Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-03-23
THE INTEREST INTENSE.
Three of the Most Fiery Anti-Silver
Speakers Let Loose.
MIKE HARTER GETS EMPHATIC
And Illustrates His Position to Q Colleagues
Detriment.
BILL FOR AN OHIO RIVER COMMISSION
ESPECIAL TELEGRAPHIC LETTER.
BUREAU OF The DISPATCH,
WASHINGTON, d. c., March

WASHINGTON. ID. e.. March z
An immense audience, crowded press
gallery for almost the first time since the
beginning of this session, long and prosy
speech by Silver Bill Bland, short ones by
Williams, Harter and Raynor, the three
most fiery speakers of the anti-silver faction
these were the conspicuous features of the
opening day of the free coinage bill discus
zion.
1t was only great day from the fact that
It at last gave final and vocal utteranoe to
the great quarrel that is splitting the Dem
ocratic party into smithereens As one
anti-silver Democrat expressed himself /!
s'This is the most effective Republican mass
meeting ever saw" 1t was not q great day
in its arguments. The giants were notice
able for their absence. No Randall or
Carlisle or Cox was there to lend
grand force to the occasion, to struggle
with each other over the silver bill, as they
were wont to do over the tariff, and to give
to the opposing factions an air of being un-
der leadership competent for great things
Party Lines Entirely Wiped Olt.
As Bland said, when Tom Watson, the
Alliance leader, demanded share of the
time, saving he ''belonged to an independ-
ent party, 1--WE are all Independent on this
question: there is no party, and the Alli-
auce people will get their show as individ-
uals, and not as party"
1t was certainly every fellow for himself,
who could beg a few minutes of time from
members of the Committee on Coinage, who
party paint was put on the situation by Re
publicans obiecting to the control Of their
time by Democrats, anti-silver men As
Boutelle, who in a way assumes charge of
the little "old guard" of Republicans when
Reed is not present, tersely put it: "We
are at least the majority of the minority on
this question, and propose to control our
own time" And Of course they had their
way, as a matter of right.
The matter of the speeches of to-day was
not specially interesting, because it con-
tanned little that was new. Bland went
over almost the same ground upon which
he travelled in the report of the majority of
the committee and with his usual uncouth
gesture and indistinct utterance. He had
the attention of Just so many as could hear
him easily. Others-which included nearly
all of the Republicans-wentt to luncheon
or to the smoking rooms.
Bland's Speech Not Entirely Bad.
presented the case of the free coinage side
about as strongly as it could be put He
worked the facts of history bearing on the
subject for all they were worth in his favor,
often illogical from lack of exact and
analytical data, but putting as solid ground
behind him as he could with the material he
had to work with. He and all other speak
ers and writers upon the relations of gold
and silver, on all sides of the question, have
had to confess their inability to furnish in
disputable diagrams of the future of gold
and silver under conditions that have not
come to pass and that must to some extent
be guessed Bland and all the rest labored
violently with the spirit of prophecy, but
with something of that lack of exactness
which has marked prophecy in all times,
which could be interpreted variously and
which would enable the prophet, after al
most any sort of fulfllment, to say: ''Told
you So" / do not fancy that any one of
that great audience of to-day has had alb
solute conviction of anything from those
speeches.
Williams well-voiced oration was pleas
ing in q way, but he suffers from Boutelle's
phrase, 'Mugwump kindergarten, applied
to the young men from Massachusetts. He
looked like and was looked upon as q COL
lege student delivering commencement
essay.
Harter Reaches . Strong Climax.
If Williams was conspicuous for finished
language and manner, Harter was conspicu-
Gus for lack of it. Harter's speech was the
funniest effort that has been heard in the
House this session. He had it down to
dollars and cents, and almost to mills, lust
how much each element of the creditor class
will lose by the depreciation of silver on ac-
count of free coinage. and his pathetic and
startling description of the reduction to
pauperism of bank depositors, pensioners,
persons whose lives are insured, persons
owing money on property, from such depre
citation, occasioned roars of laugh
ter. He seemed actually crazed
AT one climax he described how the silver
millionaires would ''grab the people pv the
nape of the neck ard shake them to pieces
just like that, - and suiting the words to the
action, he grabbed little McKaig, of Mary
land, who sat beside him, by the collar, and
shook him savagely. 1t was SO ludicrous that
all thought of decorum was forgotten, and
everybody, even the Speaker, lay back in
their chairs, and minutes of laughter passed
before order could be restored
McKaig was the only one who failed to
laugh. He scowled savagely at Harter, and
half rose from his seat, as though to resent
the attack then and there, and it was this
action which brought Harter to first reali-
zation of the extent of his offense. In his
excitement he had been strong as prize
fighter, and McKaig's head and shoulders
slashed about in his grasp for a moment as
a rat would in the jaws of a bull terrier
The moment he realized his action. Harter,
now distressingly embarrassed, tapped Nc
Kaig caressingly on shoulder and cheek.
bowling low before him again and again.
with a contrition that was painful to see.
but which only aroused other roars of
laughter.
Broken Up in the Excitement
McKaig looked at the poor man with a
coutemptuous expression at first, but the
protesoueness of Harter's performance at
last brought faint smile to his lips, though
he turned away without accepting the
anology. The occurrence was SO unusual
that II is worth telling at some length, as
warning to young Congressman to keep
their presence of mind while in the throes
of oratorv Over his remaining five minutes
Harter stumbled wofully. He had broken
himself up.
The speech of the day was really that of
Rayuer. the brilliant young Hebrew Con-
oressmau from Baltimore. So impassioned
al sll times that he often degenerated into
,anting, he is vet remarkably clear in his
irguments, and gave to-day by all odds the
Eronpest utterance yet heard In this Con-
sress against free coinage.
The holding of night sessions on the silver
hill. and the granting of general leave to
print speeches in the Record without deliv-
erv. show the axiety of members to get
themselves immortalized in black and white
=. .b;s ouestion It is safe TO say that from