Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1888-04-03
THE NATIONS SCAPITAL.
Wrestling with Great Financial
Questions.
Hot Debate in the Senate Over
the Bond Purchase Bill.
Mills Tariff Bill is Reported and Briefly
Considered in the House.
Randall EndeaVorS 10 Map Out the Work
for His Fellow Representatives
and Dates are Fixed for
Various Matters.
Secretary Fairchild Replies to the Res
olution Calling for Information
Concerning the Purchase
of Bonds
w ASulNarnN Anrn
WAsniNeroN, April l..
Senate.

Senate.
The House having sent over an original
bill to give pension of 81 200 TO the widow
of Gen. Logan, instead of passing the Senate
bill in precisely the same terms, the House
bill was passed.
The Senate resumed as unfinished business
the House bill for the purchase of United
States bonds, the question being ON a motion
of Mr. Palmer to recommit the bill
! Mr.. Stewart moved to recommit it with
instructions to the committee to report with
out delay a separate bill allowing the owners
of gold or silver bullion TO deposit the same
and receive coin certificates therefor.
Sherman opposed the motion saying it was
very unusual to instruct committee to re-
port proposition then submitted for the
first time, as there was no objection to the
passage of the bond purchase bill. He
thought as a question of practical legislation
that the hill should be passed at once. If it
was the desire of the Senate to have all the
difficult problems of finance which have been
discussed for the last tweuty-six years, taken
up and considered. that was one thing. If
so, let it be so. But that was no reason why
there should be any delay in the passage of
a bill on a totally different subject. He was
opposed to the Instructions asked for and op-
posed to the recommittal of the bill.
Mr.. Stewart argued in support of his mo-
tton and declared that under no circum-
stances would he vote for the original hill
in the present strinpency of the money mar
ket 1t was time he said to return to the
specie basis for currency instead of inyentinp
new schemes of initiation. When enough
gold and silver could not he obtained at such
a basis then it would be time enough to iu-
vent other schemes for money He believed
that the Senate and country were in favor of
using silver AS a basis of circulation and
asked for a yea and nav vote on his motion,
Mr. Mcpherson argued against the
ptoposition of Stewart. the result
of which would be, if enacted into
a law, to place the currency of the country
within six months practically on a silver ba-
sis, because il meant the free coinage of sill
yer and nothing else. He declared himself
as equally opposed to Plumbs amendment,
already agreed to. That meant the starting
of the printing press and the issne of "A new
edit,on of treasury Io:es He appealed earn
esty to the senators on both sides simply to
pass the House bill and leave the new
schemes of financial adventure to be pro-
posed TO some other bill.
Mr.. Butler said that while he sympathized
with many features of the proposition of the
Senator from Nevada, he would vote for it
with some notifications" The exigiency
which now confronted the treasury was such
that he preferred to vote for the House bill
pure and simple.
Mr.. Beck suggested such modification of
Plumb's argument as would direct the Sec
retary OF the Treasury where national bank
circulation was withdrawn, "to purchase sill
yer and coin 1t in dollars not in excess of two
millions per month, on which silver certlh-