Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1880-09-02
THE PENSION BUSINESS.
How Some congressman Make Teas
or Thousands.
There's Millions In IL.

fhefe's Millions In 70.
The pension question is grave
/ question. 1t is an enormous ques-
ton. And yet it is a question that
the people are giving almost no con.
sideration to. They will not wake up
to it. They are afraid to open their
heads against pensions lest it will be
said they are not the friends of the
soldier. Blatants and demagogues
will use their energies and foul
mouths TO belittle and benean a man
who says anything against granting
any pension that may be asked for.
The more undeserving the case is the
touler will be the talk against the
man who opposes it. But, will the
reader follow US far enough to &C.
quaint himself with the facts ? The
great majority OF HERALD readers
are men who make the wealth of the
country and who pay the taxes They
do not want to give pensions to men
who never shared in their country's
battles and are mere pretenders. -
But there are systematic efforts made
and making to draw from the people
many millions annually for this pur-
pose. The effort Is not confined to
party. The demagogues of both par
ties are in it. If tens of thousands
of army loafers are put upon the pen
sion roll on the Union de, the rebel
side if they ever get into power can
with better face ask for pensions or
find excuses for putting money into
the pockets of their friends. Pen
SONS Of all classes find as much favor
with Democrats in Congress as with
Republicans. They try to out.do
each other in professions Of friend
ship for the soldier and lest their Oh
position be construed into opposition
to the soldier very few will oppose
even the claims of "bogus soldiers"
And the demagogues in Congress
will do more for the "bogus soldier"
claims than for any other. They
know instinctively that the "bogus
soldier" Is ever ready to serve them
in any capacity. Who could better
manipulate bogus tickets than "bo.
gus soldiers? ?"
Let us look little at how vast
this question of pensions is There
are about 100000 names on the pen.
sion rolls now. To pay them sill
require about forty million dollars
every year. There were, the lst of
July last, 100000 other applicants
whose claims are no! vet decided. If
all these were allowed it would take
three hundred and fifty million dol
lars to pay the arrears claimed and
thirty'fys millions every year there.
after to pay their annual pensions.
Those decided and the undecided
cali for an annual payment by the
people, of seventy i've million dol
lars This represents sum
greater than cur present national
debt. 1t is more than the interest
of our present interest bearing debt
would be at 4 per cent Is it not an
important question to you, reader ?
Is IL reasonable to suppose there are
100000 just claims for pensions p
And how are they allowed? There
is one pension office, one pension
Commissioner. He has hundreds of
clerks but every claim is supposed to
90 through his hands. He has moro
cases, more trials on hand than all
the courts of the State of Wisconsin
with hundred judges The result
IS that the hundreds of thousands of
cases hang in his court. The lust
claims are crowded off from year to
year-tas machinery being clogged
often by the unjust claims. AZ the
present rate 1t will take lfe,time to
decide all the claims Attempts have
been made to establish a sufficient
number of pension courts TO dispose
OF the cases in short time. The plsr
or any plan to expedite the business
was resisted. Why? As long As these
100000 men are in suLpense there
are 100000 men who will work to
put any demagogue into Congress
who can persuade them that he is
"bully" on pension claims. If $780,
600 OF them are pretenders, impostors,
each of the $50, 200 would give 800
to $500 to venal Congressman, to
haYe his claim succeed and many of
the Just claimants would give as
much to have their claims hurried
through. One hundred dollars each
from these 10000 claimants would
make total Of SIS, 100000 that
might he divided among enough
Congressman to put through every
claimifthere are enough Congressman
there who will accept such gifts. 1t
would make for them about $l00,0O0
apiece. Perhaps not much of such
work has been done but why did not
Congress put such opportunities out
Of their own reach by establishing
courts who would settle the cases
with evidence before them, aud get
them out ofthe way ? There is reason
for greater confidence in those Con.
gressmen who endeavored TO invent
aud establish plan for the expedi
tious settlement Of lust claims
plan by which the evidence OF merit
could be presented as before a court
of justice and where the claim proves
to be pretence could be rejected
and all without any opportunity of
Congress or a Congressman having a
finger in the pie. And what is the
character Of claims that come before
Congress now? They are rejected
claims. They are cases, the most of
them, that have gone through the
pension office and the officers found
them unjust or that there was no law
for their allowance. The applicant
then goes to his Congressman and
either begs or buys him to ask Con-
gress to pass special law putting
him on the pension roll. If be is
mere pretender and the Congressman
i =