Arizona Weekly Journal Miner

ARIZONA WEEKLY JOURNAL-MINER.

Martin, Editor.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 30, 1889.

EDITORIAL NOTES.

Each in Arizona got it in the neck. Politics have, for the time being, been lost sight of and sectionalism has taken its place. There are democrats, not a few, in this county who now feel that they have been victims of misplaced confidence. "Prescott has just learned that revenge is sweet," especially to some small-souled politician. -Courier. All of which fits Zulick. Arizona should be allowed to control her school lands so that she could apply them to the purposes for which they were intended. The action of the legislature to-day will not have any great tendency towards "cementing bonds of friendship" between the two sections of Arizona-the north and south. One branch of the New Mexico legislature contains only one democrat. In order to give this minority a fair show they had to adopt a rule allowing a member to second his own motion. Phoenicians are not yet satisfied with taking the capital from Prescott, but it is said that they have evil designs yet on the county, and will make an effort to secure a large slice of our mining territory from the southern part of the county.

Delegate Smith has introduced a bill in congress authorizing the territorial legislature to pass a bill granting leave to Maricopa county to issue bonds to the extent of $40,000 per mile to aid in the construction of a railroad to a connection with the Atlantic & Pacific. The hotel proposition suggested in yesterday's issue of the JOURNAL-MINER meets with hearty approval from our citizens. Prescott just now needs a hotel above all other things. A good commodious and well conducted hotel would be worth more to the town than the capitol. If the city hall were remodeled and fitted up as a first class hotel it would fill a long felt want for Prescott. In this calamity there could be made of more actual benefit to the town than it has heretofore been as the seat of territorial government. Who will take the initiative looking towards this transformation?

A number of territorial exchanges are quoting copiously from advance sheets of Superintendent Strauss' report in regard to the public schools of Arizona. As the JOURNAL-MINER has not been favored with a copy of the advance sheets it will be compelled to wait until it is received in the regular way before reviewing the report of the professor. A solid combination of all the legislators from the Sonora line to the northern limits of the city of Phenix cannot rob northern Arizona of her mineral wealth. While the capital is rolling to the Salt river valley, en route further southward, capital will be rolling into Yavapai county, for the development of mines and building of mills, and after the first feeling of loneliness passes away we will scarcely feel the removal. The Phenix papers are libelously abusive of the legislators who failed to vote aye on capital removal. In this they are less charitable than the Prescott papers. The former having compassed their desires, abuse every one who did not stand in with them. The latter baying attached themselves to a lost cause, have treated every member respectfully who was instrumental in the removal of the capital. The councilman representing the northern district, to-day, not only voted in opposition to the will of three-fourths of his constituents, but violated a solemn pledge, which members of his party allege he made in Tucson and without which, he could not now misrepresent the people of northern Arizona. While political pledges are said to be made only to be broken, there is such a thing as being honorable, even in politics. Governor Zulick recommends a reapportionment, based upon the popular vote of the Territory. Apportionments are usually made on the basis of population, as determined by a census. An analysis of the vote cast at the last general election, and an apportionment made to the various counties on that basis, would take two members of the House from Gila and one from Cochise, and would add two to Maricopa county and one to Apache county. Representation of other counties would remain as they are. Governor Zulick, in his annual message, recommends the admission of Arizona as a state. With a population of less than 60,000 and only $2,600,000 of property assessed, there are a great many people in the territory who will not agree with the governor. Of course we would like to be a resident of a state and enjoy the privileges afforded by it, by voting for our governor, and sending two able bodied, stalwart republicans to the United States senate, and have our congressman allowed the privilege of voting as well as talking. All these things would be very nice but would prove very expensive luxuries. While the arguments used by members of the capital-removal combination may be plausible, there can be no excuse, whatever, offered for the indecent haste in carrying out the scheme while the legislature is in session. The confusion and inconvenience attending its removal at such a time, to say nothing of the expense, will be such that a sense of justice and right would have dictated that it take effect after the close of the session. If it is the will of the majority of the territory that all the public offices of the territory be central- ized in the Salt River Valley, the people of Arizona will submit though gracefully. A sense of pride has indicated a delay in the proceedings of the Council until Simpson, of Yavapai, could have been present.