Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1898-01-20
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular Correspondent.
WASHINGTON, Jan. II, 1898

If the silver forces of the country are
thoroughly united, they can win. That
has been admitted by anti-silver men. If
the bimitallic forces are not united, it will
not be the fault of the men who are at the
head of the National Committees of the
three parties which advocated bimetallism
in the last National campaign As result
of number of conferences between Chair
man Jones, of the Democratic National
Committee, Chairman Butler, of the Popu-
list National Committee, and Chairman
Towne. of the silver Republican National
Committee, JOINT address to the friends of
gold and silver has been prepared and will
be widely circulated, with view to secur-
ing cooperative action in every Congress
sional District in which there are organize
tions of two or more of these parties, in
this years campaign. In other words, the
object is to secure the selection of bimet-
alllst representative in every Congressional
district which has a majority of such
voters If the spirit of this address is &C
cepted and put into practical effect by the
voters, there is no doubt that majority of
the next House will favor the double
money standard.
The long and determined fight in the
Fifty-third Congress over the attempt to
sup SPCGul0tAU& OH OpblUHb may NC re-
neWed, as Representative Sullivan, of Mo
has introduced an anti-option bill on
about the same lines as the old Hatch bill
that was only defeated after a long and
costly struggle in which all of the stock
and grain exchanges of the country united
to fight the bill.
Enough lies to fill a big book have been
printed about the selection of the Demo-
-
all of them with one tendency-an effort to
make it appear that plot existed to elect
an anti-silver Chairman of this Committee
Such talk was, of course, ridiculous to those
who knew the facts, although it may have
gulled some others. There has been no
plot and the method by which members OF
the Committee are selected are such that
any plot would be next to impossible.
With the exception of a member from
Tenn, all the members of the Committee
have been selected, and this week a Chair
man and Secretary will be elected, and
there is not the slightest doubt that both
will be pronounced bimetallist. A new
member of the Committee is Senator Cock
rell, of Missouri, whose pronounced views
ere known all over the country.
Nearly everybody in Congress expects
that crisis will be reached in Cuban
matters in very short time. Those riots
in HAVANA will force the hand of this
government it they continue. The Senate
has asked Mr.. Mckinley to inform it what,
if any, preparations have been made to
protect Americans and American interests
in Cuba, and if the answer isn't speedily
forthcoming or isn't satisfactory, there is
likely TO be circus In the Senate. In the
House, the consideration of the Diplomatic
and Consular Appropriation bill was post
poned from last week, when it was ready
for fear that the Cuban speeches certain to
be made upon it wonld create so much ex-
element that the House might get away
from the Gar and rush that Morgan bellig-
erency resolution through.
Senator Wolc0tt1s speech would have
greatly surprised the average Senator had
it not been known eyer since Senator
Chandler stated that it was Mr.. McKin-
leyas intention to send that International
Bimetallic Commission to Europe again.
that the Mckinley program included an
attempt to make that old International
bimetallism will o the wisp help the Re-
publicans in the coming Congressional CAM
paign. Of course, it was somewhat dis
appointing to Senator Wolc0tt's silver
friends that he shouid have lent himself to
this program, but he has probably been
caught by the glitter of patronage, big
chunks Of which Mr.. Mckinley has placed
at his disposal right along.
The opponents of annexation start into
the second weeks debate of the Hawaiian
treaty By the Senate with more confidence
than is displayed by its advocates. In
fact, so confident are they of having votes
enough to defeat ratification, that they are
said to be willing to have vote taken at
any time that the other side may agree
upon.