Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1892-04-01
The Record of the Two Parties on Free


silver.
We recorded briefly, last week. the result
of the three-days' debate in the House on
the free silver bill, as reached at midnight
on Thursday night. This result was, i'm eff
feet, an indefinite postponement of the
whole matter, a motion to lay the bill on
the table failing by tie vote, and Mr.
Bland himself finally moving an adjourn
ment when he found that it was useless to
prolong the struggle. The scenes in the
House during the seven hours which this
contest lasted, from o clock Thursday aft
ernoOn until II, have not been equaled for
disorder, confusion and riot in many years.
The speaker was powerless to maintain
even "A semblance of order. and during
much of the time the House was a pande-
nOnium.
The attitude of the two parties on the
question of sound money is shown by the
following table giving the vote on the mo-
tion to table the bill
Democratic vote for free silver .. ....... l3i
Democi attic vote against free silver .... -
Democratic majority for free silver ..... .... -
Republican vote against free silver ...... 81
Republican vote for free silver. .... ......1 II
Republican majority against free silver ... ST
In considering these figures it must be
remembered that, of the - Democrats who
voted against free silver many so voted,
not from conviction, but because they
thought postponement of the question nee
essary to party success this year. Had not
the strong majority of Republicans voted
as they did the free silver bill would have
gone to its final passage in the House, and
thence to the Senate for concurrence: but
at the right moment Mr.. Burrows of Mich
igan and eX-Speakcr Reed of Maine, with
out flourish or display, stepped into the
breach and with their - followers held the
Democratic free silver flood in check. Fur
ther than this, it is a fact to be noted and
remembered that, of the II Republicans
who voted with the ree-silverites, only one
Taylor of Ohio-came from a district
east of the Mississippi. Eight of the II
came from the silver-mining states of the
Pacific slope and the remaining two from
Kansas. Briefly summarizing and compar-
iilS thV d'NlbhNlN VI tllt lNp pdlNlCS IL may
be said that more than three-fifths of the
Democrats in the House voted for free sill
Yer, while the Republicans voted six to one
against it.
Up to Monday of this week it was ex-
pected that the Bland bill would be forced
to a final vote by the committee on rules
bringing in special order naming day
and hour when it should be again taken up
and all debate shut off. Speaker Crisp
was afraid, however, when the time came
to countenance a measure so drastic-mOre
arbitrary than anything ever charged to
Mr.. Reed-and when Monday came there
was CONSERVATION in the free-silver camp
at Mr. Crisp's announcement that he would
not vote in the committee on rules in favor
of bringing in a rule. to shut off debate on
the Bland bill unless he received written as
surance from a majority of the Democratic
members that they would support the rule
An attempt was made to secure Democratic
signatures to such an agreement, but it was
soon given up as useless, and Mr. Bland
acknowledged himself cheated, and beaten
for the present. In other words the dam
gerous measure is hung up until next De
cember, after the presidential election is
over and Congress- meets again