The sun., 1893-01-21
To Admit the Territories.

To Admit the Territories.
A plan is under consideration for bring
Ing into the Union by an omnibus bill all
the Territories. except. OF course. Alaska.
which has only about 5000 white people.
and the Indian Territory, which could only
be made State by the consent OF the live
civilized tribes.
This project is very good. provided 1t is
carried out In the right way. The expert
ence Of Nevada. Montana. Idaho. and
Wyoming teaches us clearly what to do and
what not to do with Arizona. New Mexico.
Utah. and Oklahoma.
Nevada has been State moro than
twenty y-eight years. yet her population at
the last census was only 45.76l. while the
apportionment for Representative In
Congress based on that same census is
l73.o0l. The Sage Brush State, after being
In the Union for more than quarter OF
century. with as large a vote In the Senate
as the State Of New York. has hardly moro
than fourth Of the population fixed by
law for Representative, and actually had
one-fourth less population In 1890 than ten
years before.
That example shows the error Of prema-
turely admitting thinly settled Territories.
on the theory that they will soon grow
up to equality with tho other States. Mon
tana was admitted on population which In
1890 was still more than 10000 below what Is
fixed for n Representative in Congress. Da-
kota, instead OF being admitted as a single
State. was cut in two. and the northern half
showed in 1890 only 1918 inhabitants.
Idaho was admitted with population OF
"a, 1856 and Wyoming with 60.705. so that the
two combined fell nearly $4,000 short OF the
new ratio for one Representative. Idaho.
Wyoming. and Nevada. with total popu-
lation Of only .s51 in 1890. or not SO many
as good-sized town. have rs great nu-
merical weight in the Senate as Pennsyl-
vania, Ohio, and Illinois combined.
What Is clear. then. Is that we want no
more rotten borough States. Arizona to-day
deserves admission as much as Wyoming
did. and New Mexico deserves 1t far more
than Idaho. having population greater in
1890 than Idaho and Wyoming combined.
But the Fifty-second Congress. after dem
onstrating the blunders and wrongs of its
predecessors In this respect. must not try
to even them UP by perpetrating other
blunders and wrongs Of its own.
There Is right way Of taking all the
proper candidates for admission into the
Union forthwith. Unite New Mexico and
Arizona. which we're separated thirty years
ago. and admit them as one State. They
came to US as single tract. and in popula-
ton. resources. business interests. and
prospects still have the closest affinities
Their combined populations exceeded 2l3.-
900 In 1890. and they would enter the Union
as q fine. strong State. self-supporting at
the outset. and able to hold its own in the
race with all neighbors.
The greater part of Utah, including Salt
Lake. should at the same time be combined
with Nevada. the part east OF line formed
by the prolongation OF the western boun-
dary Of Wyoming going to Colorado.
Nevada and Utah combined would then
have a quarter Of million uf people and
would form another strong State. Ne
vada would be free from the reproach
resting upon her for twenty-eight years.
while Utah. with four-fifths Of the popula-
tlon Of the new State. would probably con-
slider that she was annexing Nevada. With
these general arrangements agreed upon.
1t would be easy to make some notifications
In boundaries. particularly in the north
western corner OF Arizona, where the por-
tion north Of the Colorado should go to
Nevada when it had annexed Utah.
AS for Oklahoma. the last report OF Its
Governor claims 1871 people for the Ter
ritory. exclusive Of those Indians who still
maintain tribal relations. and eighty-five per
cent. OF the population is white. But. as IL
recognizing that this may not be accepted
as ground for admission. Convention
held at Guthrie this week wants Congress
to abolish tribal governments and take
the Indian Territory and Oklahoma
into the Union rs one State. That. how
ever. cannot bo dono unless the Indians
consent. The Government OF the United
States has pledged its word that no State
lines shall ever be drawn around the lands
belonging to some OF the civilized tribes, and
has also soemnly promised them local gov:
ernment. Only the econsent Of the tribes can
release the Government from these pledges.
Oklahoma and the Indian Territory would
make populous and in many ways an in
teresting State. but much remains to be
done before such State can be formed.