The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1885-05-14
OUR CORRESPONDENTS.
Replies to Questions on Variety of Interesting
Subjects.

! arate sheet of paper give fun name and address,
| ami mark II " Correspondents Column" No atten-
1 ton viii be paid to communications that are not
| accompanied with full name and address OF writer.
| Our readers are requested to inclose q stamp for
| reply to their inquiries
B. F. w., Whitney's Point, N. Y, says the Assem-
bly, of his State has passed resolution asking their
| Members OF Congress to vote for the McAdee pen
| sion bill and wants to know what the provis-
| ions of said bill. AasUer. Mr.. AIcAdoo, of New
jersey, Jan 1854, introduced bill (which ~ the
one we presume you refer to- providing, l. Land
diers and sailors of the late of the rebe lion
| who served 10 days or more, except such as served
as substitutes. q That in of the death OF any
person entitled. said land warrant to issue to the
widow or minor children, If latter were minors ut
the passage of said bill. g. Topension all surviving
! prisoners of war at certain rates, depending
| upon the length of time they were prisoners such
pensions 10 commence from the passage OF the act
| A. TO make 1t obligatory upon appointing officers
| to give the preference to persons honorably dis
| charged from the army navy, providing such
persons possess the business capacity necessary to
| perform the duties of the offices s. Te give $50
bounty to each honorably discharged soldier sailor
| or marine for each month of service. deductng all
bounty heretofore received the provisions OF this
section to extend to the widows children and par
ents of deceased soldiers, sailors marines who
! would, if living be entitled.
| s. n. b., Hartford, Conn.-Some of us old soldiers
have just been discussing the question as to which
or what is the National Aite of this country, and
as no two agree and as are at the present time
authority all patriotic questions, please settle 1t
for us. Is it My Country. lis of Thee. or The
| Star Spangled Banner or something else? AnSper.
The first named is the music OF the English national
| anthem of God Save the Queen" with American
words; therefore, it cannot be considered as an
American anthem at ALL THE Star Spangled
| Banner" commentaries but one event, and Is not
broad enough in scope TO be considered a national
anthem " Hail Columbia" and The Red, White
| and Blue" perhaps the next best known patri-
otto airs, but neither of these can be called
national anthem. - Yankee Doodle" is the oldest
and best known of our American airs, but neither
the music the words approach the dignity OF an
| anthem in fact. we have no national anthem at
/ all. IL IS something we are entirely out of.
| u. H, (treeariUe. ~. IA resolution
| presented / think, in the u. ). Senate to have
erased from all the u S, flags the names of all bat
| ties i'll the late would like to know just
what the resolution was. think Sumner presented
1t. Of course 1t did not pass, had it ought to
pass. When the time comes that we old soldiers
are asked to forget and have our past record wiped
out, the sun Will refuse 10 rise and shine on the
American people. Aasscer. Ia 1872 Charles Summer
introduced iii the u. $. Senate resolution of con-
| clatory nature toward the South, i'll which 1t was
proposed to remove from the iags regiments ofthe
army the OF battles in which they had taken
part in the of the rebellion, and also to omit
them from the Army Register The resolution did
pass and the Massachusetts Legislature passed
n resolution censuring HIM foF his course in the
| matter. In the Army Register OF 1876 and since
the names of oil battles in which the different reg-
ments took part omitted.
S. A. g.. Park Rapids Minn.-A young man from
Canada came here three years before he was of
| age with his father, who took out naturalization
papers and took homestead. Must the young
man take out his papers before he can take home
stead or hold an Office in a school district? Answer.
| No. The minor children of persons naturalzed. If
the children then dwelling in the u. s. become
citizens of the U. s. by the naturalization of the
| parent
Equalization Of Bounty Bill defeated did not
/ become a law? 2. Who fired the first gun on Fort
| Sumter? 3. At what date did the last rebels
render and to whom? Ans.gsr. l. The bill WAS de-
feated in the last Congress by not coming up for
| vote 2 We do not know his name 8. Gen. Kirby
| Smiths command May 26,~ 1865. TO Gen. Canbys
| command.
TH.P., Harrisonrpe Mo.-My pension claim has
just been placed in the hands of Special Examiner.
1 4. When probably
examine all nay witnesses? 3. Will he examine any
other witnesses? 4. When he calls can introduce
| new witnesses? Anss0er 1. We do not know,
! can we fl any approximate time. and 3. Yes; If
Their testimony rs important: l. Yes. Gu VIII DE
! given every facility for proving your claim.
| Inquirer, AeoSito, kan.-A party who has COM
| p~ied title to homestead claim is not for that
reason prohibited from acquiring title thereafter
to another tract under the presumption act, provid-
ing he pre-enps land in another State or Territory.
