The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-06-13


men. A man Of frank utterance. he has
never cloaked ~ oetnjons and beaiefs In
ambiguous language. Indeed. the reports
q The debates are even IN revIoed ana
cofTected print. . uirrOe e. the nan. ne
has frequently addressed his colleagues
fam.liariy = boys" has not heGfAfed 70
imru:sfvely ezcsaim NY 0cdt' when .
proposition Of some kind stirred his soul.
and has invariably spoken with charac-
feristic freedom on all topics.
Mr.. Henderson's nrst speech In con-
gress was in favor Of IN Appropriated Tor
Improving IN ice hArbor 81 DUBUQUE. ms
home town. Since that time his hoFiSon
has broadened and the whole umoounoeo
continent appeals to him
One Of Gen. Hendsrson's chief fads N
congress has been generous appfop1a-
tsona for pensions From the very nrst
moment when q pension appropriation bill
was considered In . congress OF which No
Vas . member until the present Gay. No
has lost no opportunity Of eulogiung the
veterans OF the civA war and urging that
the government treat them with the utmost
generosity.
The speech which 10 delivered on March
Z, 1894. is . fair sample of all his utter
ancss. The Democrats had attacked the
pension roll ~ . roll Of fraud. Gen. Hen
derson claimed that not 3 scintilla of evil
deuce had been produced to prove this
charge He denounced Gov. Black for hav-
ing attempted Ito strike q dagger into the
souis'' Of the ex-Union soldiers. For
one" he exclaimed, this debate shall not
close without my crying shame upon the
soldier who stands here leading column
to discredit the pensioners OF this republic.
NV Gods" he continued. ''have we not q
Union, and are We not all In II nowg II
30. let u try and pull together and be
just"
The conclusion Of his speech was char
acteristic He said:
Il am sorry to have to say II. but true 4
Is that heretofore and now. the Democratic
party II unfriendiy to the pensioners. /
ual exceptions who stand up for Justice
in spite OF political associations. ] SAY It.
and challenge the records OF my country
for contradiction. that the Republican par
soldier.
Let these lines be torn down. my coun-
trymen, and let Us come together. The war
guns be silenced forever. The country 10
rich enough and strong enough to take care
Of those who served for its perpetuAtion.
ana let us try and get our nsa .I 70,
rise from the heartbeats Of this legislative
body that will recognise justice and tina
brave. honest fellows who. In their igno-
their duty by all Of us during that great
struggle"
When the resolution for Investigating
the alleged fraudulent armor plates was
before the house. In the summer OF 1894
Mr.. Henderson said:
TT this company had 10ooo Carnegies IN
CATION. SAppiause.) Let US put the knife
OF honest Investigation into the question,
and ASCERTAIN, az We ought to ascertain.
what are the facts In connection with It"
(Applause.)
When Bourke Cochran and few others
attempted to nulHfy the income tax law
by striking out the appropriation for the
revenue agents required to execute the
law. Gen. Henderson opposed the effort.
He did not like the indirect way OF at
lacking law which congress had placed
upon the statute books. II do not favor
the starving out process" he said, and
when the motion was made to recommit the
the bill with Instructions to report It back
with the appropriation omitted. he voted
in the negative
With reference 20 currency le91slation.
Gen. Henderson's record il quito vo1umi-
nous. but consistent. He has always been
against the freq coinage OF silver. but In
1888 he declared that the panic Of that
year was due more to the fear Of low tar
III than to the purchase OF silver under
the Sherman law. He voted for the re-
peal Of the purchasing clause. after max
ing a speech In which he said that tree
coinage would send this country to sil
yer basis. He regarded the repeal Dill "a
merely an opiate. temporarily relieving
pain.
MY conviction In" he said. ''that the
time Is near At hand when there must be
q radical revision Of our whole financial
sytem."
When currency legislation came to the
front again IN 1@6 Gen Henderson reit-
Grated what he had said In the taf14 de-
bate OF 1894, that he was against the is
suing OF gold bonds. Nor am willing"
he added. ito adopt legislation that pro-
vides tor the retirement and cancellation
OF the greenback. The time may come
when I shall change my mind. but ! do
not believe that the conditions are yet
r1pe for such retirement"
Gen. Henderson, ~ chairman OF the
judiciary committee. WAS quite active In
securing the passage OF the BILL TO pre-
vent prtxe-nghting In the territories and
the District Of Columbia He defended
the severity OF the punishment proposed
In the iaw--impriscnment from one to ave
years-by saying that II was the tudg-
ment Of tho best people In America that
severe penalties should be enforced to
break up this practice"
The bill to reduce the cases In which the
death penalty can be inflicted also re-
ceived Gen Henderson's support and
vote.
Az there viii undoubtedly be some effort
to curtaii the power OF the speaker In
the next house, or AZ least secure the
appointment Of the committee on rules
by Republican caucus instead Of by
the speaker, IL il worth while knowing that
Gen Henderson. who was one Of Reeds
committee on rules. always insisted that
the system was not autocrauc. I'VE Of
the committee on rules are not here a.
dictatorx" he said one day. in steering
q special order through the house. He
especially resented Representative Walk
er'x insinuation that "the ieAders'' were
trying TO run the house.
'sOh, don't plead the baby act" said
Gen. Henderson II do not know what
the gentheman means ~ 1eadsrs.'" Then
IA 49,