St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-06-26
THE sPECIAL SESSION.

The GLOBE is gratified that the bus
mess meE of the city and it are of one
mind as to the need of special session
of congress. We may differ as to dates,
the GLOBE adhering to its opinion ex-
pressed long ago that congress should
be in session IN May: and we may differ
as to the purposes for which the con-
gress should be called together, the
GLOBE believing that the earliest posi-
ole redemption of all the pledges made
the people should be undertaken, and
that not only the SHERMAN act, which
is now made the unhappy scapegoat by
all parties of the ills of which it is only
in part the cause, but the MCKINLEY
act, that arch disturber of the distrl-
button of the wealth of the nation,
should be repealed.
We urged this course in March be-
cause we believed it 10 be both polite
and right, and when these two can be
combined the opportunity should never
be permitted to pass by unutiliZed. 1T
a 1.-THE of what we told the people last
year regarding the enormity of protec-
ton was true-and the GLOBE believed
then and believes now that the half was
not told-then our plainest duty as
party was to begin the removal of the
enormity at the very earliest practical
moment. The neglect to do so has sub
jected us to the fair criticism of our OPP
ponents that we were iDsincere i'll our
statements, else we would have moved
with zeal to the early vindication OF
them.
The SHERMAN act cannot be too soon
wiped off the books. All are agreed on
that. No Republican representative
will now dare to vote to retain it in
order to put the administration i'll the
hole. They have put too many of their
own business men IN the hole to repeat
the act. But it should be repealed for
the same reason that it should never
have been passed, regardless of its eff
fects. 1t is the very flower of protec-
ton. Back of the pretense Of supply
ing currency was the vicious principle
of bolstering up an industry by forcing
the people to buy its product. 1t bred
the subtreasury scheme of the Popullsts,
which is as certainly and demonstrably
its product as it is that four is the prod
uct Of two times two. Back of it, too,
was the other principle, everywhere
productive of disaster where tried, that
it is function of government to provide
the people with money-also ReDub-
lican child. which, in its turn, is become
the father of the Populist demand for
printed money sufficient to Transact
the business of the people," Granted
the principle that the government
should furnish money, it becomes then
merely question of quantity. with no
known and precise law of limitation of
supply. The "Ohio idea," the green
back craze, the old BLAND act, the
silver certificate plan, and now the free
coinage cry and the unlimited money
demands of the Populists are each and
all of them but expressions of opinion
as to the quantity of money the govern
ment should provide.
Let us have special session at the
earliest possible moment, now probably
the date suggested by the resolution of
the Union, but let it not be limited to
cutting off one of the smaller limbs of
the upas tree of unsound and reckless
legislation. Discard the mere pruning
knife, and take the axe and the grub
and go down among the roots. Quit
fioundering about in the boys, chasing
every will-o'-the-wis and get back
onto the solid ground and into the sun
light of experience ana common sense.