Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1891-12-31
PRICE 81 PER YEAR IN ADVANCE
WILMINGTON, THURSDAY. DEC. 81.


The makeup of Speaker Crisp's CON-
nittees, the chairmen of which were
announced in The GAzETTE's tele-
graphic columns last week, is criticized
more generally by the press of all shades
ofpolitical utilization than is customarily
the case. This was to have been ex-
pected since it had been plainly for.
Swallowed that the new Speaker would
turn his back on precedent and make up
his committees to suit himself, without
being controlled by considerations of
previous service or what may be styled
priority Of claim. His offer of subor-
dinate place on the ways and means
committee to Mr.. Mills was, besides
being an advertisement of his intention
10 place the Craftsmanship of that COM
mittee elsewhere, tactical blunder,
since It imposed upon Mr.. Mills
the unpleasantness of giving expression
70 the feeling that he was not to be
trusted by Mr.. Crisp to fill his old post
Whether had Mr.. Mills been chosen
Speaker, he would have felt under obi
CATION to consult Mr.. Grips preference
In the makeup of the same, or any
other committee, is fair question; but
1T would manifestly have been better for
Speaker Crisp to have ignored Mr.. Mills
wishes altogether than to have made the
, offer he did in the way he did. Thus
, this unpleasantness would have been
avoided and the appointment of Mr..
Springer to the Craftsmanship of this inn
2ortant committee have been received
solely on its merits. We see no need of
antagonism to the tariff reform policy of
the party in the course which 1t is given
out that Mr.. Springer has elected to pur-
sue-that Of attacking the most onerous
and restrictive features of the Mckinley
bill In detail instead of as a whole. If
we can get free wool, free salt, free tin,
and other free raw materials, one by
Sne, the gain in the end will be the
anne; while, if the American manufac-
tuners and the American people are re-
fused these boons by the obstinacy or
servility of the Senate or the President,
the Republicans will have the onus of
such refusal TO shoulder. Either policy
puts the Democracy on the aggressive
and the Republicans on the defensive,
and we have the new Speakers assur-
ance that "no step backward" shall be
taken in tariff reform.
The appointment of Mr.. Holman, the
champion economizer, to the chairman
ship of the appropriations committee,
81 IS the most general satisfaction. 1t
is regarded, in the language Of the Phila-
delphia Ledger, as an assurance tina.
the present is not to be Billion Dollar
Congress- and, If the great objector can
prevent 1t, neither will it be reckless
Congress in the way of making appro-
priations."
The makeup of the coinage com
mittee, with the somewhat fanatical
Mr.. Bland at its head and only four of
its thirteen members known to be abso.
lutely sound on the question of honest
money, is unfortunate, TO say the least.
no eoiipOsllloll Oh Ills committee goes
further than all else to warrant the APP
prehension that Speaker Crisp would
like to make the free coinage of silver a
dominant issue in the next cam
paign, notwithstanding the recent
Condemnation of that issue by
the Democrats Of Ohio and
the emphatic victory won by the New
York Democracy standing on plat.
form declaring unequivocally for an
honest dollar that shall be intrinsically
worth its face. II this issue should be
pressed, as it will be by Mr.. Bland if he
can have his way, it may prove for
tunate for the country that President
Harrison can be depended upon to veto
free coinage bill, should such bill
reach him; but the endorsement of such
a measure by Democratic Congress
would be an invitation to defeat in
1892 from which it is extremely doubt
full if even tariff reform could save it.
Governor Hills action in Immediately
.pardoning Supervisor WEIGH, who had