The Roanoke times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1897-1977, 1897-06-16
TO IGNORE
OPPOSITION.
Republican Tariff Thinkers viii Not
Make Any Arguments.
THE HOPE IS EXPRESSED THAT
THE TARIFF BILL WILL GO TO
THE PRESIDENT FOR HIS SIGMA
TURE IN ABoUT.THREE WEEKS.
A VERY COMPLETE DEsCRIP-
TON OF THE ART TREASURES
IN USE AT THE WHITE HOUSE.
IN USE AT THE WHITE HOUSE.

Washington, June 15.-(Special.)-Un
der the olan adopted by the Republicans
to caucus upon each item and not reply
TO Democratic arguments, the tariff Is
making rapid progress. After the items
are completed, which will probably be i'll
about two weeks, there will be few
speeches made against the bill as a whole,
but there is not IN UGH zest in u one-sided
argument and nothing can be accom- plish-
ed by 1t. 81
The Republicans now have positive
majority in favor of passing the bill, and
in order to have IA little opposition as
possible when the bill reaches conference
the House leaders are consulted con-
stantly. When the bill passes the Senate
it is believed that it will reach the Pres
ident within week.
1t is intended by the Republicans to
take TIP the question of Il currency COM
mission to prepare plan for currency re.
form, and there is no question that it will
pass the House. What will happen in the
Senate will depend upon the course of
the opposition. What their course will
be has not vet been decided. Il difference
of opinion existing among them. The
policy being urged most strongly just
now. however. contemplates the defeat Of
the proposition. IL is being urged by the
advocates of this policy that the Repuuli-
cans should be given to understand that
as soon as the tariff bill has been passed
Congress shall adjourn, and that il an at
tempt is made to get the curl ency COM
mission proposition through it will be at
the risk of prolonging the extra session
until December. In n measure this is in
spired by spirit Of reprisal against the
House for it's policy of inaction, it being
commended that il the House intended to
Ia riplD ft t,,f l,xap
any other besides the tariff 1t should have
been ut it during the time that the Senate
was occupied with the tariff.
The opposition are not agreed in this,
however. The proposition is made by
some that it would be better politics to
permit the commission to be formed and
to have the financial policy of the admin.
| istration fully disclosed at the beginning
of the regular session, and that therefore
the resolution should be permitted to go
through without further resistance than
to disclose that the opposition do not ac-
| quiesce in the plan. There promises to
be considerable contention between
these conflicting ideas. If the obstructive
policy prevails, it will threaten great
| protrRction of the extra session, and
might, in anticipation of the fight to fol-
low. delay action on the tariff bill.
The melting Of silverware ut the White
House has been very extensively criti-
cised, and has revived the stories of the
fabulous amount of gold and silver plate
| in the Presidents mansion. Capt.
Thomas Pendel, who has been door.
keeper for thirty-three years, gives the
following interesting account OF the relics
remarkable for their scarcity. He says
AS matter of fact, there is not an
ounce OF gold plate in the executive man
sion that belongs to the United States
Government, and the silver is small in
quantity, and some of it is actually worn
in holes, it has been so long in use. This
silver probably dates back as far rs 1889
40, though there are few figures TO help
decide the matter. Perhaps some of it,
the cream jugs, for instance, that have
to be set on saucers to keep the cream
that seeps through the worn places from
solling the Presidential linen, belonged to
the historic lot bought from General
Baron de Tuyll, II Russian robleman. in
1858. 1t was his baronial ancestral silver
and was probably cheap at 81, 3OS. S2,
though there is something repugnant in
the idea of furnishing the home of the
President of the United States with sec.
ond hand goods. This silver service.
which for the time was truly regal, con-
sisted OF three hundred and thirty eight
pieces. One hundred and forty pieces of
| dessert spoons, knives and forks, and u
few pieces of this dessert set are still in
use, the rest having long ago disappeared.
The gold plate has also disappeared,
and the set that is left looks like plain
silver.
''The larger pieces of silver in the
White House are kept OH the sideboards
in the little private dining ROOM 1t con-
sists of cream jugs, water pitcher, butter
dishes, gravy boat and four Large tn
reens. Several pieces of the silver evil
IDENTIFY belongs to the same set, and are
| OF pattern, grapes and leaves, of at
least fifty years ago. It is of graceful
shape and that it has received hard usage
Is shown by the cracks and breaks in the
creased and rounded portions of the
| bowls, where 1t has actually fallen into
boles which have been patch ed like tin
| pan! The big turcens were found by
Mrs. Harrison when she came in. They
had been stored away in the garrett dur
ing the regime OF Mrs. Cleveland in the
former admin 'stration, aud china sub
stituted. Mrs. Harrison had them cleaned
and reno vated, and they were among the
show pieces of silver after that. Mrs.
Cleveland evidently found new beauty in
them after coming back, for they were
used all the time.
Zone of the handsomest MS we'll as the
largest pieces OF silver in the White
House was purchased by Mrs Grant at
the Centennial Exposition in 1876. 1t is
n beautiful silver ship, or. more properly
| speaking, n canoe, for it is supposed to
be representation of the birch bark
canoe of Hiawatha 1t Is used as a deco
rative piece at state dinners, filled with
flowers when the old gilt plateau thatonce
belonged to Washington is not brought
- go - l.