for submitting it 90 the people,
for ratification or rejection. AZ the
same time the people will vote for State
officers The returns of this election
win be canvasscd by a board composed
OF the secretary and the chief justice of
Oklahoma and the senior Judge of the
United States Court Of Appeals for the
Indian Territory. If a majority of the
votes cast are in favor of the Constitu-
ton the canvassing board will certify
that fact to the President, together with
the result of the balloting for State
officers and Representatives in Congress,
of whom there are to be five until the
apportionment on the census of 1910.
On receiving the statement of the cam
vassers the President will examine all
the documents, and the law says II "the
Constitution and government of said
proposed State are republican in form.
and if the provisions of this act have
been complied with in the formation
thereof the President within twenty
days must issue a proclamation announc-
ing the result of the election: "And
theeupon the proposed State of Okla
homa shall be deemed admitted by Con-
gross into the Union, on an equal footing
with the original States"