The National tribune., 1884-10-30
OUR CORRESPONDENTS.
Replies to Questions on Variety OF Interesting
Subjects.

Subjects.
Z. D. H. Poynette H1S.-f. A solaier cannot
acquire title to home stead except by living upon
1t the required length ct time. =. The only privi
leges II solder has III claims under the homestead
law claimant " ho not ia the army -
that he has six months after fling declaratory
statement to go upon his claim. and his army
ice providing II does not exceed four yerst II de-
Quoted from the i've years residence required by
law A pen,iUnsT ma, no more privileges in such
claims than a soldier who l. not peHsioner-
b. f. b.. Brooklyn Io,ga.-'TSie ratings of PEN
sions made iii the Pension Office. The Exam
lining Surgeons describe the disability 1t exists
and the decree thereof Their reports for
| warded to the Pension Office, and lien a claim is
submitted for admission, If tvGrabiy acted upon
by the Board of Review in teJGt sense, 1t passes
| to the Medical Division, composed of the Medical
Referee and numerous ASSISTANT who skilled
ply sicians and suTgeonsl, where the reports of the
Examining Surgeon considered in connection
| with the medical history OF the case. shown by
the record and testimony file. and the degree of
disability which governs the rating Is there fixed
The ratings for the different degrees of disability
| disability rs found by the Examining Surgeon
regulates the action of the Medieal Division and Is
| not often increased it is more often reduced.
f. W., Ramsey, H. submits the following:
widow of ii soldier who died in Andersonvile
| Prison was pensioned as such widow and drew
her pension until she remarked. Her second hus-
band has deserted her. leaving her destitute. Can
she be restored to the peDSiOn-rol? ATSt1er. No.
She forfeited her right to d pension on account of
1 her first husband by her remarriage- She Is for
ever debarred from any further pension for the
service or death of the soldier.
Is.
the year that the Government pays to pensioners
the Communication of $50 for loss of limb, furnishes
artificial limb may be desired by applicant.
ARS,oer. 1t depends upon the year IN which the
pensioncr applied. An artificial limb, comnuta-
tOu III lieu thereof is furnished every five years.
commencing from date Of application. As we do
not know in what year you originally applied we
cannot answer your question as affecting yourself
This Is the year for those who applied in 1879
Those who applied in 1850 Will draw next year.
j. NJ. X, East Friendship, Me.-We presume you
drawing S2i for loss of leg below the knee. IL
your other wound, III connection with your disa-
bility from loss of leg, dsabes to prevent you
from performing any manual labor, you are enti-
tied to $50. There Is no intermediate grade.
ID. B. Jackson. ~ T., says: Is soldier entitled
to arrears in pension claim filed in March or
April, 1854? A,Hwer. No; nor in any claim filed
since June 80, 1880
j. s., Lucas, Io,on, asks whether a miiitiaman Is
eligible to membership in the GAR? Ans,cer:
Only in case where the militia i'll which he served
was called into active service and subject to the
orders of United States general officers between
April II, 1861. and April 9, 1865.
ID. ". L., Clay City. Ill.,, asks: l. Is soldier in
line of duty from the date of his discharge till
he is mustered out? 2. If it can be shown that a
soldier was exposed from lying out waiting to- be
mustered out. and that he contracts disease from
the same and dies, can the widow not draw PEN
sion? g. What is the address of the Adjutant-Gen-
eral? 4. Would IL not be justice TO pass a law by
which soldiers should be paid what they lost by
being paid in deprecated money? AIlsacer 1. Yes.
g Yes. 8. Brig. Gen r. c. Drum, Adjutant-Gen-
eral, U. s. A. Washington, ID. c. A. There are
more important measures demanding recognition
at the hands of Congress. The Government never
promised to pay the soldier In gold, and ne was
paid his lawful wages in lawful money. There is
no obligation resting upon the Government to pass
such law to benefit soldiers, any more than one
to benefit the contractors and others who were
paid In greenbackS.
w. F. b., National Home O-The Pension Office
has the right TO revise the certificates of Examln
ing Surgeons and allow pension for greater or a
lesser degree than that given by the Examining
Surgeon. The report of the Examining Surgeon
is merely his opinion i'll the and 1t may be
ceped or 1t may be rejected.
T-Prize money and bounty for the destruction
of enemy vessels are paid under the act OF June
80. 1864 Under the provisions of that act the
shares of the Flag Officer (one-twenteth) and of
the Fleet Captain (0ne-hundredth) first de-
Quoted from the whole amount for distribution.
