Evening star., 1946-06-04
Showdown Due Soon
In Senate Committee
On Price Of Silver

VII TING VI J1IvcI
A showdown in the Senate Ap-
preparations Committee Is due soon
in the long fight between Western
and Eastern members Of Congress
over the price at which the Treasury
shoud be permitted to sell silver to
industries urgently in need OF this
basic metal for manufacturing pur-
poses.
Facing a serious shortage of the
metal needed to manufacture photo
graphic supplies, silverware and
other commodities, the silver using
industries are supporting action
taken by the House in February to
allow the Treasury to resume the
sale Of silver not needed for none
tary purposes at I'LL cents an
ounce.
Representatives of the silver pro-
ducers in the Western States are
opposing this price, and recently OBJ
tanned Senate Banking Committee
approval for separate bill, putting
forth an alternate plan. This would
Ak the price at 90.5 cents an ounce
for two years. On and after July !,
1948, 1t would go up to $129, the
monetary price of silver.
No Indication Of Acceptance.
There are no indications, however,
that members of Congress from the
Eastern manufacturing centers will
accept this Senate Banking Com
mittee proposal.
The Fasteners appear to hold
the whip hand in the parliamentary
maneuvering, because they have
their H.11-cent amendment firmly
imbedded in the House-approved
Treasury-Post Office appropriation
bill, which must become law by July
l, when the funds for the operation
of those two big Government de-
partments run out.
The Treasury-Post ONCE bill
passed the House February IA and
has been pending in the Senate
Appropriations Committee ever
since. The subcommittee in direct
charge of the appropriation bill
voted some time ago for the higher
prices which have just been en-
bodied in the Banking Committees
separate measure, but the entire
Senate Appropriations Committee
has never passed on the issue.
Even if the Senate should knock
the 71.11-cent provision out of the
Treasury-Post once bill, the ques-
ton would still have to be settled
IN conference with the House be-
fore any appropriations would be
available for the departments.
Firm Stand Indicated.
There we're reliable indications to-
day the Eastern Senators and Rep
resentatives do not intend to give
up the advantage they hold in the
appropriation bill, in order to deal
with the subject in a separate bill,
which might die before final enact
ment.
1t has been suggested that, II the
silver fight delays final enactment
of the Treasury-Post Once bill until
after July /. the two houses could
pass a continuing resolution as
is sometimes done, to keep the de-
partments going temporarily.
One House member pointed out
today, however, that if the Senate
should bring out a continuing reso-
luton, it would deprive thousands
OF postal workers of pay increases
they are due to receive after July l,
since such resolution merely con-
tinues operating funds at the old
rates available during the preceding
II months, while the Treasury-Post
ONCE bill has the money in it for
the raises
Data presented to Congress indi-
cate that industries requiring silver
Ifor manufacturing purposes will
need 125, ,000, 900 ounces this year. The
amount in prospect, outside of the
Treasury, is estimated at only 3d.
000, 900 ounces, consisting of 5O,0Oo,-
900 ounces of imports, added to 3d.
600 900 ounces produced domestic
ally. The testimony shows that the
Treasury has on hand about 225,-
900 900 ounces of u1allocated, non-
monetized silver, part of which
would be sold to manufacturers un-
der the pending bill.
| Continuation of Price.
Supporters Of the House provision
say it is merely a continuation of
the price at which such Treasury
sales were authorized up to last De-
cember, by temporary legislation
which expired.
Representatives of silver pro-
ducers point out that 80 per cent OF
the silver produced domestically
comes from mines producing copper
lead and zinc, and that an increased
price for silver would serve to stimu-
late the production of those metals.
The first test probably will come
when the Senate Appropriations
Committee meets to report out the
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