Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1893-08-31

| WAsHINGToN, Aug. 2J.--The last day of
the silver debate in the House began with
large attendance on the floor and in the gal
lerics. The frat speech was made by Mr..
Clarke Dom, Ala who spoke in support
of the Wilson bill Mr.. Clarke was follow
cd by Mr.. Reed of Maine.
Ia beginning his speech Mr.. Reed con
tossed doubts of the wisdom of the House to
deal Satisfactorily with tho question before
it, but expressed his comfort at being able
to fall back upon the well established be-
lief in tho wisdom OF the decisions of Con
gress. Crises like the present, he said. were
the insoparebls accompaniment Of alt hu
man progress which is a series OF upward
starts and of falls of almost proportionato
length. The former may bs characterized
| in q word confionce;n the latter by~au-
other word, 'distrust.n These fluctuations
occur almost simultaneously, always sym
pathetioally, the world over, so closely is
business allied by the telegraph and rail
road. Because of the fact that tho drain
OF gold from tho United States, since the
passage OF the sherman law in $780, car
ried out of the country amount equal
to the value OF the purchase CT silver under
the law, people saw in it the cause of the
loss OF gold and distrust was cngendered
and a season of boarding and depression
set in, and to-day the country Is suffering
all the calam tiles OF restricted circulation
in the midst
Ofan Abundant supply of Money.
"Ths, then " continued Mr.. Feed, "at
the present moment is the situation In
which we find ourselves. | have, in thus
narrating the outward c rcumstGncos which
nave attended our present position, failed
to state fully what is, after ALL according
to my Judgement, the un DERIVING cause OF
tho present condition of affairs A. the
lest election, the Democratic party was
brought into power by curious combina
ton OF circumstances. as tue result of a
hundred causes not with careful and candid
elaboration, but ne the result, in a large
measure, Of the apathy of the American
people. The vote shows what l declare
and the recollection of every individual to
whom am speaking can be safely appealed
to.
| do not intend in abiding to this fact to
In any way refer to party politics. do
not undertake to raise any question to
whether the system OF rotation is a wise one
or not. do not undertake to dispute the
proposition on the part OF the democracy
that protection is a tax, wicked and uiq-
ultous, Eos the purpose or discussion, aud
for that purpose only, l am quite free to
admit that protection is fraud and that
virtue resides only in revenue tariff; but
there remains, even il 1t be admitted that
the propositions of tie democratic platform
are righteous, every one, there remains
the fact that tho system upon which the
man ufacturers of this country have been
regulated for thirty years is threatened
with total change, whether that change is
Is be for the better or not, no man can
know. What the democratic party pur
poses to do with the power which is in their
hands, nobody can say. They do not even
know themselves, and hence they are not
able to impart the knowledge to Others
For my part do not expect the
Democratic Party to be Utterly Bad.
do not believe they will be permitted to
be so If they should so desire. Sucn is the
restraining influence OF the people, even
after election, that | believe that through
all the didguises through all the masks
which their election has thrown over the
wishes of the people, not the less those
wishes will be- carried out. But at this
present moment no man eau know what
will be the result of the action of Congress
upon the manufacturers OF this county.
81 will not undertake. to dwell at this
present time, for | do not want to confuse
the issue, upon those unfortunate parts OF
the democratic party programme which are
at present in aDeysnce, like the establish
nent OF State banks and other financial
measures which we may possibly have to
struggle with. | can characterize in q
single word the cause OF the present condition
of affairs. 1t ia the undiscoverable uncer
tainty of the future OF both the currency
questions aud the questions of protection
and revenue tariff.
at will be seen from what have said,
tka. 1 do ar I'd ha Gharp,ap of in
Itself alone, responsible for our present con
dtion of affairs; that | believe that the
causes Of our present disaster undcr!e that
that the necessary stoppsge OF hundreds
and thousands OF mills ell over this coun-
, try. is at the bottom OF this disaster. New
erthe!ess | do not believe that the Sherman
act or the accumulation of silver in tho
treasury was the earliest Indicator Of the
disaster which are approaching, and
that it has played part not entirely I'M
fortunate in warning us that we can be
: saved from
Stni Further Misfortune ard Doubt
do rot believe that the demo-
cratic Congress, even influenced as
it will be, by the pressure on the
part of the people of the United States
will SO revise the tariff that the working
men will be brought back even to the con-
dition of the workmen undor the Walker
tariff, but that there will be doubts and
difficulties and reductions | have not the
slightest doubt. The capita ist has met
with his misfortune. He has seen his
stocks, his bonds, his holdings, and hs will
soon see his real estate reduced beyond any
, fear he entertained a year ago and in due
time viii come the reduction OF the wages
Of the laborer unlsss by great good fortune
the laboring man, by demonstration on his
part, should snow that he understands this
' question Iva such fashion that he will re-
fuse 10 allow 1t to be misunderstood by his
member of Congress.
Referring TO the new political conditions
which exist Mr.. Reed said: "ls is perfectly
i true that the Democratic party ia respous-
BILE for whatever occurs in the future, and
whatever does not occur. They have the
y presidents; they have an enormous majority
:" IN the House OF Representatives; they have
tho Senate to themselves. Fer the first time