The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-12-16
WANTS ID ADMIT
 TIE TERRITORIES
Senator Bates Presents Minor
 fly Report to Senate
RATHER STRONG ARGUMENT
lie Said lt Was Never Intended That Congress Should Bar By Party ob- lection Admission When Popu-
 lation Shows Up FavorabIy.

Washington. December 15-Senator Bate today presented in the senate the mi nority report of the committee on terri tories fayoring the immediate passage of the house omnibus statehood bill without amendment. The report opposed the unit ing of okIahoma and the Indian territory | into one state. It shows minutely the condition of each of the three territories as to population. wealth and general feat 1 these are such as to call for immediate statehood
 It shows that both the republican and demoeratic parties in their last national convention adopted with perfect unanim-. ity platform blanks recommending each of the three territories by name for state hood. Such expression, the report con- tinues. should be respected by both par i ties.
 The report says, among other things;
 Ut never was intended that congress should bar by party objection admission when population, wealth and institutions were the same as in the case of other states"
 With reference to the qualifications of the population of the territories, the re- port contends that '1t ought to suffice that 95 per cent of the population are white in Oklahoma, and the 5000 white | population in Arizona and the 122OOO white population in New Mexico are quite sufficient to leaven all the foreign born in each of those territories" 
 Soon Amerlcanized.
 Then follows the remark:
 Whether some of the northwestern states now booming with foreign popula- ton had as large a leaven of American born people when admitted need now not be discussed, as their successful example of statehood shows how soon the whole mass becomes Americanized." Referring to the proposition to unite Oklahoma and the Indian Territory as one state, the report says:
 'All legislation for the admission of new states has been preceded by ex- precision of desire on the part of the peo- pie for admission to the union. But the amendment substituted by the senate committee on territories incorporates the Indian Territory with the state of Okla homa. So far as your committee has in- formation, this alliance may be the union of an unwilling people and an undesira- ble connection. In no case in the past have the people of any territory been compelled by the enabling act to form constitution against their expressed willingness. However much the people of Oklahoma desires statehood, the In- dians have made no expression of any such desire.'
 Summing up, the minority says:
 Each Has Complied.
 Each of these territories has compiled with every requirement. heretofore made by congress for admission Into the unon Each has a population enough for repre- sentation in congress. Each has wealth enough to support all the expenses of statehood. He has institutions in har- mony with republican government as un- derstood in the nation"
 Liberal quotation is made from the re- port of the majority on the statehood bill. One of the portions quoted is that refer ing to statement made by a witness that some of the white people in the ter> ritories are like the riff-raff, who follow the construction of railroads"
 Commenting on this statement the mi- nority says:
 ''The riff-raff who follow the railroads have been the sturdy Irishmen whose pick and shovel, and spade and labor have built the 100000 miles of American railroads. Why that riff-raff' should not be good citizens in New Mexico, as they are in every other state and territory, the report does not advise the senate. Protesting that the witness upon whose l testimony this slur as to riff-raff has been made, was greatly misinformed, we are | forced to conclude that there has been a mistake made somewhere between the 1 witness and the committee, since the tes- timony has all the car-marks of pur- pose to convict of linpreparedness on the part of Arizona and New Mexico rather than to enlighten the senate as to their republican form of government" The report is signed by Senators Bate, Heitfelt, Bailey and Patterson, constitut- ing the democratic membership of the committee on territories