Volume 9 , Issue 23

Constitutional Convention Updates - 1907

The Alva Pioneer, dated March 8, 1907, Alva, O.T., Woods County, gave weekly reviews of the work accomplished by the framers of the constitution of the New State.

Guthrie, O. T., Feb. 26, 1907 -- The convention today, acting upon the advice of the probing committee, confirmed the Buffalo location and exonerated Williams and Minute Clock Harper from the charges of graft.

Affidavits have been received by convention that Williams and Harper had an interest in the townsite of Buffalo, and the investigations began. After several weeks the probing committee concluded its investigation and reported today that the evidence fails to establish any proof of graft on the part of Williams or Harper.

The convention in committee of the whole, this afternoon, adopted a provision that the legislature shall provide that all state and congressional officers, including United States senators, shall be nominated by a mandatory primary, also provide for a state election board, no more than a majority of which shall belong to any party. Provision shall be made for election of United States senators by direct vote of the people as soon as the federal law will permit. The portions of the report of the election committee which deal with the regulations for the first state election was referred to the legal committee for an opinion as to whether they contain any illegal features.

R. Sorrels, a merchant of McAlester, I.T., sent a telegram to the convention today saying he would be one of fifty persons to give $1,000 to make up a fund of $50,000 to meet the deficiency in the convention's expenses. This telegram was read to the convention and received with applause.

The municipal corporations committee filed its report today, providing that all cities of more than 3,500 inhabitants may frame their own charters under the limitations of statute law and the constitution, and an elective board of freeholders must prepare the charter, which, if adopted by vote of the people, must be approved by the governor before going into effect. The power of initiative and referendum is reserved to all cities, special elections on franchises to be called within sixty days, the vote on other matters to be taken at the general election. The granting of a franchise for the construction, purchase, sale or lease of any public work must always be approved by vote of the people and no franchise can be granted for a longer period than twenty years.

The municipal corporation within this state shall have the right to engage in any business or enterprise which may be engaged in by an person, firm or corporation, by virtue of a franchise or privilege from said corporation.

Several additional sections of the report on taxation and revenues were adopted today in committee of the whole. Any officer of the state or county township or municipality, who shall receive any interest or profits from the use or loan of public funds in his hands or funds raised through his agency from taxation, shall be guilty of a felony.

The legislature is given power to provide for levying of license, franchise, gross revenue, excise, income, collateral and direct inheritance, legacy and succession taxes, also graduated tax on these classes of subjects, stamp, registration, production and other specific taxes. The state shall not assume the debt of any county or municipal subdivision, unless contracted in times of war or invasion. The credit of the state shall not be given or loaned to any individual or corporatin, and the state shall not be the owner or stockholder in or make any donation to any company, corporation or political sub-division. The legislature may provide for a poll tax on all electors under 60 years old of $2 per annum.

After the legal advisory committee had reported that there are no legal objections against the incorporation of a section giving the legislature the right to revoke, amend or repeal any charter or franchise now existing or granted in the future. If it was injurious to the citizens of the state, such a section was incorporated in the constitution.

Guthrie, O. T., Feb. 27, 1907 -- The report of the committee on legislative apportionment was submitted to the convention this afternoon. There are very few differences between it and the one agreed upon by the committee some time ago, published at that time.

In the representive apportionment the most important change is the giving of three representatives to Oklahoma county which had but two before. Pottawatomie county also gets three, those being the only ones so honored. Caddo, which had one and a half before, is raised to two and a half. Lincoln, given but one before, now gets two, while Roger Mills is cut from two to one. The distribution territorially gives fifty-two representatives to Oklahoma and fifty-one to Indian Territory, with two overlapping in which Indian Territory has rather the advantage.

In the senate, each territory gets eighteen members, with five chosen from overlapping territory. In one of those districts, however, McClain and Garvin counties are united with Cleveland for the election of two senators, which would make it possible for the Indian Territory end to elect both. In the district composed of Caddo and Grady it would be about a standoff, while in the Payne-Moman district the Indian Territory district would probably have rather the best of it. Greer, Garfield, Logan, Comanche and Pittsburg counties get one senator each. Oklahoma and Canadian together elect two. So do Lincoln and Pottawatomie and Caddo and Grady.

In several other cases three or more counties are joined to elect two senators. These combinations include: Beekham, Dewey, Ellis and Roger Mills; Custer, Kiowa and Washita; Carter, Love and Murray; Haskell, Mcintosh and Muskogee.

The combination districts which have but one senator are Beaver, Cimarron, Harper and Texas; Woodward, Woods, Alfalfa; Blaine, Kingfisher and Major; Grant and Kay; Osage, Noble and Pawnee; Moman and Payne; Jefferson and Stevens; Johnston and Marshall; Hughes and Okfuskee; Pontotoc and Seminole; Choctaw. McCurtain and Pushmataha; Latimer and Leflore; Adair, Delaware and Sequoyah; Cherokee, Hayes and Rogers; Craig, Ottawa and Nowata; Tulsa and Washington; Okmulgee and Wagoner.

The apparent intention of the committee is to make twenty-five districts that will be certainly Democratic and thirteen Republican with three doubtful.

The "Jim Crow" section providing for separate coaches and waiting rooms for negroes and whites in Oklahoma went to its final doom today. C. N. Haskell, of Muskogee, buried the provision so deep that it can never be revived, by moving to table the section. The motion carried by a vote of 34 to 32.

