The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-07-09
AFREE COINAGE DEFEAT
THE CONFERENCE REPORT UNDER
FIRE IN THE SENATE.

Agreed on iS the BEST Inat tne
President Would siRn-The Demo-
cratic Senators Severely Criticise
the Action of the Conferees.
WASHINGTON, July 8.-President Harri-
son is ready to sign the silver Dill agreed
upon by the conference committee as soon
as it is sent to him by congress. 1t is prac-
ticallv the bill he told the silver senators he
would sign when he told them he would
not sign a free coinage bill. 1t is practi-
callv the bill Senator Spooner, representing
the administration, got thirty-four re-
publican senators to say that they would
vote for. The President knew that
inasmuch as he did not oppose the silver
movement until it was too late tor him to
do anything effective he must be content
with a verbal victory. In other words, he
feels that he must sign any bill which does
not actually provide for free coinage In
terms.
MIGHT OVERRIuE VETO.
eIf he didn't" say the silver men. 1--WE
could send him a free coinage bill, which we
could pass over his veto, If he vetoed 1t. J"
Senator Plumb is quoted as saying that on
such an issue Senator Quay would vote Tor
free coinage with Senator Cameron. The
anti-silver republicans are making an effort
to show that they will not be sacrificing
their consistency by voting for the confer
ence report. But all their attempts to
claim the bill as theirs fall to the
ground before the evident satisfaction which
appears in all private conversations with
the silver men, however loudly they may
declaim in public that they have not gotten
what they wanted. Unless some accident
occurs the conference reported will be
adopted in the Senate tomorrow or next
day, and In the House later on. The House
is waiting for the Senate.
HOW IT WAS RECEIVED.
By the associated Press.
WASHINGTON, July SIN the Senate
this morning the conference report on
the silver bill was taken up, and
Mr.. Vest stated the reasons why he should
vote against the report. A large majority
of the Senate had voted, he said, for free
coinage of silver; but the conference report
absolutely did away with all idea of free
coinage, and continued, and was intended
TO continue, the system under which silver
had been persistently degraded since 1873.
He was anxious to see absolute parity be-
tween the two metals as money metals. He
would like to see the time when sixteen
ounces of silver would purchase an
ounce of gold, and when an ounce
of gold would continue las at pres
emit to purchase sixteen ounces of silver.
He read the closing clause Of the second
section Of the conference bill-"It being the
established policy of the United States to
maintain the two metals on parity with
each other upon the present legal ratio, or
such ratio as may be provided by law"-and
asked why that declaration had been in
serted, why that stump speech had been in
jected into the stomach of the bill. 1t had
been put in, he said, for the purpose of say
ing to the treasury department that until
silver came to parity with gold it should
pay out gold, and the public business should
be conducted on the god basis. He, for one,
would never vote to maintain and continue
that practice.
NOT A SILVER BOOMER.
He had never been "a silver man" for the
purpose of booming silver, or of increasing
Its price. He was against that and all
other forms Of subsidy. The conference
till might give an increased market for
silver, but the principle for which the SEN
ate voted, that the two metals should be on
parity, had been given away in that bill
absolutely and completely.
Mr.. Coke expressed his concurrence in
the conclusion reached by Mr.. Vest. He
could not support the conference bill.
The Senate conferees had not represented
the will of the Senate. which had been de-
clared for free and unlimited coinage of
silver. On the contrary, they had assented
to bill which provided definitely for the
cessation of further coinage of silver at all
There was no compulsion on the Secretary
OF the Treasury to coin silver after July l,
Io9I. Silver coinage was then
left to the discretion of the Secretary, and
such discretion was equal to stopping the
coinage of silver. That was a fact well
known and admitted in the debate. BE was
opposed to the buying of single ounce of
silver that was not to be coined He was
opposed to the United States going into the
warehouse business for silver or for any
other product II silver was not to be
coined, why should it be purchased
SHERMAN DEFENDS THE REPORT.
Mr.. Sherman defended and explained the
conference report. A question had arisen
IN the conference committee, he said
whether the two houses could be brought ia
an agreement on the two bills passed by
them respectively. In the first section of
the conference bill the language Of the first
sectlon OF the House bill had been
altered somewhat, but the amount
OF silver to be purchased had
been increased. Much to his regret Il had
Deen nxed at less amount than the entire
american product Of silver. 1t had been
1na1e mandatory mot permissive) on the
secretary of the treasury to buy 4 900 O00
ounces of silver each month. which ~ 49,
IaOe oI SI 90 an ounce Tor sixteen to one1
STo %0udd ado amount to yearly issue of abont
S'o,ouO'oO0 IN treasury notes. The legal
lender clause in the Honsa S;li
and in the Senate hill bad
been somewhat different and sor,awhat @
anke also, and the question had come , IN
IN conference whether it would be- right -
Deprive citizens of the United States Of tbe m
right to contract for payments in cold az
anything else. 1t had, therefore, baen
agreed that the treasury notes to he ;ssued
Tor silver, like the silver dollar on which :.
was based, should be legal tender for ell II
oeots, public and private, unless who're
otherwise stipulated in contract Tb.t
same clause was to be found in the RIanS
A PACKED JURY.
Mr. voorhees, said that in the practice ~
ms profession he always dreaded a nacked
jury. The trouble about the conferenoa
oil OH was not whether the Secretary of the
treasury would obey the law. but thar
every single section Of the bill gave d,scre0
ILon 70 the Secretary of the Treasury. who
was packed" against silver. That was his
uread about the bill, and one of the strong
reasons why he should not vote for is
Every single section Of the bill conferred
ana was intended to confer discretion on
tne Secretary of the Treasury. bv vvbich
ne could destroy, dishonor and degrade
a