The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1895-03-01
From our Regular Correspondent.

WASHINGTON, February "a, 1895.
Whether intentionally or not mat
tiers little, but that President Cleveland
has, by few remarks made to several
gentlemen who called at the White
House to pay him their respects, badly
frightened the republican leaders in
Congress is certain. The callers in
question were Representatives elect
Smith and Corliss, of Michigan, and
Towne, of Minnesota. After chatting
awhile the President significantly said {;
"How would you gentlemen like TO
begin your Congressional duties as
early as March Is1" They declared
they were perfectly willing to wait
until December, and were told by the
President that conditions and not
personal considerations must deter
mine the time of the meeting of Con
gress. Within an hour the converse
ton was known at the Capitol, and
the republican leaders in both Senate
and House had their heads together.
Although they have professed indlffer-
ence, it is known that they dread an
extra session beyond everything, as 1t
will quickly demonstrate their inability
to legislate upon financial subjects.
They have been hoping that the gold
received for the last issue of bonds,
which they have SO loudly and hypo.
critically denounced, would enable
the Treasury to pull through without
and extra session and that by next
December there would not be such
pressing need for legislation. This
scare is having one good effect. 1t
is making the republicans assist in
pushing the appropriation bills through,
because they have an idea that the
President would not object to Con
gress forcing an extra session by fail
ure to pass them all.
The man who "objects is now
in his glory in both House and Sen
ate. He can block small legislation
at will, as unanimous consent is need
ed to get action upon any bill not
having the right of way under the
rules. There is little probability of
any more important legislation, except
the appropriation bills,
Senator Villas, Of Wisconsin, who
made one Of the greatest speeches of
his life-he spoke nearly four hours
in reply to the unjust and unpatrlotic
carping and insinuations of the repub-
hcan and populist Senators concern
ing the contract made by Secretary
Carlisle to secure gold for bonds, re-
futed in detail every insinuation that
has been made, and made it plain to
every unprejudiced mind that SeCre
tary Carlisle, acting in concert with
President Cleveland, had availed him
self Of every possible means to make
as favorable bargain as possible and
that no one else could have secured
better terms from the men who con
trolled the gold wanted Senator
Aldrich, of Rhode Island, who persist
ed in interrupting Mr.. Villas to say
directly, or to intimate that he could
have got the gold cheaper, was well
answered, and the answer applies to
all the other fault-hnders. Mr.. Villas
said: "If the Senator from Rhode
Island, instead of standing here to
carp at transaction already accom-
plished and finished, had put himself
at one end of the Atlantic cable, as
the Secretary of the Treasury did, and
with the aid of the greatest bankers
of New York, had cabled, as the
Secretary did, to every money market
of the world trying in every way posi-
BILE to geta reduction of the rate of
interest, he would have had different
opinion as to the possibility of getting
gold at such a price as he wanted"
There was no uncertain sound
about Secretary Carlsle's answer to
the Senate resolution of inquiry as to
the necessity for legislation authoriz-
ing the issue of Treasury certificates
to meet a deficit in the revenues,
which all of the republicans and
few of the democrats in Congress have
insisted would have to be met, and
which had even been provided for
in an amendment to an appropriation
bill, authorizing the issue of 3 per
cent, loan certificates to the amount
of SIoo, 900. 900. Secretary Carlisle
said sit is my opinion that the
Secretary of the Treasury ought to be
permanently invested with authority
to issue and sell short time bonds or
other obligations of the government
for the purpose of raising money to
meet such deficiencies in TIE ordinary
revenues as may occur frOm time to
time but do not think THAT there
is any necessity at the preseSt time
for the exercise of such authosity, if
II existed. 1t is not probable that
such de6ciescles will occur during the
remainder OF the current fiscal year as
will exceed the balance on hand, aad
1t is estimated that during the next
fiscal year the receipts will exceed the
expenditures" Sgrely that ought 10