Delaware gazette and state journal., 1896-02-20
Another BLOW at Free SILVER coinage.


Another Blow at Free SILVER Coinage.
The House of Representatives. on
Friday, took another whack at the free
silver coinage folly, and by the decisive
vote OF 21o to 80 defeated tho Senate's
free silver substitute for tho House
Bond bill This action, it is conceded,
removes the last vestige of any hope of
free silver coinage measure receiving
consideration at the hands of the pre-
sent Congress.
An analysis of the vote by which the
result in the House was arrived at is
quite interesting. OF the 80 votes cast
in favor of the Senate substitute, says
Washington special, 80 were from the
Democratic side, Twenty-nine Demo-
Gratis voted in favor of sound money.
This is, however, not fair exposition
Of the feeling among the Democrats re-
garding theimoney question, for of the
Democrats absent from the House
nearly all were sound money men. The
Rbsentees are men like Mr. Cowen of
Maryland, who felt confident the bill
would be defeated without them and
were not sufficiently interested to an
swer the roll-call, However. the corre-
Epondent adds, the silver Democrats
feel somewhat elated over the fact that
a clear majority OF the Democratic
membership voted in favor of free coin.
age. They forget that great many of
the silver Democrats who occupied
seats in the last Congress we're sue
ceeded by sound money Republicans.
and that their small and misguided
band of cheap-money advocates no more
represent tho sentiment of the whole
Democracy than does the silver aggre-
CATION in the Senate represent the sen
timent of the country, because it is
made up of Democrats, Republicans
and Populists.
1t is interesting also to note that the
action Of the House in defeating this
latest proposition for the free coinage
of silver is the fifth time that this
delusive folly has been stricken down
in Congress since the passage of the
act demonetizing silver, in 1873. The
various contests are thus summarized
BY the New York Evening Post:
The first occasion was on the 2lst of
February, 1878, when the House con.
Cured with the Senate in striking out
the free coinage clause of the Bland
bill and substituting tho Allison
amendment foflimited coinage in place
thereof. On the question of striking
out, the vote was: yeas 203 NAYS ~,
majority of 13l against free coinage.
The next trial of strength was on the
Sth of April, 1886, on free coinage bill
offered by Mr.. Bland, on which the
vote was: yeas 1876, nays l63. majority
of 81 against the measure. This looked
like considerable gam for free coin
age since the vote of 1878, but was NOT
really such, because in 1878 the subject
was not well understood even bv the
congressman who voted on it, and still
less by the people.
The next vote was taken on the 9Jth
of June, 1890, on Senate amendment
TO what was known as the Window
silver purchase act This bill had
passed the House and was returned by
the Senate with clause providing for
the frse coinage of silver, which the
House rejected by yeas l35, nays lj2
the majority against the measure being
II.
The next vote, the closest of all. was
taken in the House ON the 9th of
March, 1892, when the vote stood l5O
TO las in favor Of tabling measure for
the free coinage of silver Two votes
were taken that day, and one Of them
showed majority Of one vote for free
coinage, but the second oae gave ma
lority Of two against it.
The vote in the House on the Tth II
August, 1888 repeating the Sherman
silver purchase act was not strictly on
the subject Of free coinage, but was
more decisive of the general question
Of silver than any previous one. On
the question of repeating that act The
yeas were 2i9 and the nays los
majority Cor repeal III.
1t Will thus be seen that as far as tht
popular branch Of Congress is con.
cerned, the sentiment is unwayeringIy
against the free coinage of silver. Ana
certainly tho House Of Representative,
being closer 10 the people, more trul,
reflects real public sentiment than doe.
the Senate. And to-day the sentiment
Of the people is moro strongly condem.
natofy Of the free silver nolicy of ths
United States Senate than eyer.