Los Angeles herald., 1890-06-08
STATUS OF SILVER.
The House Substitute Bill
Passed.
1t Is the Conger Bill With
Amendments.
An Interesting Discussion Previous
to Its Passage.
Congressman Payson Deals Some Hard
Blows to the Administration--The
Vote: 1876 to 119.
Associated Press Dispatches. |

tute so as to provide that the treasury
notes issued in pursuance of the bill
shall be legal tender in payment of all
debts, public and private, striking out
the following words Except where
otherwise expressly stipulated in con-
tract"
Payson said that he realized that the
substitute would in substance pass this
body, and it would be done in obedience
to public sentiment, which he believed
to be universal in favor of larger use
of silver as money metal, and of
further increase of the currency of the
country. If the government used silver
at all, it should be used as money
metal, and not as a commodity. He
was opposed to the substitute because
OF that, but he expected to give it his
support on this contingency. He
hoped opportunity would be given
to strike out the llion-redemption
feature. This bill was bound to be con-
sidered at the other end of the capitol;
it would be amended there. Nine hun
dred and ninety-nine out of every thou
sand OF his constituents were opposed to
the bill, and he said in the presence of
the house and country that nine hun
dred and ninety-nine caucuses would
never compel him to misrepresent the
people he represented. [Applause.]
Payson then proceeded to criticize the
silver policy of the Hayes, Arthur,
Cleveland and Harrison administra-
tions. He referred to the denunciation
of the Cleveland administration by the
Republican party and said he endorsed
that denunciation all over Illinois, Moth
ing, he said, afforded him more pleas
ure than the denunciation of the Cleve-
land administration for it's treatment
of silver. But when he came down to
the Republican administration, it was
no better. [Applausel. Silver had no
friend in the treasury department since
the agitation began, and when he was
asked to vote for the proposition of con-
fding to the secretary of the treasury
metal, if that were the end of it, he
cretion been confded to a secretary of
the treasury, where possible to evade it,
that it had not been evaded. If the dis
cretion vested in the secretary of the
treasury had been fairly used for the
past six months, let alone seven or
eight years, no such legislation as this
would be under discussion today. Ap-
plausel. The treasury officials were the
friends of gold, and gold alone. Instead
of being bill for the coinage of silver,
it was a measure which practically pro-
hibited the coinage of standard silver
dollars. lApplausel.
Payson was followed by Mutchler, of
Pennsylvania, and Hatch, of Missouri,
in opposition to the bill.
Ii the gentlemen on the other side
who on the floor declared themselves in
favor of free and unlimited coinage,
would throw off the caucus shackles,
said Hatch, before the sun went down
today silver would be restored to perfect
equality with gold.
Bartine, of Nevada, declared himself a
hat-footed free-coinage man.
Cannon said he would vote for the
substitute, because he believed at the
present time and under the present con-
dition it was the best that could be pro-
cured. While he did not apprehend
that the bill was perfect, his Judgment
was that, take it all in all, it was the
soundest measure the house could
originate and pass, and from every stand
point, and all things considered, it met
his unqualified approval and endorse
ment, standing as he did, between the
extreme silver man on the one hand and
the gold monopolist on the other.
Anderson, OF Kansas, favored free
coinage.
Perkins, of Kansas, said the bill did
not meet his approval, but he would
vote for it, because he knew that in an
other form it would be amended.
Funston, of Kansas, and Connell, of
Nebraska, favored a free coinage measure.
Dingley, of Maine, supported the bill.
Brewer, of Michigan, and Sweeney, of
Iowa, spoke for the bill.
Grosvenor, of Ohio, characterized as
fraudulent the pretense of the Demo-
cratic party that it had ever favored free
and unlimited coinage of silver. 1t had
been the shuttlecock of the Democratic
dishonest method of politics.
Mckinley said the bill would utilize
every dollar of the silver product of the
United States. 1t provided also that
the instant silver was ON parity with
gold, that very instant there would be
free and unlimited coinage of silver.
Congress must see that the money pro-
vided for the people is absolutely safe
from financial wrecks and commercial
convusions, and be absolutely safe
and secure in the hand of politics.
This bill gave the country money that
was good for the people and would be
good for all time. Vote down this
measure and the gentlemen knew there
would be no legislation on the subject.
The Democrats knew they would not get
free coinage when they were in the ma
jority. They knew they could not get it
now, and so to defeat this bill was to
defeat all silver legislation.
The hour of 3 o'clock having arrived,
the previous question on consideration
was ordered. The amendments to the
original bill offered by Taylor, of Illinois,
and O'Donnell, of Michigan, were in
formally adopted.
McComas's s amendment to the substi-
tute was also adopted. 1t provides that
when. free coinage is attained, the
monthly bullion purchase shall cease.
The substitute as amended was then
agreed to, and the question recurred
upon agreement to the bill as amended
by the substitute.
Bland, of Missouri, moved to recon-
NIT the bill with instructions to the COM
mittee to report free coinage bill not
later than Tuesday next
Dingley of Maine, made a point OF
order against the latter portion Of the
Instructions which uoc sustained and