The sun., 1908-12-20
VETOED BY THE PRESIDENT
RESOLUTION FIXING COLORADO.
OKLAHOMA BOUNDARY.

The Veto Based on an Opinion by !AttoH
ney.G General BOnaparte, Which Sena'
tor Teller Declares Is Based on
. NEisappreheHsiOn or the Facts
WASHINGTON, Dec i9.-President Roose-
welt to-day sent to Congress q veto mes
sage, returning disapproved the joint
resolution establishing the boundary
line between the States Of Colorado and
Oklahoma and the Territory Of New
Mexico"
The President gave as his reason for
vetoing the resolution a letter he had
received from Attorney General Bona
parte stating his objections as follows.
The practical effect of establishing
the new boundary line, so far as the
State of Colorado is con cerned, would be
to remove from the jurisdiction OF that
State and add 20 the Territory OF New
Mexico a strip along nearly the whole
Of the southern boundary of the said
State in which there are located at least
five post offices and an appreciable number
OF inhabitants. So far as am awa are. no
action has been taken by the Legislature
OF the State of Colorado asserting to or
accepting the location Of the boundary
as proposed in this resolution and from
s oh inquiry as have been able to make
in the very limited time since the resolu-
ton reached me, am led TO think that
such assent or acceptance on the part
Of the State is improbable
Mr.. BonApaFte declares that the reso-
luton would not be binding upon the
State OF Colorado and its adoption might
long strip Of territory and possibly to the
escape from legal punishment Of those
guilty OF crimes committed within the
strip.
When the message was laid before the
Senate, Mr.. Teller of Colorado asked
that it lie on the table until after the holi-
days;
under a misapprehensicn OF the facts
Senator Teller told the Senate. THE
Joint resolution is not An attempt to es
tablish the line, hut to ascertain where
the line is which was established in 1881
by the act admitting our State inro the
Union and subsequently, by our State |
act. This last line has never been run by |
the Government of the United States. II |
is indefinite and uncertain, but probably !,
is very nsaT the actual thirty seventh
parallel o line that cannot be moved and
cannot be changed. 1t 10 there. and
under the act the Department was to
find " possible. where the line was.
Some years ago We appropriated some
money for the purpose Of asoeTtaining
that line. The Department OF the In
terror hireda competent astronomer. with
proper force, and expended some
S35, 600. ! think, in ascertaining where the
true line was. The Department received
that report and approved OF the lin6 80
far as they could. The statement that
the Joint resolution materially changes
the line is incorrect, do not think that
ANYBODY could have informed the Presi-
dent about the line who knew anything
about it. IL does not materially change
the line. but in some places it probably
varies from a quarter to half mile.
No considerable injury could happen to
anybody either on the New Mexican or
the other line.
so far as Congress is concerned IL
has a right TO fix the New Mexican line
1t has no right to fix the Colorado line,
admit. The Colorado line Is on tn he
thirty y-sevepth parallel and probably
Congress has not any right to determine
for the State Of Colorado where the
thirty seventh parallel is. The right still
belongs to the State Of Colorado to deter
mine Il, which they would do in some way
if the joint resolution should become
law.
Should there be difference OF opinion
between the people Of Colorado or the
Legislature Of Colorado and the general
as to where the thirty |
seventh parallel is. then there would be a |
case for the Supreme Court There is not !
any case for the Supreme Courtas II now
stands. / consulted the Judiciary Com
mittee with reference to this line. Our
people are anxious to have the line es- |
tablished so that we may know where IL
u. The line has been surveyed and thO /
monuments have been put up