The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1884-11-20
THE NEW COMMISSIONER OF PENsIo

inpioNeu all opportunity W ieCoSDiZo anu
reward a most meritorious public servant.
THE NATIONAL TRIBUNE takes pleasure
taken pleasure in asserting, to wit, that
there is no man in the Nation better fitted
for Commissioner of Pensions than Maj O.
p G. Clarke. A gallant soldier himself,
with body SCARED by rebel lead, he has
abundant personal incentives to sympathy
with the wounded and disabled veterans. But
he needs not these to make him an earnest
and untiring friend of the soldier. He is a
man of the kindliest nature and an ardent
lover of justice.
On this admirable basis for Commits
sioner of Pensions he has built splendid
superstructure of training and experience.
Entering the Pension Bureau II years ago
almost directly from the camps of the Army
of the Potomac, he displayed such talent in
mastering its business that he was promoted
rapidly, until Congress did him the excep-
tional honor of creating an Office especially
for him.
Maj. Clarke has now, for the first time in
his long connection with the Pension Office,
an opportunity to carry out his own policy
in the conduct of its business. Heretofore
his undeniable talents have been at the
service of his superior officers, and he has had
no choice but to carry out their policies.
There has been very much in these repug-
nant both to his sense of justice and his
ideas of business, but there was no alterna-
tive During all this time, however, and while
assiduouNy caring for the interests of the
Government, he has never neglected an OPP
portunity that presented itself to intervene
in behalf of justice to the soldier, and to
sacrifice technicality to right.
Now the soldiers of the country can anti
cipate, with cheerful confidence, the intro
duction of such radical reforms into the
Pension Office as will produce the happiest
results. We believe that Maj. Clarke's ideas
of what is necessary to be done are thor
oughly sound, and he has proved himself
to have the executive ability to carry them
out
We heartily congratulate all comrades
upon his accession to the Office.
They are also to be congratulated upon
the promotion of Judge Calvin B. Walker to
the position of First Deputy Commissioner
of Pensions. Judge Walker is admirably
suited to the place, both by natural aptitude
and by training. He sin entire harmony with
Maj Clarke as to the necessary reforms in
the Pension Bureau, and will be of thegreat-
est assistance to him in inaugurating them.
NOT ALMs-GIvING, BUT DEBT-PAYING.
The man who regards pension to an ex-
soldier as charity is one who places an
ignoble estimate on everything in life. He
is capable of believing that the pay was the
inducement which took men into the army.
The pension is not charity in any sense,
but the liquidation of debt due from the
Government. 1t was part of the contract
entered into at the time of enlistment, and
the Government is just as much bound to
pay it as the soldier was to do his duty
and obey the orders of his superiors.
The soldiers agreed to serve the Govern
ment in its armies, aud to peril life and limb
in its behalf. The Government, on its side,
agreed just as definitely to take care of him
and those dependent on him if he suffered
by reason of his service. This is the plain,
justice, business aspect of the matter, with
out any admixture of the sentimental.
The sentimental aspect of the matter
strongly fortifies the equitable features of it.
The American soldier differed from the
ordinary soldier in the sacrifices he made to
serve the country. AS rule, armies are
made up of men to whom the food, pay
clothing, etc, are quite as good as they
would receive anywhere. They have no
homes, and the army is their natural abiding
place. 1t costs them nothing to enter the
army, because they are quite as well off
there as they would be anywhere.
On the other hand, it cost our soldiers
enormously to enter the army. They gave
up comfortable homes, pleasant employment,
remunerative wages, and congenial sur
roundings to serve their country in an ex-
tremely perilous and arduous war.
Consequently, pensions to them are not to
be placed ON the some plane as the doles to
the pauper veterans of Europe, but take the
form of an adequate repayment by a just
and grateful people to men who made sacri-
fees and rendered services of the greatest
value at the critical time when the very life
of the Nation depended upon these sacrifices
being made.
CIVIL SERVICE,
OF the 10000 persons in the civil employ
of the Government only $4,000 are protected
from arbitrary removals by the civil service
laws. These are included in three classes,