Sec 22b0 Revised Statutes provides that person
! who is the proprietor of 800 of land i'll any
! State or Territory, and no person who quits or
abandons his residence on his own land to reside
| pubic land in the same State or Territory, shall
| acquire any right Of pre-eptption.
| r. r.. Fort Hayae. Ind-A and b, father and son.
| enlisted in same company, August, 1857 Aiter
serving four or five months. agreed with & lwho
| was young mani to take his place and went
| home, remaining until close of the war iii 1865. G
| remained and did dnty, answered To AS name,
! and drew pay IN AS name until about JANUARY,
1864 serving with the reg ulent in East Tennessee
/ AT Knoxville Tenn, the Lieutenang- Colonel
| command of the regiment tried to get tp enlist
| in his own name and bring A back but was not
! brought back; did not enlist and would not
! swer 10 his own name, hut would answer to As
name. still kept on doing duty in AS
! through the Atlanta campaign until July. 1854.
when, seeing no prospect of getting pay, he left;
arrested but as he wnS not an enlisted man he
Was let go. Now, A could not have stood The
/ ice, and c, being young and healthy. performed
| the duty. The change was made with the full
/ knowledge and consent OF the Captain, who was
| satisfied that young man was better than old
There is still about six months pay die c. in
| AS Name of course but think 4 was declare d a
n3 q ps:li cam
any bounty there was only S25 bounty paid 10 AZ
| be recovered AnSwer. No The Captain had
right to consent TO any such proceeding The whole
matter was Illegal and neither \ nor are
titled to anything A because he is deserter. and
| thereby forfeits all pay and bounty due; G, be-
cause his service was unauthorized and fraudulent
l. o. r., Eas: Granite Fails, Hina.-l. We do lot
| propose to criiiese or even discuss the probability
of future action OF the Secretary OF the Interior in
matters that have not come up for action. 1t would
he at unfair and unjust to public officer
assume that he is going To- be deFeliet in his duties
When the occasion presents itself we shall not hest
| tate to condemn praise his official actions as
they may seem to deserve 2. delay Of month
in acting upon testimony filed in a claim for
| pension is but the usual time consumed in such
matters. There are very few Departments Bu-
reaus of the Government which act upon case
| and Indicate reply under month. g. There is
| no rate between $50 and S72.
A. II H., BEocm5ieid, foua.--The bill passed both
Houses and was approved by the President March
3. 1885, 1t rend5 follows: " Be IL enacted, de-
Tint all soldiers and sailors Of the United States
who have had an arm taken off at the shoulder
joint caused by injuries received In the service of
their country while IN the line of duty, and who
now receiving pensions shaH have their pensions
increased To the same amount that the law now
gives TO soldiers and sailors who have lost leg
the hip-joint; and this act shall apply TO all who
shall be hereafter placed on the pension ROLL Am
putation ut the shoulder joint is the entire toss of
the arm.
W. l.. b., Royelfon Wis Gaere a law to the ef-
feet that soldier loses his pension by going West
and taking up Government land? Anssrer. No.
j. s., Alton NJ H.-My husband enlisted in the
army, and while on duty contracted small poy,
by reason of which he lost eye and which affected
the other eye. He was discharged account of
disability; pcnsioned NJ S. II month; increased
to S. to SI2, and to SIS His eye troubled him that
he insane mt times. and in tit of insanity he
committed suicide Is there any pension for ME ?
Ans,rer No You could not prove that cause of
death due to his service
r. H.. Mo0re'S, W. Pd-C.in a soiflierrecovcr money
kept out of his pay for equipment,--they bang re
turned by a comrade and not receipted for,-yro-
yided facts shown by affidavit of eornrade?
Aasiuer. No.
Mrs. H. r., Eecona, Fis.When claimant Ia IN
formed by his attorney that his pension claims are
approved by the Secretary OF the Interior, is thai
conclusive evidence of getting them after waiting
long? AnSper If we knew what you mean by
a ciaiil. claims, being approved by the Secre-
tary Of the Interior" we might he able to answer
Your question but that officer is not called upon
to " approve pension claim at loss 10
understand your question. II il Is correctly stated
we give il up The Secretary of the Interior does
not pass upon pension claims unless they are APP
pea!ed to him from election by the Commissioner
j. A.. SmitI.tietd, Pa.~Would Lieutenant of