The Leavenworth weekly times., 1878-03-07

the war OF the rebellion broke ouI for disa-
bility incurred in the service OF the country,
and in the defence OF the country,
and that class of claims that
arose after the rebellion broke out Tor prop
erty taken or destroyed within the rebel
lious precincts. / deny utterly the force
Of any such argument; deny that it has
any application whatever to the case now
under consideration.
The war with Great Britain ended in
lSl5. 1t is iair to presume that those who
served through that war or at its close were
at least of the age Of legal majority. The
war OF the rebellion commenced in 1861,
forty-six years after the war with Great
Britain closed. By any ordinary compu-
tation, the men who were engaged in the war
therefore must have been far beyond the
period OF time that is fixed in ali govern
ments as the era when liability to military
duty shall cease. Hardly one of them
could have been under sixty years of age
1t will be observed that none OF these
pensions were granted gratui-
tously. There are, as the Senator is we'll
aware, two classes Of pensions; one that is
gratuitous and the principle of which l be-
lieye TO be totally wrong, and the other is
for disability incurred in service; that is,
either in the nature of charity or in the
nature of compensation. Whichever view
OF this case the Senator may take, here was
a liability on the part Of the government to
its defenders actually established and deter
mined at period long antecedent to the
time when the war of the rebellion broke
out.
Mr.. EDMUNDS. But did not the law
also give pensions TO those who had served
certain length of time, although they
were Not disabled, before that date!
Mr.. INGALLS,. No, sir. The principle
Of granting gratuitous pensions was first es-
tablished by the Government of the United
States on the 18th of February, 1871 Ii
was departure from the law of pensions az
established by all other nations, and in my
Judgment most mischievous and pernicious
one. think it destroys the distinction
that ought TO exist between soldiers who
have served and incurred disability and
soldiers who have served and left the service
as sound as when they entered it,
Mr.. PADDOCK. should like to ash
the Senator question for information.
Mr.. INGALLS,. l shall listen to the
Senator with great pleasure.
Mr.. PADDOCK. | inquire whether hs
can tell approximatively the number O
such special pensioners 10 whom relic
would be brought by this provision?
Mr.. INGALLS,. Less than one hundred
by the most accurate estimate that can bt
derivef from the statistics on file in tn,
Pension Bureau.
Mr.. DAVIS, of West Virginia. Ir
all?
Mr.. INGALLS,. In all.
Mr.. MORGAN. Before the vote is taker
on the amendment to this section OF the bill
| would suggest TO the chairman of tn.
committee or the gentleman having the bill
in charge that there s1ould be modifca
tion in Its language. 1t reads As follows:
Whose disabilities have been removed, ol
who have made application ;or such reno
Val.
Mr.. WITHIERS. 1t is proposed to strik,
that out.
Mr.. MORGAN. The pending question il
then to strike out the entire amendment, a
| | understand it?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The aues
tion is on agreeing to the amendment a
reported b. the committee to insert thes,
words, upon which the yeas and nays hav,
been ordered.
Mr.. MORGAN. was about TO say tha
in the event the Senate do not reject III,
amendment the words should be modified
so as to read shall make" | suppose tn,
amendment will be open to further amend
ment if the Senate should refuse to strike i
ont. The remarks | was about TO submit
would have reference to that view Of tn,
question.
But while / am on my feet | would say
that no provision of law has heretofor,
been made, 80 far as / am informed, undel
which pensioners whose names had beer
stricken from the roll could make applica
tiOn for the removal of their disabilities
and very great hardship would be infiict
ed upon them ii you deprived them of tn,
right OF being restored to the pension lis
because they had not made application fol
the removal Of disabilities when the law
had never provided for making such appli
cation. But as he question now is on in
sertiDg the clause shall not waste time
about it
Mr. INGALLS,. Before this bill passes
desire TO place upon record my conviction
that the principle upon which it is based i,
ill-advised and pernicious, and one which
exceedingly regret has been heretofore
established by the legislation ii this coun
Try. AS said before, the act of 1871 wa,
the first act ever passed by any nation
granting pension to soldiers gratuitously
All other nations have granted pensions tc
'ldiers who were disabled or injured in the
service of their country in war, but it was
reserved for the United States, itself having
the largest pension-list OF any country, tC
increase it by the recognition of principle
whose evil consequences are still more ap.
parent by the bill that is now before us. We
are paying at the present time by way Of
military and naval pensions about $50, 600
900 per annum. Of this amount a portion
is due to the soldiers of the war of 1872, a
portion to the sol;iers of the Indian and
Mexican wars, and very much larger pro-
portion to the soldiers of the war of the re.
bellion.
The Legislation Of 1871 established this
nvidious discrimination: it allows the
man who served for sixty days, and, as
modified by this bill, for fourteen days. in
any sudden alarm, in any sea-coast attack,
without incurring any danger, without being
injured or wounded, or weakened. or in any
way harmed by his service, exactly the
same pension that is granted to the man
who was in battle, who came out with loss
OF health or limb, and who has remained
during the intervening half century a bur
den TO himself and family. | believe, as
said before, that this principle is an ill-ad-
vised one. believe il is one that is po;nc ia
plague It's Inventors. Already the
soldiers Of the Mexican war, at the expira-
ton of nearly thirty wears from the de1 Ia
ration of peaca are nrginy that ;n,smncb