Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1886-05-20
Bragg and Pensions.

Bragg and Pensions.
A Milwaukee independent paper
comes out as the champion of +. S.
Bragg in his opposition to pensions, how
ever small, for the ex-privates and their
widows. and his enthusiastic favor of
big pensions for ex-generals and their
widows. 1t refers to a late article in the
HERALD thus:
An organ OF the opposition to the party to
which Gen. Bragg belongs observes that "the
private soldiers OF Wisconsin will do well to re-
member MIR. (sic) Z. S. Bragg because, forsooth,
lever since he has been in Congress he has OPP
posed all legislation for the Increase OF the in
significant little pensions Of private soldiers or
their widows"
Mr.. (sic), ehP If Mr.. is sic what is
the matter with Mr.P Probably this sin
dependent paper is shocked because
''Mr." was substituted for ''Gen." But
Mr.. Bragg was mustered out of the army
more than twenty years ago, and his
generals commission is more obsolete
than last years birds nest-as obsolete
as an almanac for 1865.
The independent Bragg organ very
conveniently forgot to quote from the
HERALD the antithesis to the sentence
quoted above: "but he has ever been
ready to urge on any bill to give any
generals widow $1,000 year"
The independent" etc, refers to the
means by which those who were private
soldiers substantiate their pension claims
as ''the afiidavits of unknown relatives,
the certificates of quack doctors, the re-
concentrations of ward politicians and
the personal requests Of Congressman and
Senators" making men whose laziness
is only equaled by their dishonesty a
a charge upon the people" The fellows
of the Bragg stripe always consider the
men who suffered the horrible hardships
of a private soldiers lot-the tremen-
dous toll of the forced march and the
siege-all for $13 a month--as linen
whose laziness is only equaled by their
dishonesty" in applying for and receiv-
ing pensions ranging from 81 to So a
month-the latter sum being the highest
paid for ordinary physical disability
and $4,000 of them Gas Logan lately
showed in debate with the ex-rebels
Berry and Wheeler, who seem to think
about as Bragg and the independent
dO) receive only 81 month. When it
comes to pensions of that size and to
that class of men, Bragg is a watchdog
of the treasury" but he is the champion
of every measure to vote $4,000 year
pensions to people who have already
been immensely overpaid for holding a
''soft thing" for years.
When a bill was before Congress to
give the traitorous Fitz John Porter (who
is in robust health and has, ever since
his dismissal from the army, been en-
gagged in a profitable private business) a
major-general's salary for all that time,
amounting to more than 100000, and
put him on the retired list which
means that the government should pay
him 1880 a year for the rest of his life
without his rendering the government
any service whatever-Bragg was en-
Enthusiastically and vigorously in favor of
it; and the independent" Milwaukee
journal is in favor of Bragg and econo-
my.
The independent" Milwaukee Jour-
nal boasts that "Gen. Bragg opposed
granting pension to an unfortunate
son of an ungrateful republic who was
too young to enlist, but who forced his
way into the army as a drummer-boy
when scarce II years old, and did noble
service as a scout in a battle which never
took place" Whether the battle ever
took place or not was not the motive of
ex-General Bragg's opposition; it was
the fact that the boy didn't ''force his
way into the army as a general with a
salary from ten to fifty times as great as
that of private soldier, who was a
pack-mule where the general was pic
nicker.
Bragg and the independent Milwau-
kee paper think, "This pension industry
is becoming great industry" when it
applies to - or "a month pensions,
but when it is $1,000 year pensions, it
is only fitting reward for distinguished
services, :" in putting down the rebellion.
Everybody knows it was the generals
with their flashing swords who put down
the rebellion. The musket-bearers only
went along behind to-blamed if we
know what they did go along to do.