New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-06-09
SILEER SANS-CTLOTTE.

While a revenue measure Is In the air. so TO
speak. and liable TO be changed In any or
thousand provisions from hour TO hour. de-
tailed criticism OF II Is always thankless as
well as weary task. In every such bill there
are many provisions included by each house,
inadvertently. either by mere clerical error or
by careessness Of members There are also
others which are permitted to pass just to
please this or that member Of the body, and
possibly to secure his vote for other amend
ments at q critical point, but without expecta-
ton that such provisions VIII outllve serious
criticism In conference. This pending bill con-
tains some provisions which have much that
aspect. and II more than most other bills 1t
would not be surprising, since the success OF es-
sential features Of the measure was for time
supposed TO be threatened in the Senate When
the conference committee has picked out mere
flaws and inadvertences its next task will be
to get rid Of the more or less objectionable con-
cessions TO individual interests or influences.
An effort TO discuss defects which are thus
floating In the air and liable TO be blown away
before a word Of objection can be uttered is
scarcely worth while. But the pending meas
ure has somewhat serious defects which spring
from radical differences of opinion regarding
likely to find difficulty and difficulty
may perhaps be encountered in the Senate II
self or In the House. Part OF them grow out
OF the Popuistlc tendency and teaching. and
closely touch upon the radical division between
parties. Part Of them spring from The silver
fanaticism in the Senate, which seems, with the
aid of Democrats and Popusts, able to COM
mand majority there
D..x t. 1la hat mn
tority Of Senators will deliberately insist upon
so insignificant and empty a concession TO mere
theory as the seigniorage clause at the cost Of
defeating measure necessary for the prosecu-
ton OF the war. II the issue were Of real mag
nitude squarely between free coinage and It's
rejection, II might be hard for some Congress
men to yield their position. But the pending
amendment means practically nothing for them.
and is in reality only sop to the pure inila-
tionists-the men who think that more money
Of any kind and the poorer the better. Is 4
blessing 70 the people. Why serious advocates
Of silver coinage should sink themselves on n
small satisfaction for wtld-eyed fat-money peo-
pie is far from clear.
The other class OF amendments made by the
Senate was plainly dictated by the property
hating spirit which has been assiduously
fostered by Bryan and other dcmagogues. 1t
Is no new thing this envious desire to damage
the rich anyhow as ~ 1t were crime
against humanity to have saved or Inherited
money The bottom truth Of all economy IS
that aggregated property cannot help itself
without helping far more all mankind and
that the interests of capital and labor are in
fact identical. Taxes which directly in
tended 10 punish a man for acquiring wealth
belong 20 the Dark Ages and Congress Of the
United States. while engaged in n war against
the Dark Ages, ought not to stoop TO measures
worthy Of even the Anarchists OF Spain.