The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1893-07-06
WASHINGTON LETTER.
Posts Regular Correspondents
WASHINGTON. July ;, 1898.
Editor Post

ton of the government, and the
third calling Congress together cs-
pccially to deal with financial mat
ters, the first having been. called by
President Van Buren, to meet Sep
tcmber 4 1887, on account Of the
suspension of specie payments, and
the second by President William
Henry Harrison, who died before it
met, to meet May 81, 1911, to deal
with the threatening condition OF the
country's finances and revenues.
This being the case it is not to be
wondered at that extra session talk
has dwarfcd everything else since
the proclamation was made public.
There is no difference i'll public
opinion, so far as it is represented at
Washington, and it is unusually
well represented for the season of the
year, as to the necessity for Con-
cressional action, but when it comes
to defining what particular action it
shall be there are many differences
not marked, however, 10y political
bias, but by personal opinion. NO
mcbcr of the administration claims
that the unconditional repeal 0! the
Sherman Silver law is certain, al
though table has been made which
shows a majority Of II III the House
for repeal, but that is what The adj
ministration hopes for, and will work
for. 1t will ask that 4 bill repeal
ing it be rushed through as soon as
the organization of the House is COM
pctc and that the question Of a sub
stitute dealing with silver be left for
future action, and if a count OF noses
shows that it cannot be repealed it
will ask that resolution authorize
ing the President to suspend the sill
YER purchase clause OF the law be
PASSED. The acknowledged obstacle
to the carrying out Of this program
is the free coinage ma Iori1y known
to exist in the Senate; bur onc OF the
free coinage mcn-Scnator Voorhees,
lis already an outspollen advocate
of the unconditional repeal Of the
Sherman law, and mysterious hints
are given by friends Of the admins
tration of other free coinage Sena-
tors who will vote the same way.
The silver men arc organizing ior
the fight of their lives and the ma
iority in the Senate which is q stumb-
ling block to the administration pro-
gram is regarded by them as an I'M
pregnable fortress from which will he
dictated the only terms by which any
financial legislation can get through
the Senate. They say that they
have no special love for the Sherman
law, but that if they should agree to
it's unconditional repeal they would
never be able to get amy satisfactory
legislation afterwards, as the coun-
try would then be practically if not
actually upon IA single standard gold
basis, just where the opponents OF
silver wish to get it. For the rea
son they will oppose either the re-
peal of the entire law or the Suspcn-
sion of the silver purchase clause, un-
less accompanied by silver legislation
that is satisfactory to them, and il
silver legislation be included it will
lose the votes of many Senators and
representatives who would vote for
either proposition, standing alone.
That is the exact situation as ii Is
figured out here today Five weeks
is sometimes as long as life time,
when Judged by accomplishments,
and it may be that great changes
will take place before Congress gets
together, or that after its meeting
personal conference will bring those
together who are now wide apart
While these things arc possible,
there are not visible at this time any
indications pointing to enough
changes among the Senators who
are on record as free coinage men to
warrant any strong belief IN them.
1t looks now as though the House
would pass bill repeating the Sher-
man law and that the Senate would
send the bill back to the House with
a free coinage amendment, and that
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