The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1893-09-26
STEWART0N CLEVELAND
SPEAKS ON CO-ORDIYhTE DEPIRr-
MESTs OF7HE GOVERNMEYT.
The President Severely Criticized for Hav-
ing Permitted the Secretary of tho
Treasury 10 Violate the Law.

The Senate met today at IL o'clock
with an unusually small attendance. The
resolution offertd last Saturday by Mr..
Stewart, as TO the Coordinate departments
of the government, was laid before the
Senate. Here is it's text:
Resolved. That the independence of
the coordinate departments of the gov
ernment--the legislative, the executive
and the judicial-must be maintained
and that the Use Of the power and in
nuence of one department to control the
action Of another is in violation of the
Constitution and destructive of our form
Of government.
Mr.. Stewart then began to address the
Senate on the resolution, but had spo-
ken a few sentences only, when he was
interrupted by Mr.. Henderson with the
remark that the resolution was a most
important one, and undoubtedly the
speech about to be made was one that
should be heard by a fun Senate. He
suggested that there was no quorum pre-
sent.
The roll was called, and forty-four
senators-One more than a quorum-res-
ponded.
Mr.. Stewart then went on with his
speech. lie began with a citation from
President Cleyelands speech last Monday
on the occasion commemorative the
one hundredth anniversary of the laying
OF the cornerstone OF the Capitol. This
speech had been made by a President
having more than 10000 federal offices
90 dispose Of, and with veto power which
had been designed only for extraordinary
occasions, backed by concentrated capi-
tai and encouraged and fiarrered by
Venal press. He described Cleveland on
that occasion as turning his face toward
the Senate wing of the Capitol and I'm
angry and menacing tones using the fol-
lowing language:
IF the representatives. who here as
semble to make laws for their fellow
countrymen forget the duty of broad and
disinterested patriotism. and legislate i'm
prejudice and passion or i'm behalf of
sectional or selfish interests. the time
when the cornerstone OF the Capitol was
laid and the circumstances surrounding
II VIII not be worthy Of commemorative.
This declaration, Stewart said. had
been cheered and encouraged by
thoughtless multitude, and construed bv a
yenal press as a rebuke from the Pres
ident If the United States TO the Senate.
The struggle for constitutional liberty.
he continued. OF the Anglo-Saxon race.
which had been long, arduous and at
tended with many sacrifices. had lasted
now for nearly a thousand years. He
went on TO quote at great length from
Macaulays history Of England as to
the parliamentary struggle with the
Stuart kings
Coming back to the present time. Stew
art charged that the President, in dis
regard Of his oath u Office to execute the
laws. had permitted the Secretary Of the
Treasury TO violate the law OF July 1ith,
1880, which made he purchase OF four
and talf miiiOI u nces Of silver bull
lion per month mandatory. In proof OF
this he cited the short purchases Of sill
yer by the treasury during July and Au-
gust. He could not conceive how this
could be justified In view OF the search
ty Of currency which should have been
increased by the issue OF treasury GER
tihcates for silver bullion. He knew that
an excuse was made that silver bullion
was not purchased because the holders
asked more than the market price; but
he insisted that the market price Of
property was that at which the owner
was willing to sell. However much, he
said some senators might deprecate the
law Of July 1fth 1890, as King James
lad deprecated Jaws on the English
statute book. all. both high and low,
to be maintained and II constitutional
government was TO exist.
Tie Presidents oath Of offc commanded
him to see that the laws were faithful
ly executed; but here was a plain man.
datory law that had been disregarded
Was IL not time he asked. TO sound the
alarm? If constitutional liberty was of
gny value. il seemed 20 him that all
friends and foes should stand up and
cay to the President of the United States.
"You have oversteppcd the mark. We
cannot afford to have the laws Of Con-
gress disregarded."
Stewart then drifted 10 the anu-Chinese
bill, and asked whether the executive had
enforced Il. Whatever might be thought
Of that law. Il was in force: and II the
executive might violate one law, he might
violate another.
Was the President Che asked TO have
the option to obey or TO refuse 10 obey
enactments? Stewart quoted remarks
made by Cleveland at different times.
some Of them in what purported TO be in
terviews which he construed 10 indicate
that Cleveland had Congress I'm rather
low estimatiOn-that he assumed that Con- |
gress was ignorant This assumption led |
Stewart 10 inquire where and how the |
President had learned all that he knew. |
Where had he had the opportunity or |
himself OF the science Of money |
and economies? Where and when and In |
what school had he studied IL?
lie believed that Cleveland was the only |
President Of the United States who had |
not POSSESSED a literal education, either |
I'm some college or on a farm where he |
communed with nature and learned ma |
tures laws he did not believe that the |
education Of a clerk or OF a lawyer with |
out a prior liberal education in a college. |
or without a liberal education In study |
ing the works Of nature. fitted a man to |
preside over the desinies of this country. |
The President Of the United States re- |
quired 10 take a wider view Of the laws |
Of money and Of nature than could be OBJ |
taiued in a lawyers office or I'm sheriffs |
Office, or I'm the Office Of a mayor or any |
other such contracted place, where the |
great book Of nature was closed. Wash |
ington, Jackson and Lincoln were ad- |
duced by Stewart as great examples OF |
great presidents who had not had collie |
giate educations but had acquired their |
extensive knowledge Of government by |
close contact with the people.
But unfortunately" he continued, "our |
President was denied both q collegiate |
education and that gTander and better |
education, communion with the great pro-
ducing classes OF the country, communion |
with the pioneers of the West, commu-
Mon with those who are the bone an |
sinew OF the country.
IF he had had the knowledge which
Washington had, and had known the
people as Washington had known them.
and as Jackson, he would not have uttered
the remarks which ! have read. and