San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1893-08-25
The Daily Eight.
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From Our Regular Correspondent

to be given an opportunity on the
floorOf the House and Senate to
defend the somewhat remarkable
pension policy adopted by Secreta-
nv Hoke Smith, under Mr.. Cleve-
lands orders. Senator Gallinger
has introduced a resolution direct
ing the committee on pensions to
investigate and report to the Sen
ate whether the wholesale s9spen-
sion of pensioners, which has beer
going on for some time at an aver
age of som ething more than la0 a
day. is in accordance with laW,anG
a constitution of a like nature Will
be introduced in the House as
soon as the House is in condition
to allow it's ordinary business to
proceed in the ordinary channels,
which will be after the silver
question has been disposed of,
rules adopted and committees APP
pointed. AS soon as the Senate
adopts Mr.. Gallinger's resolution
Secretary Hoke Smith and the
commissioner of pensions will both
be summoned to testify before the
Senate Pension committee as to re-
cent proceedings.
1t is regarded as significant that
the bill reported by the minority
of the Senate Finance committee
as substitute for the NoOhees
bill, for the unconditional repeal Of
the purchasing clause of the Sher-
man silver law, provides for free
coinage at a ratio of 20 to |. This
indicates that the silver senators
have given up the idea of insisting
upon the free coinage of silver at
the present ratio. Speeches will
from time to time be made on
both of these bills, but it is
not probable that the Senate
will take them up to the exclusion
of other business until after the
House has voted upon the silver
question, which will be early in
next week.
A more senseless opposition has
seldom been seen than that which
certain Democrats and POpulists
are making in the Senate to the
bill which proposes to allow ma
tional banks to issue currency to
the full amount of bonds they have
on deposit to secure circulation.
AT three different sessions of Con-
gress the same identical bill has
passed the Senate without OppOSi-
ton, and if it were now law it
would add $19,000,000 to the
circulation Immediately, and prob
ably as much more in three
months. The only argument pre-
scented against the bill is the old
one, that national banks enjoy
privileges denied to others, and in
asmuch as any persons having the
requisite capital are at all times
free to organize a national bank
and get their share of the priVi-
leges, that isn't good one. After
voting down some silly amend
ments proposed by Senators Allen
and COckrill, the Senate has now
to vote upon one for the repeal of
the tax on state bank currency,
which has been offered by Butler,
of South Carolina, and there will
probably be more of the same
sort.
The speech of Representative j.
c. Sibley, of Pa, was the most con-
spicuOus for several reasons made
in the House during the past week.
Mr.. Sibley is a Democrat, a bible
reader, millionaire and a free
silver man, the only one in Con-
gress from the east, and his speech
was at times highly sensational.
He was not quite as open in his
attack upon President Cleveland
as Senator Vest was, but the at
tack was thereEall the same.
The unconditional repealers now
claim safe majority in both
House and Senate, but their claim
of 40 votes in the Senate includes
several men whose votes are very
doubtful and who are counted by
the silver men in evey estate they
make. The trouble about getting
at what the result will be in the
Senate arises largely from there
being number of Senators who, if
they have made up their minds
how they will vote, have taken no.
body into their confidence.
Jerry Simpson dealt the Demo-
Gratis heavy blow below the belt
when in silver speech he fired
this question at the House, in his
rasping, exasperating voice: "Who
ever heard of the Democratic party
ever repeating a law or making a
law" Receiving no answer, Jerry