Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1890-06-18
NATIONAL CAPITAL.
L Bill Passes the Senate for The Free
Coinage Of Silver.
THE BILL AS IT NOW STANDS.
Comment as to What Action the
House Will Take-A Letter
from Blaine-Etc.
Especial DISPATCHES TO THE nEooHD-us1os.l
CONGRESSIONAL.
II THE SENATE.

IN THE SENATE.
WASHINGTON, June 18th In the Senate to-
day the House silver bill was taken up and
Wolcott addressed the Senate. He said that
when the Senators VITO lived in the silver pro-
ducing States were accused of holding sordid
and unworthy and unpatri0tic opinions and
when it was said that those who were demand
ing that silver be restored to its old place with
its sister metal were spectators and adventur-
ers, and were Indifferent to the true welfare of
the country he would have to be pardoned for
feeling that he had the right to claim the at
tention of the Senate long enough to protest
against such intimations, and against such
method of conducting the debate. If it were
true las it was mott that the people of the silver
By desire to protect an Industry on which their
properly depended, q large warrant was given
TO them for such a course by some of the East
ern States. The country, particularly in the
Northern States seemed to have fallen
into the days when politics were rated
at a commercial value alone, and when
political tealty was made to depend
where the voter resided was to be better fos-
tered by competition with other countries, or
by large and prohibitory duties which prac
tically excluded foreign competition. The
property of the people of the mountain States
of the West had ever to rest chiefly ON the
products of their mines, yet while they were
less benefited than any other regi on of the
country by high protective tariff. they were
asked every session to stand by the duties
which the East formulated, and when they
asked that silver should also be protected, they
were told that they We're sordid and unpatriotic,
and that their ideas were those of a dissatisfied
and visionary people.
Wolcott went on to crit.cise the unfriendly
attitude of the Administration toward the silver
question. and said that when Harrison was
nominated his record was searched in vain for
any noteworthy actions, saying that the Re-
publican leaders of the West made great efforts
among the farmers and miners and secured the
success of the ticket. He said that the Presi-
dent had not exactly materialized on the silver
question, and that the awakening had been
rather rude He yentured the opinion that If
the Presidents opinion on that question had
been announced before the last election not a
single State west of the Missouri river would
have given Republican majority, not because
the majority of the people OF those States were
not true and stanch and earnest Republicans,
but because they would have wished to rebuke
overwhelmingly the party that selected as their
staudard-bearer one who was unmindful of the
interests of the country and disregardful of the
will of the great majority of the members of the
party. An open foe was to be preferred to a
secret enemy. The recommendation of the
Secretary of the Treasury struck viciously at
the interests of silver. The Act of 1873 was in
fnitely preferable to the bill recommended by
the Secretary. The whole purpose of the House
phi seemed to be to degrade and debase silver;
10 make it a commodity: to reduce it to one of
the baser metals and to prevent it again taking
Its place as standard of value. In conclusion
Wolcott said the silver bill was of far greater
II,
gerrymandering bill or the tariff bill.
The conclusion of Wolcotts maiden speech
in the Senate was attended with great applause
and compliments from the Senators.
The Senate then voted ON the amendment re-
ported by the Finance Committee. striking out
of the House silver bill the provision that the
Treasury notes issued for silver "shall be legal
tender IN payment of all debts. public and pri-
vate." The amendment was reiected-yeas IA:
nays 50-and the provision remains in the bill
The Senate then voted on the second amend
ment, striking out the bullion redemption
clause. This was agreed to-yeas, 81; nays, =
so that this clause is cut out of the bi
The Senate then voted on the third amend
ment reported by the Finance Committee,
striking out the sixth section, tor the free coin
age OF silver when the market price shall
reach one dollar for S7lM grains of pure silver
The amendment was rejected-yeas, 10; nays,
DO. This provision thus remains In the bill
The amendment fixing abe Limitation of the
Act to ten years was rejected-yeas 4; NAYS Ga
Edmunds here arose and said: without il.
terfeTing with the fine symposium we are hav-
ing, wish to say am opposed 10 the bill as it
now stands and to every one of Its amendments
IN general and ia particular, and therefore that
l am not to be called upon hereafter to account
Tor having allowed the amendments to pass
without calling for the yeas and nays l am
willing to deliver over TO the Democratic party
the management of the finances of the country
for the time being. l only state this in order
that may not trouble the senate with Demand
ing the yeas and nays on the various ornament
atoms that are being given to this hoodlum
~ulCu Is set lLauSnLer.I
Plumb retorted sharply, asking what Ed
munds is going to do with the Republican plat
form, and intimated that Rdmunds does not re-
present the Republican party.
Edmunds replied that he stands by the Re-
publican party platform, but that the Democrats
and their deluded followers have abandoned
their platform and transformed it into one
which no Democratic convention ever dared to
propose, because they knew the people of the
United States would swiftly find out that they
had been deluded and misled by that cry of ex-
pansion.
vest called Edmunds' attention to the fact
that the Democratic House III 1877 passed free
coi1age Act, which, he said, was mutilated by
the Republican senate.
Mitchell addressed the Senate on the general
merits of the speech, and in the course of his
remarks declared that an Administration
which would set itself up against the free and
unlimited coinage of the silver dollar would be
as II deserved TO be, hurled from power.
Plumb moved to add a new section to come
IN as Section 2, as follows: THAT the provisions
OF Section of the Act to authorize the coinage
OF the standard silver dollar, and TO restrict its
legal tender character, which become a law
February %, 1875 is hereby made applicable to
the coinage in this Act provided for' Agreed
10 without discussion.
Regain offered the following amendment as a
substitute for sections g. 4 and 5: Section g.
That the certificates provided for in this Act
shall be of denominations OF not less than one
nor more than one hundred dollars, and that
such certificates shall be redeem able in coin OF
standard value; that sufficient sum to carry
out the provisions OF this Act is hereby appro-
prlated ont OF any money in the Treasury not
otherwise appropriated: that the provision in
section OF the Act OF February Is, 1878. which
requires the Secretary of the Treasury to pur-
chase at market price not less than two nor
more than four million dollars worth OF silver
bullion per month, is hereby repealed.
After long discussion it was modified lat the
suggestion OF tustis) by adding the words land
all silver certificates ready issued and as so
modified IL was sGroed to-yeas IS; nays D.
Plumb moved 10 insert the following as an
additional section: The owners of brllion de-
posted for coinage shall have the option TO re-
ceive coin, or It's equivalent in cert feetes pro-
vided for In this Act. and such bullion shall be
subsequently coined Agreed to without oil
vision.
The bill was then reported to the senate and
all The amendments agreed to in the Coinsuittee
OF the Whole were agreed To in the Senate
yeas, 40: nsyes 20
Chandler moved to insert the following
amendment No gold OF silver bullion shall be
received by the Treasury Department .tsader
this Act. except such as shall be shown to be
the product OF the mines within the United
States
Teller moved to lay the amendment OF the
table. Agreed to-yeas, ~; nays %
The bill as amended. then passed-yeas. q;
nays, %.
Inc title of the bill was then amended SO as
10 read IAN Act 10 provide for the tree coinage
OF gold and silver bullion and for other prr-
purposes"
taken up. so as 70 make It unfinished bus.
ness, and the Senate tnen adjourned.
IN THE HOUSE.
WASHINGTON June I7th.-After routine bust
ness the House went into Committee of the
but soon rose.
An amendment was adopted in Committee OF
the Whole. making it specific In lieu of an in
dennlte appropriation Tor the payment OF back