Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-02-07
SILVER MEN BEATEN
BY Test Vote in Committee Of the
Whole of the House.
FREE COINAGE APPEARS DOOMED.
There Is No Further Hope for Coinage
Committee Report.
PROGRESS OF SILVER POOL INQUIRY
rsrEcrAL TELEGRAM TO THE DISPATCH:

| Payson. OF Illinois, In the chair, sustained
the Chair in ruling Mr. Bland's free coinage
amendment to the sundry civil appropria-
ton bill out of order, thereby giving the
anti-!ree coinage men the victory.
There was something of feeling, how
ever, in the House that the test vote taken
upon Tree coinage, brought about by Bland's
appeal from the Chair, was hardly fair
one. Many of those who voted to sustain
the decision of Chairman Payson did so be-
cause of party reasons, but it is definitely
known that a number of those who thus
voted would cast their ballots in favor of
free coinage if it came in direct vote upon
the bill itself.
The Bill Appears Doomed
Nevertheless the action of the House is
thought by many to mean that no free coin
age bill can pass. There were probably
some Republicans who voted to sustain the
decision of the Chair, who himself is sill
yer man, because they believed that the de-
cision was in accordance with the rules. A
direct vote on free coinage bill might re-
suit differently, but it is not clear how di-
rect vote on such bill can be had during
this Congress.
When the House proceedings opened to-
day, with the pending question on the de-
cision of the Chair on Mr.. DIngley's point
of order against Mr.. Blands free coinage
amendment Mr.. Payson sustained the
point of order on the ground that the
amendment was not genuine to the para
graph to which it is offered, and that it
changed existing law.
| Scene of Intense Excitement.
Mr.. Bland appealed from the decision,
and after brief remarks by him and Mr..
Springer in opposition to the ruling of the
Chair, the vote was taken on the question,
shall the decision of the Chair stand as
the judgment of the commIttee?'
There was Immediately great excitement
in the hall, and as Messrs. Cannon and
Bland took their places as tellers nearly
and watched the count. The following
Democrats voted in the Affirmative: Messrs.
Andrew, Mutchler, Vaux, Spinola. Dunphy,
Wiley and Clancy. The following Repub-
licans voted in the negative: Messrs. Car
ter, Townsend (Col.), Lind, Bartne, Tur-
ner (Kan.), Kelley, Laws, Connell, Her
man, Sweet and Clark (Wyo.)
The vote was very close. ard not until the
last moment was it evident which side
would tip the scales. When the chair an
nounced the vote to be 134 to 127, the
| the decision was sustained.
An Explanation by Mudd
Pending the announcement of the vote
Mr.. Mudd, of Maryland, stated that he was
paired with Mr.. Featherston, of Arkansas,
against the free coinage, bill, but not con-
sidering the question of sustaining the
Chairs decision as a vote on free coinage,
he had voted in the affirmative. Mr.. Bland
| suggested that the gentleman from Mary
land was violating his pair.
| Mr. Dockery of Missouri, moved to strike
out the appropriation of 500 900 for recoin-
| age and insert the words: And so much as
may be necessary to meet the expenses of
such -ecoinage is hereby appropriated out of
| the silver profit fund.- Adopted.
In advocating his amendment Mr.. Dock
cry said that the object was to provide for
the recoinage OF S19,00O,0 200 of subsidiary
| coin now in the Treasury About SIS, ,000,-
| 600 of this consisted of half dollar pieces.
The amendment provided sufficient sum to
meet the abrasion or DETACHMENT of the coin
and permitted the Secretary of the Treasury
to substitute coins in current demand tor
these half dollar coins. A further effect of
the amendment would be to compel the Sec
retary to coin at once into standard silver
dollars the 6, ,000 coo of trade dollars now in
the Treasury.
| No Hope of Report.
The majority of the Coinage Committee
have decided that they need more informa-
| tiou, 10 be acquired through hearings, before
they can vote intelligently on the reporting
of any silver bill, and the vote to-day will
| probably strengthen them in their position
The silver men have given up all hope of
| getting any sort OF report from the commit
tee. To-day Mr.. Bland and Mr..
Bartine let the committee, refus-
ing to take any further part in the
proceedings, since it was evident that 1t was
not the purpose of the committee that any,
| thing should be done. In doing this, they
placed all their faith in their ability to force
the issue before the House, by attacking a
provision for free coinage to an appropria-
tion bill. To do this it was necessary, as
they all appreciated, to overrule the decision
| of the Chair which necessarily would be in
accordance with the rules.
To-day's vote was test of their strength
on this sort of motion, and the result
makes it evident that no attempt to attach
free silver to an appropriation bill in the
House can carry. The leaders of the Re-
pubicans do not propose to let a free coin
age bill go to the President as a rider on an
appropriation if they can help it, as this
would make his position particularly en-
barrassing, and would probably result in
the failure of an appropriation bill, making
an extra session necessary.
1t is asserted with a positiveness, which
indicates knowledge, that the President has
made up his mind that he will veto any bill
which carries free coinage, even if it should
be one of the regular appropriation bills.
The Silver Pool Investigation.
j. NJ. Donald, cashier of the Hanover Ma
tional Bank, was recalled bv the Silver
Pool Committee to-day. He denied much
of Owenby's testimony, especially the stale
ments of Owenby to the effect that the wit.
ness had stated to Owenby that Congress
men were interested in silver speculation,
and further declared that he had meyer had
a silver transaction in his life.
As to the letter from Senator described
by Owenby, witness testified that one day
0wenDy was in his Office and saw Senate
envelope. Owenby eyed it and remarked:
II know the handwriting. 1t is that of the
secretary of so and so." Witness did not
say whose writing it was, but did say to
Owenby that if he dared ask the Senator he
would tell witness all about the silver bill.
Witness explained his statement 10 Owenby
by saying that he had previously asked the
Senator several questions and did not feel
like taking up mis- time by further in
Quiries.
This was in June. The letter from the
Senator did not relate to speculation, but
was response to a request for information
as tU the progress of the silver bill.
! APPEAL TO DEMOCRATS