The National tribune., 1885-12-31
Arrears OF Pensions,

To THE EDITOR: In your issue Of the 18th
inst, In answer to PensiOner," Ovid, n z,
you say: " No pension claim ola soldiers widow
or dependent parents filed since June 30, 1850,
can draw back pension. Such claim can only
draw under the law from the date the spplica-
tion was filed in the Pension Office" beg
leave to differ with you. If you had said
under the law as administered bv the Depart~
mcnt,' you would have been correct. 7 hold
that the law in no way applies to pensioners or
claimants for pension on a disability that
occurred previous to their discharge from tha
service. The previous administration has
ruled that it does apply to all alike and Com
missioner Black has just decided in the case Of
widow who raised the question by claiming
the arrears she claimed was due her husband,
he having applied for a pension. on a wound,
since June 30 1850, and was allowed from the
date of application. In forwarding the claim
l attached the following brief:
The law granting arrears of pension Is not re-
pttied except as to one class of applicants.
Ihe act Of Congress approved March g. 1879, IA
terms asserts the existence fact of two classes Of
app.GtIts Tor rlnvaiid pensions First. Those whose
di-ahiHy occurred prior 10 discharge Second,
l nose whose disability occurred after discharge
case to establish to winch class the annltoapt he.
longs by disclosing when the disability occurred.
the act makes distinction in law between these
two classes of applicants.
For example, to emphasize this distinction,
one applicant IS supposed under the act To s1laOa in
his application and prove that ne suffered a disa-
bilty while in actual service that It existed at HIS
discharge and continued ever since His disability
mas been continuous from time prior to his dis-
charge.
Another applicant Is supposed under this act to
ailegc IN his application and prove that years after
ms diseharge he became conscious of a disability
which he may apparently trace back by his proof to
cause originating IN the service. His disability is
OF recent commencement.
ne facts and merits Of these two cases are widely
different, vet under the prior law each drew PEN
sion from the date of his discharge
Inc trSt applicant seeming ius7ice draw
RPghsalloh ior continuous period of disability.
me second applicant drew compensation for his
period OF disability, and also for period during
winch he was not conscious of any disability or
attiiCtOn at all.
Such a difference in fact would warrant dis
applicants
1t is such discrimination in law that the act of
Niarch D. i5'9 establishes, and that act peals the
arrears OF pension 30 the second class only or as
TO those applicants whose disability occurred sfter
The first class is embraced in this part Of section
OF that act, viz: "Al pensions etc. shall COM
Inehce from the date or discharge of the person
whose account the claim has been or is hereafter
granted II the disability occurred prior his dis
charge"
And the second class is embraced in the next
succeeding language; viz: And II such
disability occurred after the discharge then from
the date of actual disability" etc.
The prOvisO which follows viz: Provided the
application for such pension, etc. is I'm the singu-
lar number and relates to the last of the several
classes OF pensions mentioned N the act.
To put any other construction upon the act OF
March B. 1872 to say that the provsc and lirita.
on applies to both or sil the preceding classes ia
to nullify all the distinctions, Determinations and
! claSSitlcatOnS made in the act.
The evident intent of the law is that the date Of
discharge shall be the fixed definite time from
which computation shall be made in the case of the
applicant whose disability occurred and whose
rights became thereby vested prior to his discharge.
That the applicant whose disability did not oc.
eur, nor his rights thereby vest prior his dig
charge, but subsequent shall be at liberty prove
the tllue when his disability did occur. provided
day
OF july 1880 4hat failing to make application
to do so prior to that date then the date Of
filing his application shall in his case be the fixed
definite time from which computation shall bs
made.
This construction of the law Is the one consistent
with the wide difference which exists In fact be-
tween the two classes which that act clearly de-
nnes, or between an applicant who Is able to prove
he was disabled before he discharged from the
service and an applicant who not conscious Of
any disability until some time subsequent to his
discharge.
Again, section of the act of March g. 1879 re-
peals section 400 of the Revised Statutes, which
contained a limitation of five wears within which
application should be made for pension in order
recover arrears; but it does not repeal section Of
the act approved Jan. 25, 1879, which omits this
limitation. This act of Jan. 25 1879 is in harmony
with the act of March 3, 1879. 1t is hardly con-
ceivabe that Congress could have intended within
so short time to enact such extremes in legsia-
tlon as the act OF Jan p 1879, removing all llmita
tiOns and the act of March 8 1879 limiting all ap-
plications to the first OF July, 1850.
And again. under the act of Jan. 25 1879 which
omitted all limitations. the applicant whose dis
ability was of recent occurrence stood upon the
same footing the applicant whose disability
CURED prior to discharge Each drew pension from
the date OF his discharge. This generous the
former simply, but not unjust to the latter.
But II the proylso IN the act of March g. 1879 ap-
plies to all classes therein mentioned, then the
applicant whose disability occurred prior to dis
charge is placed upon the footing as the
applicant whose disability is of occurrence
This IS unjust to the applicant whose disability
occurred prior to discharge and contrary to the
theory of vested rights but not necessarily the
applicant whose disability is of recent occurrence
II the act of March g. 1879, is construed as mean
ing that the applicant alleges and proves disability
occurred prior to discharge his pension shall
mence from the date of his discharge, and that the
applicant whose proof shows his disability be Of
recent occurrence, since his discharge having
applied before the lst day of July 1850 his pension
shall commence from the date of his application
Such construction will give effect to the classca-
ton made in the set, and will more nearly accord
with the just rights of the parties.
If the Pension Department had given the
above construction to the act there would have
been no demand for the repeal of the Arrears
Act The Arrears Act, in my judgment, is just to
all claimants, but the construction put upon it
seems to me to be unjust and unwarranted, and
l am sorry that Commissioner Black has felt ID
his duty to follow the construction made by
his predecessors.-GE II. MURDOCH, Berrien
Springs, Mich.