The San Francisco call., 1898-01-30
THE TELLER RESOLUTION.

n s was expected, the Teller resolution passed { \ the Senate by an emphatic majority. It IS a concurrent resolution, which il 1t pass the House requires the signature of the President to be- come obligatory upon the Government There IS no doubt that the Presidents speech in New York on Thursday night inspired by the certainty of its passage in the Senate. He felt the necessity for a counter declaration in support of the public credit, and made 1t emphatic that securities were strengthened at and the action of the Senate was amply discounted. The bond and security ket was buoyant because of the Presidential assur- ancc that the resolution would die in his hands
 The resolution itself, while following the general direction of the Matthews resolution of 1878, takes different purpose entirely because of the entire change in the situation. In 1878 silver was very nearly at par with gold on a ratio of I6 to l. Now IS oscillating at an average of so per below par Under these circumstances the enforced exer- else of the Governments option to pay the national bonds in silver would no doubt seriously affect its credit and at the time destroy its capacity to maintain the parity of the two metals Such an op- ton when the metals differed by fraction below or above per cent could have been used wisely to re- store parity. But when attempted with difference ot 50 per cent it would simply increase disparity and weaken the public credit
 The verbiage of the Teller resolution thrown into the present condition raises a more serious issue than the mere option to pay bonds in silver It re- cites that the bonds of the Government are payable III silver dollars of the coinage of the United States containing 4I2H grains of standard silver and that to restore to its coinage such silver coins as legal tender in payment of said bonds, principal and in terest is in violation of the public faith nor in derogation of the rights of the public creditor"
 This is square expression in favor of the free nf ro+.o rR A. pairs the vote against this was only thiryseven in the full Senate
 While the country is led to feel, for the present, secure in the position of the President the political effect of the Senate's action is of the first conse- quence. It is notice the iatists that they have majority in the Senate to the end of this admin istration, and the effect doubt intended by the tree silver leaders is to redoube their efforts to elect the House to be chosen next November They would then, for the first time since the issue was made, have control of both houses and have the ability to lay out the programme for 1000 in the form of free silver bills. These would of course meet the Presidential veto and the issue would be made up. The Congressional elections of this year. therefore, become more than ever the opening of the next Presidential campaign
 There IS no chance to secure two-thirds majority in either House to override the Presidential veto and the philosopher in politics may content himself with the certainty that fiat House in the Fifty sixth Congress, with concurring Senate will alarm all the business and industrial interests so thoroughly
 that they will rally again in 1900 as in ISo6 and defeat the programme now outlined But the wage payer and the wage earner will meantime be suffering be- tween the upper and neither milstone. Therefore it behooves the men who stand by financial stability and who want peace and prosperity to see to it that no fiat House is elected and that the two years be- fore the next Presidential election are given to the national increase in basket and in store