blic meeting ever held in Minnesota. On the fifth day of
August, in the same year, a similar meeting was held in Stillwater, and
out of these meetings grew a call for a convention, to be held at
Stillwater, on August 26th, which was held accordingly. There were
present about sixty delegates.

At this meeting a letter from Hon. John Catlin, the secretary of
Wisconsin Territory, was read, giving it as his opinion that the
territorial government of Wisconsin still existed, and that if a
delegate to congress was elected he would be admitted to a seat.

A memorial to congress was prepared, setting forth the peculiar
situation in which the people of the remnant found themselves, and
praying relief in the organization of a territorial government.

During the session of this convention there was a verbal agreement
entered into between the members, to the effect that when the new
territory was organized the capital should be at St. Paul, the
penitentiary at Stillwater, the university at St. Anthony, and the
delegate to congress should be taken from Mendota. I have had reason to
assert publicly this fact on former occasions, and so far as it relates
to the university and the penitentiary, my statement was questioned by
Minnesota's greatest historian, Rev. Edward D. Neill, in a published
article, signed "Iconoclast;" but I sustained my position by letters
from surviving members of the convention, which I published, and to
which no answer was ever made. The same statement can be found in
Williams' "History of St. Paul," published in 1876, at page 182.

The result of this convention was the selection of Henry H. Sibley as
its agent or delegate, to proceed to Washington and present the memorial
and resolutions to the United States authorities. It was curiously
enough stipulated that the delegate should pay his own expenses.

Shortly after this event the Hon. John H. Tweedy, who was the regularly
elected delegate to congress from the Territory of Wisconsin, no doubt
supposing his official career was terminated, resigned his position, and
Mr. John Catlin, claiming to be the governor of the territory, came to
Stillwater, and issued a proclamation on Oct. 9, 1848, ordering a
special election to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of
Delegate Tweedy. The election was held on the thirtieth day of October.
Mr. Henry H. Sibley and Mr. Henry M. Rice became candidates, neither
caring very much about the result, and Mr. Sibley was el