The Lake Charles echo., 1886-06-12
yEAsmENsToN E.ETTFze.


Inc ITesluent continues his gOOl
work of critically examining, dissect
ing and vetoing private pension bills
If he cannot defend the Government
treasure vaults against ayarice ani
fraud, he is at least narrowing thi
opening through which The money i
/ dragged ont.
] For each veto sent 10 the Senate
the President has given conclusiv,
reasons, and he added that he was b.
no means insensible to that influences
which leads the Judgment towards tn,
allowance of every claim alleged t.
be founded upon patriotic service il
the nations cause. Yet he did no
believe 1t to be a duty or kindness
to the worthy citizens fer whose ben
eft the scheme Of pensions was pro
yided, to permit the division of thu
nations bounty among objects no
within its scope and purpose.
The Republicans have no intention
Of trying to pass these bills agains
the veto, but they hope to make somt
political capital out of them. Some Of
them have been writing to applicants
that it is useless to present theil
claims to Congress as the President
will not let them become laws. Then
idea is that the would be-pensionerf
will not be likely to vote for another
Democratic President.
This is the way in which the Sen.
ate Pension committee is enabled tc
report fifty private pension bills O
week. Senator Sawyer of Wisconsin,
is its most active member. He EN-.
ploys two men, one an ex-clerk of the
Pension Office and the other a physi,
clan, to look over and arrange the
papers in each case referred to him by
the committee. The Senator only
glanees at them to decide how they
are to be reported. 1t is not surpris-
ing that to some of the pension bills
which the Senate passes on Mr., Saw
yer's favorable reports, the President
is unwilling to attach his signature.
1t wac during the discussion of a
private pension bill that Senator In
gals took occasion to make a venom
GUS attack upon Gen. Black, the pres
ent Commissioner of Pensions. The
Republican Snators and Representa-
tives have been very desirous of find
ing fault with the Commissioner since
he accused his Republican predecessor
of, aud proved that he used the pen
sion Office as a party machine.
After Mr.. Ingalls, had charged that
Gen. Black was not now and never
had been entitled to the pension now
drawn by him, and that he had will
ingly slandered Col. Dudley, word
passed quickly through the Capitol
that he was stirring up the Senate with
a sharp personal speech. Senators hnr-
ried to their seats, Representatives
came into the Chamber and additional
visitors appeared in the galleries.
The Kansas Senator with his charac-
teristic recklessness in the use of
words, made one of the most bitter
denunciations ever heard in the Sen
ate. He paced back and forth rapidly
as If impatient of the restriction of
parliamentary language, and the veins
OF his forehead stood out as he de-
clared over and over again that Gen.
Black was an imposter.
The face of Senator Voorhees, also
flushed when he arose to defend Gen.
Black and squarely denied the truth
of Senator Ingalls, accusations. He
mentioned that Gen. Black never knew
the cessation of pain for a moment,
bones had been removed from both.
his arms, rendering them useless, and
that to this day his wounds had to be
dressed daily by a physician. 1t was
in tins condition that Gen. Black was
performing his official duties, and the
Indiana Senator thought if the Sen
ator from Kansas felt any pride in
assauIting a man who was suffering
thus, he shonld be allowed to enjoy it.
Senator Cockrell also defended Gen.
Black, who, he said, had allowed more
pensions during the first year of his
administration than amy other Pension
Commissioner. He suggested that Mr.,
Ingalls, ought to have the courage and
manliness to introduce a bill for the
repeal of Gen. Blacks pension if he
really thought 1t had been obtained
under false pretences as he had dcharged.
The Ingalls, attack upon the Com
missioner of Pensions was nothing
more than the malice of an irritable
man who as disappointed because the
integrity of the now Administration
is sufficient to stand in the way Of the
reckless pension giving, which is going
on. Gen. Black is Democrat who
received his wounds while fighting in
the Union army, If he had been q
wounded Republican and a Democratic
Senator had made such an attack npon
him, cry would have gone up all
along the Republican line, accusing
this Senator Of disloyalty to the Union.