r the legal territorial government, organized by the
United States in February 1861. Colorado City was the first capital, but
was soon replaced by Golden, which was the capital from 1862 until 1868,
when Denver was made the seat of government (in 1881 permanently, by
vote of the people). In 1862 some Texas forces were defeated by Colorado
forces in an attempt to occupy the territory for the Confederacy. From
1864 to 1870 there was trouble with the Cheyenne and Arapahoe Indians. A
sanguinary attack on an Indian camp in Kiowa county in 1864 is known as
the Sand Creek Massacre. In 1867 the Republican party had prepared for
the admission of Colorado as a state, but the enabling act was vetoed by
President Johnson, and statehood was not gained until 1876. Finally,
under a congressional enabling act of the 3rd of March 1875, a
constitution was framed by a convention at Denver (20th of December 1875
to 14th of March 1876) and adopted by the people on the 1st of July
1876. The admission of Colorado to the Union was thereupon proclaimed on
the 1st of August 1876.

From this time on the history of the state was long largely that of her
great mining camps. After 1890 industrial conditions were confused and
temporarily set greatly backward by strikes and lockouts in the mines,
particularly in 1894, 1896-1897 and 1903-1904, several times threatening
civil war and necessitating the establishment of martial law. Questions
of railways, of franchises, union scales and the recognition of the
union in contracts, questions of sheep and cattle interests, politics,
civic, legal and industrial questions, all entered into the economic
troubles of these years. The Colorado "labour wars" were among the most
important struggles between labour and capital, and afforded probably
the most sensational episodes in the story of all labour troubles in the
United States in these years. A state board of arbitration was created
in 1896, but its usefulness was impaired by an opinion of the state
attorney-general (in 1901) that it could not enforce subpoenas, compel
testimony or enforce decisions. A law establishing an eight-hour day for
underground miners and smelter employees (1899) was unanimously voided
by the state supreme court, but in 1902 the people amended the
constitution and ordered the general assembly to re-enact the law for
labourers in mines, smelters and dangerous employments. Following the
repeal of the Sherman Law and other acts and tendenci