Cochise review., 1901-01-19
STATEHOOD


 that covers an area of several square miles, with street-car lines three miles in length and not going out of the city limits, either. The city has more than 6,000 inhabitants, but there are only 5000 set down in the enumeration. There are two causes for this shortage. To begin with, many of the people were away, and in the next place, the old corporate limits remained as they were, while of course the great bulk of the city lies outside of those corporate limits. I refer to these things to show qhat the population of 122, 997 given in the census is too small.
 As to the internal wealth of the country, we have mining belt there running from Utah and Nevada in the northwest to Mexico in the southeast. That belt is 437 miles in length, with an average width of about 100 miles. The average area of the mineral lands in the territory is nearly 3O,0O0.000 acres, and, although but few of the mines have yet been opened, the out put from the copper, gold and silver mines is nearly S40,000,OO0 year, while the bulka of that belt is hardly scratched. The output of these mines now in operation in few years would buy almost every acre of land in any agricultural state, and yet we are only beginning to open that vast area of mineral.s Therefore l say that the internal wealth of the territory in this line alone assures progressiveness| and prosperity for any state govern ment.
 Then as to the grazing industry The receipts are nearly two million year in Salt River Valley. The progress already made in agricultural industry guarantees the success of state gov ernment. The aggregate acreage now in cultivation in the territory is nearly 1,OO0,O00 acres, and the amount of ag- ricultural land in the territory which may be put in cultivation is nearly 10000, 900 acres, equal to the agricultu- ral domain of the state of Town. The average profit of agriculture in Salt River Valley amounts to from S36 to $40 per acre, which is more than any eastern state can show. The alfalfa crop pays nearly $36 an acre, and there is one almond orchard near Mesa City which pays the owner over SlOO an acre every year.
 Then take the cantaloupe crop. That is marvellous, paying an average of about $100 an acre when properly cared for. There isn't a thing grown that does not pay ten times more than any product grown in the eastern country; and it's chief products do not come in competition with those of the east, be- cause they are products which the people of the east do not raise at all. Wei are growing everything from tropical fruits to Indian corn, but Indian corn is not grown with us as a chief product, because it does not pay.
 Now, so far as the business status is concerned and our ability to take care of ourselves, I say that we have the population and the internal wealth. We have almost twice the population than most of the territories had when admitted.
 The state of Vermont had only a population of S5, 900 at the date of its admission; Kentucky had 72,000; Ten nesee 32,4O0; sOhio 45,000; Louisiana, 42,O00; Indiana 25,000; Mississippi, 24,OOO; Illinois, 54,0O0; Alabama, S5,- 900: Mi souri, 56,000: Arkansas, 77,O00; Michigan, 2l2,000: Florida, 30,000; Texas, l50,0O0; Iowa 79,000; California, 3,O0O; Nevada 39, 500;Colorado, 10000; Idaho, S3,000; Wyoming, 60,000; Ore gon, 5000; Kansas, 107,000 and Ne braska, l23,000.
 There was hardly any of these terri | tories which had the population when admitted that Arizona has today. And, mark you, it is a part of the written history of those states that while they were in the territorial status their inn provement was slow. They moved slowly and progressed slightly; but after their admission they went on with increased energy and rapidity, and their improvement was great. There was hardly an exception, save in the case of Nevada, which had population of 39, 300 when admitted, and has only a population of 45,000 today. As to the stability of those states to take care of themselves when they were admitted, you all know that they have taken care of themselves; that they are all pres porous states.
 Iowa, when she was admitted, had only a taxable property of S24 ,O00,00 We have about S32 100000 on our tax books, with nearly $l000O0, 900 of min ing property not taxed now, but which will be taxed when we are a state and it shall become needed. Wisconsin only had SAP GOO, 900 taxable property when she was admitted. Look at her today and look at Iowa today Califor- nia had only $22, 100000 of taxable property when she was admitted, and see what state she is today. Mime sota, when she was admitted, had only taxable property of $53,000,00O; Ore gon $29, ,00O,000 and Kansas S3l, 100000. But West Virginia is one of the most notable cases of all. She was admitted during the war, being cut off from old Virginia. Her taxable property then was only $l3,000, 900. Today she has taxable property to the amount of un;