The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1896-10-17
THE CRIME OF 1873.
HOW ACT DEMONETIZlNG SILL
YER WAS PASSED.
It Was Rushed Through Congress With
out Being Rand and Debate Was Shut
Never Heard Of 1t.

Arkansas Gazette: 1t has been often
Tehearsed, so often indeed that one
would think every citizen OF the conn
try was familiar with the facts, but
they are not, or if they read about it
they have forgotten the facts.
The act demonetizing silver was
struggled through congress. Less than
a half dozen members knew Of it.
President Grant, who signed the bill,
was utterly ignorant of it. Judge
Kelly, of Pennsylvania, the chairman
OF the committee on coinage. weights
and measures at the time, when
charged with having advocated the de-
monetizaton Of silver, said in speech
in the house: I'm connection with the
charge that l advocated the bill which
demOnet!zed the standard silver dol
lar, I say that, though chairman of the
committee on coinage, was as ignor-
ant of the. feet that it would demoae-
tie the silver dollar, or OF its drop
ping the silver dollar from our system
of coins, as were those distinguished
senators, Messrs. Blaine. and Voorhees,,
who were then members of the house,
and each OF whom, few days since,
Intercepted the other: Did you know
it was dropped when the bill passed"
No. said Mr.. Blaine, did yOu?' No.
said Mr.. Voorhees,. 4 do not think
there. were three members in the house
that knew it. | doubt whether Mr..
Hooper, who, in my absence from the
committee on coinage and attendance
on the committee on ways and means,
managed the bill, knew. it. | say this
in justice to him" This statement was
made in the Forty-ifth congress.
In the Forty-siXth congress the mat
ter was again brought to the attention
OF the house by Judge Kelly, who said:
''Allthat- i can say is that the commit
tee on c65TTniage, weights and measures,
who reported the original bill, were
faithful and able, and. scanned its pro-
visions closely; that as their organ I
reported it: THAT II CONTAINED
PROVISIONS FOR BOTH TIE
STANDARD SILVER DOLLAR AND
THE TRADE DOLLAR. Never having
heard until long time after its enact
ment into law of the substitution in. the
senate Of the section which dropped
the standard silver dollar, | profess to
know nothing Of its history, but | am
prepared to say that in the legislation
OF this country there is no mystery
equal to the demonstration Of the sill
yer dollar of the United States. | have
never met a man who could tell just
how 1t came about or why. The bill
was passed without any allusion in de-
bate to the question of the retention
or the abandonment Of the standard sill
yer dollar
Evidently the crime was committed
after it had left the hands Of the COM
mittee, and before it was voted OH in
the house. How it passed that body is
thus described by Congressman Bright
of Tennessee: 1T passed by fraud in
the house, never having been printed
in advance, being substitute for the
printed bill; never having been read at
the clerks desk, the reading having
been dispensed with by an impression
that the bill made no alteration in the
coinage laws; it was passed without
discussion, debate being cut off by
operation of the previous question. 1t
was passed, to my certain informa-
ton, under such circumstances that
the fraud escaped the attention of
some Of the most watchful, as we'll as
the ablest statesmen in congress at the
. time.'
Senator Allison said in reference to
the subject: when the secret history
of this bill of 1873 comes to be told, it
will disclose the fact that the house Of
representatives intended to coin both
gold and silver, and intended to place
both metals upon the French relation
instead Of on our own, which was the
true scientific position with reference
to this subject in 1873, but that the
bill afterward was doctOred.'
Senator Beck said: "The bill never
was understood by either house of con-
gress." Senator Thurman said: There
is not single man in the senate, I'M
less a member of the committee from
which the bill came, who had the
slightest idea that 1t was even squint
toward demonstration"
Mr.. Holman, In the house, said "the
measure and the methods OF its pass
age was colossal swindle. It does
not possess the moral force Of law"
Representative Cannon, of Illinois,
says the bill was not discussed and
neither members of congress nor the
people understood the scope Of the
legislation.
Senator Hereford, Of West Virginia,
in a speech in the senate. said "the bilT
never was read, never was discussed,
and the chairman Of the committee
said to Mr.. Holman, when asked the
question, that it did not affect the