The silence of the President on the
matter gave rise to an apprehension that if a free coinage bill
should pass both Houses, he would not feel at liberty to veto
it."
In this emergency, the Republican leaders appealed to their free
silver party associates to be content with compelling the
Treasury to purchase 4,500,000 ounces of silver per month, which
it was wrongly calculated would cover the entire output of
American mines. The force of party discipline eventually
prevailed, and the Republican party got together on this
compromise. The bill was adopted in both Houses by a strict party
vote, with the Democrats solidly opposed, and was finally enacted
on July 14, 1890.
Thus by relying upon political tactics, the managers of the
Republican party were able to reconcile conflicting interests,
maintain party harmony, and present a record of achievement which
they hoped to make available in the fall elections. But while
they had placated the party factions, they had done nothing to
satisfy the people as a whole or to redress their grievances. The
slowness of congressional procedure in matters of legislative
reform allowed the amplest opportunity to unscrupulous business
men to engage, in the meantime, in profiteering at the public
expense. They were able to lay in stocks of goods at the old
rates so that an increase of customs rates, for example, became
an enormous tax upon consumers without a corresponding gain to
the Treasury; for the yield was largely intercepted on private
accounts by an advance in prices.
Pages:
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152