The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1906-08-31

zens Of the two territories are taking
SHES at the joint statehood PROPOSE
ton. And about every editor between
Texas III California has taken 'twri-
ters' cramp" dealing with the sub
ject. This being the case. the follow
ing is offered without apology.
A good rule to follow when making
any change is; study well the de
fects in what you nave and think
deeply over the nature of the change
desired and the probable results.
Many chess games have been lost by
not fully studying the results of an
apparently advantageous move In
the first place congress passed the
jointure enabling act to get rid of
a couple of importunate and dissatis-
fed supplicants. The fuss and foam
about our inherent right to statehood
is disgusting. Right to Statehood
partnership in the federa1 compact
we have not. The only excuse we a
offer for asking it is that other com
monwealths less worthy have been
admitted. Coming down to cold facts.
the citizenship of neither Arizona or
New Mexico is much better than
that of Massachusetts or New Jersey,
this estimate is based On the class
Of Representatives e?) each of these
jurisdictions send to their legisla-
lures. There are already a-plenty and
to spare, of bad eggs in Uncle Sans
basket, and the sooner We realize that
our admission is by the grace of Con-
gress, and not on account of our in
nerent rights or deserts, the sooner
we will come to a due appreciation
of our true condition.
No one questions the fac that both
Arizona and New Mexico are carry
ing burdens that they would be glad
to be rid of, and instead of getting
lighter they seem to be on the in
crease. The federal government can't
be ven suspicioned of trying to al
leviate these burdens, judging by the
class of officials that have been dump
ed on us for the past fifty years. Nor
has the activity of grand juries and
sheriffs black in the states" been a
healthy factor in lettering Il on
ditions. On this score, neither of
these heavenly twins" has any room
to sheer at her sister. New Mexico
has a somewhat larger population
than Arizona, and we believe a great
er percentage of her people live here
from choice. Sizing the situation up
in all it's bearings, neither end of the
proposed state of Arizona has any
advantage over the other, and taken
altogether the citizenship will com
pare very favorably with that of the
rest of the United States.
We, that is h people of both Ter
ritories have been clamoring for adj
mission for more than a generation.
We have lied about our and
sedulously concealed a whole lot CT
facts that would not be good read
ing" in a report from h Committee
on Territories" We have proclaimed
from the mountain tops, sung on our
mesas, walled in our valleys, herald
ed through our press and whispered
in the ear of Congress: Statehood,
only statehood. If this boon were
granted us all things else would fol-
low. Capital, that great leaven in the
would fall over itself in getting in
on the ground floor Finally Congress
has called our bluff, and thrown in
the greatest COB of graft ever given
any proposed state, and now we are
cutting up because it all doesn't come
on one side of the continental divide.
Deep down in III consciences We
know that Congress has given rs
more than we deserve, and the writer
believes that if left alone a MAORI
ty of the people in every voting pre-
cinct in the two territories would ia
cept joint statehood, to say nothing
of the graft we get with it. The vot-
ers are not going to be let alone, how
ever. The capital that is or was to
come in the wake of statehood seems
to b. distasteful to the capital that
estS are the most strenuous OppO-
nents of statehood. The statesmen
who would naturally come to the
new state to help mold her policies
and shape her laws seem to be dread
ed by the statesmen we have already,
and by the way, it would take only
one set of state officers to look after
Arizona-New Mexico, and only one
pair of United States Senators to Sc
cure (?) seats from the legislature.
Separate statehood would require
two sets of state officials and two