The committee of nine lawyers appointed by President Murray last week did the expected thing by reporting that a "Jim Crow" clause in the constitution would be a race distinction, which is prohibited in the enabling act.

A department of labor is created by action taken today in the convention. It will be in charge of a labor commissioner to be elected by the people. The legislature shall create a board of arbitration and cancellation in the labor department, of which the labor commissioner is ex-officio chairman. An eight-hour law shall be in effect in all state work wherever performed whithin the state.

A provision was adopted creating an elective board of agriculture of eleven members, nine to be practical farmers and two graduates of the State Agricultural and Mechanical college. The convention turned down a proposed provision to give the legislature power to adopt the Torrens land registration system. Sections were adopted prohibiting alien ownership of land, and prohibiting any corporation from being created or licensed for the purpose of dealing in lands outside of cities, except for land necessary for additions to cities.

An innovation is found in a section of the report on municipal corporations adopted today, giving cities of 2,000 inhabitants the right to make their own charters. Cities and towns now existing are given the right to retain all their present rights until otherwise provided by law and additional rights conferred by the constitution.

Washington, D. C., Feb. 27, 1907 -- The sub-committee of the house appropriations committee today rejected the propostion to appropriate $132,000 to meet the deficiency of the Oklahoma constitutional convention. Colonel Owens will take it before the full committee. The Republican leaders, including McGuire, of Oklahoma, will insist that if the appropriation is made, it shall have a string to it that the convention shall construct a constitution to meet the approval of President Roosevelt. The Democratic leaders claim Oklahoma is not yet ready to let Roosevelt or any other outsider write a constitution for them. They will depend upon the Democratic senators to figure a way out to get the appropriation without dishonor to Oklahoma Democrats.

Guthrie, O.T., Feb. 28, 1907 -- The report of the legislative apportionment committee was adopted this afternoon. The portion fixing the senatorial districts so that twenty-five of them would be surely Democratic and thirteen Republican, according to the idea of the committee, was adopted without a single change. There was considerable opposition to some of the districts, but the organization labled every proposed amendment without giving a chance for full debate.

A proposition prohibiting bucketshops, which was declared to belong in a statute regarding crimes and punishments was turned down today. Other sections similarly treated were those requiring the passage of laws for the regulation of architecture and prohibiting peddling of foods, medicines, etc.

Favorable action was taken on the section providing that the salary of a public officer shall not be changed during his term except by the operation of a law previously enacted.

An enforcement commissioner, with full power to enforce the liquor laws of the state is provided for in a supplemental report of the liquor traffic committee filed this afternoon. He is to command the assistance of the attorney general, county attorneys, sheriffs, etc., but the grant of authority to him does not relieve them from responsibility for the performance of their official duty.

Section 116 of the report on revenues and taxation referred to the legal advisory committee, was reported back and adopted with an amendment allowing that taxes be levied for carrying on any business enterprise in which the state may engage. The committee reported that the original section which permitted levying taxes for public purposes only would make the provision of the bill of rights, permitting the state to engage in Business, ineffective.

Guthrie, O.T., March 1, 1907 -- A normal annual salary list of state officers aggregating $131,200 has been recommended by the committee on salaries and compensations in office.

The salaries are distributed as follows:

Governor, $5,000; five justices of supreme court, $4,000 each; Twenty district judges, $3,000 each; attorney general, $4,000; secretary of state, $3,000; state treasurer, $3,000; three corporation commissioners, $3,000 each; labor commissioner, $2,500; insurance commissioner, $2,500; examiner and inspector of accounts, $2,500; state auditor, $2,500; superintendent of pulic instruction, $2,500; chief mine inspector, $1,500; commissioner of charities, $1,500; lieutenant governor, $1,000; members of the legislature, $6 per day; seventy-four county judges, $2,500 each.

A section was adopted providing that the school funds of the state shall be invested in first mortgages on improved farm lands., to 50 per cent of their value without improvements, Oklahoma state bonds, county bonds of Oklahoma, school district bonds of Oklahoma school districts and United States bonds, preference being given in the order named.

A supplemental report of the revenues and taxation committee, submitted tonight, provides that the maximum limit of taxation for all purposed shall be 30 1-2 mills and the maximum state debt $400,000 and limits the indebtedness of cities to 5 per cent of the full valuation of their property. They may incur an additional 5 per cent debt for the purchase or construction of public utilities.

Local optionists made a last fight today for a constitutional provision allowing a local vote on the liquor question in affected communities, but were defeated by the prohibitionists by a vote of 56 to 26.

The section which the local optionists wanted adopted reads:

"Whenever an amendment is proposed to any article or section of the constitution which applies only to a definite portion of the state, said amendment shall be subject to the constitution, proposed to be amended, and when a majority of all the votes cast in such portion of the state to which such proposed amendment is submitted shall be for the adoption of such amendment the same shall become a part of this constitution."

The section was defeated by a vote on a motion to strike out by Delegate Herring, a prohibitionist.

The champions of the section stated that it was framed so as to allow Indian Territory to vote alone for or against prohibition in case the state-wide prohibition clause fails to carry in the coming election and the Oklahoma side remains wet.

The sections adopted provide that by a majority vote of the members of both branches of the legislature a proposed constitutional amendment may be submitted at the next general election. The legislature by two-thirds vote of each house may submit it at a special election. A proposed amendment is adopted upon a majority vote of the people. No constitutional convention can be called except on a referendum vote and the question of calling a convention shall be submitted to the people at least once every twenty years. The constitution may also be amended by vote on an initiative petition.
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