Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1896-01-16
A KNOW NOTHING CONGRESS-.
Distressing Incapacity OF the Republican



! Hodse.
TIE president urged congress not tc
| take Il holiday recess without making
| provision for a pressing financial emer-
| eency Congress did not adjourn. II
| recognized the need of action at once
| if there WAS to be action in time to dc
any good. The house passed a tariff
! bill and bond bill. neither of which
was of any use whatever for the pur-
| pose CT meeting the emergency.
Now we are told. after all this show
OF alncrity on the part of the house
| that senators feel there is no necessity
| for them to make haste" because
| neither of these measures can pass
| for many long weeks and perhaps
| months Therefore senators proceed
in the most leisurely way to complete
| The organization of their house as a
| republican body and then talk of adj
| iourning for a week without attempt
ing to do anything in response to the
| presidents appeal.
thus VIC have asco.nplete and dis
PRESSING demonstration Of the inca
| pacity of either house Of the present
/ congress to act nationally in a situa-
| ton which demands prompt action.
| The one thing to be done was to pro-
| vide for the maintenance of gold pay
ments at Il time when the gold reserve
WAS liable to be exhausted in the alb
seIice OF power to replenish it at once
| by borrowing. The president asked
| authority to borrow on the most favor
| able terms and to protect the reserve
against further raids by canceling the
redeemed legal tenders OR at least hold
ing them in the treasury SO they could
not be used again to empty the gold
vaults.
The house responded by passing a
tariff bill, knowing perfectly we'll that
it could not be passed and put into eff
feet in time to do any good, even if it
would bring in any gold when in effect,
and knowing just we'll that it would
bring no gold into the treasury except
what was drawn out in exchange for
legal tenders. It also responded by
passing Il bond bill depriving the presi-
dent even of the power he now has to
sell bonds for gold drawn from sources
outside Of the treasury. In short, the
house passed two bills to embarrass the
treasury. not to afford security.
And the senate confessed it's utter in
capacity by piacidly organizing as a
republican silver body and going to
sleep with the presidents alarm bell
ringing il its ears.
What sort of Il congress is this to
deal with I state OF affairs under which
It may become necessary tc raise large
sums Of money? Suppose war should
4 l..
try ard Great Britain, how would we
fare financially? New loans would
have to be authorized, for the treasury
department has no authority to issue
bonds for war purposes or for any prr-
poses not specified in the resumption
net But TO reasonable loan act could
be had from this congress. Even if
the house should develop sense enough
to authorize a gold bond the senate
would nave none of it.
If war should break out now about
the first thing this congress would do
would be to authorize u great lot Of
greenbaci,s and silver certificates
against alleged seigniorage. Suspen-
sion OF gold payments would quickly
follow. The currency would depre-
CitilC ~ ttItl u TIC SiflI " al
prices would go up to correspond and
the cost of the war would be at least
twice what it ought to be. And the
debt would have to be paid in sound
money or the public and private credit
of the country would be ruined.
War would be a double calamity
with such a congress in the saddle.
With the possibility of war confront
ing them people ought to be able to
see the Importance of sound and solid
monetary system. They ought tc see
shat the government never should exer-
cIse the power to issue legal tender
notes except to meet some great ext
rency, and even then should exercise
it SO sparingly as not to cause depreci-
alton. They ought to see that sucis
notes should be withdrawn completely
at the earliest moment after the pass
ing of the eXigency. But this congress
sees nothing of the kind 1t is far less
capable of enacting wise financial meas
ures than were the war congresses of
1861 and 1S65.-Chicago Chronicle.
AEeserve OF Wind.
AS one travels around and about
that monetary scheme OF the repub-
licans, its boshincSs shows at every
corner. There is the fatal mush of
concession" everywhere. Fer one in
stance of many, it proposes that all
greenbacks redeemed in gold shall be
held in the treasury as q part of the
reserve" What is it when analysed?
The redemption OF the greenbacks is
but the payment CT the debt expressed
on their face. What is the "Ieserve?'
1t is the money, the actua! money,
kept tn pay these debts with. What,
then, is this proposition? To PIT the
paid promises to pay into the fund
with which to pay. parallel would
he for business firm to put into its
safe the notes which it had taken up
to be used ION pinch" III paying
other notes with. Should this nom
sense prevail and become q law, one
can imagine a holder OF the greenback
hem for payment and being paid in
the redeemed and paid greenbacks
held in the gold reserve. Could any
thing be more absurd than this? And
yet it is the best method that party
that boasts of its superior administra-
tive and business capacity can devise.
Before they are through with it they
are likely to recant even on this. and
order the continued reissue of green
backs. Then republicans themselves