The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1893-08-24
FIFTY THIRD CONGRESS-.
SENATOR VOORHEES, GREAT SPEECH
THE EVENT OF THE DAY.
He Brings in ALI the Absent Senator's, Fills
the Lobbies With Representatives and
the Galleries With Enraptured Lis
tsners-A Great Effort.
SENATE.


the financial discussion IN congress
was transferred to the senate today
when Senator VOORHEES, of Indiana
made his great speech justifying his
position in voting for the unconditlon-
al repeal of the Sherman act. Ever
since the distinguished chairman OF
the senate finance committee voted for
the report repeating the bill the free
coinage people have felt the blow Sc
yerely, and they were out in great
numbers today to hear the
Indiana senator explain his
present position. Nearly third
of the entire membership of the
house gathered in the rear seats and
isles to listen to the senator's argu-
,nent. and the galleries above were
hacked to suffocation. Chairman
Bland of house committee on coinage
occupied seat just to the lett and
nearly facing Senator VOORHEES, and
gazed ruefully at him during the en-
tire course of his speech. The speech
of the senator was one of his greatest
efforts aud while the senator did not
abate one jot OF little of his past bime-
talic record, the burden of his argu :
ment was directed to proving that
the repeal OF the Sherman act was an
abstract proposition which as a neces-
sity could have no material effect on
the merits Of bimetalism as public
policy.
Senator Allen gave notice of an
amendment which he would offer to
the bill reported by Senator Voornees,
disseminating the purchase of silver
bullion, 1t proposes to add to the re-
pealing clause OF that bill a provision
that hereafter standard silver be coined
at the several mints of the United
States into dollars, halves, quarters
and dimes, at the present ratio OF 10 to
l, under same conditions as to mlntage
and charges as are enforced in relation
to the coinage of gold, and that the
secretary of the treasury shall, without
unnecessary delay, cause all the silver
bullion owned by the government to
be coined into standard silver dollars,
to be legal tender,
Senator Voorhees, then took the
floor and addressed the senate. His
speech had been prepared in advance
and he delivered it from typewriter
sheets. but it was spoken with all the
energy and vehemence Voorhees, evel
displayed in a speech before the sen
ate.
Senator VOORHEES, opened with an
eulogy to the credit of the United
States which he declared unshaken
despite the trials of the recent past
| He sketched the financial condition O.
| the world. their relation to the world
commerce and presented the necessity
for money equable in purchasing anC
debt paying power. He emphasize
the duty of congress to furnish sound
reliable, constitutional money. HI
| then came to the Sherman law, which
he excoriated as the most dangerou
makeshift and violation of every sounC
principle of finance, never intended IL
good faith for coinage of silver
He asserted in most earnest tones
his unshaken faith that silve
would remain forever one
of the worlds great poten
factors of finance, commerce
traffic and daily business tran
sactions. 1t would neither be de
monetized nor driven away from man
kind and would continue to exist al
one of the precious metals, upholdini
the credit of nations. He should vot
to repal the Sherman act as he woult
abate nuisance and wipe out oh
struction to rational, wholesome legis
lation. 1t tainted and vitiated tn
entire financial system and destroyed
confidence in all business transaction
every hour it remained part OF tn
law.
The questions had been asket
whether vote should be given tor it
unconditional repeal or whether
substitute must first be agreed on. H
would at once eradicate this confesse'
evil from the body of our laws with n
other condition than his right an
free agency to support and to secur
: in connection with its repeal or after
wards by independent measure, a sue
cessor to it's immediate repeal. Pri
marily the duty Of the hour Nigh
, dictate sound financial system, EN-
bracinc coinage OF silver on equallt
with gold. In making this statemen
he only repeated the declaration c
the Chicago p atform, on which tn
American people restored to the pres
dency one OF the strongest, ablest
purest and most patriotic characI Ell
ever known to American history.
Mr.. VOORHEES, at this point quote
the financial plank OF th
Chicago platform, and Stain
that the record did not sto
! at this point, quoted from Pres
dent Cleveland's letter of acceptance
L which, he said. was in no wise mod
. fled or contradicred by the singuIarl
= able message delivere few days az
He said that in four brief sentences
] contained every sound, wholesom
enduring principle of finance eve
4 known in the history of tie mos
t prosperous nations on earth. WI
Y dared, in the face OF the clear and el
t plicit words which he read, to charl
}. their author with being a mono
= metalist III disguise who believed
the use of gold and gold alone, b1
wearing for the sake OF election a b
metallic mask He never reca led. r
n tracted or explained single word