Year: 1876




Report Of the Resumption BiII.


Mr.. Hereford, / ask the gentleman
from Pennsylvania TMr. Randall to
yield to me for few minutes. 3


Mr.. Randall. Certainly.


Mr.. Hereford. Mr., Speaker, only
desire to say a word in reply to a re-
mark which fell from the lips of the
gentleman from Pennsylvania Mr.
Kelley a moment ago that the time
was when the rights Of the minority
on this side of the House were held
sacred by the majority on that side
] want to ask the gentleman this,
for we both stand together upon the
repeal Of this resumption act, and |
am. ready, and ever have been ready,
to vote for its repeal pure and sim
pie, b1tI ask the gentleman. from
Pennsylvania to recall to mind the
fact that'i in the last Congress, whom
that side of the House had an over
whelming maioritK they; did mot
give the minority on this side the
right, but on the contrary, persis-
tently denied to the minority on this
side the right to discuss any point,
When we asked the right to discuss
it, and gave our reasons against the
enactment Of such an outrageous
law, which the gentleman has so en-
phatically stated has paralyzed all
the industrial interests of the coun-
try, the republican majority refused
the right to discuss or amend it.
They refused us the right to lay be-
fore the country what would be the
paralyzing and destructive effect of
such an act as that.


| think it comes, | will not say
from the gentleman from Pennsylva-
MIA peculiarly, but, if he speaks for
his party, it comes with bad grace
frome him to say that the rights of
the minority were held sacred then
and are not held sacred now, 1t was
because the rights of the minority
were over ridden that the resump-
ton act was passed. 1t came from 4
caucus of the republican party and
we were denied the right to discuss
it; and in the other end of the Capt.
tol, if | may be allowed to allude to
what occurred there, when the ques-
ton was asked of the gentleman in
charge of it what it meant, he refus-
ed to answer any question. He re-
fused to answer whether it was re-
sumption or not-whcther it was in
hation or contraction. His only re-
sponsc was that each must determine
it for himself. l say, while agree
and always have agreed on this sub
jcct of the repeal of this resumption
act of 1879 with the gentleman from
Pennsylvania, it does not cone with
good taste from him to refer to the
minority having no rights on this
subject for l again repeat that if the
rights of the minority had been re-
spected by the republicans on the
other side of the, House the actnever.
would have passed and tins paralysis
of trade, these bankruptcies all over
the country, would have been pre-
vented. And, sir, there is but one
party responsible for the consequent
distress and impoverishment of the
American people, and that is the re-
publican party. They will be held
responsible on the ides of November
next and deservcdly rebuked by a
verdict that will come from the peo-
pie; from every village and every
hamlet throughout the length and
breadth of the land. They will say
this state of affairs has been brought
about by the resumption act, passed
under the gag law by the republican
party, and they will hold you respon-
sible for it, the democratic party
having voted unanimously againstit.