The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-03-24

1eAas 70 DC consistent must support the bill.
Great applause greeted the closing an
nouneement of Pierce that whatever Will
Jams. Harter, Hoar and other anti-free
| coinage Democrats might do in the event
OF the passage of this bill. the Democrats
| who advocated free coinage stood ready to
| support the nominee of the Democratic
| convention at Chicago, whether the plat
| form declared for free coinage or not. He
continued:
These are the gentlemen of New England who
say If we pass a free silver bill New England
viii send an unbroken body of Republican rem
resentatives to this hall, and that they will give
us force bill. l say TO you, gentlemen from
New England, that we, Democrats of the South
and North, measure our action by Democratic
rule, and, Thomas jefferson having said that the
cardinal principle OF the Democracy was sub
mission to the will of the majority fairly ex-
pressed, we, when the majority speaks, bow to it
and support the nominee and platform that tho
majority represents. That is our kind of DEM
ocracy. lApplause.l
Pierce spoke OF the clouds of gloom that how
cred over the South when the force bill passed
the last House and went 10 the Republican Sem
ate; when the press informed us that President
Harrison had pledged Himself to use his Official
influence to carry through that measure; but
the clouds began to break away, and through
riffs We saw the grand, glorious, brave, patri-
otie Republican senators of the West standing
between their party and the liberties Of the peo-
pie By their votes the force bill was defeated,
and say TO you, gentlemen from New England,
that the same men stand there today as bull
wark between the Republican party and the in
terests of the people. With this reliance we do
not fear the force bill, and demand that this
House give to the people full measure of
dress for the wrongs done in 1878. loud ap-
plause on the Democratic side.l
of III
in opposition to the bill. He said:
The pending bill was not bill for the free
coinage OF gold and silver, but bill for the un-
limited issue of paper money. He had a sus-
picion that the bill is an heirloom in the Bland
family. ILaughterl In reading the history of
the country he discovered that one Richard
Bland was a leading member of the house of
burgesses of Virginia, in 1Sis. Like his dis
tinguished namesake of today, he seemed to
labor under the idea that the economic and
financial system of his day needed tinkering
with. [laughterl In those days the currency
OF Virginia was tobacco hogsheads of $50
pounds. (Laughterl The inconvenience of
carrying around the legal tender of that day
naturally aroused desire to devise
more convenient system OF currency.
This desire took shape in the Bland
bill of 1S4s [Laughter.l This bill was almost
counterpart OF the bill of today. 1t provided
for the establishment of government warehouses
and the appointment Of government inspectors
in charge. The Bland bill of today provides for
United States mints, already erected. The bill
of 1913 provided for deposit of any amount of
tobacco by any person and the issue of tobacco
notes" therefor, tc be accepted as legal tender,
receivable for debts and dues of the government
The bill of today provides for deposit of silver
bullion, whether owned by inhabitant OF
England, Africa or America, and the issuance
therefor of notes as legal tender. receivable for
the debts and dues of the government. laugh
teri This bill was not bill for free and un-
limited coinage of silver, but bill for
the unlimited purchase of silver bull
ion. The bills that came before the
committee that did provide for free coinage
were all laid aside and this bill was reported in
their stead. The effect Of this bill, by repeating
the act of two years ago. would be to restore the
act of 1878.
Bland-Does the gentleman take the position
that the repeal of the act of July 4, 1890. would
revive the force of the previous act thereby re-
pealed?
stone-Yes, sir.
Bland-That is position contrary to all prin-
ciples of law ever heard OF. The act of 1890 re-
peals portion of the act of 1878. Now, this
bill, in repeating the act of 1890, does not re-
store the act OF 1s7s at all.
Stone persisted that Bland was wrong and that
the passing of the pending bill would be to re-
vive the act providing merely for compulsory
coinage of s2,eO0,0 600 per month.
AT She conclusion of Stones remarks
Bland asked consent that the debate,
which would expire tomorrow night, bo
extended till Friday afternoon at p. m.
Simpson of Kansas objected on the
ground of the failure of the friends of the
bill to make an allotment of time to the
representatives of the Peoples party.
Warner, Democrat, of New York and
Bradley of South Carolina, Democrat, then
spoke in opposition to the bill. Lynch of
Wisconsin, Stout of Michigan and Fitch
of New York earnestly opposed the bill.
McKeaghan of Nebraska said that be-
fore entering upon the discussion no
wished to discuss the minority report,
which had about it the perfume of the
banking house.
The report was begotten OF avarice, and its
fruition was the spoilation of industry. The
cry about the 70-cent dollar was a deliberate at
tempt to suborn the public conscience. The
standard silver dollar was 100 cents, aud the
clap-trap about the 70cent dollar was simply an
assault on the dictionary. Free coinage would
wipe out the disparity between the coin and
bullion value of the dollar, and our silver dol
lar the world over will be OF the same value as
the metal in it. What the value OF the dolla-
would be as expressed in gold msJ
bs another question Competent students
insisted that it would restore the
old ratio between gold and silver bullion. The
gentleman from Ohio (Harter) had sent out
notices to Grand Army posts asking them TO
protest against passage the of the bill. He ME
Keaghanl was an old soldier, and he could not
forget that he had enlisted when gold aud sill
yer were the only legal tender currency. He
received deprecated paper and never heard a
howl from the fellows who represented the
banking interests OF the country. This duplicity
did not fool the old soldiers. The people that
he [McKesghanl represented were not anar-
ehists; they were not opposed to the accu-
mutation OF wealth, but they be-
lieved that the wealth distribution. If
permitted to follow natural laws, would be pro-
port!oned to skill, economy and the labor en-
p,oyed. That man must be blind who did not
see that wealth was becoming great political
power In the country The people wero organ
ICED and would never cease this agitation until
corporations and monopo,ies bowed in obedi-
dienes TO just laws.
Bushnell of Wiscon sin spoke in favor of
proposed amendment providing that
hereafter the silver dollar shall contain
one troy ounce of pure silver. After a
speech by Perkins of Iowa in opposition
to the bill, the House took 4 recess until
evening.
At the evening session Coombs Of New
York. Bacon of New York and Page OF
Maryland opposed the bill.
Livingstone of Georgia, in advocating
the bill, said if congress did not now hear
the voice of the people, the time would
soon come when that voice would bs
heard. Speaking of the contest
in the Democratic party in New York,
T4fIf apJ