The Portland daily press., 1890-06-19
MESSRS. REED, M'KINLEY AND CANNON
Will See That the Silver Bill Has
Proper Consideration.
The SILVER Senators Defeated Theii
Party's RaiIroadine Scheme.
They Forced the Bill Into Committee
by Their Amendments.
Especial to the Press. !

WASHINGTON, June 1S.-There has been
done today great deal of anxious work on
the silver question. Yesterdays action of
the Senate has noticeably stiffened those rep
resentatives who formerly were inclined to
favor free coinage, but hesitated to break
with their party. On the other hand, a few
of the Democratic hard money men seem to
have been brought to their senses and are
more ready to work with the Republicans.
When the free coinage bill came over from
the Senate today the silver men greeted it
with loud applause and SO confident were
they of passing it that 'Silver Dollar" Bland
moved at once that the committee of the
whole, which was in the midst of the Indian
appropriation bill, arise. His motion was to
rush the silver bill through in concurrence.
But the Republicans rallied quickly and de-
feated him, all the free silver men not under
standing the object of Bland's motion. The
hope of the silver men has been to force the
matter to vote in the House at once on the
question of concurrence with the Senate. If
they could do this they are confident that
they could win and their opponents fear that
they would.
But the silver Senators over-reached them
selves. They put into their amendments to
the House bill provision that the govern
ment should pay the expenses of doing the
free coinage. This of course involves an ex-
penditure of public money, and every bill
expending money must go to the committee
of the whole and the calendar, where it is
largely at the disposal of the committee on
rules. Messrs. Reed, Mckinley and Cannon
are majority of the rules committee, and
they are men of courage who are not swept
away by the free silver craze. OF course
they will not attempt to stile the bill in
committee or on the calendar, but the fact
that the bill must be referred to the commit
tee of the whole. which involves a recon-
initial to the coinage committee, and that
the rules committee can prevent hasty con-
sideration, insures due consideration which
will probably bring about a satisfactory
compromise. While free coinage
might be carried with the House,
as against no legislation at all, saving rem
nant of the silver men prefer a moderate to
a radical measure. The measure which has
passed the Senate is viewed with consterna-
tion by some of the ablest financiers in the
country and in the House. A Republican
leader of the West, who is level headed on
financial questions, said today: Should
that Senate bill become law, all our gold
would leave us in 80 days in exchange for
the silver that would pour in from abroad.
1t is useless to say that the rise in the price
of silver caused by the bill would prevent
a catastrophe for it would be necessary to
bring silver to par with gold on the 16 to one
ratio not only in the United States, but
over the whole round earth and the Ameri-
can. Congress cannot do that.
Tomorrow the bankruptcy bill will prob
ably be considered, and it is expected that a
vote will be reached Friday.