El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1914-03-07

: tant claims IN nearly every city visited,
! there was nothing of that sort here.
The spirit of the southwest was to
state the simple truth, and to ask only
for what was natural and right. There
was no effort toward unnatural expan-
sion, the only plea was that no artificial
! barrier be thrown between the cOnsti-
tUent parts of the sOuthwest-Arizona,
New Mexico and the El PasO territory
in west Texas.
OurEl PasOans worked together, with
no lealOUsles, with no evidence of crowd
ing against one another for position, or
Tor passing prominence, but with a
united common purpose to see that the
truth was clearly put before the secre-
tarles OF the treasury and agriculture.
The perfection with which the unselfish
spirit of cooperation served was reflect
ed IN the success of the hearing. This
Is the Ell PasO spirit that counts. We
can all afford to do the big thing when
working for big results.
Just as the FL Pasoans pulled together,
so did the bankers and representatives
OF other business interests from all over
our southwest. City borders and state
lines cut no figure when nature was at
work IN this part of the country; nor
did they amount to anything when the
people OF the southwest asked the or
ganlzatlon committee to leave us in the
relation that nature placed US.
The Rio Grande, in bringing and de-
posting its rich silt from the Rocky
mountains, does not stop when it
reaches the line between New Mexico
and Texas. The government, in build
ing the Rio Grande reclamation project,
the biggest and best, by the way, of all
the reclamation undertakings, drew no
line between these two states.
The vast farming population, now de-
veloplng so rapidly, in the Rio Grande
valley, viii be contiguous, viii be of
one kind and interest. At the Ell PasO'
hearing, it was pointed out clearly that
nature intended for this entire valley,
both IN New Mexico and in Texas, to
be in one reserve district.
Yet the farming interests of the AL
ley above us are no more naturally as
ISOLATED with FL PasO than are the mines,
those wonderful copper mines, of Arr
IONA.
Did the Phelps-D Dodge interests build
an entire railroad from the Arizona
mines to Fl PasO as a mere caprice?
To the contrary, their railroad carry
ing its millions in mineral traffic, fol-
lowed the natural course. The New
England states are not as closely re-
lated in their industries as are Arizona
and FL PasO.
The railroads all center in FL PasO.
simply because it was the natural thirg
to do. They had to come through town
to keep from climbing over mountains.
The products of all the section come
through FL PasO, ores, cattle and all,
because it IS the railroad center and
biggest city.
From the ores under the ground, from
the cattle roaming over the plains, from
the railroads, reaching out to the indus
tries of this entire section like the
spokes of a wheel, IN her very life and
being FL Paso is herself the product of
this southwest.
And when the secretaries came, all this
southwest stood together, as nature
placed it. Other cities may have asked
more than IS right, other sections may
have exaggerated their requirements, but
all that the southwest asks Is that ma
ture be not disturbed by artificial bar
riers-that nature may be allowed to
take its course.
Zach Lamar Cobb.