The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1854-04-07
NGREsSlONAL.
DERE RED DEBATE.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 30, 1854.
SENATE.



as Hou.e u Representatives. supply deficiencies the
appropriation io the service oi TIE tsca year ending he
6h 81 Jaae 1854, Tie fending question beiog on the
.@sdn,soi submilsd By r BsyARp insert in the fol-
oSag amendment reported lion the Committee on FL
lanee- .aM..
"sr5 Aai b q f,thsy enacted That before any pay
Wfp tai hsfraites ba n,ade 60 Ang invalid pensoner
whose bafte shab base been upon tis penslOn si Two
sas be sha produce 70 ba agent io paying pensions 10
xhou be shall QppY Tor payment. ihe aihdavit OF tso
uusons pbyselans approved by he Secretary Of lbe
laior. s,atne itom psisonsl examination The coniin
aahcr o e dsabiy describing a. Tor which the pension
sas ssty sraned. sud toe Gale o. sucr disability at
Astpe q making .nch affidavit and ese.y TWO years
sisi he date OF suuh niiavi, no sha before receiving
,ay Mhhet Iaynsa y, pfo3sSo % said ss9nt similar a
hdayi aud iiin said silia me disabihY shall be
nsy gsshed he shall only BE- paid a. the 1 stated IA
sid sitday, said affidavit. shall be tiled by sad sgents
and carefully preserved. and copies theso she'll be
mted, with the ssmannuai returns o. SAID agents 70 ne
Commissioner 81 Pensions, who shall ie them with NE
onyDal pspru ol said ppusloner respectively Pdpdsd,
That when be renroa .hal been oglnaly granted
lss oi lub other cause, which canaot he removed,
either in whole 10 part The above affidavit shall not be
lied nyalta pension shall be IA the posfesslou OF
aafed ciy Office h pension shall be suspended dnHng
the ol mis- unlpioyinei IN SAID civil onice."
after The woris salared civil Office" the words un-
der The United Saies.r
Mr PEARCE The senator from Illinois [Mt
SHELDsl yesterday seemed TO me to misunderstood lpe
spirit AMI character 0t the provision now under cons d.
ration, which was proposed by the COMMITTEES on FIJI
as amendment 10 the bill. II spoken at
petty, takeriag economy, and gross outrage upon
the rights oil valuable class of citizens Now, sir,
the word economy, know, is scarcely parliamentary
worJ and lis here almost be consdere absurd
and is very likely 10 suhect one TO rdIcule. was well
OF that; aud let il be remembered that the commit
tee did make that blunder did any member OF the
committee who spoke yesterday urge this amendment
upon the score OF economy They carefully eschewed
the word The senator himself has introduced il. It's
very possible, admit. II may have occurred to Of
them that economical reform would result from il
but they TOO wise to present that as motive to
body abundantly liberal this. They submitted the
amendment Tor The reason ibatt was required by the plain
and obvious principles OF the pension laws,
An invalid pension Is given Tor disability IL Is the
disability which the sole for besowa OF the
persion and any tell me why, when The dsabil-
y ceases the pension shall not tooi II 1t does
not then me result conlradcs the principle OF the sys-
ten, and you create gross nsquay, and DO great in-
Justice II one man, VINO has been pensioned because
si disability. and who RECEIVERS entirely ircm thai disa
by, is s 10 have hs pension, how are you 10 do Jus
ice TO him whose disability continuesi There is no
equality, squuy in making tue allowance in the
Two cases, II the amenomeht should not be adopted,
the who enllrey from the wounds or dis
which al FIRST eDtcd HIM To the PENSION, will be
continued on the pension To though perfectly sound
and the who shot 10 pieces, who loses an arm or
other limb, and becomes totally ami forever ncapacsted
from any active employment, will receive no more
than The man who Is as souod as the day he entered
The army Certainly, sir,stGis Is not equality II you
wish TO be impartial between these lso classes, YOU
stop the pension the double II 10 The other
TLe amendment proposes--whaif Only 10 apply The
principle which Is at the very foundation OF the pension
system II Is TO stop the pension when the disability
stops and how you do thai excep, by having an ex
aninaiionf The seIator IRON Illinois spoke oi the
animation as degrading thing and OF Tue affidavit as II
