The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1893-09-13
SENATE WASTING TIME.
THE sILvER DEBATE DRdGGIYG
ITS WEARY WRIGHT ALONG.
Senator Mitchell, OF Oregon, squanders
Three Hours of Valuable Time
Dull sea.on of the House.

| II ere sprung UP between Senator's Teller,
of Colorado. and Hawley, Of Connecticut,
a spirited discussion, into which finally Mr..
| Stewart entered. Then as the hour was
late and senators were weary of the days
debate. motion to proceed to executive
business was welcomed on all sides; and
after short executive session the Sem
ate. at Sis, adjourned.
| At the opening Of the session, a letter
from the Treasury Department In re-
sponse to a resolution inquiring as to the
redemption of treasury notes in silver,
etc, was presented and read 1t states
/ that 81, 1854 of treasury notes issued
under the Sherman act have been re-
| deemed in silver coin In August and Sep
| tember; that 500, ,0ST ,lS5 silver coinage has
| been minted, with a gain or seinorage OF
| $6,69l, ,1C9; and that the remainder of the
/ bullion purchased under the Sherman ACT
had not been coined. because no further
| coinage had been necessary to provide Tor
/ the redemption OF the notes In silver.
The resolution offered yesterday by Mr..
| Stewart as TO senators being stockholders
/ in national banks having been laid before
the Senate, Mr.. Stewart offered to yield
| to Mr.. Mitchell, of oregon, who desired
TO address the Senate on the repeal btl;
! and his resolution by unanimous consent,
went over until tomorrow.
MIR. White (Cal), gave notice that he
would address the Senate on the repeal
bill next Tuesday.
| The repeal bin was then at 12:2 taken
up and Mr.. Mitchell began his address.
| lie said that the fundamental problem
to be solved was: Are we to become a
nation Of monometallists; and II so wheth-
| er gold or silver monometallistsT 1t
could not be denied that the absolute de-
| monetization Of silver proposed by the
unconditional repeal of the purchasing
| clause of the Sherman act of 1890. the
| perpetuation Of the gold standard, and the
establishment of a policy that gold and
| gold alone shall be the sole medium
| OF ultimate redemption, would be to
| completely and absolutely overturn and de-
| stroy the policy of the founders OF the
government upon that question, and con-
| sign silver as a money metal to indehnite
overthrow. Is the Senate prepared to
| abandon the policy plainly outlined In the
| Constitution and avowed by every poit-
| ical party that had existed since the
foundation Of the government? IL II was
prepared to do that, upon wnat authority?
| BY what command? Under whose direc-
| ton. and by what Inspiration? Had the
/ people Of any political party In any State
| convention, declared In favor Of the de-
monetization and of the single gold stand
| ard? No declaration of any such policy
| could be found in the platform Of any
political party He denied that the Sher-
man act had been the cause OF the panic.
on the contrary but for the fact that the
Sherman act had in the past three years
added to the circulating medium about
s15l 600 900 Of legal tender treasury notes,
the panic would have come quicker and
been more aggravated than II now was.
The fear of tariff revision and Of the
Inauguration of a free trade policy had
also much to do with the panic. There
did not spring up a lack Of confidence in
the banks and not lack Of confidence
I'm any part of any kind Of money 50 de-
posted. The trouble was in very large
measure started by the banks. The
bankers of England, early in the spring.
nudged the bankers I'm Wall street and
intimated now is a good time 20 forever
set the seal on bimetallism under the
pretence of repeating the Sherman act.
The howl was started. The New York
bankers nudged the Chamber OF Com
merce Of the city Of New York and the
metropolitan press. The Chamber Of Com
merce In turn gave the cue 10 the
Boards Of Trade and Chambers Of Com
merce throughout the country. The howl
started in perfect unison all inspired
across the seas, and finally the thing got
away from them, proved a boomerang
and the banks suffered along with the
rest.
The repeal Of the purchasing clause Of
the Sherman act meant the contracting
Of currency By the destruction Of a
monthly supply Of from three 10 four
and one half million dollars or from
forty to fifty millions year. And
who (he asked had ever heard Of the
congestion Of money famine being. dis
PEELED by a reduction Of the money IA
circulation, while the country was de-
manding more circulating medium? Yet
that was the sole recommendation that the
President had made TO Congress. Nit
chell devoted some time to showing that
II would he impossible % secure inter
national bimetallism, and quoted from
the speeches made by the delegates from
Great Britain 70 the Brussels confer
ence TO prove that England was welded
10 the gold standard and was not willing
20 even discuss the question OF bimetal-
lism
After Mr.. Mitchell had spoken for an
hour and half TO a very small audience
OF Senators, the absence of a quorum
was suggested by Mr.. Stewart. A call
of the roll allowed Dir Mitchell a needed
breathing space. and resulted I'm gathering
Senators in from committee rooms and
cloak rooms until 50 Of them answered
10 their names. and then Mr.. Mitchell
went on with his speech He closed his
argument at 3.2O. having held the floor
for exactly three hours
Mr.. Hawley Rep. Comm declared him
self for the pending bill first. last and
always. But there was one general
statement, which had been iterated and
reiterated until he was tired Of It. and
that was that there was somebody. who
believed in the total destruction Of one
half Of the currency of the world His
friend from oregon had talked about
the Hisappearance-the permanent dis
use-of silver There was not a Senator
in the chamber who believed that II
was a terrible mis-statement. 1t was
sophistical statement. II was q false
statement Everybody knew that silver
had been used these thousands Of years,
with gold, and It would continue to be 80
used and that all OF the Senators were
IN favor. Everybody knew that although
Great Britain was the champion mono-
metallist nation, the people Of that coun-
try carried more silver In their pockets
than the people of the United States did.
All Senators expected TO continue the
use of silver money, literally. as far as
II could be done, without recognizing SILL
yer monometallism. They intended 10
continue the average amount OF silver
money.
MIR. Mitcheil-"Do you think that ie-
gislation in regard 10 silver is necessary
In order to carry out those views?'
MIR. Hawley-''Yes."
Mr.. Mitchell-"Then why do you want
fba Chairman lay renQaled2n