The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1884-09-09

placed tllS blil, Wnlcu paSseu tnt
House on the 2lst of April. myself In
the hands ofthe Chairman of the Senate
Committee. with the request that the
hill be Immediately considered and
passed by the Senate | said to him, II
| you willsend 1t hack with such amend.
ments as the Senate may desire to add
to II, we will pass 1t through the House
and make 1t law. Did they do II? No;
but after keeping 1t till Ju'y they sent
1t back with some changes but
coupled with the Mexican pension
bill, and that blocked It in the
House. / could not support the Mex
lean amendment, and / shall not sup
port 1t, for reasons which shall very
briefly give; and will leave 1t TO the
Union soldier to say whether lam right
or not.
Twill read the Mexican amendment,
which opposed, which / oppoe now,
and which I shall oppose hereafter II
Is unsafe for the people to adopt such a
principle, and Il ought never to be
adopted. What Is that amendment? :?
Itprovides that any one "who being
duly enlisted actually served fourteen
days In the army or navy of the United
States In Mexico or on the coasts or
frontier thereof, or en- route thereto, and
Is so years old, or II disabled from any
cause-a private broil for that matter,
before he Is 62-shall receive pension
of $8 per month: also that any widow
OF any soldier Of the Mexican war
although she may have married him In
his old age-becomese entitled to his pen.
sion during her'ife. Itpiaces upon the
same basis exactly the widow The man
who was killed at the st0rming Of Che.
pultepec, and the one who marries the
soldier In his old age, for the purpose of
getting pension for life. To the man
who enlisted and staid on the rolls two
weeks, 1t gives pension of the same
amount that II gives to the battle scared
veteran who followed the flag from
Monterey to Buena Vista under the hero
who never surrendered, and who did
not know when he was whipped, or
marched with the hero Of Lundyis
Lane from Vera Cruz to Mexico. Think
Of it-fourteen days OH the rolls, and q
pension for hfe-though he never heard
shot fired or spent night In camp;
under this amendment he Is neverthe.
less entitled to pension the same as
the soldier who fought through the
whole war. And he gets So month,
while halfof the Union soldiers get less
than S4 month, for wounds and
disability. ] honor the men who up.
held the flag In foreign country in an
unhealthy climate, and won for us 348,-
100000 OF acres OF our territory, from
which has been produced. since this ac-
qui>ition, q fifth part of the worlds pres.
ent supp y ofmetalic money aud I would
gladly vote to take from the Railway
corporations, who have not earned II,
some OF these lands, and give them as a
special mark OF honor, to those who
fought to win them. But honor no less
the man who uphe d the same flag In all
the battles Of the late war, and saved
the Union and tree institutions. In the
war with Mexico we might have failed,
aud still the Republic and Republican
Government would have remained the
same; but had our cause failed In the
late war, not only would the territory
won In the war withpMexico have been
lost again, but liberty and free insti u
tutions would have been lost also. On
what principle then can We vote pen
sions Of So per month for fourteen
days enlistment, with no service in the
one war, and not do the same in the
other,-;he late war? No, will never
| agree TO that principle; and that Is the
only difference between Mr.. Taylor's
votes and mine In all the votes
that were given on that bill in the
House. Ivotetl, I believe, upon every
| other question that came up on this bill
as he voted, or he voted az vo'ed. The
Senate amendments do cot give service
pensions to Union soldiers but one oil
them does to Mexican soldiers, and !
told the members on my side of the
House, when II took some courage to tell
them. that sou Insist upon your bill,
l shall insist up6h placing the Union
soldier upon the same footing; althoueh b
Ibe ieve the prinesp.a tnhe q vicious one,
| will not vote fourtsen.oay pension ia
The Mexican O,dier and deny 1t to the
Union soldier" for ] hold that the mar
who followed the flag with Sherman In
his march to the sea, ,or up the heightso oil
Lookout Mountain with Hooker, or who
went down IN ldagstreet's charge al
Gettysburg, TO be as worthy and as
much entitled TO a tension, on the 50 noe
Conditions rs the Wdn WHO served in The
Mexican war. 1sit to lie IA days enlist.
ment for one, and long service and dis
ability for the othel2 think not Am
right In that or wrongs To the Union
soldiersI appeal as nv judges TIRE
mendous cheerlngl appeal to the
men who stand before me to Judge of the
difference between o r positions on this
proposition.
| No, lcannot consent to put the man oil
IA days service on an equal footing
much less above, the soldier who served
long and fought many battles; nor can
put the widow OF the soldier who has
| married late In life on the same plane
| With the widow who gave the husband
other early life sacrifice to his country
cannot vote for such measure as thai
and Isubmit that question on which Mr.
Taylor and differ, TO the soldiers them
selves-tO the men who have sept on
battle. fields and know what real service
means and the difference between
wounds and lingering diseases ant
sound hea til.
But let us turn from buncombe bill
and speeches to the unsettled claims o.
250, 900 men for disability pensions, an,
rs, 600 widows. After a bsttla we felt |
our first duty TO otakeQare Of the wound
ed, and | ask you If 1t is not our frs
duty now to look after the claim
of the wounded aud disableds I asl
you ifthat Is not the first duty Of Con
, gresss And difany one says ] have no
1ounall no,,I.t A., III 10 f,o,, uraoo tr. e., NJ