Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1902-12-22
SENATE
CRITICISMS
Faults Which the Committee
Found During Investiga-
tion of the Territories.
THE MAJORITY REPORT
The Use of Spanish and Of Inter-
prefers Seems to be the
Chief Stumbling
Block.
THE MAJORITY REPORT

| Complete copies Of the report of the
majority of the committee on statehood
as presented by Senator Beveridge,
! against the omnibus BILL have been re-
| ceived here. The report says the inter-
ests of the people of proposed new
state and the interests of the remain
der of the republic must be considered.
| The qualifications of a people asking
for statehood involve the number of
people asking for admission; the condi-
tion of those people as to educational,
moral and other elements of citizen
ship the extent of territory occupic d
by them; the extent to which they have
developed the resources of that terri
tory; and the extent and character of
all natural resources, both developed
and undeveloped. The precedents of
congress are to require large popu1a-
tion and in 1887 it was required that the
new states from the northwest territory
should contain at least 10000 people
each compared to the population then
/, 1853, 900 in state seeking admission at
the present day. Arizona and New
Mexico fall far short of the precedent
and Oklahoma and Indian Territory
combined make but 79O,391 under the
census of 190O but there is no doubt
thousands have since that date settled
there The committee believes state
seeking admission should have popu-
lation at least equal to the average
population of the remainder of the
states. This would now require 1850, 900
while the population of New Mexico is
,310 and of Arizona 122,931.
Taking up the other qualifications as
applied to New Mexico the committee
believes the census of 1900 is substan-
TALLY correct and in view of the at
tempt by those favoring statehood to
impeach the census, particular atten-
ton was given to this subject. few
thousand people may have entered the
territory since the census was taken,
but not enough to appreciably affect
the total given. The great majority are
native New Mexicans of Spanish and
mixed Spanish and Indian descent, and
of these practically all speak Spanish
in the affairs Of daily life, and the ma
jority speak nothing but Spanish.
Courts are conducted through interpre-
ters and it is impossible to conduct the
machinery Of justice without such an
official. The interpreter interprets the
testimony of the witnesses to the jury,
the argument of counsel to the jury,
and the charge of the court to the jury.
Occasionally the interpreter must be
sent to the jury room to enable Jury
to reach verdict since it sometimes
happens that no member Of the jury
can speak both English and Spanish.
Practically all justices of the peace
speak Spanish, conduct their courts in
Spanish, keep the dockets of their
courts in Spanish and issue their SUBJ
poenas, summonses and other processes
in Spanish. The statutes Of the terri
tory kept in the justices offices are
printed in Spanish. Interpreters are
used in political meetings ana in all
political conventions, even in the one
which renominated the present delegate
to congress. Interpreters are used in
the legislature.
Until recently, historically speaking,
no English was taught in the common
schools. At present both English and
Spanish are taught in most of the
schools. Spanish is taught through the
second reader, and no further, because
a person who has learned 1t sufficiently
to go through the second Spanish read
er can speak and write the language
fiuently, and no further instruction for
practical purposes is necessary. In
some schools, as those at Santa Fe, no
Spanish is taught. In some schools
Spanish is taught exclusively and his
tory, arithmetic and geography are
translated from American text into
Spanish text. In some high schools, as
in East Las Vegas, Spanish is taught in
the last two years because the grad
yates must understand the language
for the active affairs of daily life. OF
all schools except the high schools at
Albuquerque and East Las Vegas and
at Carlsbad, Roswell and Rowan, the
children at play during recess and go
ing home speak Spanish instead of En-
glish. The tendency of the children
when they leave school for good is to
relapse into Spanish. Election ballots
are printed in Spanish as welI as in En-
glish. Signs Of business houses in
many towns are exclusively in Span
ish. In small towns these conditions
are intensified. A portion of the popu-
lation, including some of the justices Of
the peace, have little understanding of
American institutions.
OF the entire population of New Mex
leo, 1872 are illiterates and can neither
read nor write English or Spanish. If
the test were confined to English alone,
the committee is Of the opinion the per-
centage of illiterates would be more
than double. Members Of grand and
petit juries sign by their mark and in
one instance 10 out Of "a jurymen signed
by their mark and in another 21 out of
"a did so. The committee believes New
Mexico is getting fair start education
ally and no more. High praise Is given