Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1893-07-05

The other two members fully nsscnteh
to that position, TIE amendments to the
very defective house hill were ihcn pre-
pared and agreed upon. At the next
meeting whrm 'lr Jones WIS present
they were variou>ly submitted 10y each OF
lis as our individual propositions. aud.
after lengthy discussion, agreed to, with
the exception OF the amount of silver to
he purchased each month. Mr.. lcnes in
sisiing that Il would be four and half
million ounces month. AIessrs. Sher-
man, Conger and myself that II should
be only four millions, | never shall for
get Mr.. Jones repeated use Of the illus
ttatiOn of Quuine. saving that "if il
takes twcnty-four grains to put patient
thoroughly under its influence. IL Is Of
not the slightest use TO give twenty
grains. and II Is no Use whatever TO buy
less than the American product. If yon
will consent TO buy -four ard Il half mil
lion ounces of silver a month it will sure
ly do the work and bring the commercial
price OF silver up to Si.20 IA per ounce.
-Four million will not do II. but four and
II half surely will
After we had determined in our own
minds that we would concedc the four
and Il half millions per month"; the dis
cilssion on thar question was still made
MS hot and determined as possible for the
purpose OF attracting attention from, and
of preventing and reccding from what we
consider the very substantial concession
I on INV part u lilf SILVER men OH utnef
things, ms. Of course MIR. Jones was In
constant communication with fhc deter
mined free coinage senators. This final
agreement upon the bill was held back
I'LL Mr.. Sherman could deieriuin- that II
would be Immediately acted upon In the
senate, 50 Us TO give as little time A. pos
sible after II was reported, and before
the final action. for adverse criticism in
/ or out of congress, for each one of the
Three felt thai II was sure TO be defeated
by free coinage sentiment If it was not
Immediately crnci4l.
During the discussions in the confer
ence cOlniticcs Mr.. Jones, for himself
and the others who favored free coin
age, declared that this was The last and
final experiment to bring the commercial
price of silver up to 81 ~ IL per ounce.
or TO the coinage ratio of III to l.
We understood that we had a promise
that all struggles for free coinage on the
part of all but Il few extremists would
abandoned If that was not the effect of
the bill. Upon the other hand, we in
sisted in the conference committee that
1t was impossible for any combination or
corner to force the price above 81 -
per ounce, and that IL was possible for
spectators to carry ii 10 thai point aud
never above 1t. and that when II fell
the price would 20 lower than ever before
known, and that this result was sure
to come within two years. Mr.. Jones
secuted the idea as showing thorough
want of information ON my part an Tho
silver question. no say that Mr.. Shcr-
man, Mr.. Cougrr or myself have chang
ed our opinoini OF lie bill. or that We
We're disappointed to the slightest degree
AT its results, or that we have changed
our minds IN the slightrS, degree as to
the utter folly of the sO-callcd SHERMAN
bill" as u purely financial measure,
Or that We did not know il would be our
duty to struggle for its repeal at the
earliest practical moment, does each of
us very great injustice. Unless | ant
mistaken rs tn the others. we are all of
us as thoruL lilly convinced today as
we were the day we recommended the
measure of its great wisdom under the
then existing conditions in fact, of the
absolute necessity of euacting the bill
into law al that time TO save the country
from irreyocable coinmittal to free coin
age. Scores of rs bile and honest rep
resentatives as may be found in congress
would have been lost to the sound money
stlc, and thousands upon thousands of
votes, had il not been passed.
II mas made the .s,ic ~ today to
be the recovering from The comparative
~ slight injury tbat will he done by the
laws OF July II, 1880, sure to be settled
within few months, Instead of ten-
years struggle with disastrous cOnse-
puences To the country to recover from
the slough of an existing silver measure
of value. OF course, after We had pre-
pared Our report formal meeting of
all the MANAGERS ON the part of the two
houses was called. at which the four Re
publicans signed the report which they
subsequently stood by. as did every Re
publican In the house and senate.
Messrs. Harris and Bland diSsented aud
every Democrat sustained them by OPP
posing the bill In confirmation OF the
truth of what | have herein stated let
me say that while substantially this leg
islaton was pending, | published a com
municatiOn in Boston paper over my
own signature, the sentiments of which
! understood were also those of Senator
Sherman aud Congressman Conger, stat
Ing that the hill would probably cost
the government from SlOO,uOO,OOO to
SaOo,oOOOO before the people would
consent that congress should repeal IL;
while. ON The other hand, it wonld save
the country from the free coinage of sill
yer, which Moald cost the country from
S2OOO,UOu,OOO TO S4,OOJ,OOO.OOu before
We recovered from II, all, or nearly all.
of that vast sum coming out of the wage
workers or small farmers In the same
period. in another communication. ] said
that I'VE were justified in framing,and
securing the passage of the bill as the
captain Of staneh ocean steamer would
be justified in constructing Taft ont of
the masts and spars of his vessel to save
tile lives VI passengers until they could
come TO better mind, who Were deter
mined 10 east themselves into the seu to
swim To shore they could never reach
Furthermore, while | was presenting n
draft of the matter TO the house Rcpubli-
can caucus, and urging It's adoption to
the best OF my ability, | was asked by
one, two, three and many more OF the
Republican leaders what | Thought of
the measure as purely iinacial scheme,
aside from political considerations"
which question | parted as best / could,
as did not consider the condition OF
public sentiment as TO free coinage Of Sill
Yer such as to allow wise statcsmauship
10 decide The question on these cOnsid-
erauons, but being compelled to answer.
SAID TO them substantially. THAT il
would be the most stupendOus hnanria,
iolly sane men ever engaged iu," but in
words lar sharper aud more emphatic
than illose here used.
IN me light of the happenings since
Iuiy ~, 1870. | regard the framing and
passing OF the bill Of that date A. Of
me highest order Of sound statesman.
SNIP anu as being justified by the events
thai followed IL. as wise IN its time and
circumstance rs any piece of legislation
ever enacted.
u Is the saving Of the people in a uud.
Scow hiil such fime as they will consent
10 embark Ia sianch steanship
-. !. ii. WALKER.
Worcester Mass, June -, iss3.
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