The Washington herald., 1913-09-18
HOUSE NDORSES
GOLD STANDARD
Free Silver Guard Routed In
Vote on Currency
Measure.
PARITY Is MAINTAINED
Republicans Have Fun with Demo-
crats in Recalling '96 :
Conflict.

Sound money won to 1 victory III
the House of Representatives last night.
when in the final consideration Of THE
Glass currency bill an amendment, COM
ing from Chairman Glass himself, but
predicated upon the suggestion of Repre-
sentative S. ID. Fess Of Ohio, Republic
an, was voted into the bill over the pro-
test, violent and prolonged. of the So
called free silver group Of Democrats
still within the House.
The amendment read as follows:
Provided that nothing in this act
contained shall be construed to repeal
the parity provisions contained in an act
approved March Il, 1900 entitled AN act
10 define and fix the standard of value
II maintain the parity of all forms of
money issued or coined by the United
States, to refund the public debt and for
other purposes.
Interchnnges Were Frequent.
There had been several interchanges
between the Democrats and the Repub-
licans in the course of the day.
Chairman Glass, while insisting that
the bill in its then pending form, by
using the term gold or lawful money
did not forsake the general principle
of gold as basic money, called the at
tention of the Republicans to the fact
that the same phraseology-gold or
currency bill, to which no exception
had been made.
Representative Witherspoon of Missis-
sippi, charged that the amendment was
a dirty gold-bug resolution" and an
nounced his intention TO vote against
the bill if the amendment was included.
Representative Wingo of Arkansas told
the House that whereas he did not ap-
prove of the amendment and would vote
against it he could not see his way clear
to go so far as to vote against the bill
if it were included.
Then Representative Victor Murdoch,
the Progressive floor leader, poked fun a I,
the Democrats, telling them that this,
amendment for which he intended to vote
was only a trick by the Republicans by
which they expected to set a trap into
which the Democrats would walk and
out of which the Republicans by demand
ing a separate roll call on this specific
provision would force the Democratic
party to exhibit the line of cleavage
within itself.
Representative Crisp of Georgia ex-
pressed his opposition to the amendment
in terms similar to those used by Mr..
wfngo, Then Mr.. Wingo told the House
that the amendment had received the
approval of President Wilson
Il know that the President approved
it, he said. But have not interviewed
him on the subject I have talked with
Mr.. Bryan and he. too, approves the
measure"
At this announcement by Mr.. Wingo
a riotous laugh spread over the Republi-
cans side of the House. The commitment |
of William Jennings Bryan to the single |
gold standard was too much for their |
overworke6 visibility.
Mr. Murray threatened the Demo
cratic party with extinction. He told /
his colleagues that, in choking this re-
affirmation of an adherence TO the !
single gold standard. the majority in |
the House was insulting four-ffths of |
the Democratic party.
And you will hear from us at the |
polls" beloved Mr.. Murray, as the
Eavel cut him short.
The sound money amendment was
passed by a rising vote of 1O4 10 3S. |
All of the opposition was Democratic. |
The Republicans, Progressives, and |
more than half Of the Democrats pres
ent voted for it.