The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1891-02-09

The Free Coinage Party
The New York Times which has
lately been buaily engaged 10 the
somewhat dlacouraging task OF per-
euadiQg the Democratic party to turn
away lrem the free coinage deluAion
says that :.
I'm Che next Congress there WI
probably DO az many votes for free
coinage ip the Sepate, and many more
in the House. The President, &c is
true, will remain In office during the
term of that Congress, and we are
happy to believe that he can be relied
on to stop any free coinage measure
with his veto. But what the country
needs is not the mere certainty that
such bill will be vetoed. 1t needs re-
lief from agitation and from the pos
slbility Of any further compromise on
the whole subject of currency. 1t
needs security that no party will dare
to make campaign for free coinage
or for cheap money OF any kind next
year.
There is only one party that is likely
i to dare make such q campaign, and
that is the Democratic party. There
would be no danger whatever from the
silver agitation II it were not for
Democratic support. The sentiment
of that party throughout the South
and in most of the Western States is
overwhelmingly In favor of free coin
age. This has been conclusively shown
not simply in the utteranceS of its
press, but in the votes of its represen-
tatives in both branches of Congress.
In the last session of the House the
vote on free coinage showed that, out
OF 1877 Democrats, 116 were in favor of
1t. In the Senate two votes on free
coinage have been taken within the
past eight months, and on each occa-
sion only three of the thirty-seyen
Democratic Senators-Wilson OF Mary
land, Gray Of Delaware and MCPHERSON
OF New Jersey-are recorded against
1t. In other words. nearly six-sevenths
Of the Democratic Representatives and
eleven-twelfths of the Democratic Sem
ators are committed to the free coin
age Of silver.
The Times says that there will be
many more votes" for ii In the next
House, and this is simply because there
will be many more votes in that body.
When therefore 1t declares that what
the country now needs is security
that no party will dare to make cam
paign for free coinage or for cheap
money of any kind next year" it viz
tually admits that there will be no
hope of comfort in that direction
| HUN Aiit Lie
that party in the Senate and the House
have repeatedly declared in the de-
bates over this question that If they
should again be baked in their pur-
poses by the Republican House or by
the veto OF Republican President
and 1t i9 now certain that one or the
other OF these contingencies will hap
pen--they would carry the issue to the
people. Senator Morgan, of Alabama,
who is not u reckless talker, openly
asserted in the Senate that the next
national convention OF his party would
demand the FREQ and unlimited coinage
of silver, and that no candidate for the
Presidency who is not prepared to
stand on that platform need apply for
nomination. A second defeat Of free
coinage in the House by Republican
votes or "a veto by Republican Presi-
dent Is therefore only likely to inten-
sify the Democratic support of the
measure hereafter.
There will be no relief from this agi-
tation until the Democratic party has
been squarely beaten at the polls, and
the signs are daily increasing that the
question will ultimately be settled in
this way. The assurance that Presi-
dent Harrison will veto the bill now in
the hands of the House Committee on
Coinage IL it should reach him, has
given general satisfaction to the Re-
publican party, and his attitude, in
connection with that of the late Secre-
tary Window, is now the strongest
feature of the administration. AS the
great majority of Democrats through
out tho country are i'll favor of free
coinage,tso the great majority of Re-
publicans are opposed to it. The cause
OF honest money has at no time been
more dependent on the Republican
party than it is now. The Ignorance
and dishonesty which underlie this
new attempt to break il down is con-
fined chiefly to the Democratic ranks,
and the best that can be hoped from
that party, II 1t should not he cap
tured completely by the silver men, Is
q compromise" Unless all signs fail.
the New York Times will discover that
the West and South mean to dictate
the financial policy of the Democrats
in 1892 as they did in 1876 when the
situation was about the same as 1t is
now likely to be in the course of the
next year.