CONGRESS. (SPECIAL SESSION THE SHERMAN ACT.) 



criticised for allowing debute ; when I am criti- 

 ci>ed for granting freedom <>f discussion that has 

 run now to thirty-three days of actual i>ccii|i;niry 

 in regular order on this bill, because that has 

 1 1. -i -n done it has struck a great many people 

 that too much liberty has been given. 



\Vhy, sir, the admission of States, great ques- 

 tions involving personal freedom, the right of 

 habeas corpus, trial by jury, the reconstruction 

 and preservation of States, have occupied this 

 body time and again until the debate in this case 

 would appear but a speck of time. The admis- 

 sion of California and the settlement of the 

 Territorial questions therewith connected lasted 

 nearly seven months, almost entirely occupying 

 the time of the Senate. The admission of Mis- 

 souri and the compromise attending it lasted 

 nearly three months. Other instances I might 

 cite without number. 



" But we will derive a lesson, nevertheless, in 

 connection with the present debate on account 

 of this criticism, for it shows us that the ques- 

 tion of money and financial stringency and crisis, 

 trouble in monetary matters, are a far severer 

 test to the patience of the people than even 

 the loss of the great foundation principles of 

 liberty or the exclusion of States from the Union. 



" I must be pardoned for saying that this, I 

 think, is about the first time certain moneyed 

 classes and moneyed interests have ever taken 

 notice of a long debate in the Senate because it 

 touches them as it never has before. But taking 

 it all together, I meet the situation with saying 

 the best has been done which the rules permitted, 

 so far as I know ; and now, and in default of 

 any answer when a vote can be reached, I invoke 

 the spirit of wisdom, fairness, patience, and man- 

 hood on both sides, and we will proceed. 



" Mr. President, I have not a doubt of the re- 

 sult. The majority can govern. The majority 

 ought to govern. The majority must govern. 

 It is the law of our being that it should be so. 

 The spirit of this Government is on my side of 

 this question. The spirit of liberty regulated by 

 that law is that, with proper respect for the 

 rights of a minority, the legally ascertained ma- 

 jority must and shall govern. I feel at this im- 

 portant hour that we have swept beyond the 

 magnitude of the mere repeal of the Sherman 

 act into the greater and higher question, Shall 

 this Government be a government of majority, 

 or shall a minority dictate! Shall the many 

 govern, or shall the few I " 



Mr. Allen, of Nebraska, talked for fourteen 

 hours, making the longest congressional speech 

 on record, and the task of occupying the atten- 

 tion of the Senate was then taken up by an un- 

 wearied filibustering associate. The opponents 

 of repeal, whenever its advocates retired to take 

 ft rest in the cloak-rooms, called attention to the 

 fact that there was no quorum, and demanded a 

 call of the House. On such occasions they re- 

 fused to vote, and the quorum had to be made 

 up from the ranks of the majority. This tedious 

 procedure weaned the Senators, and at 1.40 

 o'clock on the morning of Oct. 13 it was found 

 impossible to compel the attendance of 43 Sena- 

 tors, and the Senate adjourned, closing the legis- 

 lative day of Oct. 11. 



Oct. 27, a vote was taken on an amendment to 

 the Voorhees bill offered by Mr. Peffer, of Kansas. 



It provided for striking out all of that bill after 

 the repealing clause and adding the following 

 Motion*: 



SEC. 2. That any owner of gold bullion or diver 

 bullion in condition lit for coinage, un<l of tin- coin 

 value of $f>0 or more, may deliver tin- .-amr at any 

 mint to the proper office thereof, and it Hhall be 

 funned into coin* tor the liciu-tit of the depositor in 

 tin- manner provided l>y the act ofCongTBM approved 

 Jan. 18, 1837, and in all respect* according t the 

 1'i-ovisioiiH of said act, all of which provision*!, so far 

 us tin- same arc or may be applicable hereto, are here- 

 by revived and re-enacted, except that the inscrip- 

 tions and devices of coins of like del 'Mini nut ion.- now 

 current shall be placed on the coins authorized l>y 

 this act, and double eagles may be coined, as provided 

 in the act of Feb. 12, 17-". 



