St. Paul daily globe., 1886-10-25
WORD WITH OLD SOLDIERS.
Every Measure for the Benefit af
The Warriors Advocated by JGdse
MaCDGnald.

The warriors Advocated DY = GOse
Macdonald.
No class of citizens has so vital an inter-
est in the selection of proper representa-
tiveS to shape and administer the laws of
the government as the old soldiers, who,
by their valor through more than four
years of the most terrible war known to
modern history, preserved it from disinteg-
ration. and as a glorious inheritance 1or
the1. children and chldren's children. In
the present campaign in Minnesota old
soldiers are more particularly interested in
the candidates for congress. as the success
full aspirants will nave to pass upon some
very important legislation recommended
and now pending by the National Pension
committee of the Grand Army of the Re
public. | believe all the candidates OF both
political parties, in answer to inquiries ad-
dressed them by the Veteran Rights Union
of the state. have declared themselves in
favor of the recommendations of the Ma
tiOnal committee as above. But ante
election promises are cheap, and it would
be wise for all old soldiers before deposit
ing their ballot for any candidate to
carefully ScrutiniZe his past record.
Such an examination will convince
all fair-minded eX-sOldierS in the
Third diStr CT that their own interests
and true patriotism requires them to vote for
Judge john l.. Macdonald. Not only is
Judge Macdonald a cOmrade but ne was
one of the first to propose and advocate the
establishment of soldiers home in Min
nesota. while during his long and honorable
public career in the state there has been no
measure for the benefit of old soldiers but
what has received his earnest and enthuSi-
astic support. Not only this his views as
to the duty of the national government in
regard to pensions are even more advanced
than the claims of the national committee.
particularly upon the question of proofs in
applications for pensions. Upon this point
Judge Macdonald. in his speech accepting
the nomination, said:
They (the old sodiers) should not be COM
pelled to appeal for what is justly their due.
We should secure that for them without their
asking. Thousands of deserving applicants
for years have been cruelty deprived of the
pensions due them on account of the present
condition of the pension laws. This should
not be. These laws should be so amended
that there would be no necessity for private
pension bills If the beneficiaries of these
bills are entitled to pensions, the general
law should be so amended that all such
claimants could have them allowed by
the commissioner of pensions. My view
of it is, that the law should be so
that the veteran who applied for pension
should, to procure it, only have to appear
before board of eXaming surgeons to estab-
lish the existence of his disability and grade
of it and (when that was establiShed) he could
prove by his own affidavit that that disability
was incurred while in the service. The oath
of the man who periled his life in defense of
the Union should be all the evidence of that
character required. 1t was not questioned and
was considered amply sufficient to establish
his loyalty and patriotism when he enlisted.
There are hundreds of cases where
the present law requiring addi-
tional evidence has operated to
perpetrate a monstrous injustice upon
deserving claimants, who really need this,
their Just due. More than this: When the
board of examining surgeons had established
the grade of the pension, their report should
be final and conclusive. The practice, which
has prevailed for years, of allowing the pen
sion office to reduce the grade of the pension
from that fixed by the board of examiners,
should be prohibited. l have heard pensions
already granted criticised, and imagine
hear the selfish say that this would open the
doors of the treasury to the assaults of fraud
/ deny it, / insist upon it that our veterans
are not deserving OF any such imputatiOn ana
that the pensions already granted do not war
rant it. Every penSioner has to establish his
disability before a board of surgeons and
prove it was incurred in the service. This
ought to satisfy the most captious. Few men
desire to expose their disability to the public
gaze but presume the world will always
have doubling Thomases. My friends, the
cost of these pensions is a mere bagatelle to a
wealthy nation such as ours. Nearly quar-
ter of a century has passed since the war
ended. and the patriot heroes are rapidly
passing away. Last year 1900 members of
the Grand Army of the Republic
alone responded TO the last bugle
call. and each succeeding year will
show an increasing list. Soon there
will be comparatively few of the Union veter-
ans for US to comfort in their declining years.
While honoring the dead, let us not forget
that the grandest memorial to their patriot
ism that we can erect is a monument of full
filled duty to their surviving comrades. If
elected to congress, ] will act and vote upon
the subject of pensions in accordance with
these views, and shall be disappointed if my
actions shall not meet the approval OF the
great majority of my constituents. L also
think it q shame that the bill granting pen
sion to the veterans of the Mexican war, re-
Gently pending in congress, has not been
passed"
respectfully submit these noble senti-
ments to the calm consideration Of the old
soldiers of the Third district and ask that they
give their suffrages to, their author and their
comrade, Judge John L. Ma cDonald.
OLD SOLDIER.