Los Angeles daily herald., 1886-07-04
WASHINGTON.
Senate Structures on the
President.
His CANDOR SEEMS TO HURT
The Committee on Pensions Fears
Z. the Bounds of Politeness
VIII be Overstepped.

Especial to thsHsrotd blythe As.ocfated Press.
WASHINGTON. July 3.-The Senate
Committee on Pensions, in their re
port recommending the passage ovel
the Presidents veto Of the bill
granting pension to Mary A. Nottage
says; So great has become the number
Of such vetoes interposed by the presen,
executive. all within few weeks past,
and so extraordinary the censure some
times rudely expressed, and in nearly
every instance severely implied, Of the
action Of the two Houses Of Congress,
and of their committees upon which has
devolved the wearisome and generally
unappreciated labor of investigating
these claims. accompanied in many cases
by such ridicule Of, and seeming disgus!
with these claims themselves that your
committee feel that they arc justified, in
view of the circumstances involved. In
doing this . strong effort will be made
TO restrain any unnatural feeling Of In.
dignation, which, If permitted to
assume the proportions which the
provocstion justified would wholly
destroy those respectful forms Of
expression which must be maintained in
official intercourse between the differ
ent officers aud departments of the Gov
srnmsut. This becomes the more mecca
sary in the proposition a. 1t is rendered
more difficult by reason Of the unjust
and unexamplsd style in which some of
the messages Of the President are ex.
pressed. 1t shall be the effort of the
Committee to get Oh in this difficult mat.
ter without violating the courtesies of
official intercourse, by initiating an ex-
ample which, az far ~ we are concerned,
shall remain 10. The Committee pro-
eesds to show that twenty-six per cent.
OF Senate bills and only eight and half
per cent. of House bills submitted to the
President have been vetoed, and says it Is
not insensible to the special condsmna.
ton which this disparagiug contract in
hicts. Much criticism, the report
continues, has been INDUCED in by the
President, a. TO the methods Of legis-
lation pursued by the two houses Of
Congress and however informed he may
beupon the subject, and however uninten-
tionally by reason Of the want Of know
edge he may have represented TO the
country methods Of legislation which
have been pursued In like cases
ever since Congresses and Parlia.
ments have existed and which have
sil % parliaments became free, been
safe from kingly and presidential inter
ference. All the same the people are
misled by the unwarranted statements
of the President as to the manner in
which Legislation upoa pensions claims
aud the Ike is and of necessity must be
conducted. The pension business Of the
Senate has never been better done than
during this season. The members Of the
committee who have performed the
work have been ss careful a. any, and
The dispara2smeut Of their patient, eon.
scent. GUS and exhausting lsbors to help
along the noblest aud best portions OF
Coos poor and the countryfs benefac.
tors can originate only In a wise
one that, If informed, sadly needs re-
or recreation.
The report embodies copy Of instruc-
tions by the Assis ant Secretary Of the
Interior to the Commissioners Of Pen.
sions, as follows: please csnss ths|
same to be critically examined ed re-
port to this Department whstheg Ia your
opinion any objections to their proval
are known to exist. In cases v sre OBJ
jections exist they should be specifically
set forth" This Indicates. t4s CON-
mittee says, unmistakably that the
President relies upon the Commissioner
for his facts. Ths report continues:
"Why the President should initiate this
game of shuttle cook and pelt co.ordi.
nate department Of the government with
vetoes base.i upon review of the actisul
Of Congress by some subordinats Of the
Commissioner OF Pensions, Is q topic
which will be thought Of. but perhaps
may be left without discussion. Why
the fiji ding of the two houses of Congress
should be discrsdited and attributed 10
unworthy motives, indifference or inca
paoity while . reassertion by Pen
sion Clerk that he is right and Congress
wrong is accepted as basis Of fact ~ 10
tuoso uuuicf0us Netoc8 ~ Is uAIu "
perceive. but all through their vitals
there seems to run the fallacy that the
power of Congress to grant pensions ls
limited by what may already be done
by the Pension Office under the general
law. It is difficult to write in that xudi-
mentsry way upon the nature Of PEN
sions and the various grounds Of com
pensation. charity and public policy
which is necessary in order TO remove
this impression. It 10 sufiaient "a per.
ceive that the jurisdiction of the legis-
lative power Of this government il larger
than that of the Commissioner Of PEN
sions, and that sooner or later, although
it may cost tie country prolongsd and
steady effort, this truth will become ap-
parent; but it should be remembered
that in q very large number of these
bills passed by Congress, important orig
inal written evidence ia filed with COM
mittees or presented verbally - In
hearings before other committees upon
all public questions which come before
legislative bodies. and after the sppli.
can't 10 present with his statement and
his palpable disabilities. Ibis evidence
is not available to the Executive, st
least without asking, and never has been
In possession OF the Pension Office, CON-
sequsntly In nearly every case the Con-
gressional statement stands upon
stronger proof than the finding Of fscts,
which the President sets up in dissp-
Proval OF the bill.