The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1886-07-30
MANKAro FREE PRESS
FRIDAY. JULY 80. 1886.
ANTI.PENsION CRUSADE.
Speech of Hon. Charles A. Boutelle. OF
Maine. July o.


Maine. July o.
The House having under considera-
ton the message of the President of the
United States returning without his APP
proval the bill Oh. Il. 1851 entitled
An act to grant Il pension to Joseph
Mr.. Boutelle said:
Mr.. Speaker: 1t seems to me that
we might as well recognize, in this mat
ter of discussing these vetoes of private
pension bills, that we have reached an
issue in this country broader and deep
er than any interest involved i'll any in
case.
The people of the United States are
not making any mistake to-day in re-
gard to the issue that is raised before
this country. 1t is not simply the ques-
ton whether the few soldiers named in
these particular bills or their parents or
widows or orphan children may receive
Il pension by grant of the House of Rep
resentatives and the Senate, composing
the Congress of the United States, but
the issue raised here, Mr.. Speaker, is
openly, clearly, and Enthusiastically join
ed between the Democratic party of this
country. through its Executive and its
broad question of the duty of recognizing
the services and the sacrifices of the
men who gave their health or their
lives in order that this great Nation
might be preserved.
There can be no mistake on this point
ms the recent outbreak of Executive We
toes has been coincident and apparently
in concert with the unwonted boldness
that has recently characterized the as
saults upon pension legislation from the
Democratic side of the House. Indeed,
there seems To have sprung up rivalry
in this matter of antagoniZing pensions
for Union soldiers, and ut recent Friday
night sessions the transaction of bust
ness has been practically suspended by
the obstructive methods resortcd TO as a
matter of settled policy, us when ut the
last of those sessions two Representa-
tivcs from Louisiana We'd with each 9th
er in opposing Il pension for an aged
woman whose son was killed by IL rebe
cannon-shot while in the service of his
country in the waters of that state.
simultaneously with these manifesto
tons among the rank and file, the Dem
ocratic leaders ofthe House, of the Com
mittee on Rules, consisting of Speake
Carlisle, eXSpcaker Randall, and tn,
party leader on the floor, Mr.. Morrison
have brought forward the astonishin.
proposition that the rules he SO amend
ed that no legislation for the disable,
veterans of the Republic or their need,
dependents could be enacted withOu
having saddled upon il the most odiou
form of taxation. The pretense tina
this outrageous invention for renderin.
pension laws Odious was originated on
of regard for the soldiers has been eff
fectually disposed of in the debate upon
the measure.
But, Mr.. Speaker, the manifestation
of Democratic purpose and spirit in re
gard to pensions has not been cOniine,
To the White House and the Capitol ,bu
has found expression through the &C
credited organs of that party. / hav,
before me a newspaper published i'm tn,
city of New York, which has assumed
and TO which has been ascribed, tn,
function of special organ of the Nationa
Administration in the great commercial
emporium of the country; and i'm tina
newspaper, in an issue puElishe within
the last three days, find this clear, I'M
mistakablc, unequivOcal declaration oil
the part of the mouth-piece of this Ma
tional Administrations read now from
the New York Star, the paper edited b,
eX-District Attorney Dorsheimer, on,
of the leading members of the Demo
critic party IN the United States, tn,
| personal biOgrapher of the President O
The United States, recently the Unite'
States District Attorney for New Yorl
under the appointment of Presiden
Cleveland, with whom he had recent,
| been in conference here IN Washington
On Tuesday last in discussing this ques
ton of vetoes of pensions he make
| this editorial statement:
'These critics of the President shoul,
incense themselves very moderately
The country believes that the bushes
| of granting pensionsis worse than a nui
sance, and that it is Il fraud upon TIN
Treasury"
That, Mr.. Speaker, is the declaration
| semi-oilicially made by the Administra
| ton of the United States Government
under the auspices of the Democrat
party. We may as well recognize il
There is not Member on this side 2
fsf dth All lhiteilgeHt eli of the Unite,
States to-day who does not recogniz
the fact that We have come to the part
| ing of the ways" that we have reache,
Il time when the Democratic party feel
itself sufficiently firmly seated in tn
saddle to expressly openly and defiant
| ly its hostility to the men who went {,
| the front to save this Union i'm its hou
| of peril, and who, after having defeate,
| Democratic rebellion upon a hundre,
battlefelds, have added to their olfens
in the eyes of Democracy by castin
| more than 80 per cent. of their votrs a
| the polls in favor of the party that sus
| tanned them throughout the war an,
that now seeks to do justice to chin
| who bore the battle, and his widow an
| his orphan"
| We have presented here spectaci
unparalleled in the history of the coun
| try. The great general court of TIN
| United States, sitting here for the calr
consideration and grave examination c
public matters, have decided, upol
unanimous reports of their committees
and by the unanimous votes of the tw
Houses in many cases, that it was be
coming and proper for this great an,
rich government to extend III this it
hour of prosperity and wealth littl
dole, little pittance to some One-lee
ped or one-armed soldier, to some vet
eran, dragged down by disease or weak
ened or disabled by the unutterabl
horrors of Southern prison-pens; or t
grant to some widow left-as in on
case recently vetoed-with seven sma
| children TO support, the small sum {
$I2 month to help her to feed an
clothe and educate as good citizens tn
offsprings of the patriot who laid dow
his life under that flag; and it RENAME,
for the President of the United States
the Chief Magistrate of fifty millions {
people, to refuse his assent to that sligl
| act of Justice to that widow: and not or
ly that, but to send it back to the Cham
Der mt the other end of the capIto
| coupled with slur upon the chastity c
the mother who had asked SO little q
| the hands of the great Government 70
which she had sacrificed so much.
Twelve dollars II month! One hundre
and forty-four dollars year to care fo
| the widow and seven fatherless childre
of one of the dead soldiers of this Re
public, snatched from her after il ha
been granted by congress, by the vet
of president surrounded by every lux
ury, and for the mere decoration G
whose table ut a single repast the pee
| pie have contributed more for flower
than would pension several such widow
| ed households for n year. Not that TIN
| people, rich or poor, grudge the Che
Magistrate the elegaEcies beftting tn
exalted station he occupies, but TIN
thought cannot be repressed that TIN
generosity of the people should beget il
return thoughtfulness for the Nation
especial wards, the Borrowing one
whose blood and tears have purchase,
our great deliverence and rendered pos
sible the prosperity out of which the
have right to he remembered.
| road cir IL few DAYS nDn In q nann