The Rugby gazette and east Tennessee news. (Rugby, Morgan Co., Tenn.) 1884-188?, 1886-03-27
BRECKENRIDGE.
Extracts From His Speech Deliv-
cred in the House of Rep.
resentatives,
Upon the Widows Pension Bill-Ken-
tuckys Reputation Well Sus-
tanned.

In the House of Representatives, when
the Pension Appropriation bill was pend
ing, Representative Breckenridge, of Ken
tucky, was among the speakers, and his
eloquent utterances caught the ear of the
House and country. We publish herewith
liberal extracts from his remarks
Mr.. Chairman, when the proposition came
before the House to increase the rate paid to
the widow and orphan 80 per cent, and rep
which entered into his decision upon that
proposition, the first fact which met him was
that the present rate had been fixed years
ago; that 1t had originally been agreed upon
had been accepted in the very throes of the
war; that 1t had been unchanged when the
money in which twas paid was at large
discount; that 1t had been received without
complaint from 1862 to the present time. 1t
was not, therefore, the question, Shall the
widow and orphan be pensioned? Nor was it
the new question, to ascertain from careful
calculation what was fair rate; but 1t was
TO add, without any proof OF necessity, with
out any cause given, 90 per cent. to well.
established and long accepted rate.
The next fact was that at the time at which
it was offered was a time when dollar had
the largest purchasing power that 1t had
possessed for many years. To-day, he who
has fixed salary is in better relative con-
dition than he has been for a quarter of
century or more. Every thing in the coun-
since the war, has pension been relatively
so valuable as 1t is to-day. Never could it
purchase so much Of comfort, so much or
whatever adds to the pleasure of human life.
Instead of there being any necessity in the
general state of the country and OF its mar
kets and Of its prosperity, why this change
should be made, there was every reason why
ii -hould be at least postponed. For While
before, it was also harder to obtain. There
is more sweat in the dollar that pays for labor
in these hard days of winter than ever before
in this country.
Everywhere are the unemployed stalwart
men, with wives and children dependent
upon them, standing idle in the market place,
for no man hath employed them The UNI
pleasant symptoms of the unsatisfactory
condition of labor obtrude themselves upon
us OIL every side. The strikes, which, alas!
are the protests of heart and muscle against
unjust demands and unrequited toll; the
labor organizations, by means of which CO.
operation may produce more justice and
wiser treatment; the sad walls of poverty
which come from every city, bear testimony
that it is not the time to increase the burden
of the laborer, to take more from the earnings
of the toier. There arr other widows and
other orphans than the widows and or.
phans of the soldiers, and every dollar added
to pensions is, IN part take n from them: No
war can be carried on by the soldiers alone
He who drives the pillow or the plane, he who
strikes the anvil or holds in it's place the ma
chinery which, with almost lite-like inteili.
are rs truly the soldiers of the Republic as
those who, with serried ranks, carried her
banners to victory. They are the soldiers in
the great battle of life, who deserve well of
deserve our care and protection. In this dis
cussiOn pay heartfelt tribute to the great
army of the peaceful obscure who in every
rank and walk of life, through all their days
IS ny.1 f0.1 all . e.
which they are called; and l hesitate with
sincere reluctance to vote any added dollar
for any cause to the burdens which are al
ready so hard to be borne.
| plead to-day the cause of the humble
home, whose father, buried in an adjoining
grave did not go to the war but with equal
patriotism did his part IN the great battle of
life 1t is not only the soldier element that
we are to legi.late for, but it is every element
of the country in every part of the country.
These are the conditions that stares in the
face every man who had to pass an intelligent
consideration upon this subject.
The provision made by existing laws for
pension is in its aggregate startling; will
not attempt to show that it is unreasonable.
But do mean to say that before any increase
of it ought to be made the necessity therefor
for pensions up to the 30th of June, 1885, is
reported to be the sum of $165, O92, $40 IS.
To this must be added the sum of $6000O,00O
sggregate sss5 os5, 65ois 70 his add the the
amount covered by the present bill,
$75, ZOO. These various sums aggregate
$500, S49, S40.lS, which is the sum that has been
or will be paid under the laws as they now
exist up to June 80, 1887. To this must be ad.
ded that unknown sum which will have to be
paid to those pensioners whose. applications
yet undecided will be allowed. How large
this may be is a mere matter of speculation
Some have estimated it las see from the ad
mirable and well-tempered speech of the
gentleman from Georgia, Mr.. Crisp as adding
enough to the present annual appropriation
to require the annual expenditure of Sis,
100000. Others make it much smaller, but II
certainly will not be less than somewhere
about $l0O,00O000, and that for series OF
years.
Mr.. Chairman, these figures do rot, Of
themselves create any very distinct concep
ton in our minds of their magnitude. fnt
in Spofford's American Almanac that the us
State of Texas is 1852 lOS,227. and in the pros
porous State of Kansas $24S s45,221, which
added together, is $Sl0948,5lO, which is owe
$l4,000,O00 less than we have paid for pensions
by the Both of June, 1885. Kentucky owns
$423, IT'S, $50 and Iowa $465,47,3s1 These two
States combined 1883, 522,916l are 100000
less than the amount we will have paid by thu
LIST of July, 1887, under existing laws, withou
the addition of single pensoner on TIT
rolls. The rich State of Illinois reports $685.
S4l,326, which is in round numbers $39,00O,00
less than the amount we will have paid Il
pensioners by the end of this current isca
year.
Mr. Chairman, If we could make these dull
figures instinct with life, If we could trans
form them into smiling landscapes fert
fields, growing cities, loving homes-if w
could see them turned into the implement
of industry and the herds and flocks whic
Craze upon our fields and bring comfort AM
prosperity to our homes, and then realiz
that these lands and homes and fiocks hav
been, SO far as value is equivalent thereto
paid in installments year by year under thes
laws which have been passed for the beneh
of but single class OF our citizens, we nigh
form some conception of the magnitude o
these sums.
OF course do not mean to Misunderstood a
representing that all the sums mentione
in the late war, or that there will be perms
nent annual expenditure of either 500 0000 C
or $75,00O,0O0. Part of the sum-in itself COZ
siderable, butreatively quite small-has bee
and will be paid on account of the war of ISL
And as the pending claims are allowed ther
will be an increase in the amount needed
then the climacteric having been reached
there will gradual decrease. For how man
years and to what extent this increase wi
continue no one can with any accuracy for,
tell. Certainly the amounts will reach int
the hundred millions. And we may obtai
some conception of the time this burde
will rest on industry by looking at the pei
sion-roll of the war of 1872.
Seventy-one years ago that war ended-ove
two generations have passed away and VI
on June 30, 1885, there was 20,l57 persons r.
ceving pensions on account of the service
rendered by themselves or their husband
therein. Compare the mighty armies Of tn
last struggle--the multitudinous host whic
demonstrated to an astonished world ths
America was the most warlike nation thi
the world ever saw-with the mere handful
of men that on our northern fronter, tht
at Lundy's Lane or the Thames, at the Rive
Raisin, or on the plains of Chalmotte crow
ed the young mistress of the West with III
fading glory, and we may perhaps realize no
at the end of fifty more years the pension
roll, even though list of honor, will be