The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1893-05-24
IColumbil Journal. Goth. !

congress Will pe CdllSu ny tbC ISot-
denl?" asked Journal reporter of Sen
ator Butler, who was in the city yester-
day.
"Yes. The understanding when I
left Washington, two days ago, was
that Congress will be convened the
first or middle of September. Whether
the late decision of the Supreme Court
declaring the Chinese exclusion act
constitutional and the complications
which may arise from it will require an
earlier session, cannot now be deter
mined, but my impression is that it
will not"
"Do you anticipate any friction or
divisions in the Democratic party over
the tariff"'
mo; not worth speaking of. Now
that the Democratic party is, for the
first time since the war, in possession
of all the branches of the government,
l think we shall be able to make sat-
isfactory readjustment of the tariff, and
relieve the people of excessive and un-
necessary taxation"
HAS it been decided what plan of
readiustment will he adopted"'
ii think not, definitely. I am in
clined to the opinion, however, that
the general scheme will be the lines of
the Mills bill, with perhaps heavier
reduction in most Of the schedules, and
an enlargement of the free list"
"But, Senator, will not the Demo-
cratic Congress be much embarrassed
by the extravaganza of the Republican
administration, depletion of the treas
ury and increased expenditures?
"Unquestionably, and it will require
all the wisdom of all the thoughtful
Democrats in every branch Of the gov
eminent to meet successfully the terri
BILE burdens left upon the country by
the Harrison administration. The enor-
nous appropriations for pensions, run
ming anywhere from Sl50,000,000 to
S1S0,00O, 900, with the other necessary
expenses of the government, will strain
the resources of the country, but you
know a reduction of the tariff will in
crease the revenues and I have hopes
we shall impose an income tax, so that
with prudence and economy IN con-
Quoting the affairssof the government
we may reasonably expect to get along
without much trouble"
"How about the financial legisla-
tion?"
"Ah! There is the stumbling block.
Both parties are divided on financial
legislation and I fear serious difficult
ties"
Have you views you care to express
on the financial problem? What would
he yonr colution Of it2U
"Well, that's very 'sarchin' ques-
tion,' as Vance would say, but if you
can stand the deliverance Of my views,
I think can, although I must abbre-
viate. In the first place, let me say am
in favor of the free and unlimited coin
age ofsilver. When entered the Senate,
and the subject was new to me, my in
clinations were the other way, but
after investigation I became satisfied
that bimetalism in its fullest sense was
the proper thing for this country and
have since acted on that theory. 1t is
proper to say in this connection, how
ever, what have said in debate-that
many of the advocates of free coinage
greatly exaggerate from their stand.
point the advantages and benefits OF
unlimited free coinage of silver; and,
on the other hand, the opponents
greatly exaggerate, from their point
of view, the evils to flow from it.
In my Judgment. the free coinage of
silver would afford partial financial re-
lief, by increasing the circulating me-
dium somewhat, but it could not posi-
bly, amount to a great deal, because Of
the limit upon the supply Of bullion
and the limited capacity of the mints
for coinage. I say, therefore, the relief
in the direction indicated would be
scarcely appreciable under our present
financial system. have never given
any weight to the alarms periodically
sounded by the monometalists that we
shall be sent to financial perdition if
we adopt free coinage. Their prognos-
tications of ruin and disaster have too
often proven fallacious to entitle them
to much consideration. The Sherman
law has lately been used as a club by
Wall street 10 force the secretary of the
treasury, Mr.. Carlisle; to issue bonds to
maintain the one hundred million gold
reserve required by law to be kept in
the treasury as security for the three
hundred and forty-siX million green
backs, but little wholesome pluck
and independence on the Secretary's
part has taught valuable lesson and
set most instructive precedent. The
secretary would not become panic
stricken, so Wall street concluded it
would not pay to push the panic busl-
ness too far and has got to behaving
itself again."
Would you vote for the repeal of
the Sherman law?"
II care nothing about the Sherman
law; am 10 no sense responsible for it,
but I would not consent to its repeal
and thereby totally demonitize silver
again. If those who are so anxious to
get rid of the purchase of silver under
the Sherman law will couple with its
repeal a section to repeal the ten per
cent. tax on the State bank circulation
[ would vote for it. The repeal of the
ten per cent. tax on State bank circu-
lation would settle the financial ques-
tion for quarter of century. We
might then coin all the silver in the
world and our State banks could ab-
sorb it as security for their circulation
and the maintenance Of whatever bank
reserve that might be required. We
should have all the currency, a local
currency if you please, to transact the
business of the country. This currency
may be made as sound as the national
bank currency. am inclined to think
from what 1 know Of the opinions of
leading Democrats, men very high in
the councils of the party, that this will
be our way out OF the financial differ
ences; namely, repeal of the Sherman
law, coupled with the repeal of ~ per
cent. tax on State bank circulation, and
a graduated income tax. Ifthe Demo-
cratic party will do this aud readjust
the tariff, We shall hear no more of
financial troubles for twenty-five years.
The Democratic party will retain con-
troll of the government indefinitely as
it wound deserve to do, and Third
partyism would disappear from the face
Of the earth. This is my financial plat
FORM"
when do you return to Washing
ton?"
II have not decided definitely. The
Spnotn hln/.l-oH n,,f fn