worth 11 per cent. less than gold, legal tender equally with gold, by a majority of two-thirds. The Bill has also passed the Finance Committee of the Senate, and when the Senate reassembles, on January 10, the whole body will also pass it by a considerable majority. It is doubtful, however, if this majority will amount to two-thirds. If it does not, President Hayes will probably veto the Bill, as he undoubtedly will veto another Bill postponing the resumption of specie payments. The mercantile classes of the East are greatly alarmed about this silver Bill, and are refusing accommodation to the cities, banks, and private borrowers of the West, unless they will specifically promise to pay in gold. The tone of the anti-silver party is not hopeful, but it is mentioned that sufficient silver coin cannot be issued to make a great impression all at once." On the assembling of the Senate, Senator Edmunds, representing the Resumptionists, proposed a substitute resolution for Mr. Matthews' silver bond-paying resolution, declaring that "the silver dollar is obsolete; that it did not exist when the laws were passed authorising the present debt; that gold is, and has long been, the only authorised standard of value; that the United States should never alter or make laws to save money at its creditors' expense; and that it would be unjust both to public and private creditors to pay them in debased silver dollars." Alarmed at the demonstrations of the Resumptionists, the Silver party in the House held a caucus, at which they resolved to form an organisation for the advancement of their views, and spoke in very extreme and threatening language. On Jan. 25 the Senate passed, by 43 votes against 22, Mr. Matthews' concurrent resolution, declaring the principal and interest of United States Bonds to be payable, at the option of the Government, in silver dollars of 412 grains, and maintaining that such a step is no violation of the public faith, nor any derogation of the rights of the public creditors.

"The vote," said one account, "wants one of the two-thirds majority, and the resolution has no effect other than an expression of opinion. On Jan. 28, however, the House of Representatives passed, by 187 against 79 votes, the same resolution. This is considerably over the necessary majority, and the vote indicates that the Bland Bill may get the necessary two-thirds in the House to override the veto. The Senate began debating the Bill on Jan. 28, and the debate is still proceeding. Senator Cameron, of Wisconsin, has offered an amendment to the Bill, making the weight of the silver dollar 420 instead of 412 grains. Another amendment has been proposed, increasing the weight of the dollar to 434 grains. It is probable that some compromise will be effected. It is telegraphed to the Times from Philadelphia that the Resumptionists are in a panic, the general belief being that the Bill, with its provision of unlimited legal tender, will become law. The premium on gold is rapidly advancing, the Silver party being confident of passing the Bill by a vote of two-thirds of each House in its favour."

The Senate of the United States passed the Bland Bill making silver legal tender on Feb. 16, by 48 to 21, or rather more than the two-thirds majority needful to override the President's veto. The majority passed, however, amendments taking the profits on coinage from the mine-owners and giving them to the Republic, ordering the Treasury to buy from 400,000l. to 800,000l. worth of silver every month, and coin it as fast as possible. The Government was not, however, to retain above 1,000,000l. in silverexclusive of silver undergoing coinage-at any one time. It was calculated that the effect of this amendment would be to furnish just silver coin enough to pay duties in, and no more. The House of Representatives was very angry at this amendment, but had to accept it, and pass the Bill. The price of silver consequently "hardened" in Europe, rising to 55d. an ounce, or quite the equivalent of greenbacks.

President Hayes, in spite of his Financial Secretary, Mr. Sherman, and the majority of his Cabinet, decided to veto the Silver Bill. In his message, which was sent to Congress on Feb. 28, he declared that it would be a breach of faith to pay bonds in silver, they having been sold for gold; that the Bill had a capital defect, in its application to pre-existent contracts; that a debased currency defrauded not only all creditors, but the man of business, "and assuredly the daily labourer;" and that he could not in conscience sign the Bill. This message had no effect whatever, the House passing the Bill instantly, without debate, by 196 to 73, or 22 more than a two-thirds majority, and the Senate by 46 to 19, or two more than the required number.

