The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1882-11-23
The Latest Attncn on GcnersI Dudley.

The latest Attack on General Dudley.
Having failed to prevent the passage by
! Congress, st its last session, Of the bill au-
/ thorizing an increase in the clerical force of
the Pension Office the enemies of the soldier
are now endeavoriDg to bring discredit upon
! the administration of the bureau itself.
| Says the Philadelphia Times of the 18th
| inst:
There are many accommodating evidences
/ that the largely increased force OF iNeEVeTi-
cnccd clerks in the Pension Department has
opened the door for fraud and cgtIavy@.ncg TO
run riot IN the gC iuatWrai Ot many of the SO
/ called claims. The claims have accumulated
/ TO such an extent that the Commissioner IS
/ running the bureau at high pres ure in order
! to clear up the work and stop complaints. The
! effect Of this hurry. especially when the claims
are to be submitted for examination to totally
/ inexperienced and incompetent men. in many
/ instances cannot be otherwise than detrimental
/ to the horcst interests OF the Government. la
/ justice may be done in individual instances by
! going slow but much worse Injustice is sure 70
! result from loose and hHsty consideration Of
/ the great mass Of the applications The big
appropriations for pension purposes are n stand
( ing temptation for fraudulent and truUI ed-up
/ claims and good care should be taken to slit
them thoroughly"
The statements contained in this article
ere plainly deliberate pcrve~siOns Of the
truth, and it is astonishing that journal
with any pretension to respectabhity should
give them currency. Had they been made
by some obscure country newspaper, they
might be ascribcd, perhaps, to the ignorance
of the editor, but in the case of the Times it
must be presumed that they were made with
malice aforethought Let us see what they
amount to.
The Times declares that the pension claims
have accumulated to such an extent that
the Commissioner is running the bureau at
high pressure in order TO clear up the work
and stop complaints" Now, what are the
facts? Simply that at the opening of the
last fiscal year there were $50 337 claims
on file in the Pension Office to adjust
which, with the small force then at the dis
posal of the Commissioner, would have re-
| quired at least ten years, and IN all proba-
bility much longer period. To have COM
PEELED $50 337 claimants to wait that length
Of time for the money to which they were
entitled would clearly have been an act of
cruel injustice, and one, too, for which mas
much as the Government was and is amply
able to discharge ali these obligations ct
once, and the question of their adjustment
is only question of the number of clerks
employed for that purpoge.-no adequate ex-
cuse could have been offered. The Com-
missioner was not willing to be held respon-
sible for such a state of things. but at the
same time, as an honest and sensible bust
ness man, ne felt that with the force then
employed in the bureau the rate of adjust
ment could not be expedited without
eopardizing the Governments interests.
since. as a result of a too hastv examination
of nepdinr claims. some MIGHT h.. rass+d
which really OUGHT to be rejected II vas
because he did not want 10 run the Lrraer,
ut "higb pregsuren that he asked Conpress
10 authorize the empIoyment of additional
clerks and that he bes not done so si,,cs IN.
desired incraose was made in tba force tI,a
small number of pension certificates issne1