The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-02-01
SENATORS AND THE BONDS.
The Legality Of the Issue and the
Use Of the Money Discussed.

GOP0A11L 62AAch Al OPpObAbAOAS W
the Claims Made by Mr.. Sherman the
Day Before-A Colloquial Debate
Over the Redemption of Treasury
Notes-Hoar and Sherman Fire Cues
ttons at German.
Washington, Jan. 31.-Among the nu-
merous remonstranees presented this
morning in the Senate against various
portions of the Wilson bill was batch
from religious societies, asking that the
tax on whisky be trebled.
After the routine morning business, the
Vice President laid before the Senate Mr..
Stewards resolution declaring that the
Secretary of the Treasury is not legally
authorized to issue and sell bonds, and
Mr.. Allen, pop, of Nebraska, made an
argument in opposition to that
of Mr.. Sh erman of yesterday. He denied
the claim that the power given in the re-
sumption act was continuing power, and
said that the language of the act did not
justify that construction. 1t provided for
single act of redemption, and provided
that the Secretary of the Treasury might
issue, sell and dispose of government bonds
for the purpose of making the redemption
contemplated by the act, being the sur
plus over $500, 900, 900 of treasury notes, or
about S75,0O0,0O0, When that redemption
was made the incident of power to issue
bonds ceased with it.
REDEMPTION OF TREASURY NOTES.
The debate took colloquial turn. In
reply to questions from democratic SEN
ators, Mr.. Allen held that so far as ex-
isting legislation goes, the treasury is not
now bound to redeem treasury notes,
that the Secretary of the Treasury never
had power to redeem notes below the
$500, 900 GOO, and he does not possess that
power today. And there never has been
a time in the history of these legal tender
treasury notes when he was possessed of
the slightest power of redeeming them
below $500, 600, 900, and that the act of
1873 was intended to prevent the redemp-
tion of the legal tender notes.-the green
backs.
Mr.. Stewart came into the colloquoy
to say that he held views Identical with
those of Mr.. Allen.
PUTS A CLOUD ON THE BONDS.
Mr.. Villas said that the logical result of
the position of Messrs. Allen and Stewart
is that the sos, 900 900 of bonds that were
issued at that time were illegally issued
at least all of them in excess of SIS, 900, 900.
'Not at ALL" Mr.. Allen replied. 81
have made no claim of that sort. may
do so after a while"
Mr.. Hoar argued that the use of the
money proposed to be redeemed by the
bond issue for the general purposes of the
government is entirely unauthorized. II
feel bound to declare said Mr.. Hoar,
''that in my opinion the bonds issued and
held by the treasury department under
existing circums tances will be illegal and
will convey no constitutional or lawful
obligation. l say that with full sense Of
the gravity of the language which 1 use"
Mr.. German thought that under the Pc
culiar conditions in which the treasury
found itself it was unwise and unfortun-
ate to raise this question at this time.
Nobody in either house questioned the
right Of the Secretary of the Treasury
to issue bonds under the
act of 1875 for resumption purposes.
There was no question but that it was
necessary at this time to relieve the
treasury department. Personally he had
believed that the treasury was not au-
thorized to sell bonds and to apply the
proceeds to any other purpose than as
provided in the act of 1875.
HoAR PUTS A QUESTION.
Mr. Hoar asked Mr. German why there
was not introduced in the democratic
side of the chamber joint resolution, or
a bill authorizing the Secretary of the
treasury TO issue DOnOS.
Mr.. German said that he would answer
that question before he took his seat.
The question was pressed on him again
and again, but the answer was to the eff
feet that under the latitude of debate al
lowed in the Senate there could be no ac-
tion in time to meet the difficulty, while
the discussion might be productive of
much injury
The discussion took a political turn,
and senators on both sides shared in it.
The principal question was as to which
political party was most responsible for
the deficiency in the treasury, Mr.. Cor
man claiming that there was deficiency
of some sec, 900, 600 before the last admin
istration went out of Office, and Mr.. Sher-
man and other republican senators argu-
ing that the great trouble has been caused
by the democratic attempt to change the
tariff.
THE REVENUE UNDER THE M'KINLEY LAW.
Mr.. Sherman asked Mr.. German
whether it was or was not true that the
Mckinley law produced revenue enough
to support the government.
Mr.. Gorman's answer was that when
the Democratic party came into power on
March last it had to bear the burdens
which the Republican party had put upon
the country. By its revenue laws and by
its expenditures it had bankrupted the
} y
came into power of the government.
MIR. Hoar-I would like to put my ques-
ton again to the senator. l win put it in
duplicate form. First. does the senator
think it lawful to use the proceeds of
these bonds to pay current expenses4 Sec
ond is it not better to get authority in
law to do it than to do 1t without LAVE
Mr. Gornan-My belief has always
been that the fund arising from the sale
of bonds can be used only as provided in
the act of 1875 We have Inherited a
great many things from the other side,
and among them an opinion from the At
torney General of the last administration
to the Secretary of the Treasury that the
money derived from the sale of bonds was
merged into the general fund of the treas
ury, with the right to use it for general
purposes. So that when we came into
power we found this. as think, vicious
precedent, and we, in the distressed con-
dition OF the treasury, are not to be held
responsible for following the precedent in
that matter
VOORHEES, IN HARMONY WITH SHERMAN.
Mr.. Voorhees,, chairman Of the finance
committee, said that on one point he was in
harmony with Mr.. Sherman, and that was
his acknowledgement of the power Of the
Secretary of the Treasury to act as he
was doing. He sent TO the clerks desk
and had read Mr.. Carlisle's newspaper
statement as 10 the House resolution, and