Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1870-05-20
SPEECH OF
HON, VIM. LAWRENCE
OF OHIO,
ON THE -....
PENSION BILL.

Invalid Pensions by the gentleman
from Missouri Mr.. BENJAm1N] is
substantially the same as a bill re
ported from the same committee or
the 18th of December last. 1t diff
fers from it in only two respects
first, that it provides for quarterly
instead of semi annual payments ol
pensions, and second, that it pro
vides that the Government shall
pay the pension agent the fees for
preparing the vouchers on which
pensions are to be PAD.
The number of bills introduced
into this Congress having for thell
object change in the mode of pay
ing pensions, and the ample discus
sions to which they have given rise,
all seem to indicate that reform is
demanded. 1t becomes duty,
therefore, to consider the existing
law, it's defects, and the proper rem
edy.
There are now two hundred and
forty-three thousand pensioners to
whom the Government disburses
about thirty million dollars a year
in semi annual payments.
The Commissioner Of Pensions is
charged by law with the duty OF
determining who may be entitled to
pensions, and of granting pension
certificates to persons SO entitled.
Then, there are fifty nine pension
agents, widely separated in different
parts of the United States, who are
furnished by the Commissioners OF
Pensions with the name and post
Office address of every pensioner in
the respective districts O.! each agent,
and with the necessary funds depos-
tied. subject to the order of each
agent, in a national bank, or with
an Assistant Treasurer of the United
States. ~
The agents are furnished with
printed blank vouchers, to be filled
up by them and mailed to the pen
sioners, who are required to execute
and verify them on oath cefore a
notary public or other local officer,
when they are returned by mail to
the pension agent, who transmits a
check on the proper bank or assis-
tant Treasurer to the pensioner,
payable to his order.
By the existing law the vouchers
on which pensions are paid may be
prepared by pension agents, or by
pensioners themselves, or by claim
agents. If prepared by pension
agents they are entitled by law to
certain fees and postage, which
with the local fee of a notary fol
administering an oath to verify q
voucher, is about seventy-six cents
and claim agents charge an average
of probably SO so for collecting
each pension.
The objections to this system n
part are:
l. The cost of pension agents
and notaries' fees, seventy-six cents
for each pension payment. or 81 So
year for two hundred and forty
three thousand pensioners, making
an annual charge on them of 1869,
$50, less the amount saved in the
cases where pensioners prepare theil
own papers.
2. The expense of claim agents
whose average charge for collecting
each pension is estimated at So so
or seven dollars year, ON at leas
two hundred thousand of the pen
sioners or 81 400, 600 a year in all
8. The delay, Inconvenience, ane
trouble imposed on pensioners ir
conducting correspondence requi
ring the transmission Of four mai
packages annually for each pen
sioner, in all nine hundred and sew
enty two thousand packages, requi
ring for postage S5S.320, beside:
nearly as much more for stationery
But greater evil still is the delay
trouble, and expense Of correspon
ding to correct errors in vouchers
! now hold in my hand a speci
men notice from a pension agent
which I ask the Clerk to read.
The Clerk read as follows:
U. S. PENSION OFFICE,
DETROIT, March 25, 1870.
In the application of Harmcl
Camburn for payment. Before pay
ment can be made the following
corrections are necessary. Return
this slip with what is called for.
A. KAICHEN,
| Pension Agent.
r. S. No bounty, pension, o
other claim agency business don
at this agency, nor connected will
it. AK.
Vouchers cannot be accepted tha
have been written and prepared b,
the officer administering the oath o
taking acknowledgment of tn
voucher. Such vouchers being con
sidered illegal, 1 have to reiec
vouchers in which purple, violet, o
cofored inks are used. Therefore
avoid their use. sal3=is Fe
Mr.. LAWRENCE. This aotice,
may remark, makes a requisit1ol
not required by law The Commis
sioner of Pensions has decided tha
the local notary may prepare or I'll
in the printed blank vouchers.
, A. There is no security agains
frauds on the pension laws. Thes
consist of false presentations of pen
sioners. living and dead the collee
ton of pensions by widows afte
marriage, in violation of a la,
which itself outrages principle G
humanity; of the misappropriatio
of money by agents collecting per
sions, and Of various other fraud.
u & ,EL<, lcs.. 4.. - i . L