The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-08-31
Senator Sherman Delivers an
Address Against Silver.
WHAT A REPEAL WOULD DO.
The Report of the Rules Committee
Again Up in the House.
Several Amendments offered, One to In
crease the Membership of the Ways
and Means Committee, but All
Are Defeated-A Dull Session.

after the Senate met this morn
ing, Mr.. Henderson presented a
memorial from all the national banks of
Omaha for the immediate passage of a
bill repeating the purchase clause of the
Sherman act.
Mr.. Stewart offered resolution which
was on his own motion referred to the
finance committee directing the secretary
of the treasury to inform the Senate how
the revenues since the commencement of
the present fiscal year compare with the
estimates. At 1886 p. m. the bill to re-
peal the Sherman act was laid before the
Senate and Sherman proceeded to address
the Senate.
He said if the repeal act was the
only reason for the extra session it
seemed to him insufficient. 1t was justi-
fed, however, by the existing financial
stringency. Congress and the people
agreed that both gold and silver would
be continued as money. If cheap money
is wanted, free coinage of silver would
be the way to get it, but it must not be
called bimetallism. 1t would be mono
metallism of silver. The president, said
Sherman, failed to give the cause of the
decline in silver. 1t was due to the fact
that we had to pay our debts-debts pay
able in gold. England had to make her
loss in the Argentine Republic good, to
prevent her own institutions from going
down, so she retured our securities and
demanded payment in gold. The bal
ance OF trade was also against us and we
had to make the difference good. This,
not the Sherman law, led to the present
condition.
Mr.. Sherman said he consented to the
passage of the law to prevent free coinage
and to that extent 1t benefited the coun-
try; but a year ago he introduced bill
almost in the same words as the Voor
hees bill to repeal it. Net a Democrat
voted for it. They must answer why.
The trouble was currency famine; not
fear as to the soundness of the country's
money. He did not believe repeal would
overcome the stagnation, but it would
ease the money market from dread of
free coinage. He warned them that if the
Democrats attempted to alter the exist
ing tariff, they would plunge the country
into deeper distress.
AS to the future we must preserve the
parity of all our money. The balance of
trade might be against us next year, and
it might be necessary to issue securities to
secure gOldt to maintain the parity. The
Secretary of the Treasury ought to have
authority to make the deficit good All
parties heretofore gave the secretary that
authority. The surplus in the treasury
should be coined and used for all legal
purposes. He did not believe in buying
silver from our people at profit; if it
was profit, it was intrigue; if not profit,
twas fraud. He believed it a fraud.
He denied Senator Voorhees, statement
that the act OF 1873 was a 'shealthy de-
monetiZation.
Mr.. Voorhees, said the remark was not
meant to apply to Sherman, as he had
cleared himself of participation in it,
four years ago.
Mr.. Sherman, continuing, said it was
strange that on the vote of this bill. Mr..
Stewart of Nevada voted for it, and he,
Sherman, against it.
Mr.. Stewart said in due time he would
explain how he came to vote for the bill.
Mr.. Sherman caused a laugh by quot
ing from one of Stewards speeches in the
debate of the bill OF 1873, in which he de-
clared "gold the universal standard of
the world'' and urged the gold dollar as
fixing the standard by which workmen
knew exactly what his labor was worth.
1t was not until silver became a
cheaper dollar than the old that any one
demanded it, and then it was to take adj
vantage of creditors. The purchase Of
silver by the United States when all 9TH
ers stopped it, was the improvident use of
public money. Instead of striking down
silver he wanted to build it up, but it
could not be done by the United States
alone. He believed the best thing 10 do
was to suspend the purchase of silver and
devote attention to the needs of the hour.
He would give power and authority to
protect the credit of the government at
home and abroad and after waiting to see
what the Indian policy was, and further
efforts of international conference, the
present clouds of gloom would disap-
pear.
The reading OF quotations about gold
showing such a remarkable change of
opinion on the part of Senator Stewart,
provoked general laughter at the expense
of that senator, who looked somewhat
bewildeTed, but only stroked his beard.
Subsequently he promised to reply to
Senator Sherman on Friday next.
Mr.. Sherman followed up his advantage
over the Nevada senator by exhibiting a
newspaper published in that state, one
whole side of which was occupied with
notices of assessments on silver mining
stock, all payable in United States gold
coin.
Mr.. Sherman concluded at 40 O. clock
having occupied two hours and ten min
utes. Portions of his speech were read
from manuscript, but the greater part OF
it was delivered extempore and with
great rapidity and force. He was lis
tened to throughout with unfagging at
tenJion and interest.
When he concluded, the repeating bill
on which he had spoken, was laid aside
and the national bank circulation bill
was taken up to allow Mr.. Teller to fin
ish the speech which he begun yester-
day.
Mr.. Voorhees, gave notice, however,
that after the morning business tomor-
row he would ask the Senate to take up
the repeal bill and would do. so from day
to day.
Mr.. Teller tl.en proceeded with his
speech. He said: 1t was the prerogative
of the United States to issue its own cur
rency and this was good time to reform
its banking system. He would not, by
his vote, put any more power into the
hands of the banks of the country. He
would not enable them any longer to
paralyze the business of the country as
they are doing today. He had fair op-
portunity to wipe them out and he would
wipe them out as quickly as he could. He
was opposed to the present system and he
desired to Withdraw from the banks the
privileges they now possessed.
At the conclusion of Mr.. Teller's speech
the Senate went into executive session
and when the doors reopened adjourned.
en- rrur n0r-rEr