Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1879-02-20
The Pension Question-Who Ought
to Have Pensions-An Applicant
"Shoots the Herald Sharply.

BoscoBEI Feb. le, 1872
Mr.. EDITOR I'm your last issue
you have good deal to say ABOUT
pensions. l can see that YOU was
not q solder. Perhaps you did not
care which side came out victorious
| am an applicant for q pension
l Will give you my case, then see if
you think man is not entitled to =
pension. enlisted in the 12th
Regiment, in 1861. was Al wears
old, so was clear of draft. took
my oldest son with me. He was
but II and very delicate. NY sec.
ond son would have gone at IA but
he died just before he reached that
age. might have gone to al u.
>. arsenal and got dollars a day-
oeing gun maker of some exper-
ience-all through the war and for a
year after. But l saw that men
were Q little backward about enlist
ing, so | went. l was then stout
and could do all my own work. but
l had Just got into a shape that l
could live without work. Ny farm
would keep me. When camo back.
after serving years, / was so used
up that could do only about one.
half OF days work each day. and
for the last 3 years or more cant
do q days work in u week. Now L
have had to give up work altogether.
when : came home, l found I was
some 100 dollars in debt and had
nothing but my land left. NV wife
buried . children while | was in the
army and had left. applied
for q pension 3 years ago. Now
say if you think l ought to have one.
l know OF others whose cases are
worse than mine, and who don't feel
like asking for pensions, and know
OF some who get pensions that are
not entitled TO them. If you think
1t 10 too much to pay such men pen
sIons | don't want any more to do
with you or the HERALD.
have paid for the Herald ever
since IL was the HERALD. [ have
taken the Lancaster paper ever
since the first one was started by
Marsh. l am in arrears now but
VIII pay up as soon as | can. SO
you may or may not send the HER.
AID until | can pay up. l don't
send this (the first / ever wrote to
the HERALD) to be published but if
You like to 60 so you may. l don't
think you will.
Why don't You send letter to
the Commissioners about that man
with the sore foot caused by the
button? The pension would be
stopped. have caused some to be
stopped and perhaps may be the
cause OF stopping more. G. T.
There is probably not much differ
ence in opinion between the HERALD
and the writer of the above, as to who
should have pensions. In fact our
article was not intended to fit any
parties with pinching shoes. We
have been greeted with so many ia
vorable expressions responsive to our
article on the pension law that we
began to think it struck current of
universal favor, and the above letter,
received yesterday, is the first oppo.
site expression we have met with.
Who should and who should not re-
ceive pensions would do for title to
several lengthy papers. We did not
pretend to decide that question. Can
did consideration of the subject might
lead to the conclusion that sometimes
others besides soldiers should be pen.
sioners for their merits, others for
their misfortunes. Some countries
pension their great poets, their great
scholars, their authors, their success
fol discoveries and inventors, and
those who have regulations as bene.
factors. There comes a time with
nearly every man when he is unfit to
be of service to his country and is
hardly or not at all able to take care
Of himself. IF he has been useful
man it does not seem right to let him
live through long old age in hard.
ships. In some countries provision is
made for such persons. In this
country there are societies which pro.
vide for their superannuated men,
bers. Men, like old horses, may be
kept for the good they hare done.
But old horses are not always ten
derly treated. There is belief with
some that whatever has become use.
less should, in the simplest manner
possible, be put out OF the way. They
take their old horses out to the woods
and shoot them, thus at once putting
them ont of misery and out of care.
So in some sections of the globe when
men, women or children come to q
condition to be perpetual burden to
themselves and others, they are by
common consent put out of the way.
There are philosophers in this country
who regard that as the proper way to
deel with superannuated humanity
even in enlightened society. This
country has another way. Those
not able to take care of themselves it
sends to the poor-house. But per-
haps a better way would be to PEN
sion them; pension them when they
need pension regardless of whether
they were soldiers or farmers.
We do not care to make any answer.
positive or negative, to G. Us per-
sonal references. If he had known
the editor at the beginning of the war
he would not have made them, and
editors backs are broad and their
hides like rhinoceros.
THE English labor troubles have
broken out now in Liverpool, where
the iron and brass workers "a wall