Los Angeles herald., 1905-02-19

The great struggle over the admis-
sion of Oklahoma, Indian Territory
New Mexico and Arizona is leading
many people to reflection on the
marked capriciousness of the distrlbu-
tion Of population and territorial area
in that most unique body the senate
of the United States.
The admission of new states has al
ways been a matter of great interest
since 1920, when the admission of Mis-
souri, enabled potent Mr.. Smith, at
the instance of his political god, Hen
ry Clay, to make Jonn Quincy Adams
president of the United States. Now,
as then, the admission of states was
governed purely by political considera-
tions, although such an assumption
would be severely rebuked by the po-
litical hypocrite.
The creation of the states of West
Virginia and Nevada were necessities
of the Republican party. That saga
cous organization, in addition to its
other and multifarous attributes, is a
good deal of a political Tartuffe, and
never could be induced to confess any
but the most ideal motives for its
state of Nevada-"the BATTLEFRONT
state"-the leaders of that party will
solemnly assure us was due to the
most subimated patriotism, and by no
means to any party exigency, arising
from the return of the Democratic
southern states to their old relations
to the Union. Nevada even now has
population which is not as large as
that contained within a few square
yards around the Tombs prison in the
comparison, to that of three of the
nine wards Of the city of Los Angeles
city of, one might say, day before
yesterday. But, of course. the grand
old party, which really ought to be
called the resourceful young party,
never thought of party advantage in
creating this extraordinary common
wealth.
The Democratic party, on the other
hand used it's celebrated Tidal Wave
Congress" of 1874, which contained an
overwhelming Democratic majority, to
create the state of Colorado--the Cen
tennial state'-the admission of which
enabled the declaration of the election
of Rutherford B. Hayes to the presi-
dency of the United States If the
Democrats had not admitted Colorado,
which showed it's gratitude by voting
against them, the Republicans, in ad-
dition to stealing the electoral votes
South Carolina, Florida and Louisiana
-twenty-thre votes which gave them
scant majority of one-would have
been obliged to appropriate those of
some other state, such as Mississippi,
for instance, in 1876.
But waiving ali questions of politi-
cal morality, it must be confessed that
there was much to palliate the admis-
sion of Nevada as a sovereign state.
In the first place, within a length not
larger than that covered between the
Sisters hospital and Hollywood, by a
couple of miles wide, quite six hum
dred and twenty-five million dollars
worth of minted gold and silver has
been contributed to the metallic money
of the United States to say nothing
of the yield of other camps, by the
Comstock lode of Nevada. 1t looks
now very much as if Tonopah, Gold
field and other mining regions are
about to renew the glories of the Sage
Brush state. The intelligent exploita-
tion of our arid lands will also do
much for that state.
There is one creditable thing about
the history of Nevada as a state of
the Union, Notwithstanding that the
census of 1900 gave her pop
ulation of slightly less than fifty
thousand souls, and that is that
she has nearly always sent men to
the senate of the United States who
obtained for her an influence in the
councils of the Nation of astonishing
force-in fact, Nevada has often had
more weight in determining the trend
of affairs than states of fifty or a
hundred times her population, and this
has been owing to the remarkable
ability of her United States senators.
A short time ago Senator John p.
Jones, having made up his mind to
retire from public life on account of
his extreme age, was replaced by
Francis G.. Newlands. This. gentleman
will continue the remarkable tradi-
tions of the Nevada senator's. AS the
author of the Arid Land Irrigation act
he has already proved himself states
man of the first eminence. The other
day Nevada elected a clerk of the
Southern Pacific railway to succeed
Senator VIM. M. Stewart. What la
tent qualifications this gentleman may
have remains to be seen He enters
under great disadvantages. Jones and
Stewart are hard men to replace. New
lands, Notwithstanding his disadvan-
tage in the senate Of being a Demo-