The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-02-13
CARLISLE EXPLAINS.
Bond Contract Read to Wilson's
Omnlittee-Proposed Compromise.
Associated PreSs Disna tel,


Associated Press Dispatch.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 12.-The House
committee on ways and means consumed
the day, one more of the ten days within
which the treasury has an option to make
the new bonds payable in gold, and made
decided progress toward an agreement on a
plan to be reported to the House. After be-
ing closeted for two hours with Secretary
Carlisle, the committee talked over the sit
uation, delegated the framing of an agree
ment to subcommittee Of three Democrats
and two Republicans, and late In the after
noon learned that it's subcommittee had
dropped partisan differences and found COM
mon ground.
The resolution reported by the quintet at
the last meeting was one to authorize the
Secretary Of the Treasury to issue s62, 900
in three-per-cent. bonds, payable in gold,
with the proviso that none of the proceeds
shall be used for current expenses, and the
further provision, requested by Secretary
Carlisle repeating the law which requires
the government to redeem national bank
notes and requiring banks to redeem their
notes in the first instance. Inquiry was
made if there was minority report, and
Mr.. Reed said that there was none, al
though he believed wiser plan would be to
provide for increasing the revenues.
Mr. Bynum proposed his resolution as
substitute. Mr.. Wheeler of Alabama, Of
fered a resolution reciting that Secretary
Carlisle had admitted that the issue of gold
bonds would compel all future issues to be
made payable in gold that bimetallism had
been declared to be the policy of the govern
ment; that this would be an abandonment
Of bimetallism and, therefore, declaring that
the committee considered it inexpedient to
tLaD idart 30 do Mr
Bryan offered a resolution recommending
that the Secretary of the Treasury should
pay all obligations of the government in
either gold or silver, whichever 1t was most
convenient to use. After brief discussion
the committee adjourned until 10 tomorrow
morning.
Secretary Carlisle came before the COM
mittee shortly after 10 o'clocl: He pre-
sented typewritten copy OF the contract a1a act
in legal form, covered two typewriter
pages, and bore the signatures of John G.
Carlisle, Secretary of the Treasury; j. Pier
August Belmont, for n W. Rothschild, and
was witnessed by Francis Linde Stetson,
of New York, formerly President Cleve-
of the contract were made known in the
Presidents message On one point the Sec
retary particularly enjoined the committee
to maintain secrecy, and that was regard
ing the dates for making the payments for
the ! bonds: & He asked ed for for secrecy, he he said, said,
agreed to take the bonds, and because they
feared that the bankers would corner the
It would be needed was known, and the
methods by which it was to be obtained.
Accordingly the committee adopted a res
olution pledging its members not to reveal
the terms OF the document SO far as it con-
cerned the payments.
Many questions were asked the Secretary,
which he answered in order, giving the
amounts of all kinds of money in the treas
ury and much other information not new.
Nr a6 univ fba y,1a xxyni icb
he recently proposed in The House as a
substitute for the administration bill was
proceeded to quote. a feature of the act
of 1874. which had not been noticed in
the financial debates. and which seemed
This clause binds the treasury to the
demption of national bank notes by. treas
quest que it. consequeniy @ @ iu the iita WIthdrawaIs ais
of the greenback into the treasury the
Secretary argued, would not. stop the drain
another step to the process Of obtaining
gold,, as financiers could procure the ma
for them. In effect, therefore, the gov
ernment is bound to redeem bank notes in
tary suggested that the committee adopt
plan to compel the national banks to
maintain an agency for the redemption of
their notes and relieve the treasury of all
burden in the premises.
There was a disposition on the part of
certain members to intimate in their ques-
favoritiSm in it's negotiation of private
contract, and the question was directly
asked whether the bonds were not to be
sold at a rate unnecessarily low considering
the prevalent prices in the market. Secre-
tary Carlisle admitted that the bankers
practically had the government at their
mercy, and he was obliged to accept the
best terms that could be made with them
That better terms could have been secured
he denied emphatically, relating somewhat
in detail the different financiers with whom
Assistant Secretary Curtis had talked on
his visit to New York and those who had
visited Washington. In answer to other
questions he assured the committee of his
belief that a plan could be devised to stop
the outflow of gold, and Of his strong hope
that the forthcoming bond issue would
maintain the gold reserve at its highwater
mark for several months.
After the Secretary had departed Mr..
Cochran announced that he could not sup
port Chairman Wilson's resolution because
1T was simply a makeshift to meet a pres
ent emergency, and offered no help to the
treasury in the event Of similar exigencies
before the next session of Congress There
upon Mr.. Tarsney offered resolution to
empower the Secretary to issue three-per-
cent. gold bonds whenever the needs of the
treasury might require them, with the pro-
viso that the proceeds were not to be used
to pay current expenses Then a subcom-
mittee was appointed to draft a plan. 1t
consists of MesSrs. Wilson, Turner and Nc
Afillin, Democrats, and Reed and Hopkins
of Illinois, Republicans. The committee
took a recess to enable the subcommittee
TO meet