Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930, 1910-08-03
PHOENIX. ARIZONA, AUG. 8, 1910
Still Cbjecting to Statehood.

The Worlds Work is one of the
many eastern publications which can
not reconcile themselves to the ad-
mission of Arizona and New Mexico
as to the character of New Mexico's
population, and as to Arizona the
chief complaint is of our sparse popu-
lation- 1t comedies that the Salt Riv-
er valley is a fine section, and that
Prescott, Tucson and Bisbee, although
mining towns" are permanent, well
ordered cities; and il quotes an east
srn gentleman of prominence as say
ing that he WOULD rather send his
children to the schools of Prescott
than to the schools of New York. But
10 give Arizona an equal footing with
United States is, thinks the Worlds
Work, most unjust to the populous
states. This magazine betrays an in
excusable ignorance concerning the
principles upon which the government
was founded when it says:
Senators and members of the house
represent people, not square miles of
territory; and to give two senators
and one representative to the $4,000
or 10000 voters of Arizona is an in
justice to practically all the rest of
the population, and a special privi-
lege to those particular people"
The writer of this article evidently
never read Madison's journal of the
debates in the federal constitutional
convention. In devising the system
of checks and balances designed to
create a strong central government
and at the same time preserve the
autonomy of the states, it was de-
cided to base representation in the
house of representatives on popula-
ton, and representation in the senate
on states as units. There was much
objection to giving the smaller states
of that time the same lower in the
senate that was given to the big
states, and this objection was an
swered by pointing out the populous
states would make their power felt
through their large representation in
the house. and each state would be
protected equally by giving it the
same representation in the senate.
Senators, therefore, do not represent
either people" or square miles" but
they represent states as such, and it
does not matter, and was not in
tended to matter, whether the states
be big or little in size or population.
This provision for an equal allotment
of senator's was one of the wisest
provisions in the federal constitution,
and has been one of the greatest fac
tors of all in preserving the union of
states as New York, Massachusetts,
and Pennsylvania to control the gov
eminent through a disproportionate
representation in the senate based on
their population, the people of the
smaller states would have become so
disconnected with the arbitrary power
of the controlling states that there
would have been an overwhelming
sentiment in favor of disunion, long
ago.
Now. that the long battle for the
admission of Arizona and New Mexico
has been practically won. any dis
cussion of the wisdom of admitting
them is more or less academic, to be
sure, and the people of the territories
may feel somewhat like the judge on
the bench who told a disgruntled law
yer that he had still another remedy
left-he might go down to the tav-
ern and cuss the court; but it is not
wise for us to disregard altogether
the sentiments expressed in the
Worlds Work. These sentiments are
undoubtedly shared by a considerable
element in the United States senate
as at present. constituted. and there
will be readiness to take advantage
of the opportunity to defeat final ad-
mission il we are so careless as to
send to Washington a freak constitu-
ton which win justify our opponents
in saying that mistake was made in
the enabling act.