Los Angeles herald., 1890-05-17
SILVER SOLONS.
THE WHITE METAL DEBATE IN THE
SENATE.
Plumb Wants to Amend Sherman's Amend
ment-Hiscock, Allison, Ingalls, and
Others Join the Discussion.

WASHINGTON, May 16.-In the senate
today, Edmunds, from the judiciary
committee, reported back the house
amendment to the antitrust bill, with
an amendment thereto, striking out
certain words and inserting the words:
$50 that the rates of such transportation
may not be raised above what is Just
and reasonable" Agreed to, and con-
ference committee appointed.
The silver bill was then taken up,
and Sherman offered the amendment
mentioned in yesterdays dispatches.
Plumb moved to amend Sherman's
amendment by inserting: "And here
after no funds available for the payment
of the public debt (including such
are kept for the redemption of treasury
notes. shall be retained in the treasury
in excess OF $11O,000,0O0."
Sherman opposed Plumb's amend
ment as putting a restraint upon the
treasury department., and preventing it
from paying government obligations as
they became due.
Plumb defended his amendment, ar
guing that the treasury department
should have nothing to do with the cur
rency supply of the country. The hold
ing of money in the treasury, except for
the needs of the government itself, was
an economic crime. He (Plumb) did not
want the secretary of the treasury to be
an instrument of spectators in Wall
street or elsewhere. He did not want to
have the bulls and bears of New York
speculating on what the governmentwas
going to do about retaining or putting
out money. He did not want to have
treasury "points" peddled on Wall
street as coming from persons near the
throne. Congress ought to put a limit
on the amount of money to be kept on
hand in the treasury, SO that, whatever
the result might be, it could never be
imputed to the secretary that he had
used his great discretionary power either
unwisely or wickedly.6
The discussion was further continued
by Sherman and Hiscock. Coming to
Sherman said he did not like some of it's
features, but he might be driven to sup
port it, "Some of the friends of the
bill seem to have abandoned it already.
There are some good features in (which
I like very we'll. Ii we can agree upon
some measure that will furnish the peo-
pie more money and tend to advance
silver bullion nearer the standard of
gold, 1 am willing to vote for such q
measure; but do not want to embark
upon the wide sea of free coinage of
silver, and | don't want congress to
pledge itself to buy all the silver which
may be offered Let those who would
take the risk of such speculation take
it, not l. But anything whatever that
can be done by this bill or any other to
give US more good paper money, based
on actual deposits of gold and silver
bullion, or that will raise the value of
silver, I will favor. If we can adopt a
measure that will make use of both gold
and silver and keep them together at
par with each other, L will vote for it !;
if not, l will content myself by simply
voting in the negative"
The discussion was continued at great
length, finally turning on the monthly
debt statements of the treasury, Ingalls,
asserting that he found in them ''as-
founding, amazing, bewildering and ir-
reconcilable discrepancies"
Sherman undertaking to explain them
and Allison giving views upon them, AL
lison said there was an erroneous but
widespread belief in this country, par
ticularly in the west, that there was an
immense amount of government money
stored up in the treasury, while in fact
the real surplus was as stated by Sher-
man, $35, 100000.
The silver bill went over without
action.
Adjourned.