The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1893-08-30
Thomas Il. Reed at his Best.

EX-Speaker Reed is easily the hero OF
the long silver debate. "The weary
weller of talk' ended on Saturday in
blaze of oratorical glory. The Maine
statesman's speech was not only far and
away the ablest and most brilliant one
of the discussion, but was the most ia
nous one in the eX-speaker's distin-
guished career. High as he stood be-
fore in popular estimation, he added on
Saturday cubit to his stature, both as
a statesman and an orator. His speech
was marked by great fairness and
candor of statement, by freedom from
partisanship and by patriotic regard
for the welfare of the country. Rarely
have these great qualities been exhib.
tied in more favorable light in any
congressional debate. Mr.. Reed dis
played capacity for dispassionate
statement and serious consideration of
grave question that have not been
commonly associated with his name.
While there were pungent references to
his political opponents, and his speech
was lighted up by passages of charac-
teristic wit and humor, there was a
plainness and directness in his discus
sion of the pending question, clear
ness of analysis of the causes of existing
troubles, financial and economic, that
have not been equaled by any speaker
i'll either house of congress during the
present session.
In searching for the underlying cause
of the existing troubles, Mr.. Reed found
that nobody knows what the democratic
party is going to do with the power that
was placed in their hands March 4th:
that they do not even know themselves,
and hence they are not able to impart
the knowledge to others. He does not
expect the democratic party to be ut
terly bad; he does not believe demo-
Gratis would be permitted to be so if
they should 80 desire. The ground of
his belief is the restraining influence
OF the people even after election. No
man can know what will be the result
of the action of this congress upon the
manufactures of this country. The
currency question has something to do
with the condition of industrial affairs,
but that which is of most importance is
the uncertainty as to the basis upon
which manufactures are to 90 on. I'm
less the manufacturer can run his mill
at profit, he will not run it at all
Therefore, until the tariff question is
settled, no loom will be in motion more
than is necessary, and no wheel will
turn except with the prospect of i'm
mediate profit.
So Mr.. Reed does not regard the
Sherman act as in itself alone response
BILE for the present condition of affairs.
He believes that the causes of he dis
asters that have overtaken industry
underlie the Sherman act, but he be.
| lieves also that the accumulation of
silver in the treasury was the earliest
indicator of the approaching disaster.
The question of the settlement of the
tariff, he proposes to consider at the
proper time. In his judgment, the
democratic party is responsible for
whatever occurs in the future and
whatever does not occur, since that
party has possession of all departments
of the government.
The Sherman act, he says, has failed
to realize the hopes of the men who
believed in a silver currency, but he
does not think that the repeal of that
act will be an immediate cause of the
revival of the prosperity of the country