Rensselaer Republican, Volume 26, Number 2, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 September 1893 — THE EXTRA SESSION. [ARTICLE]

THE EXTRA SESSION.

In the Senate, Monday, but little of interest transpired. Mr. Sherman gave notice that he would address the Senate on the silver question, Wednesday. Various amendments were offered to the Voorhees bill repealing the Sherman law. Mr. Voorhees, chairman of the finance committee, advised that all amendments be voted down. A message from the House was received announcing the passage of the bill repealing a part of the Shennan act. On motion of Mr. Voorhees it was immediately referred to the committee on finance. In the House, Monday, every seat in the hall and galleries was filled at an early hour. . The Speaker commanded order at 12 o'clock. The amendment to the Wilson bill favoring free coinage at the rate cf 16 to 1 was called first on order of precedent, and on a vote it was defeated—yeas, 124; nays, 226. Not nearly as much interest was taken on the second amendment, which was in a ratio of 17 to 1, and the vote resulted—yeas, 100; nays, 240. The 18 to 1 standard was defeated—yeas,lol; nays, 239. The 19 to lamendment was defeated—yeas, 104; nays, 238. The 20 to 1 amendment was defeated—yeas, 121; nays, 221. The to. _rexenact the Bland-Allison act was defeated—yeas, 136; nays, 213. The vote was then taken on the final passage of the Wilson bill, repealing the purchasing clause of the Sherman bill, and it was passed—yeas, 240; nays, 110.

In the Senate, Tuesday, Mr. Vodrhees reported back the House bill repealing part of the Sherman act, with ah amendment. He asked that it be placed on the calendar and desired the consideration of the Senate until final action. He explained the amendment, stating that it was identical with the House bill so far as the repeal of ' he purchasing clause of the Sherman law was concerned, but that it contained a substitute clause which in his judgment improved it. Mr. Teller objected, and under the rules the amendment went over. A resolution by Mr. Stewart was then laid before the Senate, directing the Secretary of the Treasury to inform the Senate whether there is danger of a deficiency in the revenues of the government. A long discussion ensued. Senators Sherman, Voorhees, Mills, McPherson and Harris opposed the resolution. A motion to refer to the finance committee was opposed by Hill and Stewart. Mr. Hill made a lengthy speech in opposition to referring to the finance committee, but on a vote it was so referred—yeas, 40; nays, 15. Mr. Gordon spoke in favor of unconditional repeal of the Sherman law. Mr. Teller addressed the Senate in an argument to prove that the Sherman law is not responsible for the financial troubles of the country. In the House Mr. Aitken offered a resolution providing for the investigation of the Ford theater disaster. Referred. Mr. Reed twitted the Democrats with having partially approved the rules of the Fiftyfirst Congress, but said they had not gone far enough. He spoke at length in favor of the adoption of rules to give the majority control and take away from the filibusterer the opportunity to stop the consideration of a measure. Speaker Crisp took the floor to reply to Mr. Reed. He said that Democrats would notrefrain from the adoption of rules simply because they had been part of the code of Mr. Reed’s Congress. He attacked Mr. Reed on his arrogant assumption of power, in the Fiftyfirst Congress, to count a quorum. The question had gone to the Snpreme Court and the gentleman from Maine had never been justified. He felt that the Fifty* first Congress was a usurpation. Mr. Reed replied at length, stating that it was unusual for the presiding officer to partake in the discussion on the floor. Ho regretted the action of the Speaker on general principles. To the personal criticism he would not reply. He believed that tbe policy of the Fifty-first Congress had received the approval of the Supreme Court. With that support he could do without the support of any individual, Ho hoped Aho Democratic pa;ty would be able to catch up with the Republican party in the next four years. The subject of rules was then dropped. Mr. Springer introduced a bill providing for the coinage of the seigniorage of silver in the Treasury. Sub-com-mittees on branches of the tariff bill were announced, and the House adjourned. In the Senate, Wednesday, Mr. Sherman vindicated the character of Ernest Seyd, the great English financier. He said the immediate question before the Senate was the repeal of the act for the purchase of silver bullion, passed in July, 1830. If that were the only reason for tho extra session he deemed it insufficient. The call was justified, however, by the existing financial stringency. Mr. Sherman went on to give a history of the circumstances which led up to tho passage of the act of July, 1890. It was a far better law, he said, than the bid which the House had then passed or the bill which the Senate had passed. There had been still another trouble. For the first time in many years the balance of trade had turned against the United States last year. Hitherto the balance had been in favor of the United States to the amount of fifty, onehundred and sometimes two hundred million dollars. Tho last fiscal year the balance of trade was against the United States to the amount of >18,715 OK). I am not blind in regard to the operations of the law of 1890. Long before our Democratic friends ever thought of providing any measure of relief, 1 proposed relief fn a bill which I Introduced in almost the same words as tho bill of the Senator from Indiana [Mr. Voorhees], But did our friends on the other side see the danger then and help us to suspend the operation of the law of 1890? They cannot answer that question. I did think,after two years’ trial, that it was better to suspend it; and we, on this side of the chamber, tried to do it, but wo had no support on the other side. Mr. Sherman said he hoped that Mr. Voorhees would prepare a bill to empower the President and Secretary of the Treasury to sell bonds at their discretion in order to maintain th? parity of ourcurrencv. Mr. Voorhees interrupted tho speaker to say that nothing had been farther from his Intention than to reflect upon Mr. Sherman when ho made tbe remarks referred to. Proceeding Mr. Sherman said: “I am willing to trust to your executive officers. I would give them power to protect the credit of the Government against all enemies at homo and abroad. If the fight must be for tho possession of gold, I would usoour cotton and our wheat, and I would protect our credit against all mankind. As to silver, I would say that we prefer to wait awhile, until the skies are clear, until we see the effects of the suspension of silver coinage in India, and see what arrangements can be made for another International monetary conference. In the meantime let the United States stand on Its strength and credit I think that soon all these clouds will bo. dissipated, and that we may go home to our friends with

Ute conviction that we have done a good work for our country at large.” Wednesday's session of the House was devoted to a discussion of rules. In the Senate, Thursday, Senator Wolcott, of Colorado, spoke in favor of free coinage and paid his respects to Messrs. Voorhees and Sherman in a severe arraignment of their financial ideas. He said that the two Senators had been in public life for a generation, and are now for the first time in accord in their financial views. “Voorhees,” said Mr. Wolcott, "has so long been the advocate silver that I can not believe that he will desert the cause or vote for unconditional repeal.” No man could be a bimetallist and vote for the unconditional repeal of the Sherman law. Unconditiohal repea would bring disaster and ruin to all sections of the country. Mr. Caffery, of Louisiana, spoke in favor of repeal. A motion of Mr. Peffer concerning national banks refusing to pay currency on depositors’ checks was referred. In the House, Thursday, the silver men, under the leadership of Springer, gained a victory, which makes it impossible for the gold men to Impede the consideration of bimetallic or other financial legislation that may be reported by the committee on coinage, weights and measure and banking and currency during the coming session. The time honored custom in the House has been to make reports of the committee on appropriations and ways and means privileged matters at all times, and when the new rules were being considered, Mr. Springer, chairman of the committee on banking and currency, suddenly sprung an amendment extending the same favoritism to the committee on banking and currency. In the Senate, Friday, Mr. Vance spoke for free coinage. Mr. Cockerell spoke of the inconsistencies of the Republican position on the Sherman act, stating that the Republican campaign book two years ago claimed credit for the alleged beneflti of the Sherman act, and now we find Republicans denouncing the act as the cause of our financial troubles.