The National tribune., 1909-08-19

denying that waterpower dummies have
/ been busy in behalf of waterpower
trust, or that they have gobbled up any
of the ptfblic lands which have been
restored by him to entry. Mr.. Pinchot
is skeptcal about those statements. JUST
what the Outcome of such unpleasant
i differences viii he cannot yet be fore
Icasted. There Seems to be little DOUBT
that the President will stand by Secre-
tary Ballfnger for the President be-
lieves in Government of law. PER
haps with the thoro discussion these
| questions are having at the conserva-
ton congresses in the West and at
'meetings which the Senate irrigation
Committee is Holding as it journeys to
and fro, Investigating irrigation prof.
ects, the popular sentiment which now
seems to be rampant Will ease down.
And yet the prospects are for this
Western question of the new Admins
tration to bob up next Winter to bother
President Taft, Secretary Ballinger and
congress. The friends of the Forest
Service are likely to press for legisla-
! ton that will allow the Forest Service
to obtain possession Of public lands
which it wants for the protection of
water powers. The more enthusiastic
| friends of the irrigation of arid lands
will want Congress to legitimatiZe the
conduct of cooperative work" by
which settlers upon land close to irri-
CATION enterprises can dig their own
bitches and put water upon the land
from the Government canals. There
are half dozen complicated questions
growing out of these divergent views.
| Director Newell and Chief Pinchot,
who are the idols of the Westerners,
syrnpathize with the more radical
group. They are very efficient men. and
may be able to adjust their administra-
| tive work to the new requirements.
That, of course, is necessary if they are
to retain Office But a deal of friction
seems assured over this Western ques-
ton. which, while of small fnteresE to
| the East, Is really of great magnit lde
and vital Importance in many Western
States.
| For a 48-Star Flag.
| Not the least noteworthy develop
ment in National affairs of recent days
has been the Presidents declaration for
a Flag of As stars and compact main
land of States over all Federal terri
tory this side of Alaska. He bases this
declaration of definite Statehood pro-
gram for his Administration upon the
fact that "the platform promised it."
/ OF course, Statehood fights in behalf
Eof Arizona and New Mexico are nothing
particularly new in Congress. Every
year or two since Roosevelt entered the
! White House. Arizona and New Mexico
have clamored for admission into the
| Union. Bills have passed the House
tr''o or three times in that period, but
the barrier has been in the Senate. A
law authorizing joint Statehood was
| enacted some three or four years ago,
conditioned upon its acceptance at a
plebiscite. Arizona rejected the propo-
sition by big vote. and since then lit
tie has been heard of joint Statehood.
! mi NO hos
| nounced his position the lines will form
| for another Statehood fight in the Sen
ate next Winter. The bill will probably
pass the House without much delay.
| There Is no particular objection there
to Statehood. 1t would mean an addi-
tional member from Arizona and an
additional member from New Mexico.
In the Senate. Gon the other hand the
obstacles are more formidable, and it
| is serious question whether a State
hood bill can pass there till after long
and hard fight In all probability some
of the Republicans will become insur-
gents on the question ana seek to form
a Goa ition with the Democrats against
the regular Republicans who will op-
pose Statehood!
The West. is sparsely settled, and in
proportion tc it's population has very
| large representation in the Senate. OF
course, itswas intended by the trainers
of the Constitution that the small
States should have the same vote in the
| Senate as; the large States; but New
j York, fortinstance, cannot overlook the
| fact that her several millions of people
nave only two votes in the Senate. That
| population is more than the population
of all the mainland west of the Mis-
| souri, River. but that same section OF
| the country has about 20 votes in the
SENATE. Arizona and New Mexico as
States will augment this preponderance
of Western influence in the upper Iegis-
| latiye branch. Arizona probably would
| send two Democratic Senators and New
Mexico two Republican Senators, altho
! the possibility of four Democratic Sem
ators is recognized That makes an OBJ
lection from the Republican standpoint.
| Sectional Feeling.
Then, the larger the Senate becomes
| the more difficult it is to control and
the more insecure the position of the
| leaders, who are all Eastern men, be-
comes. The Western Senators are as
sectional in their views as the Eastern
| Senators or the Southern Senators. Just
| now the Westerners are fond of fierce
warfare upon the Eastern Senator'S
who, they claim, have been unduIy fav-
ored in legislation. The advent of four
Senators from the Southwest, whether
they should be Democrats or Republi-
cans or evenly divided, bodies i'll for the
balance of power as now welded in the
Senate
The Committee on Territories, of
which Senator Beveridge, of Indiana, is
Chairman, is hostile to Statehood. Its
members are moved by the reasons Civ
en- and also by other reasons. There
lare peculiar corporation conditions that
enter into the situation A new argu-
ment against Statehood, from the view
point of the East, is the proposed in
come-tax amendment to the Constitu-
ton. That has now been lanched by
the required votes of both branches OF
Congress, and it remains for three
fourths Of the Legislatures of the States
to say whether the amendment shall be
incorporated into the Constitution
The Income Tax.
i When Congress enacted an Inherit
ance tax for the Spanish War period
labout nine-tenths of the tax was col
lected in New England, New York,
Pennsylvania and New Jersey, strange
as that statement may seem. If an in
come tax is authorized it is quite prob
able that the burden in large part will
fall upon the same States. and ac.
cordingly the opposition to the income
tax will be chiefly in those States. As
the roster of States stands now. 81
Legislatures must ratify the amend
ment. The opposing votes of 12 Leg
islatures would defeat Il. But if Ari-
zona and New Mexico are admitted to
Statehood there would be As States
Z nr 10 lnf,