The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1884-05-08
PRISONERS PENSIONS.
Disagreeing Reports From the House
Committee on Invalid Pensions.

In the House of Representatives, on the 30th
ult., Dir. Matson, chairman, reported from the
Committee ON Invalid Pensions the following
substitute [H. r. 6566l for the Robinson bill to
pension ex-pEisoners:
Be It enacted b the Senate and House Of Represent
Gtires OF the United States Of Anerca IN Congress
assembled That the Secretary of the Interior be
aud Is hereby, authorized and directed TO place
upon the pension-rol the names of all officers sol
ders, sailors, and marines who served in the late
war for the Union and were at any time during
said war captured while in the line Of duty and
confined in so-called Confederate prisons Tor the
space of two months continuously. or longer and
who are found, upon examination by a board of
pension surgeons, to be now suffering from any
disability, either general or specific subject in all
other respects to the provisions and limitations Of
the general pension laws.
SIC. 2. That the Secretary Of the Interior be- and
is hereby authorized and directed to place upon
the penson-roll the names of the widows Of ali
officers, soldiers, sailors and marines who were
captured while in the line of duty and were con-
fined in socllled Confederate prisons for the space
OF two months continuously, or longer and have
since die of any disease disability which in the
opinion OF the physician attending him in his last
illness attributable to his said inlprisoninent
and IN case of the death of said attending physician
secondary evidence of that fact shall be received
subject III all other respects to the provisions and
limitations OF the general pension laws.
SEC 5 That there be allowed and paid by the
secretary OF the Treasury, out of any moneys in
the treasury not otherwise appropriated the sum
OF two dollars per day for each and every DAVIS
cbflAHSIAtib III SO-EaiteQ confederate UEtsDIS. To
eaca oiIcer, soldier, sailor, marine who, while
serving in the late for the Union was captured
while IN the line Of duty and was confined in any
so-caled Confederate prison for the space Of two
months continuously, or longer, and has not
ceiyed arrears of pension.
SIC. 4. That the pensions paid under sections one
and two OF this ACT shall be paid at the paid
private soldiers and in no case shall the matter Of
rank be taken into the account in making any
SEC .. That the Secretary OF the Interior be. and
Is hereby directed to place upon the pensiOn-roIl
the names OF all officers, soldiers sailors and
marines who served the Uaited states ia auy
war III which the United States has been en-
gagged, Tor the space of six mouths or longer and
was honorahiy discharged theTefrOIn and who are
found upon an examination by a board OF pension
surgeons 70 oe so disabled as 20 materially inter-
fere with the performance Of the manual labor
which they are compelled to perform to gain a
subsistence, ana also all officers, soldiers, sailors
and marines who have served as aforesaid and
who are now of the age Of sixty-tyvo years or
more, who compelled to earn their Subsistence
By manual labor. The highest rate Of pension
paid under this section shall be tyenty-four dollars
per month, which is hereby made divisibie upon
the basis OF ability to perform manual labor: Pro-
Uided, That no person entitled TO invalid pen
sion under existing laws or such as may be here
aIter enacted, granting pensions for disabilities
contracted Ia the military naval service of the
United States and in the line of duty shall receive
the benefits OF this section: but any such apeaut
for invalid pension having an application therefor
pending, or who shall hereafter file his application
Tor such pension. may, by declaration over his
Own signature, elect and prosecute his said claim
ltt2IcE st4l- dcE ana MS pension, W4Gn allowed.
shall commence from the date Of such election
PrOuided further, That this section shall not be
construed to grant to any who is now receiving
q pension any additional pension Ind 1Fogided
further, That person shall be entitled TO receive
pension under the provisions Of this section nor
under the provisions of section one of this act
when the examination Of the board OF surgeons
show that the disease injury discovered was IN
the opinion of said board. the result of his own
gross earelessness, disreputable conduct vicious
habits.
REPORT ON THE SUBSTITUTE.
