Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1884-09-18
GENERAL ROBINSON
VINDICATES COL. TAY-
LOR AT HIS OWN
HOME,
And Reiterates the CharQes
Against Gen. Warner.
Warner Boldly Accused of OPP
posing the Mexican Pension
Bill, and Altering the
Record to Conceal His
Opposition.

Extract from Gen. Robinson's speech at Cam
BRIDGE
And now few words on your candidate
for Congress. It was my good fortune to sit
by him and serve with him in Congress. and
it gives me pleasure to be able to tell YOU
that no district was more faithfully and
earnestly represented than yours. Colonel
Taylor has been the friend of the wool
grower, the friend Of the soldier and the cham
pion Of his interest. He stood up manfully
for the soldier and his pensions, while his
opponent, General Warner did everything he
could to prerent legislation IN the taror Of the sol
der. / want to talk minute or so on the
Mexican pension bill. Mr.. Warner is, un-
derstand, and / don't wonder, inclined to
hedge and to try to make old soldiers believe
that he was an earnest supporter of it rather
than its enemy. That Democratic House
was in session seven long months, the COM
mittee on pensions failed to report timely or
adequate relief measures; we could not get
the House to fix day for the consideration
of pension bills, and finally there was a bill
introduced to provide for the survivors of
the Mexican war. We took it up, struck out
the provision relating to survivors of the
Seminole and Florida wars. 1t was passed
in the House, went to the Senate, and came
back with several important amendments.
The bill proper provided for (1) service PEN
sions and (2) disability pensions to Mexican
soldiers.
The Senate amendments for the. relief of
the Union soldiers (1) dispensed with the
necessity for proof of prior soundness, (2)
granted pensions to all honorably discharged
and dependent disabled soldiers of the Union
army, however the disability was incurred,
and (3) continued the soldiers pension to his
dependent father or mother at his death with
out the necessity of further proof, and (4)
continued in the same way the soldiers PEN
sion to his orphan children, and (5I provided
for the increase of widows pensions from SS
to $l2 per month, or from 25 to 40 cents a
day.
Our Democratic friends opposed all these
amendments. Led By Gen. Warner, they fill
clustered and resorted to their usual strategy Of not
uoting. A call of the House would be made
and aquorum secured and we would be ready
for the consideration of the bill, and again
those 81 men from the South, with Warner
always there to assist them, would fillibuster
and obstruct legislation. 1t was obviously
the intention of that Congress to adjourn
without granting any relief tc the Union
soldiers. While the bill was pending and
these tactics were in operation, Gen. Warner
came orer on the Republican side of the House
and endeduored to break the solid column that had
stood like a Udu Of adan,dnt for the bill Mem
bers who have had no service in the army
are generally willing to be counselled BY
those who have had, and for this reason his
opposition was the more pernicious. WAR
NER SAID: "WE MUST NOT PASS THIS BILL.
The Union soldiers do not rant IT," said, Gen.
Warner, you are only laying up urath aoa;na
day of judgment !! you don't cOnfne yoursey
to your side of The House, / uiH erpose you@
He finally left; but not before / had said
some pretty sharp things to him. 1 re-
minded him Of one or two unpleasant things.
l told him that he might be able to deceive
one or two old soldiers in his district, but
that we would publish his record, expose his
opposition, and show the soldiers of his dis
trict his unfairness and enmity to their in
terests. But he came back again. This time
l went to him and said, Sen. Warner, If you
no not 90 back on yOur side of Tie House, sru
rise to question Of personal prIr;leoeD /
didn't intend that he should continue his Ia
bors on our side of the House for the pur-
pose of defeating that bill, of such vital i'm
portance to Union soldiers and their depend
ants.
He went back to his side of the House,
but came back and expostulated with me an
sIHy. ne sdlu, lou cannOt anOfu 10 NOte
for service bill. 1t is an unfair discrimi-
nation" l said: "You must remember, sir,
that the Mexican war was fought in 1857,
and very few of its survivors are left, and
many of those who remain with us are bowed
down under the load of years and poverty,
and l will defend myself for my position be-
fore any body of Union soldiers in the land.
Gen. Warner, l haven't got soldier in my
district who will call that an unfair discrim-
ination."
But he has changed base since then-sltered
the Record to conceal his opposition.