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Show GOVERNOR MURPHY- Arizona's Chief Executive Talks of Stavt-- Stavt-- hood and Other Things. Hon. N. O. Murphy of Phoenix, governor of the territory of Arizona, is in the city with his wife and son. They came here from Denver where they have been for the past few week since the conclave. They will go to the Pacific coast from Salt Lake. "Arizona," said the governor, "is in a very prosperous condition considering the chance she baa had. Politics in Arizona do not have the absorbing interest that obtains ob-tains in the states, because we have no electoral votes. The eeneral sentiment ia favorable to the free coinage of silver, but the fact that the gold production with us greatly exceeds that of silver makes that a secondary consideration. We have no People's Peo-ple's party organization, the line between the Republican and Democratic parties being be-ing closely drawn. Heretofore the territory has been classed as Democratic, but I think it extremely doubtful if that party will carry the election this fall. ANXIOUS FOR STATEHOOD. "Our people, liepv.blicans and Democrats alike, are anxious for statehood, believing that then our interests would be much better bet-ter looked after under home ruleI have been a resident of Arizona for ten years, and am not, probably, looked upon as some of those who held the position of chief executive who came from other states, but the fact that I was appointed by the president and not elected by the, people is deplored as a matter of principle. "The material prosperity cf Arizona has been great in the lust few years, and the present outlook is very cheerful. No section of this country, not even the territory of Alaska, is as little understood as Arizona. Our territory has as much and as productive agricultural land as Illinois. "The climatic conditions make it a better fruit country than Southern California. Our fruits are ready for the market six weeks earlier than those of California, and we have 1,000,000 acres of land equal for orange growing to the 9000 acres at Riverside. This has been demonstrated in the past two years. ''Heretofore our territory has had but two lines of railway, the Atlantic fe Pacific crossing cross-ing the northern portion, and the Southern Pacific crossing at an average distance of 150 miles south. The former road, which crosses the Colorado plateau, is at an altitude 5400 feet higher than the latter, which runs through the agricultural portion of the state. AX IMPORTANT PROJECT. "The Santa Fe, Presoott Phomlx railway, rail-way, 210 miles long, is now beiag built to connect these two roads. It wiil probably be finished by July next, and I expect that event to mark the beginning of a new era for Arizona. "Already capital and immigration are being be-ing attracted to the territory, and I look for a boom in the next five or ten years similar to tuose that .have been experienced by other portions of the West. . "Arizona has heretofore been chiefly noted for her historic and prehistoric relics. It is true that millions of people of whom there is no history extant, except what is found 1 within the ruins of their homes, once lived within her boundaries. "The great irrigating ditches that once made productive her millions of aeres of valley lands shjw that her prehistoric races possessed wonderful engineering skill and great energy. But these things do not especially es-pecially interest the Arixonians of today. The future has more attractive problems for them to solve than the identity of their predecessors of ages past. "We have a vast territory rich in mineral, Umber and agricultural resources, and we are anxious to see it developed. I advise those who are seeking a new country, where all erowth is in the future and where the prizes are Just ready to be plucked, to go to Arizona." |