Arizona republican., 1905-12-03
"Justice for Arizona"

The Los Angeles Times has not al- ways been regarded as the friend of Arizona. Its bitter opposition to the omnibus statehood bill was deeply re- scented by citizens of this territory as was the action of Senator Bard whom the Times supported in his antagonism to that bill.
 But whatever grievance Arizonians may have had against the Times, that journal has now made bid for their gratitude in the following editorial un- der the head of Justice for Arizona:"
 For years the territory of Arizona has been knocking at the doors at the union for statehood. This appeal cannot forever go disregarded. It must be granted sooner or later.
 This is the position that the Times has taken from the beginning. It has held. as it holds today, that Arizona should be admitted to the sisterhood of states as soon as she is qualified for statehood If that time has now arrived, there should be no further delay, and Arizona should freely be granted the boon for which her people have so long and so earnestly striven. This should not be a political ques- ton. The sole issue should be whether Arizona can meet the necessary re- quirements. All other considerations are beside the question.
 AS for the proposition to join Ari- zona to New Mexico, and to admit these two vast territories thus yoked together as one state, it is strenuously objected to in Arizona. For many reasons, each of which is sound and convincing, this scheme has never met with encouragement to any extent in Arizona. The people of that territory have said that they prefer to have Arizona remain indefinitely as a ter ritory rather than to have it bound to New Mexico in the snackies of joint statehood. Such tie would be distasteful in the last degree to the people of Arizona, and nothing in the world is clearer than that their wrshes ought to be respected.
 In this connection, the San Francisco Chronicle, in a recent article, per tinently asked why an enterprising and enlightened people, who have been for a long term of years strug gling to build themselves up to a fit condition for assuming the self-gov erning responsibilities of statehood. should "be compelled, when they have reached that stage of development, to lose their political identity by being merged, against their desires, into an- other organism with which they have people are not in common with their own?" Why indeed to be sure? "Such an act,' adds the Chronicle would be an outrage which the preservation of the senatorial equilibrium, the ex- cuse advanced for proposing to carry 1t out, can not justify"
 Under the circumstances, the ac- tion of Senator Beveridge, chairman of the senate committee on territories, in seeking to revive the project of joint statehood, is unaccountable on any rational or just ground. The joint statehood measure is, and has been since its first introduction into congress, obnoxious to a great major ity of the citizens of Arizona. To car ry out the scheme would be a polit- ical blunder and an unpardonable mesalliance.
 It hardly seems credible that con- gress can be guilty of this ill-advised jointure, when Arizona sentiment is so radically against it. It is clear that if those two territories should be joined by force, as is proposed, they would not long remain so joined. The union would surely be an unhappy one. Arizona would soon be applying for a divorce, and the chances are that she would get it in due course of time, for it would be justly her due.