National Republican., 1886-07-07
THE VETOED PENSION BILLS.
The Senate Committee VIII Recon-
mend Passage of the Bills, the Ve-
toes Notwithstanding.

mend Passage of the Bills, the Ve-
toes Notwithstanding.
Probably all the vetoed pension bills
which originated In the Senate, with one
exception, will be reported from the COM
mittee on pensions, with recommendations
that they do pass, the Presidents veto not
withstandlng. The one exception will be
covered by a new bill, the vetoed one being
defective In consequence OF n clerical error.
The case OF Harriet Welch is the one In
respect TO which the President said
"Though this widow admits that prior TO
her marriage with the deceased soldier she
had married another man whom she could
only say she believed TO be dead" The
Senate committee says In its report: "No
question Is raised,n in the evidence, "as TO
the legality Of the marriage which seems
to have resulted In long cohabitatlou and
the birth OF seven children. The claimant
was married to the soldier June Z, 1868.
There is nothing In the evidence to Justify
the slur which the President casts upon the
chastity Of this widow and the legitimacy
Of her seven fatherless children. Pensions
have heretofore frequently been granted In
cases similar TO this. Human nature cries
out aloud for the allowance OF pension in
such a case, and II this woman, with her
seven small children, Is TO be deprived Of
II, your committee are at least glad that the
responsibility rests elsewhere"
In reporting upon the case OF David w.
Hamilton, the committee reprints It's origi-
nal report, In which II says: "This farce of
rejecting claims for pensions OF men who
have rendered years OF active service, be-
cause they were unable 10 discharge the
duties Of q soldier, so long INDUCED in, is
also crime, and It is time that the dictates
Of common sense should be adopted, in
stead Of some Of the rules so long in force
In the pension office. There Is imperative
need OF reform in this respect, and has been
for many years.n
Alfred Denny is the man who claimed to
have been injured by contact with the horn
OF his saddle, and In respect to whose case
the President incidentally remarked that
"Those saddles were very dangerous con-
trivances.n
The pensions committee says:
The sneer in the veto at the wounds received
by so many OF our gallant cavalry during their
long rides and furious changes In the war in
diCates n state of mind that incapacitates, at
least temporarily, an official from considering
impnrtially pension claim. IL would be well
If the horns of public indignation could be so
applied that our soldiers could get simple JUS
tice in these times OF peace
IN THE HOUSE COMMITTEE.
The House committee on invalid pensions
considered the presidential veto messages
at its meeting ye sterday. Representative
Conger called up the bill for the relief OF
John Luce, whose claim is based on injuries
received from being thrown forward on the
pommel Of his saddle, but after discussion
1t was decided that the bill did not embedy
case strong enough to pass over the veto,
and 1t was dropped.
THE PRESIDENTS vEToEs.
The President has been engaged the past
two days in personally examining the l41
special pension acts delivered to him June
"a, which, by reason Of the time required
by the pension bureau TO examine its rec
ords concerning them, were only read on
Saturday for his consideration. lie has
carefully studied all the facts presented In
the reports made by the congressional COM
mittee in each case, and the special reports
prepared for his information by the
pension bureau, which are very voluminous
and complete The result Of his investiga-
tion is twenty bills vetoed and 100 approved
and signed, one having been recalled. Dur
ing this session Of Congress 565 special
pension acts have become laws and ninety
have been vetoed.
Lewis w. Scanland filed his declaration
for a pension in 1884, alleging that he con-
tracted chronic diarrhea In the Black Hawk
war. The records show that he served
from April 1S, 1882, to May 2s, 1882. In
vetoing the bill for his relief, the President
says:
i am inclined TO think II would have been
q fortunate thing fin this case 1t could have
been demonstrated that a man could thrive SO
well with the chronic darrhea for ilfty.two
years as It's existence in the case of this good
UeIbaps hnve csS Of in ms or IGn
| The fact is in this case there Is no disability
| which can be traced to the forty days military
service OF hfty.tour years ago, and think lit.
| tie II any more intrmity than is usually found
| in men of the age ofthe claimant
In vetoing the bill granting a pension to
| Francis Deming, who claims that he con-
| tracted blindness, the result of rheumatism
| incurred In the service, the President says
| that there seems to be no testimony show
ing the soldiers condition from the time OF
his discharge to 1880, a period Of fifteen
years. The President continues:
Amer nineteen years had elapsed since his
discharge from the army pension Is claimed
for him upon very shadowy allegation OF the
incurrence of rheumatism while in the SER
vice, coupled with the startling proposition
that this rheumatism resulted, Just previous to
his application, in blindness. Upon medical
| examination 1t appeared that his blindness was
caused by amanrosls, which is generally ac-
am satisfied that a fair examination of the
facts in this case justities the statement that
| the bill under consideration can rest only
| upon the ground that aid should be furnished
TO this ex-soldier because he served in the
| army, and because no, II long time thereafter
| became blind, disabled, and dependent
| None Of us are entitled to credit for extreme
| tenderness and consideration toward those
| who fought their eOuntry's battles; these are
| sentiments common to all good citizens; they
| lead to the most benevolent care on the part
| of the government, and deeds Of charity and
| mercy In private life. The blatant and noisy
selfassertion Of those who, from motives that
| may well be suspected, declare themselves
| above all other friends oil the soldier. cannot
| discredit nor bellttle the calm, steady, and
| ntectionate regard of a grateful nation.
Legislation has been ut the present session OF
| Congress perfected considerably increasing the
| rate OF pension In certain cases. Approprla-
| tions have also been made of large sums for tn G
| support of national homes, where sick
| disabled, or needy soldiers are cared for and
within few days liberal sum has been APP
| propriated for the enlargement and increased
accommodation and convenience OF these in
| stitutions.
All this Is no more than should be done
| But with all this and with the hundreds o
| special acts which have been passed, granting
| pensions in cases where, for my part, am
| willing to confess that sympathy rather than
| Judgment has oiten led to the discovery of O
| relation between injury or death and the
| military service, am constrained by Il sense
| OF public duty to inerpose against establishing
| principle and setting precedent which
must result In unregulated, partial, and unjust
| gifts of public money under the pretext of in
| Identifying those who suffered In their means
| ofsuppOrt as an incident of military service.
|
| NJIgSnJTnT punEn AfnNTTTS, HfnN