Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-07-02
THE SILVER QUESTION.
TA4 shSEH QCESTION.
Embaxrassmsnt Felt BY the Majority IN the
House Over the senass's Action.
WHAT TIE Axrf-srLvKR pRnoclAfs WILL PROP
ABLY Do-rHx BILL NAT BK AMENDED IN
ooNMrfrIK-A LrvELr FIoHr ANTICIPATED
WHEN II oKrs INTO TIE HOUSE.


The free silver bill came over 10 the House
this morning with the approval Of the Sonata
The managers Of the House now find them
selves confronted by very serious embarrass-
ment. The question they have to meet IL one
that they are not prepared for, and in balancing
the advantages and Disadvantages they are re-
quired to mako very . complicated calculation q
and some very nice discrimination. The mass Of
the democrats in the House are glad Of chance
to vote on the BILL feeling more interest in their
own Affairs At home than in the broader ques-
ton OF the effect upon the country at large.
But the managers, feeling . responsibility for
the welfare OF the national party, are in an
uneasy frame Of mind. The chances favor
the passage Of the bill by the House.
Quite . number Of those democrats
who opposed the passage Of the Bland bill dur
ing the early part OF the session, not desiring
the House to take the initiative, are now Of the
opinion that the best thing to do under the pc.
culiar circumstances il to pass the Stewart bill
are subject to revision, - opinions have been
formed hastily.
TIE CONDITIONS NOW DIFFERENT.
The conditions are now very different from
those controlling when the Bland bill was under
consideration. The members from silver dis
tricts are now face to face with the question in
such an attitude as not to admit Of any dodging.
The only Offset lies in the fact that the demo-
cratic platform squints decidedly against free
coinage at the present ratio. This opens m
opportunity which some Of the anti-silver men
expect to avail themselves Of for an effort &c
amend the bill SO as to change the ratio. This
move. however, is apt TO meet with failure, and
the chief reliance Of the anti-eilver men is in
tbA 1rr,ltx Il La H.
either Of the committee or the House. They
think 1t will be particularly difficult to get q
quorum OF the committee on coinage, to which
the bill viii have to be referred.
THE REruBLIcANs IN THE HOUSE.
II the republicans as body would Join with
the anti-silver democrats in an effort TO break q
quorum in the House they might succeed, bu,
there is possibility that, for political
In this movement. There is an i'm
precision that President Harrison, concluding
that the public may not be sufficiently dis
eliminating to fix the responsibility for the
passage Of the bill through the Senate where it
belongs, but may in a general WY credit il to
the republican Senate, will want an opportunity
to veto the bill, so as to give emphasis to his
position. II the President should take
this view Of the matter, the republicans in the
House who are opposed to the bill will con-
tent themselves with voting against il and will
not join in iilibuster. The anti-silver dem-
ocrats are not at all confident at this time that
they can defeat the bill but they are deter
mined to do SO II possible, and determination ID
better than confidence In such an emergency.
THE COINAGE COMMITTEES PROBABLE COURSE.
The bill will 60 to the committee on coinage,
and there an attempt will be made to break q
quorum and delay the report. This failing
efforts will be made to amend, as an amend.
ment would kill the bill as effectually a
negative majority vote. Mr. John.
son. q member Of the committee, proposes
to offer m amendment restricting the coinage
to the product Of the American mines, and
various other amendments viii be offered.
When the committee reports the bill back "a
the House they viii ask the committee on rules
to report . special order fixing time for its
consideration. The probabilities are that the
committee on rules will make such a
report, and that IL will not include any cloture
rule. II the bill once gets before the House,
than which there is nothing more probable,
there will be q very lively fight, and IL there il
q vigorous and persistent flibuster the chances
are that a majority of the democrats viii sign a
petition for cloture rule. II they do, at the
proper time the committee on rules will report
a cloture.
CLEVELAND NAY SAT- SOMETHING.
The one thing that might stop this would be
for Mr.. Cleveland to make some public utter
ance on the subject which would be in the
nature Of command to the party. Even this
might make matters worse by exciting hot
blood and getting the party in bad tangle.
The silver men say that they have assurances
Of 120 signatures to O petition for cloture IL
it becomes necessary to resort to that
Mr.. Tracy paid today that 1t was not possible
TO eay now what the outcome would be. The
anti-silver men would meet one situation at q
time, he said, and their fight would
first be in the committee. he thought
the bill would be defeated, but 1t might be that
some men who opposed the passage Of free
coinage bill originally might vote for this bill
under the changed conditions. This was
among the possibilities, but he expected the
failure Of the bill.
Mr.. Pierce said that the bill was bound to
pass, and that IL il were flibustered against
the silver men would not let appropriation
bills or anything else 80 through the House
until there was o vote on the silver bill.
Mr.. Williams Of Massachusetts,, on the other
hand. says that the bill will be defeated il all
legislation besides has to be stopped to accom-
plish it.