At the same time, turning to another matter, the President recommended payment of the sum (110,000l.) given under the award of the Halifax Fishery Commission, and the Senate accepted the recommendation, paying the money from the undivided balance of the "Alabama" Arbitration Fund. Mr. Blaine, speaking for the New England fishermen, said the money might be paid on grounds of honour, but that a protest ought to be made against allowing the transaction to be a precedent, or a basis for the valuation of inshore fisheries. His real grievance seemed to be that the American fisheries had not been valued high enough, but he said the award under the Treaty ought to have been unanimous, and hinted that Lord Granville was particularly anxious that Mr. Delfosse should be the Canadian Commissioner.

Soon afterwards the silver "Extremists" in the Senate endeavoured to pass a Bill authorising the free coinage of 412 grain silver dollars, with unlimited issue of certificates based on deposits of silver bullion-the certificates to be legal tender; but the motion, which required a two-thirds majority, was only supported by 140 against 102 votes, and therefore rejected. The "Inflationists" also endeavoured to pass a Bill suspending the operations of the Sinking Fund Law, a measure aiming at the gradual reduction of the National Debt; this also fell through, 122 against 112 votes

being registered. "These votes," said the Times correspondent, "while showing majorities for each measure, also prove that the minority against extreme financial legislation is much larger in the House than when the Silver Bill was passed."

A Bill prohibiting any further contraction of outstanding greenback issue was passed by the Representatives by 177 to 35, and by the Senate by 41 to 18; and in the first House, shortly afterwards, Mr. Potter, a Democratic member for New York, presented a resolution directing an investigation to be made by a Select Committee into the alleged frauds said to have been committed in Florida and Louisiana at the late Presidential election. The resolution contained the names of Mr. Edward Noyes, now Minister at Paris, and Mr. John Sherman in connection with the frauds. The Speaker decided that the resolution presented a question of the highest privilege, and must be received. The decision was appealed against, but sustained, the appeal being rejected by 128 votes to 108. The Republicans endeavoured to have the investigation extended to Mississippi, South Carolina, and Oregon; but Mr. Potter declined to yield. Subsequently a resolution was offered referring to the threatened raids and rumours of insurrections, similar to the railway riots of last summer, and authorising the President to enlist 75,000 volunteers during the recess, should he deem it necessary. When the debate on Mr. Potter's resolution was resumed, the Republicans again succeeded in preventing action. Afterwards, however, amid great confusion and excitement, the Democrats succeeded in securing a quorum, and the House passed, by 14 votes against 2, Mr. Potter's resolution. The Republicans abstained from voting. The Select Committee of the House was appointed. It consisted of seven Democrats and four Republicans, Mr. Potter being the chairman.

"The Americans," said the Spectator, when the enquiry had begun, "are washing their dirty linen in public, with very little result, except to diminish still further confidence in public men. On the one side, it appears to be proved that Secretary Sherman did write a letter promising a post to a man who offered, if he obtained the post, to falsify the Louisiana returns; and on the other, Mr. B. Levisee, a member of the Electoral College, sent up from Louisiana, has sworn that the Democrats offered him 20,000l. to vote for Tilden, whom his vote would have seated. He refused, demanding 40,000l., which, however, was not obtainable. He says he never intended to take the money, and informed Mr. Pickin of the offer twenty-four hours before the votes of the College were counted. He names the agents who promised the money, one of them a clerk, named Asher, formerly in the Shreveport Bank. None of the accusations as yet come home to Mr. Hayes, and none are equal to legal proof that a vote in the Electoral College was fraudulently obtained. The Democrats, however, are confident of success, and say that the evidence once complete, they will apply to the Supreme Court to seat Mr. Tilden. That is improbable,

but American Ministers are being summoned from foreign Courts to give evidence, which looks like earnestness."

When the enquiry had proceeded some time, however, with the clear desire to unseat the President, the House of Representatives, by a vote of 215 to 21, passed a resolution declaring that the forty-fourth Congress having declared Mr. Hayes President of the Republic, it was not within the power of any subsequent Congress to reverse that action, and that any attempt to do so would be revolutionary.

