The silver state. [volume] (Unionville, Nev.) 1870-1903, 1888-09-22

TEE REORGANIZATION sF >sLvaE.
Senator Stewart, in a speech in the
Senate few days ago, attributed the
stsguation in business and depression in
prices, for some pears past, not 20 the
tariff, but to the demonetization of silver,
and come of our esteemed contemporaries
in Nevada attribute the demonstration
CT silver to the Democrats. Possibly
Senator Stewart may be right, but the
politician or newspaper that attributes
the characterization of silver to the Dem
ocrats is certainly wrong. The silver
demonstration act was passed Febru.
airy IL. 1873, by the Forty Second Con-
gress, both Houses Of which were over
whelmingly Republican, and, for the first
kine since the establishment of the United
States Mint in 1891, the free coinage OF
silver was prohibited by Law, and the
legal tender power of silver coins limited
20 Eve dollars. Mr.. Stewart was then,
az he lie now, Senator from Eeyada, and
voted for the demonstration bill, as he
has since publicly stated, upon the &a-
snrance of John Sherman, who was then,
az he 10 now, Chairman Of the Senate
Committee on Finance, that the bill,
az its title implied. related exclusively
to the mints and assay Offices OF the
United States. Subsequently it became
apparent that the bill demonetized oliver,
and that Mr.. Sherman nisrepresepted ita
Purport. Then the Representatives and
Senators from the Pacific Coast, ct least,
excused their action in voting for the bill
upon the ground tina. they were deceived,
and did not know that it demonetizsd
silver.
10 1874 there was political revelation,
and the House of Representatives became
Democratic, and the silver question vas
discussed 10 and ont Of Congress- until
1877, when Bland of Missouri, who had
been on the Comstock in early days, in
trodu,ed what was popularity knovn as
the ''Silver Bill" The frat section Of
that bill provided:
That there shall be coioed at the sew
esai raints Of the United States the silver
dollar Of the weight of 4l25 grains troy
Of standard silver. as provided by the act
Of January Is, 1887, on which shall be
the devices and superscriptions provided
by said act; which coins, together with
all silver dollars heretofore coined by the
United States Of like weight and Gneness.
shall be a legal tender at their nominal
value for all debts and dues, public aud
private. except when otherwise provided
by contract, and any owner OF silver bnl-
lion may deposit the same 10 any Uniten
States coinage mint or assay office, to be
coined into such dollars for his benefit.
npon the same terms aud conditions 80
gold bullion is deposited for coinage
under existing laws.
The bill passed the Democratic House
of Representative IN 1877, and was sent
to the Republican Senate. where it's pass
age was ably advocated by Senators
Thurman of Ohio and Jones' of Nevada,
and opposed by the magnetic Blaine, who
was then Senator from Maine. Allison
Of Iowa moved substitute for the bill,
which emasculated it by depriving i. Of
the free coinage clause, and limiting the
amount Of silver bullion that should be
coined monthly, and even in that form
Blaine recorded his vote against It's pas
cage, "a did also Sargent Of California.
However, the bill, as amended.
passed the Senate February 10, 1878 and
the House concurred ia the amendments
on the principle that "a small loaf is bet
ter than no bread. The fraudulent
Hayes, who was President by virtue q
stolen votes. vetoed It az the instance of