Los Angeles herald., 1892-03-08
The Free Coinage Issue Has
Come to Stay.
All Attempts to Postpone 1t
& Have Failed.
The First Vote on the Question Taken
in the House.
Result: An Overwhelming victory for
the Free Silver Men-March 22d
Set for Consideration of
the Bland Bill.
Associated Press Dispatches.

Associated Press DISPATCHES.
WASHINGTON, March 1.-THE free coin
age issue will not down. The gentle
men of both parties who have been
hoping it would be postponed until after
the elections, are tonight convinced that
the issue must be disposed of by the
house before the date of the national
convention. The free coinage men OF
both parties are of course highly elated.
The gold men in the Democratic party
are filled with dismal forebodings, while
the anti-free coinage Republicans, who
comprise IS per cent of the Repub-
lican membership in the house, are dis
posed to view the matter with COM
placency. The vote today indicates that
the house will surely pass the Bland
bill, so decisive and overwhelming was
the victory of the advocates of free coin
age. 1t was significant feature OF the
proceedings that on all disputes that
arose on parliamentary questions, the
anti-free coinage men did most OF the
talking. To one unfamiliar with
political methods, the conclusion would
have been irresistible after listening to
the denunciation OF Speaker Crisp's
rulings; to the impassioned oratory and
direful predictions of those opposed to
the Bland bill, that the free coinage
men were to be swept away in a whirl-
wind of popular indignation. Yet when
the vote came, not on the silver resolu-
ton alone, but on all auxiliary ques-
tions, the free coinage men came to the
front in an unbroken phlalanx, and by
vote of over two to one routed their OPP
ponents. On the last and vital PROPOSE
ton, that setting apart three days for
consideration of the Bland bill, the free
coinage men won by the overwhelming
vote Of 100 to "a.
Before the reading OF the journal,
Catchings of Mississippi called up the
resolution setting apart three days for
the consideration of the silver bill the
clerk proceeded to read it, and before its
conclusion, Catchings demanded the
previous question on it's adoption.
Tracey OF New York called attention
to the fact that the journal had not been
read.
The speaker declared that it was in
order to call up the resolution, and the
reading of the resolution was concluded.
Dingley-Has the chair ruled that
this report of the. committee on rules
can be considered before the. journal has
been read?
The speaker-The chair has. That is
the provision of the rule. .,s
Dingley-Then the chair decides that
business can be done before the reading
of the journal?
The speaker-The chair so decides.
Tracey-I appeal from the decision OF
the chair.
In advocacy of his appeal, Tracey said
it would be an unfortunate precedent
to rule that the committee on rules,
consisting practically of three members,
could come into the house and force
upon three hundred odd mem
bers the consideration of any reso-
hutton they might desire to call up.
The house ought to proceed with great
caution. The eyes of the entire country
were on the house this day, and this
resolution was upon a matter which
concerned the people more than any
question that has come before congress
for Thirty years. In regard to the ques-
tion of reading the journal, it was GUS
tomary to read the journal every morn
ing before proceeding to business.
Knowing this many members were alb
5cut, 1uQ d 1dlI ouOulo OO
given them to, reach the capitol.
Tracey yielded five minutes to Fitch Of
New York who seconded his colleagues
with expressions of the highest respect
for the fairness of the chair, but he con
CURED fully in what had been said in
regard to the danger of the precedent
which it was proposed to set. Those
Democrats who had over and over again
demanded the reading of the journal in
the last house, knew their demand had
always been granted, and in Demo
cratic house that such refusal should
be made, was as unfair to his
mind as anything that had been
done in the last house. There was
good deal of talk in his state about
premature or snap conventions. If
there was ever anything premature or
unexpected to those who opposed silver
legislation, it " as the swapping OF this
resolution on them before the reading
of the journal. The representatives
from New York would stand by what
they thought right with the same stead
fastness and courage that they had
stood by the present speaker, when, as
a gentleman from Georgia, he had pro-
tested against things which were no
more unjust than the thrusting of this
resolution before the house before the
reading of the journal. The party owed
something to the Democrats of New
York. 1t had no right to load them
down, and from them it must expect, as
it deserved, most emphatic protests.
The ruling of the speaker was defend
ed by Bland OF Missouri, and very
warm colloquy ensued between Tracey
and the speaker as to the right OF the
former gentleman to the floor.
A warm controversy arose after the
conclusion of BANDS remarks. In
those remarks he alluded to converse
ton he had with Cochran of New York
and Andrews of Massachusetts, in
which those gentlemen stated that if
consideration OF the resolution was post
poned till today there would be no
1ilibustering on the part of the anti
silver men, and he charged those anti
silver men with bad faith.
To this charge Cochran made fiery
denial. He had had a conversation
with the gentleman from Missouri and
at that conversation Bland declined to
agree to the resolution being taken up
today. 1t was only after he had had
talk with the members of the committee
on rules that Bland consented to it. Not
one word about flibustering had been
Haid in his conversation with Bland.