The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1878-02-14
Ben SIN speaks for silver.

The silver bill being under consider
alton, Senator Hill, from Georgia, said
that the Senate had before it for the
past two months plain business ques-
tion. 1t was certainly no occasion for
rhetoric, il was a question which en-
inently required eAactness in fact, and
a clear strength in logic, yet there
was terrible excitement in the coun-
try over It, and perhaps q thousand
newspapers in the country to-day
were engaged in impressing upon the
people that one-half OF the number OF
members of Congress had been bought
by the bullion dealers, and the other
half by bondholders. The question
of suspendiug silver coinage came up
In France few days ago, and In less
time than it took him to recite it, the
Senate OF the nation, representing .
people VIGOROUSLY excitable, disposed
of the matter unanimously. He, SEN
ator Hill, took his position with those
who sincerely and earnestly desired
the restortion of the silver dollar to
be the currency of the country. He
believed that the silver dollar might
be recoined and remonetiZed, an,
he concurred in much of the argument
OF his friend from Maine, Mr..
Blaine, made yesterday in the begin
ming of his remarks. Senator Hill
then argued that there had always
been q condition of the companionship
between silver and gold as currency.
Never did silver an gold keep company
with each other except upon the In
flexible rule of equality of value. He
favored the remonetIZation of silver,
because he thought its reconciliation
would be wise and proper in the pres
ent condition of the country. he be-
lieved, in the first place, the people
desired it, and as there were no consti-
tutional provisions in the way, he
would agree TO it. In the second place,
lie thought the reconciliation of silver
would add no unlimited metallic cur
rency, and again, as silver was one of
the products of our country, it was
proper that Congress should do all it
could to encourage its production and
increase the demand for it. Again,
the negro population in his section had
n peculiar attachment for silver money.
He believed the recoinage Of silver
would create in them a passion for
boarding it and make them economize,
thus improving their condition. He
thought silver dollars should be re-
monetized, but he could not support
the bill now before the Senate as it
came from the House of Representa-
tives. He believed, if this bill should
pass unaltered, it would enrich few
persons and give no relief to the
financial am ho of tho oonp-
try. It would necessitate additional
legislation, and finally take its place
in history as the pickpocket bill of
American legislation. In the first
place, he objected to the free COINAGE
feature, and when gentlemen told him
that silver should be placed upon the
same footing as gold, as to the coin
age, he replied that to do so it must
be made as valuable as gold. 1t cost
no more to coin twenty dollar gold
piece than it did silver dollar. While
1T might be wise to encourage the COIN
age of gold, it would not be wise to
encourage the coinage of silver. The
next amendment which he favored was
TO limit the coinage of silver to the
present capacity of cur mints. We
could not coin gold il we admitted the
unlimited free coinage of silver, and
Congress must either appropriate more
money to multiply the minis or stop
the coinage of gold. He objected to
the unlimited legal tender power which
1t was proposed to give to the silver
dollar. lie could not consent to the
coinage Of q silver dollar worth ninety
cents ssad stamping it as a dollar. To
do so the government would be coin
ing a falsehood, and it would do so
knowingly. 1t had been argued that
the depreciation in the value of silver
was caused by the demonstration act
of 1878. This he denied. Ten nations
besides the United States demonetIzed
silver about the same time, and there
had been great increase IN its pro-
duction. 1t was this increase
in the production and decrease in the
demand for it, which caused its depre-
citation in value. He believed the most
effective and the most; permanent way
To keep the silver dollar equal with the
gold dollar was to prescribe for the
silver function in our currency. He
would have silver more than q subsidi-
AIRY coin, but would limit its legal ten
der power. The people demanded
silver dollar, but they did not demand
one which would drive gold out of the
country. He would give silver legal
tender power for all payments not ex
: ceeding 500. He was in favor of
some compromise, and hoped his
friends would not plant themselves
squarely upon the House bill and refuse
to compromise. He cared nothing for
-bondholders of any class. He believed
legislation which was wise for one
class was wise for all classes, and he
represented no class; he represented
the people, the government and truth.
1t had been argued here that the bond
holder purchased his bond with green
backs worth sixty cents on the dollar
at the time the bondholder made the
purchase. He Mr.. Hill was on the
ottiiieE-SiGe,, -Sfr1 was doing all in his
power to make the bondholder lose
his dollar worth but sixty cents. He
believed he vas right, and il
did not become him row to
raise cry because the bondholders
made good bargain during the war.
He was doing what he thought to be
right hut when he surrendered b
euC kONCtAnCuS ne SURRENDERED
honestly, and he intended TO be lust
as felthiul to the honor and credit Of |
the United States as he would have
been to the Confederate States had |
they succeeded. 1t was to the interest |
of all classes, and especially the la.
boring class, To MAINTAIN the credi. OF |
he government.
Mr.. Hill then referred to the recent |
speech OF Mt. Eaton, in which the Sen
ator said that agrarisnism and COM
munism would never tind foothold IN
the United States, and IN reply said |
that those were noble words, worthy
OF the best men in the best ages OF |
any country. He deprecated the
speeches charging that the laws of the
couutry had been passed by fraud. /
The passions of the people might be
dashed into 9 fury which no man
could control. 'sBloated bondhold.
ersn were familiar words in the yo-
cabnlary of American fanaticism, but
there was no possible excuse which
could justify the disregard of
the solesnn obligations Of the gov
eminent OF any kind. There was
but one patriotic course Tor Congress TO
pursue-call back The people TO any
honest renewed recognition OF the OBJ
legations Of the contract; teach the
present generation-teaeh al genera
eaone-ihak 63elikv - t-,eA - -