Page:The Presidents of the United States, 1789-1914, v. III.djvu/328

276 LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS S. authorities, but congress failed to appropriate the amount, and the claims remained unsettled. The customary yearly proclamations against poach ing were issued, but, owing to the inadequacy of the provisions for its prevention that had been adopted by the Paris tribunal, the seal herd con tinued to decrease. To pass from foreign to domestic affairs, the unsettled financial state of the country during a large part of Mr. Cleveland s second term first de mands notice. On August 8, 1893, the president convened congress in special session because, as stated in his message of that date, of "the exist ence of an alarming and extraordinary business situation, involving the welfare and prosperity of all our people," and to the end that "through a wise and patriotic exercise of the legislative duties . . . present evils may be mitigated and dangers threat ening the future may be averted." The country was in the midst of a financial crisis, largely due, it was believed, to past unsound legislation, under which the gold reserve had been diminishing, silver accumulating, and expenditures exceeding revenue. Confidence had become impaired and credit shaken. Business interests and the conservative sentiment of the country demanded the repeal of the provis ions of the act of July 14, 1890 (popularly known as the Sherman act), which required the monthly purchase of four and one-half million ounces of