The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-07-06

The President at Work Upon n New Bank
ing and Currency Measure-But There
viii BE Opposition TO 1t In the Senate.
The Democratic Policy.
WASHINGTON, July Especial. THE
closing days of the session are at hand,
and to the last Speaker Reed has had his
way about the nonappointment of COM
mittees i'm the house while there was dan
ger that the committees would make trou-
Die. Not in all the history of parliament
tary bodies ut this capital do we find par
allel 10 Mr. Reed audacious achievement.
| There arc, of course, varying opinions as
TO the right and wrong Of the course which
| he has pursued Some argue that he was
| not justified in going the length he did in
! making himself absolute master of the
| house. Others find defense for him in the
need of having II policy that would lead to
results in the tariff without plunging the
country into maelstrom of general lPgis-
| lation. Leaving this phase of the matter
out of the question, the speakers perform
ance is q notable one i'm the annals of per-
sonal pluck and force.
! Approved by Mckinley.
1t is no secret that what he has done the
speaker did with the full knowledge and
, approval of President Mckinley. At a
conference hold at the White House short
ly after the assembling Of congress last
March it was agreed between the president
> and the speaker of the house that the COM
! mittCcs should not be appointed unless
there was a change in the situation max
ing such action necessary. In the face Of
the most determined opposition, the oft
repeated attacks of the Democratic and
! Populist leaders and the disapproyGl of
large number Of men in his own party,
! Speaker Reed has held To his course with
out the slightest deviation. For one man
thus TO hold up the great house of repre-
scntatiyes, constituting himself its dicta-
tor and mouthpicco during almost an en-
tire session of congress, is certainly per-
formance which none but Reed would
dplu say.
MIR. Reeds determination to name the
committees of the house before adjourn
ment was reached long ago. 1t has been
understood for several months that in the
| closing hours the organization of the house
would be announced. OF course il is now
| too late for these committees to enter upon
any consideration of legislative questions.
! The time for that has passed. But the
committees will be all ready when con-
gress meets again in December, and among
the important measures then to come be-
fore congress is the administration cur
rency bill
Immediately after the election last fall
Mr.. Mckinley decided that he would call
special session of congress to meet the
middle of March. The object of it was to
push through new tariff bill without
delay. Readers of these dispatches will
remember how clearly the president 8
plans were outlined by me even before
they were known in Washington, except
to IA very few who had been taken into the
confidence of the president elect The
programme which it was my fortune to
be able to announce to the country has
been carried out. During the winter this
president asked Chairman Dingley and
his ways and means committee to prepare
the new tariff so that it might be ready
for the special session.
The Currency Question.
Now the president is at work upon an
other scheme Of legislation, which he
hopes to push through in a similar man
ner. During the summer Secretary of the
Treasury Gage, assisted 10y Comptroller
Eckels, Mint Director Preston and other
experts, is to prepare new banking and
currency measure which is to be intro
duced in congress next December. 1t will
really DO an administration bill. The
president and his cabinet will father it
and give their influence to its passage.
Before introducing IL an effort will be
made to secure the cordial cooperation of
Speaker Reed, the banking and currency
committee of the house and the leading
Republicans of the senate.
| No doubt exists that the new admins
tration currency bill can be pushed through
the house with great rapidity The speak
er's will Is law there Besides, he is pretty
sure to have in that, as he has had in his
policy this last winter, the cordial support
of majority of the men on his own side
of the hall But there will be trouble in
the senate. The Democrats and Repub-
lican silverites do not propose to permit
Mr.. Cages bill to retire the greenbacks,
protect the gold reserve and arrange a new
banking system to go to the statute books
| without tremendous fight.
They will probably be able to block the
way for many weary months. In the SEN
ate it is easy ia make long speeches with
out anything more than suspicion anent a
| desire to delay rather than to convince at
taching TO the speechmakers. Ipredict that
before President Mckinley succeeds with
his policy of revising the currency and
banking laws it will be necessary to
change tho rules Of the senate.
The Democratic Policy.
This brings Inc to very important
point i'm our current history. There has
been much surprise because the Democrats
of the senate apparently Joined hands with
their Republican f,,ends in expediting the
passage of the tS.Ne bill The Democrats
have laid no obstacles in the way of the
tariff. They have generously refrained
from speechmaking. They have even help
ed the Republicans dispose of paragraph
after paragraph What does 10 meanY This
is a question which | have often heard
| asked.
The Democratic leaders have had the
best sort of an explanation of their con
duct 1.-THE Republican party is response
BILE for legislation, they shy. land it Is
our duty and pleasure to permit them to