Evening star., 1901-11-25
NEW MExICO WANTS STATEHOOD.
Delegate Rodney Says That is Most
Important.

Important.
Delegate Rodey of New Mexico, who came
to Washington few days ago, paid his re-
spects to the President today and will have
a talk with him later about statehood for
the territory. Asked if this was the most
important matter to the people of the ter
ritory, Mr.. Rodey said:
Statehood is our great hope. You don't
think there is anything of more import
ance to the territories than that, do you?
But" he added, Il am little worried
as to whether or not the President has put
anything in his message about the terrific
res, and of course l can't find that out till
the message goes to Congress. Unfortu-
nately, in some of the territories political
fights are SO bitter that the chances OF
those particular jurisdictions for admission
may have been temporarily injured with the
administration. However, even If there IS
nothing in the message on the question, we
regard this administration as very friendly
to the territories, and we have hopes that
we can get a special message on the sub
ject. But recommendation for the admis-
sion of the three continental territories may
be in the message when 1t is sent IN We
are in the dark as to that for the present.
When asked if he had anything imne-
diate and particular on hand in Washing
ton he stated that he had come to Wash
ington few days ahead of the session so
as to appear before the army board which
is arranging for the permanent location of
military posts in the west, and that he
would appear before that board; that he
had met some of its members on the way
from Chicago east, and that ex-Delegate
Ferguson, who was very we'll posted on
that subject, had come on to Washington
TO aid him in the matter.
When asked as to the conditions in New
Mexico at the present time Mr.. Rodey be-
came enthusiastic. and said they never
were better in the history of the territory;
that the territory is actually very prosper
fIne Of iIY,a Il how
been built within year and a half, and
400 800 miles more are projected to be
built in the immediate future. which VIII
make nearly 100000 miles of railroad in the
territory He said that last summer had
been a rainy one, and that conditions were
in consequence very good.
Statehood" said he, is the all-absoro-
ing issue. 1T has obscured even the race
for office among the politicians In fact,
all political parties in the territory are So
united and so eager for statehood that they
are working as 81 unit; the people held
very large and enthusiastic convention at
Albuquerque on October 16, and passed
strong resolutions demanding admission of
the territory and showing that it had a
population of a quarter of million, tax
able wealth of three hundred millions cf
dollars and that it spending more for
the education of its children than any other
Jurisdiction in the nation. This convention
also authorized our governor to appoint a
non-partisan commission of fourteen dele
gates, to be headed by himself as the ff-
teenth, to come to Washington this winter
and promote the passage of the enabling
act by all honorable means"
Mr.. Rodey further stated that the terri
tory had assumed the first place in the
number of sheep it was raising and the
wool 1t was growing, and was coming up
toward the first place in the number of
cattle it is producing. Also that mining
was opening out 50 much that it might be
called somewhat of a boom; that the agri-
cultural interests We're looking up; that II
New Mexico could share in the results of
the present efforts for irrigation in the
west about to be made by Congress it
would be but few years until the terri
tory would assume a very advanced posi-
tion as an agricultural locality, because it
had plenty of land that could be irrigated
by the flood waters when properly con-
served and distributed