Show THE ELECTION BILL Walcott Makes a Patriotic leech Against It SENATOR TELLER ON CLOSURE lie Says I Will be 3 Sorry Time for the American People When the Majority Says Debate Must Close WASHINGTON Dec 29 Gorman made tho point no quorum when the Senate met today to-day The scrgeantatarms was sent to secure the attendance of absentees It was 1 oclock before a quorum was secured and the journal of yesterday read The VicePresident laid before the Senate the credentials of Frederick T Dubois as I Senator from Idaho for the term beginning beginning March 4 I Ul Referred to the committee on privileges and election Hoar resumed his speech on the election L bill He reminded the southern Senators that they bad pledged their official oaths and honor as men that they would give S their devotion to the constitutional amendments amend-ments if they were only let back Into their old condition in the union free from the I consequences of rebellion and now they were denouncing those amendments He recalled the Copiah massacre in Mississippi the murder of Fred Matthews the burning burn-ing of his widows house aud said that now that widows son a Republican postmaster post-master had been shot down in the streets of Carrollton the home of Senator George How long exclaimed Hoar shall tho murder of men because they are Republicans be only a crime to which Republicans are in different I In conclusion Hoar addressing himself directly tothe southern Senators told them they had exhausted every other policy and failed now try justice Wolcott made an animated speech against the bill I was ho said a source of great regret to him to be called upon to differ with any considerable number of his party and to decline to take the path tho older leaders pointed out but nearly onethird of the session was through and daylight was not yet visible There wore before the Senate measures of vast importance that would fail for another year at least unless woull acted upon He mentioned the silver bill the apportionment pure food copyright private land court bills But it was not only because these measures were clamor ing for recognition that ho felt compelled to oppose the election bill I the session were to last indefinitely and none of these vital measures wpre pending he would stilLw te against it The pending bill shouldnot become a law because it involve in-volve federal interference and oat o-at other than national elections and such interference was contrary to the spirit of American institions and an obstacle to the right enjoyment of American liberty The people of the United States Wolcott said wanted no more civil strife and it would be impossible enforce such a law against the united oppostion of the white population popula-tion of the southern states the attempt would bring back the old days of terror izing and the weaker race would be the sufferers There were other things more important and vital to the welfare of the nation than that the colored citizens of the south should cast ballots Referring to the question put by Eustis to Dolph recentlyas to what the people of Oregon would do under similar circumstances circum-stances i the Chinese voters were in the majority Wolcott said Dolphs answer seemed evasive He Wolcott could not speak for Oregon but ho gave it as his opinion that in Colorado if such state of affairs existed and the Chinese vote was opposed to the united and intelligent white vote the white vote in some way and by some method would govern somefi provall I Congress did not foment trouble the time would surely come when the white voters of the south would be hardly as unanimous as now The signs of the times pointed to serious differences among them and when those differences became solidified the colored voters would be in demand I tho Republicans had I every southern member of the next House they would still be short of a majority Two years from now when the beneficient henefeient tariff law had time to demonstrate its wisdom they would not need the assistance assist-ance of the southern Republican representation represen-tation which the bill sought to give But I there was another and weightier reason why it should be defeated For a quarter of a century out from poverty and despair the south has been reaching forth in an effort to plant its foot on the sold rock of material prosperity ana in view of the marvelous growth and transformation now taking place in the southern states it would be unwise and unpatriotic for Congress to interfere in the conduct of its internal affairs Re ering to the prosperity of every section of the common country he Wolcott was unwilling to thrust with his vote on that people at this time a measure which seemed to them but a renewal of the strife and bitternesswuich wore foreign to the spirit and dangerous to the freedom of republican instructions General applause sideJ in the galleries and on the Democratic The election bill was then laid acide in formally and the finance bill taken up Stewart addressing the Senete briefly The purpose of the bill ho said was to purchase the 12000000 ounces of silver slver now held by speculatorsand issue OOOOO 000 of bonds to be held as a basis of national bank circulation Its provisions were for the relief of gamblers silver speculators and national banks Such a purchase of silver would temporarily increase its price and thereby to some extent benefit some of my constituents But they are not asking for benefit at any such a price They pre fer to bide their time and wait until there are enough votes in Congress to enact a law for tho free and unlimited coinage of silver Reagan spoke in favor of free coinage and against the pending measure also speaking in opposition to the election bill and the proposed closure rule Teller madea vigorous speech He said there had been an attempt on the part of the friends of the election bill to bring it to a vote Now the Senate was to bo met with a new rule which was to overthrow n practice which had been in vogue eighty four years In the section of country he represented there had become a fixed no tion that this bill was kept before the Senate Sen-ate for the purpose of staving off the muchneeded and muchdemanded financial legislation I the Senator from Massachusetts Massa-chusetts Hoar did not wish the bill to stand in the way of legi lation he should put the Senate in a position to vote on the amendments before he offered or allowed to be offered rule which would cut off de bate and amendments Whether Teller II would vote for this bill or not depended upon the condition of tho bill when it came I to a vote and he wanted an opportunity to vote for tho amendments He did not be lieve the people of tho United States were prepared for this closure rule and for one ho was prepared to resist by all proper methods its adoption until the Senate had an opportunity to vote upon all amendments amend-ments He understood tho rule was to come up Tuesday next There were more important bills pending than the election bill The great minds of the country told us I we were on the verge of a financial panic The bankers of New York wore saying everything is lovely they dare not say otherwise I the people could awake to the real condition of things there would be danger of financial ruin to ten thousand men absolutely solvent today I the friends of the election n bill were in earnest they could pass it without a rule I was the duty of the Senate to meet the great Question of the day promptly geat l r Hale said the time had come when the Senator from Massachusetts should find out what ought to be done The Senate should not spend weeks more in tho manner man-ner In which it had been spe ding the past week The great financial question would none down the great appropriation bills no-ne < essary for the government must be considered con-sidered Nothing was being done to put pending matter out of the way I the 4th of March came with this bill not passed no appropriation or financial bill passed Senators Sen-ators might will take into mind the fact that the Republican party was discredited because it had done nothing Senator Hear replied sharply The bill would have been six months ago disposed of if his counsel bad been followed Hawley said he was for anything short of absolute despotism to get a vote on a bill whenever the majority of the Senate thinks it is ready to vote Closure or no closure the attempt of the minority was to say there should be a vote on nothing short of revolution ofT Teller replied the minority has a right to object to debate and amend and it will be a sorry time for the American people when the majority shall say debate must close whether representatives of independent states are ready to close or not Teller was in favor of the majority ruling but he knows there is nothing more despotic than the tyrannnical action of the majority The minority is absolutely indispensible to the preservation of liberty in any country The minority has a right to be heard and when it has presented every objection it ca present then it is its duty t yield un less it be some extraordinary occasion He had seen the entire Republican side of the chamber retire when there was a Democratic Demo-cratic majority because they were resist ing what they believed to be an improper measure That was the right of the minority mi-nority then and it will be the right of the minority now i the pending bill be of such a character as would justify its opnonents in resorting to it After executive session I adjourned |