The islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1891-1899, 1897-04-08
m Don't Want the Question Settled as 1t Might End Their
Employment

lican), after speaking of the movement as
having the "air of grotesqueness," said:
III we must fawn further at the feet of
those who control the finances of the
world, let us at least preserve our self
respect and do it when we are their
hosts"
On January 10Th, during thes discussion
upon the bill, Senator Jones, of Arkansas.
chairman Of the Silver Democratic Ma
tonal Committee, put himself on record
as TO MS real sentiments by saying: ''This
scheme is not ours: we have not originated
III; we do not believe it is the proper
scheme for the solution of these difficult
ties"
On January 18th, when the vote was
taken IN the Senate on the bill, those who
voted against it were: Allen (Silver-Popu-
ilst)' Pettlgrew (Silver- Repu blican), Roach.
(Sliver-Democrat), Villas (Gold-Demo-
craft. Not a Republican voted against
the bill.
On February 26th, when the bill came
up IN the House, Mr.. McRae (Silver-Dem-
ocrat, and Mr.. Dockery (Silver-Demo-
craft, DISTRACTED its consideration by de-
handing a second
On February 26th, during the discussion
IN the House. Congressman Hartman
tollver-Republican), said: 1--WE desire to
register our unqualified detestation at the
idea embodied in the declaration that we
must have the consent of the leading COM
mercial nations of the earth before we
can legislate for ourselves.
On February Goth, when the bill was
under discussion in the House. Mr.. Coop
er, of Texas (Silver- DemocraD, threw cold
water on the proposition in the opening
sentence of his speech by saying: 81 be-
lieve this measure to be a will-o'-the-
wisp."
Contrast this attitude of the professed
friends of silver in the Democratic, Popu-
list and "Silver Republican" parties, with
the ringing utterances of two men, Sena-
tor Allison and Representative Dingley.
Here are some extracts from the remarks
of Senator Allison, the leader of the Re
publican party in the Senate, and a men,
Der of the last international bimetallic
conference. Contrast them with the words
and attitude of the professed friends of
silver quoted above. On January Goth,
when the bill was under discussion, Sen
ator Allison said: 'Those who believe in
an international agreement on this sub
ject are not abdicating the power and in
dependence of our nation, but are making
an honest endeavor to bring these two
metals, now widely separated in inter-
national value, nearer and nearer. and
they believe that can be done by their in
ternatienal USE This PROPOSE
ton is not new. 1t has been an establish
ed policy of the United States since 1873
by repeated acts of Congress, and by re-
peated statements in platforms, and never
departed from in a single instance by
either of the great parties until at Chicago
in 1885,. Opponents of the bill
jeer at the idea that there is possibility
of securing concurrent action of a num-
Der of commercial nations of the world
with this country. There has
never been a conference which has not
made progress as respects the concurrent
use of both gold and silver, and venture
the assertion that outside of the control
ling portion Of Great Britain and perhaps,
also, the Scandinavian States, there is not
a country in Europe that is not in favor
of the effort which is proposed here, and
which will not support it and advocate it,
excepting only Germany, which stands
upon a pivot, as to its parliamentary sit
uation. and as to the governing forces
surrounding the Emperor. l do not advo-
cate this policy because it is found in the
platform adopted in st. Louis. l advo-
cate it because / believe it is in the in
terests of concurrent circulation of these
two metals in the world, and because it
promotes the commercial interests of the
world to minimize the difference in the
power of exchange between great con-
Meeting trade countries. One or the other
of these two metals, so long as these con-
ditions prevail, will be the paramount
metal. Which of them is to be para
mount until we have the concurrent &C.
ton of nations? 1t is that which is the
standard in the nations having the chief
trade of the world. Who are these ma
lions? Are they China, Japan or the
South American States, some of them
having a gold standard and some of them
having a silver standard, and all of them
having a deprecated paper standard but
one? Here lies Europe, with its silver
and it's gold. having the gold standard,
with a trade twelve times as great as all
the trade of all the silver countries COM
bined. Therefore, unless we can mini
mize the difference in the value of these
two metals in the exchange of the world,
this divergence will go on and the people
who have the silver money are those who
will be most distressed in the exchanges
which are necessary to be made"
'Op February 26th, during the discussion
in the House, Representative Dingley
said:
1.-The Republican party at St. Louis de-
clared against the free coinage of silver
by the Independent action of the country,
because they believed, as | believe, and
as every scientific bimetallist in the world
outside of politics believes, that such in
dependent free coinage of silver at the
ratio of 16 to /. is nothing in the world
but silver monometallism. But the party
eo;d a+ tho same time that they would