Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1906-02-02

How the Administration Will Unity the Vote
in Congress - The Joint Statehood Is to
Prevent the Probability Of Increase Of Dem.
ocratic Ssnators-Roosevelt Again Suggest
ed as a Possible Candidate for Reflection
The Chinese Lobby Has Arrived and Is
Feted by the Administration.
Fr0m our regular correspondent)
WAsHINGTON, ID. c., Jan. -.
The House Insurgents have gone
down to defeat in the preliminary vote
on the Statehood Bill. The vote as
recorded is 165 to 195, IA majority Of
thirty for the rule that will bring the
Statehood Bill to a final vote this
week. II is the history Of every inn
portant measure in past Congresses.
AS has been pointed out in these
letters there is no such thing as a
close vote in the House. If it is
known in advance, as it always is
known. when a measure is going to be
defeated by one or two votes, then
there is rush for the band wagon
and the measure passes by respect
able majority, no matter how many OF
the opposition have previously been
pledged to vote against it. That has
been the case with the rule on the
Statehood Bill, and there is little
prospect that the bill itself will meet
with any other fate. If it does, it will
merely prove that the insurgents we're
wiser in party maneuvers than they
have generally been given credit for
being and that they concealed their
real strength till the test came.
The motive of the movement for
the admission of Arizona and New
Mexico as one State is plain enough,
but it may be worth while to point it
out for the benefit Of those who have
had no personal interest in following
the fight. 1t is known that in a
national election both Arizona and
New Mexico probably, almost certain.
ly will 20 Democratic. If they are ad-
mitted to the Union as one State, they
will have but two Senators, thus SWELL
ing the Democratic faction for the
Senate by just that much. But if the
question OF Statehood is allowed to 60
over till there is Democratic admin
istration, then the two Territories will
undoubtedly be admitted as two
States, and there will be four Demo.
cratic Senators to deal with instead OF
two. Thus the Statehood Bill has
been made a direct party measure.
The mere fact that the people of Ari-
IONA do not want to be tied up in
Statehood with New Mexico is side
issue. The interests of the Republi-
can party demand the admission OF
the two Territories as one State and
thus it is going to be. The President
regrets keenly that he was enticed
into the matter at all. Many months
ago, he casually promised Senator
Beveridge that he would recommend
Joint Statehood in his message, and
he did. But it was with some mental
reservations, and those reservations
have grown since he saw how strongly
opposed the people of the two Terri
tories, especially Arizona, were to
being tied up together. But the deed
is done now. The admissions of the
two Territories as one State is heralded
as an administration measure and
this has secured il much Of the pres.
tige that it has not heretofore enjoyed.
As to Administration prestige and
the desire that certain things should
60 a certain way, attention may be
turned to the recent announcement OF
Mr.. Jacob Riis that the President
would stand for third term. It is
hard to conceive of statement, CON-
ing as it did from a close friend OF the
President, that could have stirred up
more speculation, bitterness and un.
certainty. Roosevelt in all probability
has personal popularity enough if he
should run third time to get elected,
and it would show that his personality
dominates the whole Republican party,
many OF whom are opposed to him.
The President has, however, laid the
third term ghost effectually by refer.
ring all questioners to the statement
that he gave out on the night Of his
election November, q year ago, to the
effect that he would not run for third
term, that he considered the spirit OF
the unwritten law as more important
than its text, and that as he had
served two terms for all practical pur.
poses. he would not run q second time
even though he had been elected only
once. The pro- Roosevelt people in
Congress have been reading this state.
ment up and down, cross ways and
backwards, to find out if there was
not loophole in it that would allow
the President to run again without
offending the spirit if not the letter of
his pledge. But the President has,
unfortunately for them perhaps,
habit Of writing very clear English
about whose purport there can be small
question. So his late pledge is likely
to stand. At any rate all questioners
At the White House are referred to
that pledge when they spring the third
term proposition on the President or
on anyone in authority.
The arrival Of the Imperial Chinese
Commission in Washington this week
was an event of more than ordinary
Importance. 1t indicates that China
is working up to the desirability of
adopting some OF the phases of vest
ern civilization. The Commissioners
are two of the most prominent men in
Chinese national affairs and they have
been shown everything OF interest and
Importance in the way of material pro.
gress from San Francisco to New York.
They have been received by the Presi-
dent aud shown all there was to see in
the Government offices, not even ex.
GLIDING the Navy Yard. Both of the
Commissioners have expressed them
selves highly gratified, as we'll they
might be, at the consideration that
has been shown them, and they say
that they will take back An infinity
of information that will be useful to
China. The chances are that they
will. But If China with 400 million of
population really wakes up, it will
mean that there are strenuous times
ahead for the rest of the world,