Statehood Contest

STATEHOOD CONTEST

The question of the admission of new states to the union is now and always has been in very large degree a matter of partisan advantage. A territory is not admitted to statehood, or refused admission, because it is properly prepared for that relation or because it is not properly prepared, but because its admission or rejection will advantage or disadvantage the party in control of congress. These causes are operating in congress now just as strongly as of yore. It is a peculiar circumstance to find Senator Quay, one of the most notorious spoilsmen in congress, standing out on the omnibus statehood bill in opposition to his party therefore. But the matter is easily explained. In this particular case there are personal reasons and certain advantages for him and his friends which outweigh party considerations. He therefore wants the territories admitted. For once he appears to be morally right in his position, though, even though his motive is selfish. The republican party stands pledged to statehood for the territories through a long series of years. In 1888 the republican national platform declared:

The republican party pledges itself to do all in its power to facilitate the admission of New Mexico, Wyoming, Idaho and Arizona to the enjoyment of self-government as states, such of them as are qualified as soon as possible, and the others as soon as they become so.

in 1890 Idaho and Wyoming were admitted. Two years later the party again declared for statehood for the territories in the following language:

We favor the admission of the remaining territories at the earliest practical date, having due regard to the interests of the people of the territories and of the United States.

The pledge was repudiated, however, after election, or at least nothing was done. Again in 1896 the republican platform reiterated this pledge in exactly the same words and again failed to keep its pledges during the four years of power. But in 1900 the party came forward again with this pledge in its national platform:

We favor home rule for, and the early admission to statehood of the territories of New Mexico, Arizona and Oklahoma.

But up to the present time nothing has been done to redeem the pledge and a strong fight is now being made under the leadership of Senator Beveridge of Indiana to prevent any action. The fact that republicans who went on the stump and advocated the party platform are now, as during the past dozen years, ready to go even to the length of holding up the senate to prevent the redemption of these pledges shows how little their platform pledges mean after they have been returned to office. Betrayal of platform pledges seems to be taken as a matter of course. In fact platforms have served their purpose when the election is over, and the people appear to accept that fact without much ado and contain their souls in peace until the next time the party gets around to deceive them with specious pledges which it never intends to keep.