Wichita eagle., 1889-02-14
THEIR LATEST BLUNDER.
A Party That StiH Monkeys with It's Dos.
tiny and Shirks q Manifest Duty.

| A Party That StiH Monkeys with It's Dos.
tiny and Shirks a Manifest Duty.
| The innate capacity of the Democratic
! party for laundering was never better Illus
trated than in the Omnibus Territorial bin
| just passed by the House. Itwould be diff
| cult to conceive of q measure more obvious
| ly dishonest, or one which more fagrantly
| disregarded all the essential facts of the
| situation. South Dakota and Montana are
coupled together as the two States worthy
Of prompt admission, while North Dakota
and Washington are left with New Mexico
in their present position. The latter may
hold conventions and frame constitutions,
which they could do of their own accord,
but they can not enter the Union until Con-
gress passes special acts admitting them.
This arrangement, judged by the facts,
seems utterly senseless, but an inquiry into
its political bearing shows that there is
method in this madness, though only from
the Democratic point of view.
The concession of South Dakota was un-
avoidable. Not even a party that submits
to the leadership of Mr.. Springer could re-
fuse outright to admit commonwealth
like South Dakota with a population, ex-
Guiding Indians, of at least 350,000 But
even this act Of justice is INSTRUCTED and de-
layed by requiring that the people of the
entire Territory of Dakota shall first vote
in favor of division, which they have re-
peatedly done, and that the people Of South
Dakota shall also ratify the constitution
they adopted in 1886. Montana, which is
placed upon par with South Dakota, has
population only two -ffths as great The Of
tcial estimate contained in the last report
Of the Governor is 10000 In other words,
Montana, which is to enter the Union by
proclamation, after the people have ratified
the constitution adopted five years ago when
the population was far below the unit OF
representation, has the smallest population of
all the States which 1t is seriously proposed
by any one to admit. North Dakota, which
this insolent bill thrusts back into Terri
torial condition, has population Of at least
10000, excluding Indians. The population
Of Washington is officially estimated at 1885,
993-a figure which is believed to be already
exceeded by the rapid growth of this Terri
tory-and New Mexico has a population Of
175. 900.
We have already urged, says the New
York Tribune, the admission of Montana
because we believe it fully qualified for
Statehood. Its population is slightly below
the unit of representation, but it is steadily
growing, and the development Of the Ter
ritory is advancing along such lines that
there seems to be no possibility of future
retrogression and decay, as in the case of
Nevada. But, to admit Montana, while
North Dakota. the great wheat State, and
Washington. the noble new commonwealth
of the Pacific slope, are shut out, would be a
travesty upon the American system. The
explanation Of the course Of the Democrats
=, Ua1
which are satisfactory to them that Mon
tana shall be Democratic State. There
fore, although Democratic delegate stands
on the floor of the House to plead for the adj
mission of Washington, the measure of
whose qualifications is pressed full and
running over, the House refuses to assent,
because at the last election the people OF the
Territory expressed their disgust with the
Democratic party by giving Republican
majority of 1891 and electing only three
Democrats to the Legislature out of thirty
three members. The Republican majority in
North Dakota almost the same to figure,
1876 makes it clear why this State also is
to be kept out as long as possible.
North Dakota cast a total vote in No |
vember larger than that Of Rhode Island,
and larger than that OF Delaware and Neva- !
da combined, but because it viii doubtless
be a Republican State, the day when its
star shall CLEAN on our flag must be put off /
as long as brutal partisanship can post
pone it.
It is difficult to say what the Democrats
expect to get by this fooling with grave
question Every year that they have kept
out of the Union those Northwestern Ter
ritories which were fully qualified their
party name has become more and more
odious 10 the people who were feeling the eff
fects of this injustice. They can not long
postpone the admission of North Dakota and
" asaing ton, because within few weeks a
Republican Congress and a Republican
President viii assume complete control of
the Government for the first t,me in many
years. Justice Will then be done to the peo-
pie of those two States, but without the aid
of the Democracy and IN spite of its oppo-
sition. 1t is a fortunate thing, however, for
the country that at stated periods the
Democratic party reveals itself as one
without either sense or conscience, as I'M
as it is ignorant and Incompe-
tent.