The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-01-31
APAnTrsAx CRIME.

quotes the hrutaliy frank admission of
 Representative Payne, Republican lead.
 CT, on the ArlEona-New Mexico prope-
 sision as follows;
 If those two territories are admitted
 separately there will be four Demo-
 cratic Senators representing not as many people as there arc in a single city In my State If. In the Providence ever again bo inflicted upon the eoun- try. do not want those four Demo- | cratic Senators"
 On that admission of partisan poli- | itics The Record thus comments: The party which divided Virginia in | order to get two Senators. which ad- | mitted Nevada to get two Senators
 which never yer had as much populatioi, as third-class city), which divided Dakota in order to get four Senators
 instead of two, Is now determined to
 unite two territories into ono State in order to allow but two Democratic Sem ators instead of four.
 The population of the two territories
 Is not large. There would be no great
 injustice in leaving them outside the
 Union till they get more people. But
 the Republicans are determined to
 merge them now lest they should come tn later Wltn TOUT DemOcALlc senators.
 It doesn't require much population for the admission of a Republican Ter ritory, New Mexico had in 1900 more population than North Dakota was ad- rado had four years after admission. It lad good deal more than double the population Idaho had when admit ted It had 50 per cent. more than times the population Wyoming came in with. Arizona had in 1900 45 per cent more inhabitants than Idaho had on it's admission. and more than double the population of Wyoming. The pop ulatfon argument is only good with Re- publicaus when a Democratic Territory is to be kept out: it cuts no figure when a Republican Territory is to be ad- mitted.
 There seems not 8 shadow of doubt that the real reason for forcing these two territories into the Union as a sim gle State is a political one. It seems to be pretty generally understood that if Indian Territory and Oklahoma come in together the new State will elect two Democratic Senators; consequently, Roosevelt and his packers wish to off, set that Democratic gain by admitting another State which will be sure to
 
 as The New York Times expresses it, "has gone to the very verge of execu- tive indiscretion in marshalling Re- publican support for the measure" He has made use of both personal and off, cial influence to whip his party into line on this measure, He has used both persuasion and threats on Repub- iicans and the result in the House showed the power of patronage on the members.
 In the debate in the House on this measure Mir Babcock, a wisconsin Re- publican, denounced the measure as "a crime" and he was right. To quote The Times again 'it is a crime against the people of the two territories, whose wishes are ruthIessly overruled by the administration and the Republican ma jority; it Is q crime against the Union, since theA State thus created will be hnlike@any other State in that its peo- pie will be inspired not by sentiments of loyalty and patriotism and common interest, but by mutual dislike and dis trust"
 Even the loyal Kansas City Journal cannot refrain from speaking out in condemnation of the Executive usurpa- tion of power by Roosevelt. and de- clares that the theory advanced-"that 1 the Statehood bill is aH administration 1 measure and therefoHe1ft is high trea- son for a Republican Congressman to nnv.oua ft-{a rasautad hy tho tnsurOaptS | as a dangerous and unprecedented step | toward centralization of power in the | executive. If such q theory were to | be accepted as binding Congress would | be a mere tool of the President instead | of a coordinate department of the | Government. The President is the ex- ecutive; Congress is the legislative au- thority. The Presidents privilege is to recommend such legislation as he | deems proper, and it is the duty of | Congress to consider such recommen- dations in the light of reason and pol icy, but there is no obligation to ac- eept them as binding. On the con trary, Congress can not escape the re- sponsibllity for it's acts and it is ab- solutely necessary to its freedom of action--if not to the perpetuation of Republican form of government-that it should jealously guard it's independ- ence"
 From the best information that can be obtained this outrageous measure would not have gotten through the House If the Republican members had 1 possessed courage enough to vote as they felt. Presidential pressure, the party lash and Speaker Cannon's gag to vote for a measure which they knew was wrong and which they really con demned. They were simply afraid to act like freemen. The matter Is now before the Senate and may be defeated | there. though this is not certain Gag | law is not allowed there as 1t is in the House. and legislation cannot be rush. ed through in the way that is often done in the other branch of Congress. It is a fact, also, that the Senate is sore and resentful over the Presidents attempts to dominate that body. and 1t may be that he cannot whip Senators into line to carry out his pet policies as he did the Represent ltives It is to be hoped that the up- per House will either defeat the meas other session. The President both reeds and deserves an occasional set pack.