The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1895-02-26
WASHINGTON LETTER.
[From our Regular Correspondent

session of congress that Presl-
dent Cleveland did not want any
financial legislation, unless it
met his own ideas entirely. Now
it isn't limited, it is plainly spok-
en- that he does not. Since the
sending of his special message
to congress, announcing that he
had negotiated the sale of $685.
400, 900 in thirty year 4 per cent.
bonds, at price making the in
terest 81 per cent, and giving
congress the option of authoriz-
ing within ten days an issue of 8
per cent. gold bonds, which he
says the purchasers will take in
preference to the 81 per cent.
coin bonds, there has not been
the slightest doubt about his
position. He wants gold bonds
and nothing else. All talk about
the President meeting the silver
men half way in some compro-
mise measure is now ended and
the issue squarely made, gold
bonds or nothing. 1t will be
nothing. Notwithstanding Mr..
Cleveland's statement that gold
bonds would save the govern
ment $40, 900, 900 in the interest
on these thirty-year bonds, no
gold bond bill can possibly be-
come law. The silver men do
regard this as a question of in
terest, but of principle, involv-
ing values besides which $16,-
600, 900 would be q mere bags-
telle, and, as they absolutely con-
troll the senate, they will kill
gold bond bill, even if the house
does not, and besides, they may
do some plain talking about the
President selling bonds to a pri-
vate foreign syndicate which
bears 81 per cent. interest when
he could easily have sold a 8
per cent. bond at home, thus, as
they claim, wasting $4,000, 900.
The impossible task of getting
a thirty-year 8 per cent. gold
bond through the house has
been assigned to Mr.. Wilson,
chairman of the Ways and Means
committee, and he discovered as
soon as he called the committee
together, if he did not know it
before, that it would be no small
task to even get such a bill re-
ported to the house. The Re-
publicans and Populists all OPP
pose it and more than half of
the Democrats.
Few people knew, until the
senate declined to receive the
petition asking for legislation
looking towards international ar
bitration, which was signed by
1886 members of the British Par
lament and brought to Wash
ington by one of them, Mr..
Cremer, that there was rule
against receiving petitions from
aliens, except through the min
lister or other official representa-
tive of the country in which the
signers reside, and then it must
be presented to the Secretary of
State and not directly to con-
gress. 1t can readily be seen
that it is good rule, too.
Of far more direct interest to
the people of the United States
than Nicaragua canal scheme, is
the canal scheme proposed in a
senate amendment to the Sundry
Civil appropriation bill. This
amendment authorizes the Presi-
dent to appoint a commission of
three persons to confer with a
like commission to be named by
Great Britain and Canada on the
feasibility of building such can
ais as will enable vessels engag-
ed in ocean commerce to pass to
and fro between the great lakes
and the Atlantic ocean with an
adequate and comfortable supply
of water at all times.
Whether the senate will take
up and pass the railroad pooling
bill, is still a matter of doubt