The copper era., 1906-10-18
For ArizOnans to Consider.


statehood.
Practically all of the public debt
in this territory-the debts of terri
tory, counties and towns-has been
taken up by the issue of territorial
bonds. This debt, in round figures,
stands at So, 100000.
The bonded debt of the territory
of New Mexico, and the bonded
debt of her counties-the debts of
cities and towns and the repudiated
debts of counties not being included
stands in round figures at SO, 800, 600
according to the travelling auditor
of that territory.
AS certainly as &C is more than A,
this undisputed indebtedness of New
Mexico, would be assumed by the
new state. Why not? 1t would be
insisted by the people of New Mex
leo that, if they must help pay the
county debts over here, we must help
pay the county debt over there.
And the taxable wealth of Arizona,
according to the assessment rolls,
exceeds that of New Mexico by 30
per cent. There is where the shoe
pinches.
Our taxes would be increased
enormously for the purpose of paying
New Mexico debts.
And that is not all. Nobody knows
how much greater the burden would
be made by piling upon Arizona's
back the city and town indie btedness
of New Mexico. More important
still, nobody knows how much greater
still the burden would be made by
the addition of the repudiated in
debtedness of New Mexico's counties.
This repudiated Indebtedness runs
into the hundreds of thousands.
Some of it was issued many years
ago, IN the form of county warrants
to pay local companies of militia for
alleged operations against hostile
Indians. For years strong Hobbies
have been pressing the New Mexico
Legislature to recognize and validate
these outstanding militia warrants.
The owners of the warrants have
DNSA blelOAC 81 1e1A " o(OulO Il ma
jority in each branch of the legisla-
ture, but who doubts they would find
the Legislature entirely obliging if it
was known that Arizona would ''pay
the freight?"
Nobody seems to know the total
amount OF the warrants except that
they total many hundreds OF thous-
5tuds of dollars. 1t is conceivable
that the people of Arizona would
have to pay more than million dol
lars of this wildcat debt, for interest
would be included.
That there would be an effort-and
successful effort to saddle this debt,
along with the other debts of New
Mexico, upon the taxpayers of this
territory, cannot be open to question.
The very fact that there exists a
stupendous sum of unpaid claims ac-
counts for the activity of the advo-
Gates of joint statehood. The other
day, in a territorial convention in
New Mexico, one of the most
rampant advocates of joint state
HOO0 WdS d UlOhSl-d OOdlCl III
county bonds any county warrants
whose firm owns bales of these
militia warrants. These warrants
have passed into the hands of such
spectators as this broker for d
triHing considera ton.
Is It not evident that he, and men
like him, would look kindly on the
suggestion that it would pay them to
contribute literally to the joint
statehood campaign in Arizona?
But two facts stand out clearly in
relation to this question of the in
debtedness of the two territories.
The first fact is that every taxpayer
in Arizona would find his taxes in
creased hugely by joint statehood,
through the assumption of New
Mexico's unquestionable debt. The
second fact is that the burden would
as certainly be increased enormously
by the addition of the militia war
rants.
And a third fact should not be
overlooked-the opportunities for
graft are so great that the said OPP
portunities doubtless account for the
activity of some of Arizona's advo-
Gates of joint statehood Republican.