The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1896-02-16
IT HAS IMMENSE MEANING IN II

IT MAS IMMENSE MEANING IN IL
The overwhelming defeat which free
silver received I'm the House OF hepresen-
tatives Friday ought TO satisfy even me
most incredulous that that vagary has
,,,n its course. Free silver IS As dead as
Iulius Caesar. Alexander the Great or
Napoleon Bonaparte. with all The crimes
and follos Of any one or all of them 10
answer for. and not one Of the redeem
ing qualities OF either Let us at least
thank Heaven for that much, whatever
else we may find TO complain Of.
The Democrats made bad showing on
the vote. 1t is not very reassurins TO
sensible man who belongs to the Demo
cratic partv to tell him that OF the ke-
publicans voting 1Si voted against free
silver. with only twenty-five for it, while
Of the eighty-nine Democrats voting hity-
eight voted for free silver and only thir-
tv-one against it. II IS some consolation
however. TO be told that nearly all Of the
seventeen Democrats who were absent are
sound-money men.
But the hopeful Democrat who is a real
Democrat. suffers no discouragemcnt from
any view OF the case. lie rccolects that
the members of the House of Representa-
tives were elected nearly eighteen months
AGO. and that they necessarily reflect
more or less the color of popular opinion
as of the time they were elected. Free
silver undoubtedly had far greater hold
upon the country on November !, l&i.
than it had on February il, 1896. An I'M
mense change has taken place in that
time. People have read and studied The
Times ana other journals that give them
solid information, and. above all, the i'm
exorable logic of events has forced its
| disastrous demonstrations upon their
minds The people are to-day away
ahead Of the representatives they elected
I'm November iS4
a great proof Of thaC1act is what o.
CURED Friday in the Virginia House Of
Delegates. which is fresh from the people.
! To make its action perfectly understood,
We will recite all the facts in the case:
A week ago Mr.. Stovall. a Republican
member. offered a resolution calling upon
our representatives in Congress 10 vote
for every measure that came along look
ing 10 the free coinage OF silver at the
ratio of i6 20 I. II such a resolution had
been offered two years ago i'm the pre-
e.ding LEGISLATURE. members would have
tuubled over each other in thoir haste
TO get themselves recorded as for #. It
is safe TO say that nothing could have
prevented the house passing il promptly
and 10y q great majority.
Fat something or another had pui this
House into q different mind IT saw 10
need for haste. IL had somehow or other
turned to the notion that this was a
Federal and not q State question, and
that it ought to Doe considered boy the
great constitutional lawyers who make zap
its Committee on Federal Relations bee
fore the laymen of the House said any
thing about TO- This was great STATES
manship. undoubtedly but statesman
ship OF am entirely different character
! from what free silver advocates have
heretofore thought properly applicable TO
the case Upon a motion. therefore, 10
send the resolution to the Committee on
Federal Relations. only nineteen voted
against Tho motion while thirty-nine voted
for IT, The sound-money mon thought
this a great triumph for their views. and
they accordingly claimed it as such. But
the free silver men said the thirly-nire
had voted 90 send the resolution TO tho
committee without understanding the
case. Thcrcupon The Times suggested
that they should have it over again. so
that every man might know exactly what
| De was doing. Accordingly. on Friday
| Major Baker =. Lee. a devoted advocate
OF free coinage, moved TO discharge the
committee from further consideration Of
the resolution so that it might come be-
fore the House for its own direct action.
This motion was beaten by a vote OF
IS to 20.
IL cannot be said that anybody was
ignorant Of what was going on when
this vote was taken. Everybody know
perfectly well what was under considcra-
ton. yet we have this result.
Now, We by no means claim that OF the
seventy-nvc men voting, ffty-hve are FOR
sound money. Not at all. But de do mean
TO say that OF the seventy-tve voting
there are only twenty who are earnest,
dyed-in-the-wool free coiners who are
ready to proclaim their faith at all times
and 10 stand by IT under all circum-
! stances. These twenty are OF that sort
The nfty-fve may contain number OF
] man who viii tell you they are for free