SEC. 3. That all acts and parts of acta inconsistent 

 with the provisions of this act are hereby repealed. 



Si < . 4. That this act shall take effect and be in 

 force thirty days after ito passage. 



This amendment would make the proposed 

 measure a free-coinage act. It was defeated by 

 the following vote : 



YEAS Allen, Bate, Berry, Blackburn, Butler, Call. 

 Coke, Daniel, Dubois, George, Harris, Irby, Jones of 

 Arkansas, Jones of Nevada, Kyle, Martin, Pasco, 

 Peffer, Power, Pugh, Roach, Shoup, Stewart, Teller, 

 Vance, Vest, Walthall, Wolcott 28. 



say. Lodge, McMillan, McPherson, Manderson, Mitch- 

 elf of Wisconsin, Morrill, Murphy, Palmer, Perkins, 

 Proctor, Quay, Ransom, Sherman, Smith, Stock- 

 bridge, Turpie, Vilas, Voorhees, Washburn, White of 

 Louisiana 39. 



NOT VOTING Allison, Brice, Cameron, Chandler, 

 Cockrell, Colquitt, Gordon, Hansbrough, Hawley, 

 Hunton, Mills, Mitchell of Oregon, Morgan, Petti- 

 grew, Platt, Squire, White of California, Wilson 18. 



The chief significance of this vote lay in the 

 change of opinion on the part of certain Senators 

 who had voted for free coinage within a year. 



Oct. 30, the vote on the substitution and pas- 

 sage of the Voorhees bill was taken, and the 

 measure was adopted by the following vote : 



YEAS. Aldrich, Brice, Caffery, Camden, Carey, 

 Cullom, Davis, Dixon, Dolph, Faulkner, Frve, Gal- 

 linger, Gibson, Gorman, Gray, Hale, Hawley, Higgins, 

 Hill, Hoar, Hunton, Lindsay, Lodge, McMillan. .Mc- 

 Pherson. Manderson, Mills, Mitchell of Wisconsin, 

 Morrill, Murphy, Platt, Proctor, Quay, Ransom, Sher- 

 man, Smith, Squire, Stockbridge, Turpie, Vilas, Voor- 

 hees, Washhurn, White of Lousiaua 43. 



NAYS Allen, Bate, Berry .Blackburn, Butler, Call, 

 Cameron, Cockrell, Coke, Daniel, Dubois, George, 

 Harris, Irby, Jones of Arkansas, Jones of Nevada, 

 Kyle. Martin, Pasco, Peffer, Perkins, Pettigrew, Power, 

 Pugh, Roach, Shoup, Stewart, Teller, Vance, Vest, 

 Walthall, Wolcott 32. 



NOT VOTING Allison, Chandler, Colquitt, Gordon, 

 llatisbrough, Mitchell of Oregon, Morgan, Palmer, 

 White of California, Wilson 10. 



On Nov. 1, the House of Representatives con- 

 curred in the Senate amendment, thus adopt- 

 ing the Voorhees bill instead of the Wilson bill. 

 The vote on concurrence was as follows : 



YEAS Adams, Alderson, Aldrich, Apsley, A very, 

 Babcock, Baker of New Hampshire, Baldwin. Barnes, 

 Bartlett, Barwig, Beldcn, Belt/hoover, Berry. Bing- 

 ham. Black of Georgia, Black of Illinois, Blair, Braw- 

 ley, Breckinridge ot Arkansas, Bret/.. Hrickner, Brook- 

 shire, Hrosius, Brown, Bunn, Bynum, Cabaniss, Cad- 

 mus, Caldwell, Campbell, Cannon of California, 



