Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1880-11-27
WASHINGTON LETTER.
From our Regular Correspondent.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 25, 1Se

WASHINGTON, NOV. 70, looO.
1t is so near to the assembling of
Congress that the probable business
of the session is a leading topic.
Quite number of Congressman are
here, but the majority have fingered
at home to spend Thanksgiving with
their families. Within week the
hotels, the committee rooms and 9TH
er Congressional haunts, will look
more like business. Among the
members now here there is some di-
vision of opinion as to what the ses-
sion will bring forth, but the prevail
ing judgment is that very little mis-
cellaneous legislation will be effect
ed. The House calendar contains
ninety-one pages of measures that
have come over from the last ses-
sion. Each member will be anxious
to get his particular measure thro'
and the result will be sort of 'dog
in the Manager" policy. That is to
say, if the gentleman from some
where can't get his bill for public
building, or pension or other claim
through, for his constituents, he will
object to the gentleman from some
where else being favored. The only
way that any number of bills ever
get through at short session is by
unanimous consent, for it would be
matter of physical impossibility to
take up the calendar and go through
the business in regular order. The
private calendar alone covers over
fifty pages, embracing a thousand
bills. Each one gives rise to more
or less discussion, and the calendar
could not be intelligently disposed of
if the whole time was devoted to it.
Bills of q general nature occupy still
more time, and there are scores of
them already reported. Hence, the
belief is growing that very little will
be done other than the consideration
of the appropriation bills. Revenue
bills may be discussed, but there is
very little hope expressed of their
passage, as there are too many con-
ficting interests involved. The Re
publican members as a rule express
themselves as opposed to any tariff
legislation at this session.
1t is understood that Secretary
Schurz and Commissioner of Pen
sions Bentley are to come before
Congress with strong appeal for
some notifications and improve
ments in our pension system. The
Commissioner annual report al
ready prepared is an interesting ex-
hibit of the amount of money paid
as pensions, and the number of re-
cipients thereof, but the most i'm
portant branch of it relates to the
mass of unadjusted cases pending
before the office and the difficulties
in determining upon them. There
are 250, 900 names now on the roll to
whom the aggregate annual payment
is $25, 917 ,906,60, or an average of
$103,34 each. But there are $780,
600 applications still undecided, ma.
ny of the cases being equally as just,
perhaps, as any already allowed. The
difficulty, from Mr.. Bentley's stand
point, is to ascertain the real merits
of the cases and prevent fraud, the
immense labors of these investiga-
tions being too much for the capaci-
ty of his establishment. He has a
bill pending in the Senate which he
hopes will be passed at this session.
1t provides for the appointment of
commission, consisting of one law
yer and one surgeon of reputed abili-
ty, whose duty 1T shall be to visit
several times every year the county
seats in the Congressional district for
which they are appointed, and take
the testimony OF witnesses and
hear the claim of the person
asking a pension, in apublic manner.
Another merit which the Commits
sioner claims for his bill is that the
burden of delay will rest wholly with
the claimant, whose interest would
dictate that he must have his evil
dence and witnesses ready when the
Commission meets to hear his claim,
and upon whom the burden of proof
alone rests. The scope of the bill is,
in fact, to divide the labor of the
Pension Office among 200 commits
sions, or as many as are necessary,
which are to ascertain in the vici-
mage of the applicant whether his
claim is well established. Others in
terested in pension matters and IA
miliar with the subject find objec-
tions to this bill, of which | shall
give you more hereafter. AT any
rate, all agree that this question is