The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1886-07-24
HE VETO POWER.

Bayne's Abusc-Mr Cieveiand's Capacity
to Treat Details.
The Presidents vctocs of pension
bills have been constant. and in almost
every case his statement OF reasons has
been conclusive. In some instances
there may be good reasons for recon-
sdcration. But the action of the
President shows devotion to duty and
resolution not to suffer injustice to
be done to the people by careless APP
preparations of public money. which
will receive the most general and
hearty approval. Here are some il
lustrations of the vetoed bills:
Simmons ". Harden got n bill passed
granting him pension for enlargement OF
the heart, which he asserts was the result OF
falling out of wagon fourteen years befo g
the disease developed The bill granting u
pension to bigail Smith was vetoed because
1t gave hor less amount than she was al.
ready receiving. Another instance of care.
less legislation Is shown in the veto OF n bill
for the relief of Andrew j. Hin, when the pa.
James Buffers bill was vetoed because he
was never in the army; he enlisted on August
-. 1864, got leave to go home to bid his friends
goodbye fell into acc lar and broke his leg Gu
route. ana was discharged September 10.
Harriet Welshs bill was vetoed because she
admits that she married the man for whose
service she claims a pension when she had
another husband living undivorced. John ID
Ham was drafted into the urmy he was cn-
fell OIL his horse broke his ankle. and was not
placed on the rolls of his regiment, James &.
Chandler applied for pension at the Pension
Office because he was run over by u wagon in
1882. This was denied him. Then he entered
another application on account OF bronchitis.
This was also denied Then he made a third
Finally he went to Congress. and got bill
passed on all three Of his claims"
There are many others quite rs ex-
'raordinary. To prevent such waste
of the public money is simple duty of
the President. and the attacks which
nave been made upon him for discharg
ing his duty are exceedingly discred-
liable to those who make them. The
attacks proceed upon the general as
sumption that any man who was a
soldier is entitled to have his claim
for relief honored in full in the
prcise form in which he makes it.
and without regard to the facts.
OF course nothing could be more alb
surd.
Many of the bills are laws of Con-
gress overriding the decision of the
Pension Bureau. The President acts,
therefore, rs judge of appeal, and de-
cides upon the facts in evidence. re-
capitulaling them in his message. The
assertion that the constitution does not
contemplate this kind of detailed re-
vision of the acts of Congress by the
Executive is idle and wholly unfounded.
10 the extent of the veto the President
is made most important part of the
legislative power, and he acts under
the precise obligation that binds any
member of Congress His duty re-
guires him to consider details quite as
much as the duty of the Representa-
tive requires him to do the same thing,
and when 1t is obvious that details
have been neglected by Congress, it is
the especial duty of the Executive to
correct the result of the neglect.
Mr.. Bayne, of Pennsylvania, IN
his extraordinary vituperaton of
the President as ''this man" who was
almost transcending his authority. and
mo better than any other American
citizen, and not the equal of any man
who periled his life and went out to
save the Union" wholly forgot that he
was speaking of an officer of the Gov
W nv tCttu oDllSutlOuS
quite as important and binding as
those of MIR. Bayne himself and that
even if the President had been shirk
and coward--which he was not
that fact is not reason that Mr.. Bayne
and his associates should be allowed to
take money improperly from the pub
lie treasury. The reasons of the Presi-
dents vetoes are submitted to the
country. and the country will Judge
whether they are well founded. No
honorable soldier will think him un-
friendly to soldiers because he refuses
to countenance dishonest claims even
when preferred in the name of SOL
dier: and every good citizen, conscious
that the President is an honest man.
and that the country is not ungcnerous
to the soldiers, will support him in his
defense of the just rights of all the peo-
pie.
There is general feeling that the
veto power should be used sparingly.
But il would be better to say that Con-
gress ought not to furnish frequent oc-
casions for its exercise. The number
of President Cleveland 5 vetoes is great,
but they all affect what is substantially
the same act of legislation, an act OF
infinite details, namely. the granting
of pensions. The veto power is one Of
the most important and valuable
checks of our Government. 1t belongs
to the system which wisely separates
the republic from the simple democ-
racy, or the constant, immediate
rule OF the majority. 1t is power
provided by the majority for its own
restraint. and nothing proves more
completely the wisdom of our popular
government than the fact of the adop-
ton by the majority of provisions
which prev cnt hasty action. The Pres
ident does not intend to slight his duty.
and he has announced that he will
consider all bills carefully be-
fore signing them. He gives fair
notice that he will not be hur-
ried, and Congress has learned that
his words plainly express his purposes.
His duty is largely n duty of detail.
His ability is shown by his disposition
and capacity to treat details. 1t is a
quality oi great administrative ability.
II is sometimes condemned rs the sign
of routine officer. But it is the
quality which distinguished Gladstone
as financial Minister, and it was Il
striking trait in Napoleon. The two
chief executive functions in our Gov
ernment are the appointment of agents
through whom to execute the laws,
and the approval of laws to execute.
They are both matters of detail, and to
object to careful Executive attention
to them is to object to tine Executive
office. The exercise of the veto power
by President Cleveland has been