The Coolidge examiner., 1935-07-12

West Texas sam Houston for East Texas. and
HoEE for North Texas Another suggestion Is
that the state OF West Texas be called Pan
handle
Texans who believe that they have the right
to divide their state up into Eve parts base that
right upon the terms under which Texas Was
annexed 60 the United States ia tSta Al that
time sam Houston was president of the Repub-
nc of Texas. Anson Jones secretary of state
and Isaac Van Zandi was the Texan charge
d'aralrcs a, Washington Houston told Jones TO
write Van Zandt a letter of Instructions on hoy
20 negotiate the treaty ~ annexation with the
United States. and sent J. Pinckney Henderson
along 10 help Van Zandg handle the matter with
the American secretary of state. This letter.
dated February -. isi4. emphasized two points
not embraced In previous Instructions the FIRST
of which was this: The number Of states into
which the Territory OF Texas shall be subdivided
IL Is presumAbe that In the settlements already
made there Is sufficient population TO eonsiI
tuie one state. according to the requirements Of
the Federal Constitution. and that the remaining
territory Of the republic Is sufficiently large 10
constitute three at a future period
You viii. therefore, provide In the treaty for
the ultimate creation OF AT least four states
and for their admission into the Union SO soon
as the population OF the respective territories
shall be sufficient for that purpose-and In the
meantime that territorial governments shall be
established and maintained as circumstances and
the wants Of the people residing In those limits
respectively may render proper and necessary"
President Tyler. In his message Of December
is4i. refers 10 this same matter Urging the
prompt and immediate annexation OF Texas, be
says: Future legislatures can best decide as 10
the number OF states which should be formed
out Of the territory. when the time arrives for
deciding that question"
The bill to provide for the annexation Of
Texas 10 the United States. and to restore the
ancient limits OF the Republic" which was final.
~ passed. says among other things: The said
compact Of cession and annexation. when made
as aforesaid 10 provide further for the future
formation in said territories Of at least two
states. and II more than two. then four states
and II more than four. then OF six states 10 be
hereafter admitted into the United statss OF
America"
Henry Clay. then living IL retirement but a
candidate for the presidency. wrote a letter
April IL. 1874. emphasizing the fact that Texas
was ultimately to be composed OF i've states and
declared that only two of them would be slave
and three OF them free.
In that fact lies the fallacy OF the idea that
Texas has the right TO divide Itself into five
states. This idea arose from a mIsnterpretation
Of the clause In the joint resolution OF congress
annexing Texas by which the Missouri compro-
mise line was carried TO the west boundary OF
Texas AT that time Texas claimed territory far
north. and provision was merely being made
that states subsequently carved from Texas
should be slave below the compromise line and
free above. Since the outcome OF the War Be
tween the States settled the question OF slavery
il also obyiated the necessity for determining
which of the 1--WE new states were to be slave
and which were TO be free soil
Even though none OF these recent proposals
for the creation of new commonwealths from
those already existing has made much progress
they have added to the literature OF states that
might have BEEN and have revived sne memory
OF other such proposals in the 3ast. II "Absa-
roka,' "llliana," and "Texlahoma" would look
queer on map OF the United States today how
much queerer would Ii look II Il had Pelisypia
Polypotamia, MetropOtamia and Chersonesus on
ii. Yet there were such names on the maps of
40 years ago and might now have states
bearing those names IL Thomas Jefferson had
had his way about It.