Albuquerque daily citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1895-1903, 1902-03-15
STATEHOOD BILL.
Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arizona
Link Fortunes.
NO OPPOSITION IN HOUSE.

A special dispatch to the st. Louis
Globe Democrat from Washington. un.
der date of March IL, says:
Delegates Flynn, of Oklahoma, Rodey
of New Mexico, and Smith, of Arizona,
held a conference today and agreed to
present the statehood bills for the
three territories in form of an omnibus
measure, which will be reported by the
committee on territories at a meeting
on Friday. Mr.. Flynn and Mr.. Rodey
had no special preference in the mat
ter, but Mr.. Smith strongly urged the
report of an omnibus bill. The other
members of the committee on terri
tories have left this matter entirely
with the delegates from the territories
seeking statehood, and their agree
ment will be made the report of the
full committee.
Delegate Smith contends that the
democrats in their caucus passed a
resolution pledging the minority party
to the support of all of the statehood
bills. This he CONSTITUTES to mean that
the party desires the bills to be acted
upon together, in an omnibus meas
ure. While the wording of the resolu-
ton referred to does not bear out the
contention of Mr.. Smith, Delegates
Rodey and Flynn are perfectly willing
that the three measures shall stand or
fall together. Mr.. Smith frankly ad-
mits that he is afraid that the bill for
the admission of Arizona would suffer
from a political standpoint If the bills
were considered separately.
1t seems to be generally conceded
now that the statehood bills will pass
the house without any serious opposi-
ton. All of the democratic members
are pledged to the support of the meas
ures, and no republican has expressed
any intention of making a fight against
any of the bills. Chairman Knox, of
the committee on territories, and mem
of Maine, and Cushman, of Washing.
ton. on the republican side. have taken
a deep interest in the statehood meas
ures and will strongly advocate their
adoption by the house. When the ON
nibus statehood measure has been re-
ported il Will become privileged and
can be readily brought up for consid-
Grafton.
1t is not certain now hat advocates
of statehood will press consideration
of the bill in the senate at the present
session. The work for the bill has
been confined almost entirely to the
house. and there is some disposition
among the friends of the measure to
allow it to remain in the senate as un-
finished business until the adjourned
session of congress, which will con
vene in December. There are several
reasons in support of this plan OF &C.
ton. ard not the least of these is the
political reason. Much of the senate
opposition, so far as 1t has been ex-
pressed, has been based upon the fear
that the three territories, If admitted.
might supply six democratic senators
for the next congress. Delegate Rodey.
of New Mexico, and Delegate Flynn,
of Oklahoma, both insist that thetr ter
ritories are safely republican II
promise to remain SO. Some OF the re-
publican senator are inclined to con-
slider the admission of the territories
from a political standpoint, and are
disposed to defer action until after the
congressional elections this fall. IL the
territories return republican delegates
it will be considered that the political
menace of a reduced republican ma
jority in the senate has been removed.
Advocates of statehood have also
discovered what they believe to be an
other reason for senate opposition to
statehood legislation. They claim
that the senators object to having six
members of that body added who
would all be in favor of national irri-
CATION legislation. This may seem In
consistent in view of the fact that the
senate passed the irrigation bill with
out opposition. Statehood workers
claim that the senate is counting upon
the house to kill the irrigation bill. II
this is not accomplished another objec-
ton to statehood legislation would be
removed. So thoroughly are the state
hood advocates convinced that the fate
of their bill is linked with the action
of congress on irrigation that they are
disposed to wait until that measure
has been disposed of by the house be-
fore taking any action in the senate
on the statehood measure. ,