The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1896-11-01
COL. WI. STEELE ON SILVER
as FAR BACK AS 1878 HE CLEARLY
FORESAW THE REMEDY.
Extracts From Ills Brilliant Reply IN
Congress to New York
GoIdhug.

Congress to new otN
GoIdbug.
Only Yesterday there came into our
hands copy of speech entitled "Sl-
yer Lunacy" made in Congress by the
late Hon. Walter L. Steele, on Februa-
rv 21st. 1878. He was easily one OF
the first men of the State, combining
rare business ability with literary
gifts of the highest order. As a busl-
ness man, he created enterprise ana
made large fortune. As statesman
he Illuminated all questions which
he discussed.
We regret that we have not space
for the speech in full. 1t shows that
in 1873 this gentleman saw the evils
that demonstration would intiict up
on industry and sought to restore sill
yer to full coinage at the mints. The
speech was a reply to speech by
a New York Congressman who had
appliea to all silver advocates such
comely epithets as silver lun4atics,".
seretnie Of their cofntyts honor, =,
"defrauders of the nations creditors"
and many other like yituperations.
Col. Steel showed that when silver
was demonetized it was worth three
cents more than gold. This is fine
extract:
sI trust that I shall be excused II
I venture with great humility and
unspeakable Difference to suggest the
possibility that the gentleman from
New York has misapprehended he
characteristics of the bushel-measure
by which he undertakes to illustrate
his ideas of the iniquities of silver
coinage to those who, he admits, know
something of grain, even II they are
totally ignorant of the great subject OF
finance. I confess that / did not
know, until his speech was made, that
a bushel-measure was required to
hold "a certain number of grains
of wheat or any other cereal. /
thought, but I may he wrong, that
it must consist of SO many cubic
inches, and, if so, the number of
grains of wheat it would hold would
materially depend upon the variety and
quality which were to be measured.
It affords me great pleasure to agree
with him that 'sthree pecks and a
half will not make an honest bushel,"
but while / thus coincide 1 must be
permitted to say that two half dollars
of about 143 grains each will not equal
an '+honest'' silver dollar of 4121a
grain. IF, however, s'the dollar of the
daddies" is restored to it's place in
the coinage, I and those who agree
with me that in a short time, despite
the money-changers, it will be worth
as much as an honest gold dollar of
the weight and fineness which are re-
quired by the statute. -
"Mr. Speaker, there is disease
which sometimes aff1icts the canine
race, the virus of which is coInmuni-
cable and almost invariably produces
death. 1t is known as hydrophobia--
a name given it, believe, because the
animal suffering from its influence is
filled with an appalling dread of wa
ter. "A disease of a somewhat similar
character, whose ssdistillment, swift
as quicksilver, so courses through
the natural gates and alleys of the
brain that with sudden vigor it doth
posset and curd, like eager droppings
into milk, the wholesome" condition
of the intellect, seems to have seized
with remorseless and unyielding grasp
on the mind of the gentleman from
New York. He evidently has the ar
gentiphobia. ] fear that there is no
remedy for his mind diseased; no
power to pluck from his memory a
rooted sorrow and rae out the writ
ten troubles of his brain" Lunar
caustic'' will do no good, but rather
add to his distresses. if no such dis
order as this affects the gentleman,
it is certain, think, that he has that
"sacra flames auri'' which is spoken
of by the Latin poet. All such per-
sons would act wisely, perhaps, if
while dealing damnation around the
land on all they deem their foes" and
seeing "motes" in others eyes they
would remove from their own the
'sbeams'' which destroy their vision.
1T is not expected, as charged, that
the reconciliation of the silver dol
lar will prove panacea for all our
financial ills. AS the bill comes back
to us from tine Senate, ] confess that I
expect far less benefits from it than
the country would have received if it
had passed that body as it was sent
from this House. Disappearing of
several of the amendments which have
been ingrafted into it, still prefer its
passage to it's defeat. I think yet that
it will be one of the means of reliey-
ing the present harassing stagnation
Of business and trade, and that with
essential changes in the tariff system
it viii enable our people, now suffer
ing from an enforced lethargy, to rise
m with hOpeful vi9or and follow with
confidence their ordinary avocations.
But then, we are told that we must
adopt the single gold standard If we
wish to keep pace with the progress
of the age, and maintain our place
with the commercial civilization of
the earth. 1T occurs to me that with
our vast domain and almost boundless