The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1875-03-05
New Mexico and Colorado Admitted
as States OF the Union.


New Mexico and Colorado have been
admitted as States of the Union. But
the measure which advances these mea-
gerIy populated territories to all the
rights and privileges of the other States,
is not generally received with favor. 1t
is said that it was rushed through Con-
rress to further the ends of the party
in power; and that by virtue of its pas
sage four more Republican U. ). Sena-
tors will be added to the party. Wheth-
er this be true or not, the admission oi
one of these territories, at least, seems to
be in the nature of an outrage, mas
much as the statistics show that the
great majority of the people inhabiting
it, are totally incapacitated to meet the
requirements which the new condition
imposes.
The Cincinnati Commercial has over
hauled some statistics concerning New
Mexico, and embodies them in an artl-
Gle upon the recent action of Congress
which makes it State. We copy from
it the following:
"The total population of the new State
of New Mexico, by the census of 1870
was 81, ,S74, being an average OF consider
ably less than one inhabitant to square
mile. This population consists of 9O,-
373 whites, 172 colored, and 1909 In
dians. Between 10000 and $4,000 OF
them are of Mexican descent, and are
almost wholly ignorant of the English
language. The number Of inhabitants
now resident in New Mexico, who owe
their origin to the United States, is ex
tremely small. According to the last
census, out of the whole number of In
habitants, there were born out of the
Territory only 1920, and of these nearly
1000 were natives of Mexico. Only
1855 of the whole ninety-two thousand
are recorded as born in the United States
The Spanish blood, which runs in the
veins of nine out of every ten of the pop
ulation, is mingled in part with the blood
of other races, remaining, however
preponderantly in the Spanish.
fThe language spoken IN New Mexico
is Spanish. In two counties only out o
fourteen can the English language be
understood by jury impaneled TO try
causes in the Courts. Out of the sever
newspapers published IN the Territory
five are Spanish. 1t may be said with
truth, and without doing the people o
this new State any injustice, that they
are aliens to us in blood and in Ian
guage. The statistics
of the census of 1870 show that out of {
population of 81 ,874 the number attend
ing school was only 1899. These sta
tistics show further that out of a tota
population of ten years of age and ovel
amounting to &c, AGA, As, 1886 were unable
to read, and 81, ,220 were unable to write
The proportion, therefore, of persons
above the age of ten unable to read and
write is something over seventy five pei
cent. The whole number of schools il
New Mexico, by the census, was only
A, employing p teachers. Out of thi
number, FIVE only were pnblic schools
attended by only 1873 pupils, the rest be
ing conducted by private enterprise, o.
by religious bodies. The picture is GER
tainly dark enough to require no back
ground; yet we may state the fact in thi:
connection that in none of the Southern
States where illiteracy most prevails
not even in South Carolina or Mississip
pi lin which the black population great
ly outnumbers the white) is there any
thing like this proportion of ignorance
The highest percentage of the whole pop
ulation of persons unable to read anC
write in the black States of the South i
fiftythree per cent. In New Mexico i
is seventy-fve per cent. Even in tht
neighboring Territory of Utah, which tC
many minds in the older States is ;
synonym for darkness and ignorance, w
find nearly all the inhabitants able t.
read and write. Out of a population o
S6,7S6, nearly as large as that of New
Mexico, Utah exhibits only 1858 litter
ates, against the prodigious number o
1920 in New Mexico
ain Republic which rests upon tn
popular intelligence, it is a monstrou
and unjusti6able act to admit into ou
highest legislative tribunal, two Senator
chosen by the votes of a population o
Spanish half-breeds, three out of every
four of whom can not read the ballo
they cast at the polls. If Congress car
go any further in the work of degrading
our institutions than this, we do no
know in what direction such downward
progress would lie."