Accompanying the above bill was the follow
ing report, signed by the chairman tAIatson, Of
Ind, Winans (Mich.l Fyan (8IO.), Sumner
WIS., and Bagley N. Y Y.)-a1 Democrats:
The bin provides pensions for all officers. SOL
diers sailors and marines who were taken prison.
ers OF war while in line Of duty, and as such
confined ia so-caled Confederate prisons, between
the lst OF May. 1s6l and the Ist of May 1863 Civ
ing all WHO We're prisoners two months and less
than SIX months Il per month; all over SIX months
and less than twelve months. So, and ali over
twelve months, sS. Tie original bill provided for
rating the officer according to the rate Of officers
pension, but this committee found difficulty in
agreeing upon the proposition that this distinction
should not obtain and the bill was amended by a
unanimous vote OF the committee so as to abolish
the officers rating in this class OF cases.
Upon the question of reporting favoraby, the bill
as amended, after the most exhaustive discussion
and the most persistent elOfts TO agree upon some
proposition that the whole committee could favor
we regret TO say that this committee has not been
able 10 agree and that a report must be submitted
Z
The points of divergence between US seems to be
substantially as follows:
Those fayoring the bill 11S9 insist that it must
be assumed that all " no were confined as prisoners
for two months or more are now to some extent
disabled Those opposed TO the bill take the posi-
ton that this cannot be safely assumed and that
some abe-bodied men. by virtue of such a law
would be placed upon the pensioa-rolls The bin
provides compensation of . z day for each and
every day. confinement for every surviving pris-
oner. 1t IS well-S known fact, and admitted upon
all sides that majority OF the surviving prisoners
OF war are now receiving pensions, and that nearly
ali of these have received arrears OF pension Those
opposed to the provisions of this bill can see no
reason for adding 10 the large sums already re-
ee1yed by these persons another largesg in bulk
and thus give to this class greater favor than 10
those who have been desperately wounded,
manned, otherwise seriously damaged while in
the line of duty outside Of prisons. As between
the soldiers themselves this would not be right
Who will deny this?
The bill lS9) fails 70 provide for in any manner
the widows or dependent relatives of these
who were prisoners of war and who are not
/ now pensiOned. We propose that such widows or
dependent relatives shall be pensioned whenever
the physician attending such soldier in his last i'll
ness shall state under oath that IN his opinion the
soldiers death was attributable to his ifnprison-
ment, or, in OF the death of the attending ply
slelan, then secondary evidence OF that fact shall
be received Surely II cannot be gainsaid that such
persons should not be neglected in s. bill which
proposes to relieve class If legislation strictly
partial to class is to be justified, the most merito-
rious of that class certainly should be peusiOned
We have not been unrnindful of the horrible suf-
a
vile and few other Confederate military prisons
nor do we forget, has been so elcQueutly and
fOrci5ly urged upon Us by a committee from the
National EX-trisoners Association that the policy
OF non-exchange of prisoners was one determined
upon by our Government for the reason that for
every one of our prisoners of war an enemy was
kept out from behind their breastworks which our
forces must attack and that thus by their untold
suiferings in prison, they were then rendering
valuable service TO the cause of the Union We
afinlit the force of this argument but can see no
reason therein for pensioning those who are not
disabled, nor for granting of the bounty of the
Government much larger sums IL bulk than others
who were wounded IN battle are able under the
law to obtain. Our pension laws should be framed
with the idea of doing Justice to all soldiers kept
carefully II view, and not framed to give Just
cause of complaint to the larger number Of soldiers
who We're not prisoners OF war. The people Of
this country have steadfastly supported Congress
in the enactment of liberal pension laws. And
this, too In the face of the notorious fact that in
the administration of the law many inustices are
done both to the soldiers and TO the Government
1t IS not to be denied that many of the grounds of
complaint arise from state of confusion incon-
sistency and ineongruity of the pension laws and
to exist another law under which IS admitted By
virtue OF the law some of the able-bodied men of
one war shall be pensioned and many more of the
same war who not able bodied left unprovided
for This injustice viii result to the larger body of
eX-Union soldiers who were not taken prisoners
during the late civil war.
The only safe rule is To adhere TO the one to
which Congress has been long anchored to
grant pensions to soldiers only upon the ground of
disability. It is retorteo that heretofore Congress
IN giving pensions to the survivors of previous
wars has departed from this rule, and that the act
which recently passed the House, and is now pend
ing IN the Senate granting pensions to the sIrvv-
levi Is rfla Aof,,.