Birmingham age-herald., 1895-01-08
 THREE HOURS SPENT By. the Democratic Members of
 the House ON THE CARLISLE BILL Crisp Offers a Resolution Ad- vocating the Measure,
 Which Prevails.

WASHINGTON, Jan. 7.-Three hours were spent in caucus this afternoon by the dem- ocrats of the house. Their purpose was to secure some views regarding the Carlisle banking bill, which was taken up for de- bate before the holiday recess and which is still before the house. MT. Holmln pre- sided and 152 members answered to their names at roll call. e
 Immediately upon the conclusion of the roll call MT. Livingston of Georgia made motion that all should be bound by the action of the caucus. The chamber had been rapidly filling and at the time the Livingston motion was made 175 democrats were in their seats. There was an instant chorus of "noes,' '' and point of order was made against it.
 The chair sustained the point of order, stating in effect that the uniform practice of thirty years was that caucuses are ad- visory and not binding in their character.
 Mr. Springer moved that all speeches be limited to five minutes.
 Speaker Crisp took the floor and said that the democratic party in congress has kept it's pledges. It has reformed the tariff, re- pealed the federal election law and prac- ticed economy in appropriations. The party has differed in matters affect ing current finances. The secretary of the treasury has formulated bill. The ques- ton is, can't the party agree upon sone- thing at this short session. He believed legislation should be had and that congress should respond to the call of the treasury aud the country. He then offered the fol- lowing resolution:
 Resolved, That it is the sense of this caucus that the Carlisle currency bill should be passed by the house of represent atives substantially as presented in the substitute, which has been printed in the Record and which will be offered at the proper time by the chairman of the com- mittee on banking and currency, and that the committee on rules be requested to re- port an order tomorrow, immediately after the reading of the joarnal, which shall provide for it's consideration for one more day for general debate and thereafter under the five minute rule, and final vote thereon at the earliest practical time during this week.
 MT. Sperry of Connecticut moved that the pending resolution be so amended as to read that 1t is the sense of the caucus that the bill introduced by him shall be passed by the house.
 MT. Terry of Arkansas offered an amend- ment authorizing each state treasurer to buy silver bullion sufficient in amount to coin S1 for every inhabitant of the state, to present it to the United States treasurer, the latter to com it into silver dollars and in turn present it to the state treasurer
 After speeches. by Messrs. Hall of Mis- souri and Breckner of Wisconsin, MT. Golf fin of Wyoming offered a resolution ex- tending the time for general debate to three days.
 Speaker Crisp made a point of order against it, and the point was sustained, Mir. Crisp then demanded the previous question ou the resolution introduced by him and the amendments. The previous question was ordered.
 The Terry amendment was first consid- cred. Ii was defeated by a vote Of 6i nays to 64 yeas.
 Mir. Sperry's amendment was then re- jected by an overwhelming majority, there being but thirteen votes in it's favor. These were cast by Messrs. Wells and Breckner of Wisconsin, Sperry and DeForrest of Con- necticut, AlcAIeer of Pennsylvania, Harter and Pierson of Ohio, Fielder of New Jersey and Lockwood, Coombs, Hendrix, Tracey and Strauss of New York.
 MT. Crisp's resolution was finally adopted by vote of Sl to 59. The vote showed that seventy five democratic members of the house were not present at the caucus this evening, and speeches for and against the bill seemed to be differently interpreted.
 MT. Springer, for example, believes that many of those who opposed the Crisp reso- lution today will support Carlisle in the end, the more especially as some of them are constrained to believe that 1t will be amended so as to bs more in conformity with their sentiments. He says that to argue that the fifty nine gentlemen who opposed the resolution will also oppose the bili would be to say that the caucus has no persuasive power, fact which he is in- ciined strongly to dispute. He believes that a majority of the seventy five ab- sen tees will also support the bill and that itswill carry by a fair majority.
 Other gentlemen regard the spirit dis played at the caucus as indicating the death of the measure. They say that the speeches in opposition to the bill show that the extreme silver men, as we'll as the op- ponents of free silver, with but few excep tions, have joined hands in opposition to the measure, and that their opposition will be supplemented by the solid vote of the republicans and populists, and that as q reeuit the measure cannot pass the house.
 One of the curious incidents of the eau GUS was the meager support accorded to the amendment offered by MT. Sperry of Con- necticut, the purpose of which was to com init the caucus to an indorsemeut of the bill introduced by him last week to fund the green backs and the treasury notes into bonds. An analysis of the vote given for this amendment shows that four of it's thirteen supporters are western men, two from Ohio and two from Wisconsin, and that the remaining nine were from the east. Equally surprising was the large vote given co the Terry amendment, which authorized the coinage by the secretary of the treasury of a silver dollar of 412H grains for each inhabitant of the forty four states and territories. This amendment received the support of fifty-four mem bers, and was uefeateo by bare majority of ten. sf
 MT. Crsp's resolution was divided. The second proposition was the limitation of debate by the committee on rules. The first proposition was carried by vote of S1 yeas to 69 nays, and the second propo- sltion without material objection. The New York mem bers who voted for the sec ond proposition were Messrs. Lockwood, Warner aud Strauss. Four others Messrs. Cochran, Covert, Hendrix and Ryan voted in the negative.
 At 5 o'clock motion to adjourn was made and immediately carried.
 A poem in fine cookery is the cake mixed