Pawtucket tribune. (Pawtucket, R.I.) 1890-189?, 1893-08-31
SHERMAN ACT OF 90
Not Wholly TO Blame For
Present StringenCy.
AUTHOR GIVES HIS VIEWS.
He Defends the Measure FROM Sharp
Criticisms OF Democrats.

WAsHINI. hnr al.-Mr. Sherman
<Rep, o. Il sc attention of the
senate am lr' audience In the
galleries 81 "v.r twu hours, as he 10 :
forth In o.. .u vigorous language
very rnpidig vrrti-tbe reasons why
he suppo, "a Ii!l 10 repeal the pur-
chase clau-,' o. 49, 'st of July. 1890, and
why 1t shp;,..' rsa.N 4 with as little de-
lay AS possiL.
On one thiLg he said, congress and the
people agreed, .,nd that was that both gold
and silver should be continued in use az
money. Monnlnethlllsm pure aud simple
had never gained "A foothold In the United
States. III senators waited cheap money
and an advance In prices, free coinage Of
silver was the way to do il; but they
should not call il binetallism.
Mr.. Sherman then proceeded to discuss
the history of the act that bears his name.
He was not In favor OF the free coinage of
silver and regarded II rs but another name
for the monUmctaliism Of silver, and was
only In favor Of the purchase of silver for
the purposes of coming. The conferees of
the two houses agreed upon their two diff
ferences, and in that agreement secured
the repeal of the Bland Allison act. Mr..
Sherman reminded senators that when
they criticised the law that was misnamed
after him, they should remember that
this law now on the statute books vas far
better than either the house bill or that
passed by the senate.
The President Criticised.
The president had, Mr.. Sherman said,
set forth the decline In the value Of silver,
but had failed to give the causes Of that
decline III he had taken broader view of
the causes of that decline he could have
explained 1t all. 1t was due, Mr.. Sherman
said, to the fact that we were caned upon
TO pay our debts, debts payable In gold.
England WAS the great creditor country,
and We should neither be ashamed of nor
hate her. We are her children and par
take much of the characteristics of the
parent stock.
England's losses In the Argentine Re
public had TO be made good. and she re-
turned our securities aud demanded the
gold needed to save her own institutions
from going down. For the first time also
In number OF years the balance Of trade
was against us and we had to make the
difference good
After discussing other matters con-
tributing tn the present condition, Mr..
Sherman declared that an erroneous inn
preston had been created when It was
claimed that the Sherman law was the
cause OF the trouble, aud this he said with
all due Difference to Mr.. Cleveland. Still
the fact was that congress must deal with
situation aud not measure He be-
lieved in ''giving the devil his DUE" and
WAS ready to stand by the law, not a.
measure In which he took any special
pride, for he was compelled to yield In or.
der to prevent disastrous legislation.
The Law Was Necessary.
But without this law, what would the
country have done in 1891 and 1899 had IL
been called upon then to meet the difficult
ties now staggering usi He was not
new convert TO the repeal Of the law, aud
q year ago he had introduced bill to sus-
pend the operations of the law. It was
worded almost exactly like that Of Mr..
Voorhees,. Why did not the Democratic
senators then SEE the dangers they now
zee and come 10 the help of the Republi-
cans when they sought to suspend the
law. Not Democratic vote was had
then, and Democrats must answer why.
This was u currency famine, not the fear
that the money of the country was not
good, and the people should not be de-
ceived as to the reasons for the repeal Mr..
Sherman did not believe the repeal Of the
law would In any considerable degree re-
lieve the country from the existing stag
nation. Its repeal would ease the money
market from the dreaded fear Of the free
coinage OF silver. The law was denounced
by the Democratic party as a miserable
makeshift. IL was makeshift, and good
one, intended To prevent the evils growing
out Of the free coinage of silver.
A Few Suggestions.
The Democratic party was now charged
with a grave responsibility, and Mr.. Sher-
man warned thom that IL they attempted
to alter the existing tariff laws they would
plunge the country into deeper distress
than now exists
Taking 1t for granted that the Sherman
law would be repealed, what Of the fu-
turei Mr.. Sherman, while not the ad-
wiser of the Democratic party. said he was
entitled to give his opinion as an Ameri-
can citizen. First Of all we must pre-
serve intact the purity Of our money. 1t
might be necessary to issue our securities
to secure gold to maintain tho purity, the
only way by which we can summari,y So
cure gold.
The balance of trade may be against US
again next year, aud il such condition
should arise the secretary of the treasury
ought to have the authority to make the
deficit good. All parties have heretofore
given the secretaries this authority. This
expectation of American products ought
to be encouraged by legislation. The sur
plus In the treasury, II there was one
and Mr.. Sherman supposed there was,
for Democratic senator's said so should be
coined and used for all legal purposes.
Mr.. Sherman said he did not believe In
buying silver from our own people and
making profit out Of the proceeding. II
IL was profit, IL was an intrigue, II not
profit. 1t was a fraud He believed IL
fraud. Mr.. Sherman then began a discus
sion on the various coinage laws Of the
United States with special reference to the
act Of 1874. which had, he said, been the
subject of 30 much Misrepresentation and
falsehood in this debate He denied Mr.
Voorhees, statement that that act (the
act of 1870 was stealthy demonetization.
Dull Day In the House.
The session Of the house was devoid of
a l. -