The remainder Is then apportoned to the several
ships i'll the proportion of the total annual salary
OF all the fleet. The gross amount due to each
ship having been thus determined, if any division
commander is entitled to share, his allowance of
oneftieth of the share of each ship in his division
Is next deducted, leaving the net amount due to
each ship The Captain or commanding officer of
each ship takes one-tenth of the amount to his
ship and his share having been subtracted. the
balance is divided among the remaining officers
and crew pro-rsta upon the salaries they were re-
| ceiving at the time of the capture. Thus in the
case of the Farragut award there were two
causes varying the amount, received by men hav-
ing the same pay but on d!fere, ships In Bailey's
and Porter's divisions the shares of those officers
were deducted, while other vessels such de-
duction made; and it will be seen that while
the rate OF pay OF the commanding oiheer OF snip
would vary with his rank, he could only
receive in each case the arbitrary proportion of
onetenth of the amount of his ship. As of the
anomalies OF the distribution, made strictly under
the law, may be mentioned the of "a Master
commanding a ship. who received SS0.3i while an
officer of the rank. being only watch officer
on a larger vessel, salary of 81 30 per annum,
received sl05Sl. 1t will be observed. therefore,
that the amount received by the claimant depends
upon his position In the Heet and the ship upon
which he served.
j. d. r., Mn Run, Pa, asks the following: /.
Why did President Grant veto the Equalization of
Bounties Bill? 2 What length OF time does II take
to get report from the War Department required
by the Second Auditor in Claim for officers re-
muster and back pay? 5. When claimant for
pension is examined by the Board of Examiners at
the Pension Office in Washington ID. c., Is the case
adjudicated by that Board in the Pension Office?
AaStoer. l. On the ground that the country could
not, at that time afford it, His veto message was
not actually delivered to Congress. President
Grant killed the bill by refusing to sign it after 1T
had passed both the House and Senate) 2. We
cannot say 1t depends upon the nature OF the
service, etc. Some cases take several weeks and
others several months. g. No. a Board of Sur
geons has nothing to do with adjudieating any
claim. THE Board renders its report of the exam
ination the same as any other board lSee reply
To b. F. Ii. above)
J. ". C., Bridgeport, Conn, and others.-A re-
enlistment for year does not entitle TO veteran
bounty o to the difference between that already
received and 500. because the last enlistment must
have been for three years to enttle soldier to
veteran bounty.
j. r. H., Cattfornia.-Tile papers in a rejected
claim for pension not destroyed thrown
aside All papers that belong To a Claim, no mat
ter how unmportant they may be, carefully
preserved anu filed with the claim to which they
pertain. This is true in ali claims, whether admit
ted rejected
u C., Rutidnd I'LL Gen. JEFF c. Davis was
q Brssitiier- General OF volunteers. He only
Breret Major-General. 2. The same. ). At the
time of his death he was Colonel of the Sd o. 5.
Inf 4. Gen. Grant never made use OF the express
sion referred to, that we ever heard of.
A. s., Chrisiiaaid, Pd.-Proyidng the peasioned
widow died without leaving sufficient assets to
meet the expenses of her last sickness and burial,
the party who bore such expenses can recover the
amount of pension due and unpaid al the time of
her DEATH but more That is all the claim there
Is on any account.
take addition to his soldier claim of 100 acres OF
land, another 100 acres a ctizenr 4Ilsieer. No.
But claim is allowed in any
w. B. Cane Valley, ky.-As have heretofore
repeatedly stated no invalid claim filed since June
30, 1880 draw back pension. All such claims,
ii allowed, will under the law, draw only from the
date the application filed in the Pension Office.
d. f. Nee, Cdnton, -Ex-Po5tmaster-G General
Key did not take the "iron-cad" oath, nor could
he have done without committing perjury. The
iron clad oath required person to- that he
had never voluntarily borne arms against the
United States; that he had voluntarily given no
aid, countenance, counsel, or encouragement to
persons engaged in armed hostility thereto; that
he had neither sought, accepted. attempted
to exercise the functions of any office whatever,
under any authority, or pretended authority, IN
hostility to the United States that he had not
yielded IA voluntary support to any pretended gov
eminent, authority power, or constitution within
the United States hostile inimica thereto. You
will see from the above that rebel could take
that oath and for the purpose OF overcoming the
difficulty which arose when the participants i'll the
late rebellion elected appointed to offices
of honor or trust under the Government, the fol-