Encounters with the Indians still continued during the year. Fifty volunteers under Captain Sperry, who marched to Willow Springs, thirty miles south of Pendleton, to scout in the Indian country south of Columbia River, were ambuscaded by the hostile Indians in July, and the entire company killed or wounded, except seven. Captain Sperry himself was among the killed. Intelligence was received by the Government that, in order to prevent the crossing of the Indians, the Columbia River had to be guarded by the Federal troops.

General Howard two days later advanced from the south-west in two columns, and attacked the hostile Indians at Butler Creek. The Indians were strongly posted on a steep ridge, but, after a stubborn contest, were driven to another position in the rear, which the troops stormed and captured. The Indians retreating, were pursued five miles, abandoning their horses, provisions, and camp materials. The loss on the side of the United States troops was trifling, and General Howard reopened communications with General Wheaton on the Columbia River.

Mr. Sherman, the Secretary of the Treasury, delivered a speech at Mansfield, Ohio, on August 26, in which he expressed himself in favour of the circulation of a large amount of silver and greenbacks, so that they might be kept at a par with gold. Mr. Sherman declared that the execution of the Resumption Act was rapidly approaching, and that silver, gold, and paper were now almost at par. The United States Treasury had $140,000,000 in coin available, and he believed that the resumption would be easily maintained, and that no step backward would be justified. The Government had effected an annual saving of interest on the debt to the amount of $10,000,000. The sales of the Four per Cent. Bonds were rapidly progressing; and Mr. Sherman was confident that they would exceed $100,000,000 this year, thus enabling him to redeem all Five-Twenty bonds of the 1865 issue. While labour in the United States was depressed in consequence of over-production, and the same depression existed in other countries, there was a better prospect of relief in the United States, where labour as well as property received protection from the Government. In conclusion, Mr. Sherman defended the policy pursued by President Hayes, whose object, he said, was to destroy sectionalism.

President Hayes himself, at St. Paul, where he had an

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enthusiastic popular reception, dwelt on the progressive improvement in the financial condition of the country, showing that in thirteen years the public debt had been reduced by one-third and the annual interest diminished to the extent of $56,000,000, paid monthly in America, owing to the return of bonds from abroad. The annual taxation of the country had been reduced to $247,000,000, and the expenses to $120,000,000. The paper currency was nearly at par, showing an increase in the coin value of $175,000,000. The excess of exports over imports during the past year amounted to $258,000,000. The President proceeded to declare that the balance of trade was in favour of the United States, remarking that American enterprise and the most important American products sought every land. "We cannot," said the President, "isolate ourselves from the rest of the commercial world. Our increasing foreign trade requires our financial system to be based upon principles whose soundness has been sanctioned by universal experience and by the general judgment of mankind. We are on the threshold of better times, and the surest foundations for prosperity are a sound and honest currency and unstained national credit." The President concluded his speech with an eloquent appeal on behalf of the people of the Southern States now suffering from the yellow fever epidemic. This was a specially terrible one, and the English journals of September 14 contained the following account of the progress of the strange disease, which had not appeared in such a form since 1853.

"Most terrible accounts of the ravages and spread of yellow fever in the Southern States are contained in the latest telegrams. The number of deaths from yellow fever on Wednesday (4th) was ninety at New Orleans and 104 at Memphis. Out of a thousand nurses at Memphis eight hundred are ill with the fever. It is stated that in the fever-stricken districts there are now 90,000 people without employment and destitute, for whose subsistence alone within the next fifty days a million of dollars will be required. A famine, it is believed, will certainly follow the fever. A telegram of Tuesday's date from Washington reports that the Secretary for War is stated to have declared that the means at the disposal of the Government for relieving the distress in the Southern States are now almost exhausted. The principal Southern Congressmen and other leading members of Congress have issued an appeal for the immediate organisation of a national relief system, to anticipate the famine which it is believed will certainly follow the fever. The Governor of Ohio has proclaimed a day of prayer to avert the pestilence from that State." The total number of deaths to September 29, when the plague was abating, amounted to 2,758 at New Orleans; Memphis, 2,469; Vicksburg, 790; Greenville, 300; Grenada, 274; Holly Springs, 133; Port Gibson, 110; Canton, 99; Stickman, 95; Brownsville, 66; Plaquemine, 65; Baton Rouge, 58; Grand Junction, 44;