Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1892-02-17
ANTS WILL FIGHT.
The Contest on Silver LikeIv
To Be Interesting.
TRACBY's PRELIMINARY sKIRMISH.

He Tries His Hand at Obstruction with
Considerable Snccess-The Opposition
Claiming Majority in the House
bland Pooh-PoOhs Any Antagonism Be-
tTocn the Silver Men and Tariff Il eform-
ers-Alliance Men and Grangers Havea
Whack at Future DcaIing-NationaI
Capital GleaninSs.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 17.-Until Catchings
returns from Boston, probably tomorrow.
the advocates of the Bland free coinage
bill will not present their petition asking
the committee on rules, of which Catch
lngs Is a member, to bring in an order set
| ting apart time for the consideration of
the bill The dozen copies of the petitions
that are being circulated have appended
to them nearly the desired number of
nanleN--a majority of Democratic mem
bers and there will not be much trouble
| IN securing the few more signatures
needed. When the signatures desired
have been secured the petition will be laid
before the committee on rules which is
expected to take speedy action on it. There
has been some talk of calling caucus of
Democratic members on the silver bill,
but there is decided disposition against
this, and it will probably not be had. \
number of members have expressed a be
lief that the bill be taken up by the house
next week.
Likely To Be FiIibusterins.
But when 1t is taken up there is a great
probability that Gen Filibuster7 will be
in command OF the opposition forces, and
If this is the case there are enough oppon-
ents of the bill to make matters exceed
ingly interesting. A shadow of what
coming events may be fell o. the house
yesterday, when Tracey OF New York kept
the clerks busy calling the roll, his object
being to stave Off any attempt to get up
the silver bill as long as possible. Right
after the morning hour the house got
tangled up for nearly an hour in parlia-
mentary discussion as to what business to
take up for the rest of the day. Motions
to proceed to unfinished business and
counter motions prevailed-the unfinished
business being motion pending to lay on .
the table the motion to reconSidcrt the vote by
which the resolution was indefinitely post
poned authorizing the secretary of the
navy to transport contributions for the re-
lief of the suffering of Russia.
Where Tracey Got in His Work.
This little parliamentary tangle was
Tracy's opportunity. He moved to take
recess for an hour; lost to I67 He then
demanded the yeas and nays on his motion;
lost to 195. The silver bill is now on the
house calendar. There are only two meas
| uFes on the calendar as unfinished bust
| ness, the motion authorizing the reconsider
ing of the vote TO indefinitely postpone the
resolution regarding the transportation of
| contributions to Russia, and the motion
| for tho third raadin,r off ha hill for 20
| lief of AQuilla Jones. These being disposed
| of the silver bill could be considered in the
morning hour for two days, when it would
become unfinished business. So Traecy's
| idea was to keep the house busy with
| dilatory motions as long as possible As
| he succeeded alone yesterday in preventing
any business after the morning hour, eX-
! cept the tabling of the motion TO recon
| slider the Russian relief postponement, it
may be seen what can be done with
determined and SiZable minority at his
| back.
Strength of the Opposition.
Anti-free silver men count up ninety
| two Democratic votes and seventy-seven
| Republican votes, making a total of 169
or majority of six in the house, counting
the speaker as voting with the minority
| This majority will be swelled to twenty
or thirty if conservative southern and
western Democrats who are opposed to
| forcing the silver issue vote according to
| their convictions. If ii is even forty or
| fifty votes short, the minority will be so
large that, stated above, General Fill
buster" c;.a make things exec cdingly inter-
esting.
The silver and Tariff Bills.
Speaking of the report that a conflict
was imminent between the silver men and
| tariff reform advocates over the question
of precedence for the consideration of
| measures upon these subjects by the
house, Bland said yesterday that it was
| nonsense. There is not free coinage
Democrat in the house." said he, who is
not an advocate of tariff reform. The best
tariff reformers in the house are for free
coinage. The only thing that has led some
of US to think that perhaps the silver bill
| should be taken up first is that it should
| be got out of the way to clear the deck for
| tariff. No one wants to supplant tariff
with silver as an issue. BY the attention
given to it, the time taken in consideration
of the bills and in debate and in every way
the tariff question will be kept to the front
| and be given supreme Importance.
| Dined the Supreme Court.
| WASHINGTON, Feb. 17.-President and
Mrs. Harrison gave dinner last night at
the White House in honor of the supreme
court. The following guests were present:
The chief justice and Mrs. Fuller, Justice
and Mrs. Field, Justice and Mrs. Harlan,
Justice and Mrs. Gray, Justice Blatchfortl,
Justice and Mrs. Brewer, Justice and Mrs.
Brown, ex-Justice Strong, Attorney Gen
eral and Mrs. Miller, several senators and
their wives, including Teller and Villas,
Representative Burrows and wife, John
| w. Foster and wife, and others