New-York tribune., 1878-02-16
WASHINGTON.
AN ALL-NIGHT SESSION ON SILVER.


The Senate took up the Silver Bill, yes
terday, and remained in session untii
after 1:3O o'clock at night, voting on the
various propositions in regard to re-
monetization. The committees amendment
to strike out the free coinage clause
and substitute a clause for the coinage
of from $2,OOO,O0O to $4,OOO.OOo
month was carried by a vote of
40 to %. The monetary conference was
carried by 40 TO 80. A large number OF
amendments was voted on, but no other
important ones adopted by 1:30 a. m. At that
hour the Senate was still at work, IN
tending to reach a final vote. Bayard
Taylor is nominated as Minister to Germany
and Judge Batchford to be Circuit Judge.
j. @. Smith will probably be confirmed.
THE SENATE VOTING ON SILVER.
FRESH AMENDMENTS PROPOSED AS OLD ONES ARE
RrJrCrEp-A VAST AMOUNT OF SPEAKING AND
OTHER woRK-NO FINAL RESULT AT l:3o A. NJ.
IBY TELEGRAPH TO THE TRIBUNEl
WASHINGTON, Feb. 15.-It seems almost lmpos-
sble for the Senate of the United States to vote on
any important measures at reasonable hours. IL
makes no difference how long a bill or resolution
has been discussed, or how familiar Senators may be
with all its provisions, the only way in which the
wise men of that body can ever be made to stop
talking about it and go to voting is for the major
itv 70 fix in advance a day which they will VOTE
and then to remain in continuous session unti
everybody is so worn out that talking ceases from
sheer exhaustion of Senators.
This explains WHY the Senate is now spending the
night at the Capitol, and may possibly be found
there when the sun rises tomorrow morning IL Is
not because any Senator has not made up his nlhd
how he Will vote on the Bland Silver Bill, or on any
hp Onpr
that they do not pass the bill and go home
Neither side hopes to gain single vote py
DELAY. 1t is not filibustering or sharp Pariiamen-
tarv tactics that the more dignfied branch Of Con-
oress is engaged in tonight. The Senate remains III
continuous session simply because its members can
NOT foycgo the pleasure of hearing their own VOlces
and will not forego it until sleep and fatigue and
the indigestion incident to calls at Capitol res
taurants overcome them.
Nor is il any easier to dam up the Hood OF speeches
now than it would have been month ago, II ma
iority of the Senate had then been willing to agree
TO vote during anv particular days sitting. On the
contrary 1t has been noticed that the longer de-
bate has run the harder it is to stop it, 1t seems to
gain sort of momentum by long continuance, like
a railway train on q down grade and requires
more vigorous application Of the brakes and longer
run to stop it.
LaMAR's PLUCKY SPEECH.
The debate in the Senate to-day was marked by
very few important incidents. One OF the most dra-
matte features of it the impressive little speech
made by Senator Lamar, apropos of the resolutions
of the Legislature of Mississippi instructing the
Senators from that State to vote for the Bland Dill
Such instructions as these mean more to lifelong
States rights Democrat from the South than to other
men, for it is almost one of the articles of their pol
itical creed that the State has right to give In
struetons to its Senator'S and is the duty OF Sena
TORS TO ohey Some even 90 far TO hold that
one of two courses must be seected-obedIencc or
resignation.
II was no small thing, therefore, for Senator
Lamar to say TO the Senate, to his constituents and
the country that he believed it to be his conscen-
tious duty to disregard the instructions of the
Legislature of his State, and to vote directly CON
trry to its instructions and he showed both by his
tone and manner that he felt deeply the Importance
of the step he was taking, and not unmlndfui OF
its possible consequences shaping his political
future.
Senator Lamar had the sympathy Of ma
iorty of the Senate without regard TO the opinions
held upon the pending measure. Not many men
went over to his seat and congratulated him on the
manly stand be had taken, but few did, and
among them was Mr. Edmunds, man who OF ali
Others in the Senate is not given to gush Eut many
Senators showed by their countcnances, and by It-
tie involuntary gestures. that they sympathizco
with him and admired his pluck. Senator Blaine
was one of these. Senator Conkling, who was en-
gagged in reading writing at the time, hardly
raised his eyes from his paper
The other closing speeches Of the general debate
were not striking either for their ability or because
they contributed any new information and the Sen
ate passed almost insensibly from the written ad-
dresses to which it has SO long been listening
through the medium of several short explanatory
speeches to direct work upon the bill and amend
meuts One or two of the amendments which had
been offered were withdrawn late in the afternoon,
and for q few minutes il looked as though there was
TO be little delay. Those who were deceived by
these appearances and postponed getting their din
ners had occasion to- regret G fo n1, m m
spasm of sense, nor had it any very alarming
symptoms of such a disease.
FREE COINAGE REJECTED.
By7 o'clock this evening two or three unimpor-
tant verbal amendments to the bill as reported by
the Finance Committee, had been agreed to, and the
first vote on the committees notifications of the
Bland bill was reached. These notifications rep
resent the opinions of that class of silver advocates
who are able to understand the fact that unlimited
silver with free coinage means deprecated cur
rency and great financial disaster. The committees
bill proposed to make the amount OF silver to be
coined not less than two nor more than four million
dollars month, and to have this done wholly for
Government account. The vote on this stood ~ In
the affirmative to % in the negative.
The twenty-five Senators who voted IN the mega
tive are the men who hold the extreme ground on
the silver question and who are unwilling to accept
any precautions. They wanted the Bland bill and
nothing more conservative.
The silver men who voted IN the affirmative are
those who see the danger Of the silver craze, and
some of them, if it were not for the overwhelming
public sentiment in favor of silver that seems to
ist in their States would probably be on the other
As 10 tlQU M "A mis-