The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1889-07-14
BAsELESS HOPES.

The advocates of statehood in Idaho are
pluming themselves on letter recently
received by Delegate DUBOIS in answer to
one written by him to Congressman
SPRINGER. Mr.. SPRINGER, who was chair
man of the House committee on terri
tories in the late Congress, and will doubt
less be the first Democrat on the same
committee in the new Congress, writes:
am very glad to learn that the people of
Idaho are moving in the direction OF statehood.
It makes little or no difference whether the
people of territory act in pursuance of an en-
abling act passed by Congress, or follow their
own methods. If constitution is framed re-
publican in form, and conforming to the prece-
dents laid down by Congress in reference to the
Dakotas Montana and Washington, and il such
| constitution is ratified by majority OF the
people, at a fair election, honestly and impair
TALLY conducted have no doubt of your early
admission into the union.
/ would suggest that your convention should
follow all the provisions Of the recent act OF
Congress providing for the admission of North
and South Dakota, Montana and Washington,
the same as II Idaho had been included in the
act.
You may assure the people of Idaho of my
earnest efforts in Congress to aid in securing
their early admission into the union as state.
In this communication the friends OF
statehood profess to find much encourage
ment, and some say it insures the success
of the present movement. After carefully
reading SPRINGER's words, The HERALD
wonders what the IdahOanS can find in
them that is pleasurable in connection with
the convention now being held. The Con
gresham says he is glad the people are
moving in the direction of statehood. So
are we all. He also says it makes little diff
ference whether they proceed under an en-
abling act, or follow their own methods.
There is nothing new or encouraging in
this. Several of the territories have not
waited for Congress to pass an enabling act,
but have gone on in their own way, framed
and adopted constitutions, and applied for
admission, the request being granted
To our minds there is discourage
ment in SPRINGER's letter He
tells them that if the consti-
tuition framed shall be Repub-
ican in form and ratified by a
majority of the people at fair election,
honestly and impartially conducted" he
has no doubt of the early admission of the
territory. If the men who are engineering
the statehood movement will reflect for a
moment they will discover in the above a
death blow to all their hopes.
1t was never intended that constitution,
republican in form, should be framed. On
the contrary, the announcement of con
vention was accompanied by a statement
that the constitution should not be repub
lican in form, and the delegates were all
chosen with the understanding that they
would vote for an 'unrepublican constitu-
ton, which would disfranchise without
charge, trial or hearing of any kind, a
large number of citizens. The delegates
were selected because of their expressed
readiness to put religious test in the con-
stitution in open and direct violation
of the fundamental law of the United
States. Nearly one-third Of the entire
population of the territory were denied the
privilege of participating in the conven-
ton, and are to-day unrepresented in that
body, which is made up almost exclusively
of their enemies. When it comes to voting
on the constitution over thirty per cent of
the people will be excluded from the polls,
and the document cannot thus be ratified
by majority of the people. The election
will not be fairly conducted, in that
American citizens will be denied the right
to vote, and only those will be permitted to
express their opinion who are supposed to
favor the unrepublican work of the I'M
representative and unrepublican conven-
ton.
Mr.. SPRINGER gives the assurance of his
earnest efforts in Congress to aid in
securing the early admission of Idaho into
the union, but Mr.. SPRINGER will be among
the last men to work for the admission of
the territory with such a constitution
as is now being formed at Boise City. He
is too great a statesman and too good
Democrat to assent to the creation of an
American state with such an un-American
fundamental law. When the constitution
shall be presented, and the facts and cir
cumstances of its formation shall be
stated, Mr.. SPRINGER will be one of the
first to deny the petition for state
hood, and one of the foremost in
opposition to comforting a state gov
ernment upon a community which
has so little respect for the principles
and theory of the American government as
to propose such an infamous constitution.