The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-07-09
SENATE AND HOUSE.
The Conference Report on the
Silver Bill
is THE CHIEF TOPIC OF DEBATE
Why Vest Will Vote Against the Report
Sherman's Defense of It-Voorhees
States his Objections.

vote against the report A large majority
of the Senate has voted, he said for the
free coinage of silver, but the conference
report absolutely did away with all idea OF
free coinage and was intended to continue
the system under which silver had been
persistently degraded since 1878. He was
anxious to see an absolute parity between
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,
as at present, to purchase sixteen ounces
of silver. He read the closing clause OF
the second section Of the conference bill,
sit being the established policy of the
United States to maintain the two metals
on parity with each other upon the pres
ent legal ratio, or such ratio as may be pro-
vided by law and asked why that
stump speech had been injected into the
stomach of the bill. 1t had been put in, he
said, for the purpose OF saying to the
treasury department that until silver came
to parity with gold it should pay out gold
and the public business should be con-
Quoted on gold basis.
He for one would never vote to maintain
and continue that practice. He never had
been 'silver man" for the purpose OF
booming silver or increasing its price. He
was against that and all other forms Of
subsidy. The conference bill might give
an increased market for silver, but the
principle for which the Senate voted-that
the two metals should be on parity-had
| been given away on that bill absolutely
and completely.
Coke expressed concurrence in the con-
clusion reached by Vest. He could not
support the conference bill. The Senate
conferees had not represented the bill of
the Senate, which had been declared for
the 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; that there was
no compulsion on the secretary of the
! treasury to coin silver after the 1st OF il y,
1891 Silver coinage was then left to the
discretion of the secretary, and such dis
erection was equal to stopping the coinage
OF silver. That was fact well known and
| admitted on debate. He was opposed to
| buying single ounce of silver to be coined
He was opposed to the United States going
into the warehouse business for silver or
any other product. If silver was not to be
coined, why should it be purchased! If
the object of the bill was to ad-
yer, why should its coinage
be stopped. Then coinage alone conferred
upon il the power of money, two-thirds OF
tie people of the United States who were
in favor of the free and unlimited coinage
of silver, and it was admitted that the ma
jority in the Senate were checked at every
turn by the executive and the secretary
OF the treasury. He proposed to vote
against the conference bill because he pre-
ferred the Law as it now stands.
i Sherman defended and explained the
conference report. A question had arisen
in conference committee. he said, whether
the houses could be brought to an agree
lment on the two bills passed by them
respectively. In the first section of the
conference bill the language of the first
section of the House bill had been retained
somewhat But the amount of silver to be
} purchased had been increased Much to his
regret, it had been fixed at a larger
amount than the entire American product
of silver. 1t had been made mandatory
not permissive, on the secretary of the
treasury to buy 800, 900 ounces of silver
| each month which, at the rate of S1.29 Al
ounce, or 16 to /, would amount to yearly
issue of about seventy millions in treasury
notes.
3 The legal tender clause in the House bill
, and the Senate bill had been somewhat diff
ferent and somewhat alike also, and TIT
question had come up in conference
whether it would be right to deprive tn,
citizens of the United States of the right t.
contract for payments in gold or anythin!
I else. 1t had therefore been agreed unaui-
l mously that the treasury notes issued 10
silver, like the silver dollar on which i
was based, should be legal tender for al
debts public and private, except wher
: otherwise stipulated in the contract Tha
e same clause was to be found in the Blan
S bill.
n Stewart-Does the senator from Obi
+ think there is any danger of the secretar
;, of the treasury failing to buy 100000
L ounces of silver per month if he can get
!. at less than par, as provided in the act.
: Sherman-Not the slightest The Senat
cannot legislate on the idea that an Office
s of the government will not execute tn
a law. The suggestion has been made abor
the President and the secretary of tn
s treasury haunting the capitol in regard I
T. the bill. | have no. seen either OF thel
IL and l do not think a single conferee ha
+ seen either of them during the conference
The President of the United States will d
e what he thinks it his bounden duty to
X under his obligation AS to his seeking
?. influence me, or my seeking to infuent
him, that is rather beyond the bounds
reason.
e. Voorhees, said the trouble about the cor
&c ference bill was not whether the secretal
- OF the treasury would obey the law, bi
IL that every single section of the bill gay
1t discretion to the secretary of the treasur
If who was packed" against silver. Ever
l. single section of the bill conferred, ar
9. was intended to confer, discretion on tt
f. secretary of the treasury, by which
could destroy, hishonor and degrade silv
lie as money. He did not reflect upon tx
,r present secl etary of the treasury The trea
a ury department had been packed" again
ID silver ever since he (Voorhees) had been
lie member of the Senate, not merely und
TX the Republican party, but under his oN
lg party, until he was weary of it.
Teller said much as he disliked the adol
ton of halfway measure, he was col
PEELED to support the conference bill as Il
n only measure which sought to bring reli
,n to the people of the United States for Il
te next few months. Congress would assel
as BILE in December next, and If the bill q
"a, not work well it could be reformed ne
session. He was restrained by the cou
tesy due to another body (the House
Representatives from expressing his OPT
Ia ion with regard to its course. The DO,
-. which had been considered the represent
IL tive body of the American people abs
at lutely Haunted in the face of the Americ
people the demand made upon 1t by W.
dc street by disregarding the public sem
no ment. There had been no lobby in eth
le house. but there never had been sucf
ad pressure brought upon Congress
of that brought upon it at Il
n session TO defeat the Tree coinage OF S1lV
If Heu believed it impossible to secure fl
II coinage at the present session because t
at voice of the majority in the House W
"' stifed and not to be heard, and it wot
never be heard until the people Of t
United States sent to the House and Sen;
:. men willing to represent them in spite
S0 exterior influence.
n Stewart said if the conference bill v
,s- executed in good faith (as the Senate v
t bound to assume it would be- it would g
great relief. He was confident it would