Year: 1864

Remarks of Hon. Geo. E. Cole, Pending


the Bill for Veto Power in Washing


ton Territory.


The SPEAKER stated the next business in
order to be the consideration of the unfinished
business of yesterday being the bill Of the
Senate in regard to the veto power in Washing
ton Territory, the pending question being on
the passage of the bill.


Mr.. THAYER move that the House do
now adjourn.


Mr.. WASHBURNE, of Illinois. l trust my
friend from Pennsylvania will not press that
motion. The gentleman from Washington
TMr. COLE has the floor upon the pending bill,
and am we shall all be very much graft
fed to hear him. l hope he will be permitted
to proceed with his remarks.


Mr.. THAYER Very well, sir; l withdraw
the motion.


Mr.. COLE, of Washington. Mr. Speaker,
could not allow this measure, which affects the
people whom l have the honor to represent on
this floor, to pass without entering my solemn
protest against it, By what influence the SEN
ate was induced to pass the bill is unknown to
me- except so far appears from the record of
the action of that body in'regard to it.


do not know any one in the Territory of
Washington who desires the passage of this act
have been asked by several MEMBERS since
this matter was up yesterday, why it is that the
Territory of Washington should be made an
exception to all other Territories in this matter
of giving the veto power to the Governor. /
would reply to that inquiry by giving a short
history of the organization of that Territory.


In l84S the Congress of the United States
passed act organizing all our then posses
sions on the Pacific coast beyond the Rocky
mountains into the Territory of Oregon. All
that country north of the forty-second parallel
and south of the forty y-ninth parallel, lying be-
tween the Rocky mountains and the Pacific
ocean, was organized into the Territory of
Oregon. There was a population there which
had formed provisional government, made its
own laws, elected its own Governor and vari-
Gus territorial officers, its Legislature and its
judges, and governed itself until the year lS48,
when Congress saw fit to organize that country
into Territory of the United States


The people who had settled that country were
mostly from the frontier States of the West,
from Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, Mime
sofa, and Missouri. They had traversed the
plains and had endured hardships innumerable.
They had in fact settled in favor of the Gov
ernment of the United States the question of
title between it and the Government of Great
Britain to all that country on the Pacific coast.
Finding that this people had done so much to
give to the United States our vast Pacific pos
sessions, and that they had shown themselves
so competent for self self-government, Congress,
in providing organic act for the Territory,
left out, contrary to the usual custom in organi-
zing new Territories, the provision giving the
veto power to the Governor. Congress also
gave to that Territory other legislation which it
has never given to any other Territory of the
United States. In the year 1850 Congress
passed act giving to actual settler on the
public lands in the Territory of Oregon, which
then comprised Washington Territory, six hum
dred and tarty acres if he were married man,
and thrss hundred and twenty acres if he were
a single man, conditioned upon four years res
idence and cultivation This was done proba-
bly, for the same reason as that for which Con-
gress gave to the Territory liberal organic act,
as a remuneration in part for the essential ser
vice rendered by that people to the Govern
ment.


l had the honor of taking some part in the
early legislation of the Territory of Oregon.
became resident Of Oregon in 1850, and was a
resident of it during eight years of its terrific
rial existence. About quarter of the popula-
ton of the Territory was embraced within the
present limits of Washington Territory, prior to
its organization. The population were of the