Bisbee daily review., 1902-12-02
THE STATEHOOD BILL


 Tomorrow the senate committee oI territories will make its report to .he senate, based upon the recommends tions of the subcommittee who has just returned to Washington from their tour of investigation. Reports have leaked out from Washington that the senate committee will report in favor of the admission of Oklahoma and reject the claims of New Mexico and Arizona. If this is to be the re port of the committee, it is reason. able to suppose that President Roose. velt's message will contain no men. tion of the statehood question. The San Francisco Call raises its voice in behalf of Arizona and New Mexico in the following:
 Recent reports from Washington to the effect that the senate commit tee having charge of the omnibus bill conferring statehood in Arizona, New Mexico and Oklahoma will report fav. orably as to the last named territory but adversely to the other two are by nc means agreeable to the west, but should not be looked upon as at all alarming In fact, the committee has always been deemed adverse to the bill. It was charged with delaying the bill during the last session and with trying to stifle it in the commit tee room. The advocates of the meas ure were so convinced of the hostil- ity of tine committee that they regard ed it as a victory when they obtained an agreement that the bill should be reported either favorably or adversely on or before December 10.
 Such being the situation, the re- port that the committee is now likely to favor the admission of Oklahoma only is not in the least discouraging. It merely shows that the opposition to the bin has not materially weakened, and does not in any way imply that the fight for statehood is going to be any harder than 1t was at the last session. The one suggestion of dan ger in the report is that the supporters of Oklahoma may be induced by an offer of admission by a separate bill to desert the cause of Arizona and New Mexico. but that danger is slight The three territories have thus far made common cause, and should ei- ther of them now seek advantage by betraying the other two it would run great risk of losing more than it gains.
 The Call has repeatedly pointed out that the claims of the three territor- ies for admission are thoroughly valid Each of them has at this time 3 larger wealth, population and area than sev- eral of the existing states. Moreover, each of them has resources and poten- cies of growth and development far superior to several of the states. In fact, while a good many states in the| east will from this time. on decrease in their proportionate rating for wealth and population, Arizona, New Mexico and Oklahoma will steadily increase for years to come. They are thereforel fully entitled to statehood, not only for what they are, but for what they are destined to be, and their admis sion should be granted by a unani- nous vote.
 Tt is to be noted in this connection that of late there have been a good many evidences of the existence in the east of a spirit of sectional opposi- tion to the advancement of the west The passage of the irrigation bill has been made the subject of good many charges that the east is being taxed to improve the west, and the charges are repeated again and again despite the refutation of them by the state mert that the funds for irrigation are to be obtained from the arid states and territories themselves and not from the east at all. It is to be hoped that such unfair and unworthy sec tionalism is not going to show itself in an unreasonable fight against the statehood bill. The development of the west will benefit the whole union and ought to be promoted as a meas