that too were degrading. He speaks OF The pensioners
being driven ~ like u Grove oil borses Why, sit the
pensloner bss make his affidavit, and submit
animation. before be can gel pension originally and Is
more degrading TO through the same ceremony again,
when be desires The continuance OF that pensoa than il
when he first made the application, "
Then told that the amendment viii pui the
Psnsone great expense every Two years. because he
may live stance iron the medical men Who 10 de-
eide upon bis Gaze No such thing is contemplated The
pensIoner wherever he may De- easily resort 10 two
medical men, and obtain the necessary certificate. Doc
tors, believe, are about as plenty as backberfles
throughout ihe country and will say that think the
faculty, almost everywhere, are well educated, iniel-
gent and humane people, who ever ready 10 perform,
without pay, such oflces as VIII be required by these
pensoneIs will venture 10 say, that, 80 Tar iron the
honest pen-ioner being cheated out OF his allowance he
will not have the slightest dthculiy in obtaining, and
that without fec, the evidence on which his pension ~
to be continued Its duty 10 humanity which the facu
ly cteefiuily render
There are Two exceptions contained in The amendment,
Of which complaint made. One is that where
the pension shall have been originally srsned tor total
disability for The loss OF limb, where the party has
sustained oler injury OF 80 permanent character
as TO be necessarily femedes@, The affidavit sba mol be
required 1t obvious iha where that ls the case, there
ae ecessily Tor the aidayt Then there is another
class N which these forms dispensed with-i
The class OF pepsousrs provided Tor by special acts OF
Congress. h. reason o that - that those persons who
receive pensions, under special acts al Congress- not
entitled 10 tbem under The general law bat the pensions
allowed because oi special merit. real supposed,
which not indicated N the law They get them by
appcai here falling TO get them at the proper depart
mert because they cannot bring their cases within any
recog nssd principles. Nobody say Tor what reason
they were gTanied. You cannot 20 behind the act Of
Congress and II You were 10 require the atjayit and
Certificate 10 such cases. Il Is very likely that you might
require an impossbily the party having received his
pension iron the special lberay OF Congress, and with
being able to show al any time within the prln.
cples Of the genersl For Ihs, the affidavit
is excepted 10 that case also
Now. sr, the Question before i simply ths Whelh.
er shall apply The principle which lies at the founds
uoa o the pension ~ not The senator from lil-
nois himself admits thai bete is vasl number OF
in which The pension Is received though without the
saaction o The Ir scple Take Tor example, one case
which may be suggested, where parties pensoned
not for wounds but Tor diseases Many occurred
during The late with Mexico ~ which soldiers
pusaied W the dysshtety dah1s and obtained pea.
sOus accordingly. Now ihese diseases such either
kill cured IN a moderate time They do not linges
through long lie ! he rensIoser may have been y
der by them incapable OF obtaining his livelihood AT the
time Of app cation and probably By the Time the tvo
years roll around. he will be either more, will be
cured OF he dlsease Every professional man, sppfe-
hend wi admit that But II The disease be removed, Is
II not protr thai The pessioa should aud how
you whether the disability has ceased, unless
you requite The psuS TO submit TO an examination
The sena OF himself admits that ought 10 strike nj
the root OF the whole matter, and feiorm the entire
ten, Bot how you reform u except IN this way |
oey goo 70 prOduce any plan 20 reform the evi other
tban py medical examination and that ~ all that the
amendment proposes The h.f day heard OF the
OF man who applied for post ohics--sn ottos one
would suppose, which requires the oi mans sss
ne was aset faintd ~ III. time he made the appc alton,
10 be actually % receipt Of pension Tor blindness, and
yet IN The iu possession Of ali the faculty OF vision
sofed ~ The employment which he was ace klng. DO
e pension ought 70 he coninued 10 that case