The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1875-11-25
THE NATloN,s WARDS.
Thirty Millions Year Paid to Soldiers,
Widows and Orphans.

Thirty Millions Year Paid to Soldiers,
Widows and Orphans.
a. NJ. Atkinson, Commissioner of Pen
sions, has completed his annual report to
the Secretary of the Interior. It shows
that the number of pensioners added to
the rolls during the last fiscal year was
IL ,557, and the number dropped by rea-
son of death, re-enlistment, remarriage,
expiration of minors pensions, failure to
apply within three years, or the discov-
cry of fraud, was 1877, making net
decrease of 1,420. The number of pen
sions increased was 1861. The total
number of pensioners borne upon the
rolls June 80, 1875, was 234, ,821, by
classes as follows:
Army widows and dependent relatives iOI .ss5
Services of the War of 1S12.... ......... Is SIS
Widows of soldiers Of the War of lsi2......, 5,16s
Navy widows and dependent relatives. -. liza
OF the widows of Revolutionary SOL
diers, 13 who were married prior to the
year 1900 and 366 married subsequent to
that date are still on the rolls. They,
with 1,009 half-pay widow pensioners,
ale embraced in the class, ssArmy widows
and dependent relatives" The invalid
roll continues to increase, aud, notwith-
standing its losses, numbered 3,021 more
on the Both of June, 1875, than at the
close of. the preceding year, and for the
first time since 1868 exceeded the roll of
widows and dependent relatives. Its in
crease largely counterbalances the losses
to the other rolls, and makes the decrease
of the aggregate roll comparatively small.
Its annual rates are also steadily increas-
ing. In 1871, the average rate of pen
sion paid to the army invalid pensioners
annually was $50. 18; in 1872, 800. 26; in
1873, $96. .46; in 1874, $98. IA; and 1875,
$103. 81, OF $3.50 per month. The rates
vary from 81 to $50 per month. The in
crease in these rates increased the aggre-
gate annual amount of the whole roll
during the year $44, 733.13, although it
had lessened in number, and the rates
of the widows reH had been largely re-
duced by the expiration of minors pen
sions.
The total disbursements of the Pension
Bureau during the last fiscal year were
$29, ,683, 116. 63,. leaving balance from
the appropriations of $371, ,883.31, which
has been covered into the Treasury.
The appropriations for the current
fiscal year were: For army pensions,
S29, sol, 900; for navy pensions, $500, 900;
total, $50, 100000.
During the past fiscal year IL, 236 orig
inal applications for army and navy in
valid pensions and IL, III claims for in
crease of the same class were received,
| a,1l alo,,,,o box,a l,ao,, writ Il,
from the rejected files and reopened upon
additional evidence. At the close of the
year there remained upon the pending
files 80, ,22S original and 6,722 increase
claims of this class. 1t is estimated that
by the fourth day of December next
there will be fled IN this office Il, 500
applications for increase of pension,
based upon the biennial examinations of
Sept. 4 last.
OF the soldiers who served sixty days
in the war of 1872, u per cent. have been
pensioned under the act of Feb. IA, 1871.
Including the widows of such soldiers
pensioned, the proportion is 90 per cent.
OF the number of claims filed under this
act, 49, per cent. have been rejected be-
cause the period of service did not equal
the number of days (sixty) prescribed by
the act. The number of soldiers who
served sixty days or more during the war
of 1872 was 296, ,916; the number VINO
served less than that time was 232, 73S.
During the fiscal year 1880 claims were
investigated by the special agents of the
Bureau. The amount of saving to be
credited to this service during the past
year was as follows:
1-5-
| roll :........... SIS, ,92s.97
Recoveries in cash. 16,396.70
Reflections -. ................. 112 225.17
/ Total. .-....... s114, 552.s4