Arizona republican., 1897-11-29
Senator Jones' Boast Of Early
 Monetary Reforms
SILYERIqES IN THE SADDLE
Which Means a Union o1
 all DiSaffeCted Elements
Other Friends off the White Metal Less Sanguine and Admit that the Strong Single Standard Sent ment in the House is Deadly.


 ward to the coming session of con- gress with feeling of hopeful appre- hension. They hope to accomplish something in the right direction; they fear they will be able to accomplish nothing. Senator Jones of Nevada openly boasts that "tihe silver people are in the saddle'' By silver people he means not only the group of sena- tors to which he himself belongs, gen. tlemen originally elected as republi- cans, but who have ceased acting wi. h that party because of their extreme views on silver, but also the demo- cratic senators who take the same view of silver and who are led by Senator Jones of Arkansas, chairman of the democratic national committee, and the populist senators, some Of whom doubtless would prefer straight out fiat money to any such halting compromise as silver at ratio of Is to 1. Besides these distinctly hos tile clements there are among the re- publican senators several who favor free coinage and who would probably approve any real effective measure of currency reform. Prominent in this group are Senator Chandler of New Hampshire and Senator Wolcott of Colorado.
 The members of the monetary commission, appointed in accordance If rho md dioD r,o1 sound money convention, feel more hopeful at this moment than they have for some time past over the out look for currency legislation. Th;ra is no doubt as to the passage through the house of any bill providing for currency reform that the administra- tion may father, whether that be a plan of the monetary commission, of Secretary Gage, or that known as the Baltimore plan. Even so strident and aggressive a silver man as Represen- tative Hartman of Montana admits that such measure can be safely passed in the house, though he ve- hemently declares that in passing a. least one hundred republican mem- bers vote contrary to their persona convictions on the subject This as- sertion, however, is a vain begging of the question.
 The real difficulty will be now, as it was with the repeal of the silver purchasing clause of the Sherman act in 1893, with the senate No party has majority in that body, though the republicans have a plurality. But even this plurality is divided, as indi- cated, into at least two groups in matters relating to the currency. The democrats are also divided into two groups on this question. In the re- publican division the larger is dis tinely favorable to sound money leg 1slatlon all along the line, while the smaller, if not opposed to sound mone- tary legislation is not to be depended upon where 1t is at stake In the democratic division the larger is ram pantly opposed to anything in the di- rection of sound money legislation while the smaller, very much small CT both in numbers and in proportion to the minority group of republican senators, is zealously ard earnestly for sound money legislation and cur rency reform. Then come the straightout silver republicans and the populists, the latter being filled with far wider financial vagaries than ths former. In short the populfsts really aim at fiat money.
 After all, however, the situation ir the senate as regards financial reform ls hardly more desperate than was the situation in the senate of the Eff ty-third congress in respect to the re peal of the silver purchasing clause or the Sherman act. Yet because oi the flrmness and tenacity with which President Cleveland insisted upon un conditional repeal Of that clause, i was internationally repealed after { struggle lasting more than twl months. Whether a similar stand c1 the part of President Mckinley il favor of currency reform would meet the same success, could only be knowr by the result of trial The situation HO" plOoSHteu as IeSdTuS Hndncla legislation is vastly more comple, than that which came up in 1893 There are all sorts of opinions amons public men with reference to currenc, reform, and it would be difficult evel with positive and declared majorit in the senate, to find common ground upon which the members composin, that majority could stand. The diff culties of the situation are greatly in creased by the various groups int which the senate is divided. It is however, altogether within the realn