Omaha daily bee., 1890-06-17
SENATOR ALLISON ON SILVER.
The Distinguished Towan Addresses the
Senate on the Subject,
HE FAyORS ITS COMPLETE RESTORATION,
But Could not Vote for Free Coinage
at the Present Time-Vest De-
fends the Democratic
Party's Policy.

WASHINGTON, D. c., June 1G.--In the SEN
ate a message from the house asking for a
further conference on the antitrust bill was
assented to after remarks by Messrs. Ed
munds and Vest.
The deficiency appropriation bill for pen
sions and the census was reported and
passed
Mr. Dawes introduced bill to retire Cen
eral Banks as "a major of the United States
army. Referred TO the committee on military
affairs.
The house silver bill was taken up and Mr..
Daniel resumed the speech begun by him
Friday. In concluding his speech Mr.. Daniel
said that the world moved, and that this was
a land of progress had never been better
demonstrated than by the fact that the great
leader of the republican financial policy
in the United States (alluding to Senator
Sherman), who had carried the single gold
standard over two continents, had come for
ward in his speech and lain down at the feet
of the double standard and proclaimed that
he was at last, an advocate of silver money.
Mr.. Allison next addressed the senate. He
said he should vote for the house bill as
amended by the senate finance committee, as
he considered it the wisest and best solution
of the question. The question to be con-
sdered was what currency could be safely
substituted for national bank circulation. The
judgment of the finance committee was land
he thought it would be the Judgment of the
senate) that if the government issued paper
money it should issue it on something that
was in and of itself convertible into
legal tender money. Therefore the bill
proceeded on the idea that whatever paper
money should be issued on silver bullion pur-
chased by the government at the market
price. Why had silver bullion been selected
as basis for that new paper money! 1t was
because the public mind rested in the belief
that sooner or later silver bullion would be
coined and become part of the metallic cur
rency, 1t was on that basis he would vote
for the bill 1t was on that basis he was will
ing that the coinage of silver dollars, as now
provided for, should cease There were pco-
pie who believed the coined dollars in the
treasury would be useless and that it was
wise p Iblc policy to cease that coinage. He
for one did not share that belief. He believed
it was just as well to continue them
to the utmost limit OF 4,OoO,OW
month. But there was a large public
Op nion against that view, and therefore he
consented that the bullion should be left in
the treasury uncoincd. He did that more
readily for the reason that he believed
sooner or later the United States would have
dollar, and therefore the dollars now coined
would be recoined. He was, therefore, will
ing that the bullion should lie in the treasury
until it was known whether there would be
an international agreement as to ratio. 1t
was true that the pending bill provided that
the bullion in the treasury should be coined
for the redemption of treasury notes. What
ever might be the opinion of other settlers in
that respect, he did not labor under the delu-
sion that in the near future, under the pro-
visions of the house bill or the senate bill,
any additional dollars would be issued
There were now more than 300,000,000
coined dollars i'll the treasury against which
silver certificates were issued, so, although
those dollars belonged to the holders of GER
tificates, the certificates were payable for
public dues, and when they were received
into the treasury they belonged to the gov
ernment of the United States. So the gov
ernment would always have working bal
ance sufficient to redeem those treasury notes.
He believed the only safe way to rchabilitate
silver was to secure concurrent agreement
among nations whereby they would open
their mints concurrently to the free coinage
of silver at an agreed ratio. So believing, he
was willing TO go on as they were going on
tentatively as it wcrc) with pro-
vision for the use of silver pending
negotiations that ought to be had for the res
toratiOn of silver on some agreed ratio by the
nations of the world In supporting the bill
he supported it on the basis of the idea that
the government of The United States would
use its power in endcavoring to secure an
agreement whereby all the commercial ma
tons of the world would use silver as gold
was now used at a ratio to be agreed upon.
He regarded the pending measure and the
with which it was supported as a
complete Justification of the legislation of
1873, which contemplated minimum monthly
coinage of 100000 silver dollars and a maxi |
mum of 100000. He was for the full and
complete restoration of silver as one of the |
com metals of the world, and was willing to
do whatever he could do to promote that most |
desirable object. He could not vote for the
free coinage of silver at this |
time or any time in the near future.
He could not do so until every |
effort to secure the use of silver by the COM
mercial nations of the world was exhausted.
Mr.. Vest commented upon the remarks Of |
MIR. Allison as to the ''new- born zealn of the |
senators in the cause of free coin |
age of silver, and made statement TO show |
that it had always been the democratic policy. |
If the democratic party said nothing on the |
silver question in its platform of 1888 it was |
not because it had receded from the position |
it always held. 1t was because President !
Cleveland was an eastern man, New York |
man, who did not Sympathizc with the major |
lty of his party on that question. Cleveland |
had come to the presidency imbued with the |
prejudiceS of New York banks, and was in |
one sense tas far as his opinion on silver |
was Concemed) n sectional man. He |
had reason to believe now that Mr.. |
Cleveland was better informed on the subject. |
MIR. Vest declared that on the silver question |
there was no middle ground. Silver must be |
put on the same basis rs gold.
Nlcssrs. ingalls, and Wolcott expressed a |
desire TO address the senate tomorrow on the |
silver bill. |
Adjourned.
HnnSp