The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1877-11-24
XLVth CONGRESS-Extra Session.
HOUSE.
WASHINGTON, Nov. %.


tenden asked unanimous consent that after
Mr.. Forts speech he lChittenden) should e
allowed to speak fifteen minutes for-Sodom
and omorrah.
Mr.. Thompson of Pennsylvania objected,
stating be did so in the interests OF many mem
bers who desired to speak, but could not do so.
Mr. Ewing of Ohio appealed to Mr.. Thomp-
son to withdraw bis objection and it was &C
cordingly Withdrawn, and it was agreed that
Mr. Cbittenden should have fifteen minutes
time after Mr. Fort, who was entitled to the
floor, had closed his remarks.
Mr.. Fort then proceeded to address the House
10 advocacy of his substitute for the bill to re-
peal the resumption act 1t had been ques-
ton with him, he said, whether he ought to
reopen the debate after it had been so fifty
closed yesterday by the gentleman from Ohio.
he believed there never could be resumption
by law. If resumption came it had to come by
prosperity and by prosperity alone. He as
serted that many of the men of Wall street
were today breeding and nursing wildcats
in order to food the country with them as
soon as they got the greenbacks retired. Fort
went on to say he blushed for his fellow Re-
publicans. He knew that it was said he was
going over to the Democrats. Was he indeed?
Who then were bis fellow Democrats follow
ing? Were they following the lead of the man
(Hewitt of New York; who bad led the last
Presidential campaign on the Democratic side?
Ii his ticket had been elected he would be to-
day undoubtedly Secretary of the Treasury.
Hewitt--It was elected.
Fort-I do not know but it was. The peo-
pie have determined to retain the legal tender
currency and will, if necessary, change the
House of Representatives, Senate and if need
be, the President.
Mr. Chittenden of New York proceeded to
criticise Mr.. Ewing's speech of yesterday and
contrasted it with the following extract from a
speech made by Mr.. Ewing in Columbus o.,
in 1875:
Snow there is discretion with the Secretary about
this. He is compelled to take up the fractional cur
rency with silver rapidly as practicable. The mints
are now running night AMI day coming silver for
that purpose, and predict under that law, If exc
cuted, the people OF this country will be left within
year from this time without dollar OF fractional
money whether paper or silver
That prediction was worth about as much as
the predictions with which that gentleman had
treated the House yesterday. That gentle
man had represented the conflict between cap
tal and labor as one that would only end in
the destruction of capital. He had spoken of
of American prosperity and civilization, had
pointed his finger at New York as the Sodom
and Gomoirah of the robber bloated bondhod-
holders and had risen in gradations of clio
quence as if he discovered the smoke of their
torments rising up for ever and ever. laugh
ter.) As an evidence of the absurd notions
prevailing on the subject of currency, he stat
ed that former Democratic representative
from New York city [meaping Richard SchelD
had told him in the spring of 1875 that he was
in favor of digging ship canal from New
York to San Francisco in order to give en-
ployment to the idle labor of the country and
that he would set the printing presses to work
and print off greeDbacks to pay the laborers,
and that was the only remedy. He also read
an extract from newspaper report of rag
money mass meeting at Nashville, Tenn
where resolutions were adopted favoring the
issuing of $4,000 900 of greenbacks monthly
until this distress of the country was removed
opposing contraction; favoring the remoneIiza-
ton of silver and ignoring both political par
ties. He asserted that if Congress could be
adjourned fer twelve months gold aud green
backs wauld be at par with each other within
sixty days. And now, said he, l come to a
question of privilege. When / went over to
the Democratic side of the House the other
day there was so much confusion that did
not hear the very unpleasant remarks Qaugh-
teri of the gentleman of Georgia (Felton,)
will now read an extract from his speech.
Mr.. Chittenden thereupon read with good
deal of excitement on his part and amid the
shouts of laughter on the part of the members
that paragraph from Mr.. Felton's speech de-
scribipg the storm at sea and painting himself
prey. There 1 stood, he continued, all uncon-
scious of being made the representative and
embodiment of all the horrd capitalists and
bloated bondholders who live along the sea-
lonouts OF Iaugnter.l NOW ask tDe gentle-
men who have hurled their blows at me as a
"wrecker" and who are pleased to repeat that
kind of 'stuff' and to circulate it in the news
papers that anonymous letters are sent to me
about it (laughter) to look at me. (Roars Of
laughteE) There is not man on this floor
who is as much interested as l am in main
tanning the interests of the debtor class. What
has the gentleman from Ohio (Ewing) to do
with them? Nobody owes him any money
tLaughter.) What does he know about the
interests or necessities of the debtor class of
this country? The books of the firm in which
my all is involved have today upon them &C.
counts of from 5000 to 5000 debtors scattered
all over the country. This should be a lesson
to members of Congress who come here to
talk impudently, wildly, viciously and wicked
ly leach adverb pronounced with emphasis
and hailed with shouts of laughter) about the
awful capitalists and awful representatives OF
New York, which have suffered mora in loan
lpg its money to the West and South than any
other city on the earth. Mr.. Speaker, l am
indebted to the House fer this opportunity
daughter and sb outs of go on, proceed.") l
will not trespass another moment. 1 could
throw no additi ,nal light upon the subject,
Qaughter,) and L am weary. have only to
express my thanks.
This peech closed the discussion and left the
House in the best of humor.
Fhe question was then raised by Mr.. Conger
and others as to the mode of voting on the
offered.
The Speaker ruled that the resolution under
which the House was acting took the matter
from under the operation lof the rules, which
would only admit of two amendments being
pending at the same time and that all the
amendments were before the House and must
be voted on.
Mr.. Springer desired to withdraw one which
he had Offered, but objection was made by Mr..
Garfield and the objection was sustained.
The first vote taken on the substitute was
offered by Mr.. Fort and it was agreed to with
out division. 1t repeats all that part of the
resumption act which authorizes the Secretary
Of the Treasury to dispose of United States
bonds and to redeem and cancel greenback
currency.
The next vote was on the substitute offered
by Mr. Hubbell, modifying the Sd section of
the resumption act. 1t was taken by yeas and
nays, and resulted yeas 80, nays 1853 Several
of the hard money men voted for Mr.. Hub
BELLS substitute, as they had done for Mr..
Forts, not because they favored either of
them, but because las Mr.. Garfield Intimately
they hoped thereby the fmore surely to defeat
the bill.
The next vote was on the amendment offered
by Mr. Pound, repeating the Limitation of the
National Bank note circulation, and it was re-
lected without yeas and nays.
The next vote was on the amendment offered
by Mr.. Cox of Ohio, providing for the gradual
redemption OF legal tenders from January LIST.
1873, at 81 cents on the dollar, up to January
LIST, 1881, at par in coin. Rejected, only. II in
the affirmative.
The next vote was on an amendment offered
by Mr.. Cummings. postponing the REDEEM ption
until the coin reserve in the Treasury is suffi-
Gent to authorize 1t, and it was rejected with
out division.
The next vote was on an amendment offered
by Mr. Hewitt requiring an accumulation in
the Treasury of S5O,0O0,O00 year until the
amount shall be equal to half of the outstand-