Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1884-12-19
NEWS FROM WASHINGTON.
SENATORS DEBATE THE SILVER BILL.
\ Tilt Between senators sherman. Ntlt
and UcCk over the Proposed %usp"n-
sion " silver Cuiragc--Scnat"rM Nor
rill's silver BilI-Thc Depart
mcnt OF Agriculture Bill.

WA,HINGruN. Dec. lj.-Senator Logan
presented large number of petitions
from tobacco and cigar manulacturerSnnd
labor organizations of Illinois, New York
and other States. protesting against the
ratification of the Spanish treaty also
petitions signed by over 1000 eN-soldiers
of the Union army, praying that Congress
may purchase for the Capitol at Wash
ington. II portrait of Gen. George II. Thorn
as. and recommending that it he executed
by Miss Ransom. The papers were ap-
propriatcly REFEREED The senate at 1850
p. m, went into secret session for the con
sdcration of the spanish treaty and when
the doors were rc-opcned the Dakota Dill
was taken up.
Senator Garland submittcda substitute
for the bill reported from the committee
ON Territories. After remarks by SENT
tors GarIan3 Harrison and Vest the blll
was informally la.l aside at the request OF
senator Hill in order that ne might adj
dress the Senate on the silver question.
aprDpuS of the resolution recently sub
mitted 10y him, declaring il to he the sense
of the Senate that there was no reason for
the suspension Of he coinage of silver dol
lars. or of the i>SlI" Oi silver certificates.
tionS Of the President and the Secretary
Ot the Treasury recently madCtu Congress
in respect to silver were inUppOriunc To an
alarming degree at a time when falling
prices proved that money was deficient
rat her han abundant. cold mOnO-mCtnl-
ism would increase both the value Of cred
its and the burden of debts. If the utCd
States were an absolutely stationary conn
try AN annual coinage of 2S,OOO,OOO silver
dollars would finally drive out some utncr
kinds Of money but SIS, 0o0,0oo was much
less than the annual increase O..
our total money during the past five
years 1t was clearly less than the
increase necessary To keep up our prices.
The time was most iuopportune for stop
ping the coinage of silver when our bank
note currency was undergoing Cuntrac-
ton. The situation in respect to our pa
per money was admitted on all sides to he
grave. The volume of greenbHckS WAS
fixed absolutely by law while the volume
of bank-notcs tended to diminish from the
cancellation of the Governments bonds
upon which they rest. Their contraction
has not been seriously felt because their
place has been supplied by silver. Scna-
tor Hill expressed the hope that the
country would conclude to let the silver
law alone so long as it worked well.
Mr.. sherman said he was one of those
who believed bi-mctalism to lie the natural
! logic of things. 1t was impossible TO make
| gold and silver of the same market value,
! because for two thousand wears their rclit-
/ tive values had been changing. The cN-
pertinent had been fairly tried by the
! United States and had failed. The silver
dollar coinage law had been in operation
since ISIS The total number of these
dollars coined was 1N1,GOOOO0 and of that
number only S4l 100000 were now in cir
ctllation The balance remained IN the
| (nltcd states treasury That showed lhHt
the law Of Congress had not been able to
fflrn ii var ia tnI
When that law went into effect the silver
dollar was worth uinctN-onc cents III
gold now it was worth only between W
and ~ cents. Silver had gone down SteH'il-
~ since the passage of the act referred To.
The Government of the United states
bought silver bullion from the Senator
from Colorado Senator HID at It's market
value. 1t was treated as mcrchantablc
commodity, but the people had right To
take ii from the Government or not as
they pleased, and they pleased not to take
II, because II was not worth $50 grams
and was only worth ll2 suppose such an
alarm were sounded rs should lead TO the
export of our gold and dSarrange all our
standards of values, what would happen
did not the Senators know that 1t would
create the most fearful contraction of the
currency ever witnessed in this coun
try' The labOring men when supposlng
themselves to be earning dollar
would be earning only - cents and
M"NtH W9ui, n"' "tVanuc ~ ,r,anu %ppneI
such n rontinIencv wonld not arise and
he believed it would not. As to the rem
edy his idea was to first stop the coinage
Oh the SILVER uoliar anu W"ll l3I 1Ig NV,
thn r,ti"nt ~ nf No. ,,nrl1 I,.t,ve"n ,rnid and
silver.
senator Beck said the silver coinage
question had never been fairly treated by
any administration or by any officer OF 1t,
Sii,',,,,..,. tLn rn.tiIitI If nI,r Cavern.
uInnt Nn n,,u had ryiucrd moro Of thai
I".ttii,r tln,, ,To Gnmntnr from OH,
'lnr''t,,r Gi',,,n,,, ~ secretary uf IN,
. .,r'.,,,,r,
, G,,,tIr ..l,,,,,,,,. r.r,.,rk,d that hr had
,,,,,.." yoij :, ,.,,,j n,r,,il,st Silver rr'iti
not, ,,'r ,,r,i,,', -iIynr dnilnrs evrrIt
,i,I ,i',,- -l',,,'iI Nv. ,r.'i ,,nnI -;cnntu,
R",l, rn,,Ii"I ,h,t he wn,Ild fo-mnrro,,
1 read some extracts which would rctrc~t
e senator Shcrnan'S rCCOllcctlou. In,
lhaI'cr W"N men uIoPPcu. .,.;+,....