The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1886-01-28
OUR CORRESPONDENTS.
Replies to Questions On Variety of Interesting
Subjects.

our readers are TeQutStcu 10 lncIOSC = stamp
reply to their inquiries: Postal cards will be
replied 10 by mail O.,g. Replies by mail will ordi
narily be made Within week, and if in this col
umn within three weeks!
j. y, Nappanee Tnd.-t soldier who lost limb
in the line of duty in the service is entitled to COM
mutation therefor in lieu of artificial limb every
fire years, and same is paid by the Pension Agent,
by direction of the Commissioner of Pensions, upon
the certificate of the SurgeouGeneral, u. 5. Army.
Capt. 4. C. H., Port Clinton, Pa enlisted Aug.
Q, 1861 and mustered in Sept H. 1861, for three
years re-enlisted Jan. |, 1864, and remustercd
Jan. % 1861; received the 500 bounty for first
listment, and when | re-enlisted received $50 adj
vance bounty, one months pay and & premium;
commissioned Second Lieutenant Sept. !, 1861,
and ut next regular pay day the Paymaster in
formed Inc that would have to refund SIS of the
original bounty given me for my first enlistment
Please give this matter your consideration and OBJ
tain decision, it may prove of interest to other
comrades. 1nStceT. y ou are slightly III error III
regard to the character of the refundment. Your
original bounty of 500 you received, and you did
not refund any part of it, What you did refund
was S25 of the $50 advance bounty paid YOU for re-
ensting. The original order governing bounty
for re-enlisment5 O.. O. No. 1911 A q. o.. June %,
1853 provided 3 premium, one months pay and
S25 advance bounty. This was modified by G. o.
32i A. c., o. Sept. 2S 1868, increasing the advance
bounty S35, taking that amount off from the final
payment of bounty, making the latter $40 instead
of S75, and making the advance payment of bounty
$50 instead of SO, originally ordered. Sec. u,
Act 81, March 3. 1863 provided that all payments
of advance bounty to enlisted men who are dis
charged before serving out the term required by
law for its payment in full" = shall be
charged against the enlisted men, unless the dis
charge be upon Surgeon certificate Tor wounds
received = s. The So which you refunded
was part of the 500 received, and which you were
obliged to refund, not having served two years as
an enlisted man, and every man who enlisted after
July % 1861, and was discharged to accept promo
ton before he had served two years, was not en-
titled under the law 10 bounty, and if he had re-
ccived S25 advance bounty he had to refund it, be-
cause it was SO provided i'll the law and this law
has nerer been changed. BY special authority of the
Secretary of War. veteran volunteers discharged
for promotion were only obliged to refund So of
the bounties received by them prior to promotion.
j. " W., L0uisbtrg Kun.-Is a soldier who
served in the Home Guards and was disbanded,
then enlisted in United States service under the
call of 1865 for three months and served his time,
but was not mustered out nor received any pay or
bounty for such service, entitled to amy pay and
bounty for the same? 1ESiCer. There was call
for three months men in 1868
C. y. W., Clifton, Mo.-A friend was commits
stoned a First Lieutenant Jan. l. 1861; mus
tered Feb. 20, 1864; discharged to vcteranize
and accepted Il commission. Is he entitled to pay
from date of commission. having served from date
lie was discharged III January, 1900. Is he entitled
to there months pay proper? AnSerer His right to
pay from date of commission depends gpon circum-
stances. II there was Il vacancy Tor hiin ana me
company was not reduced below the minimum he
is properly entitled. He not entitled to the
three months extra pay proper because he was not
i'll service from March ), 1863, to April TO- 1863.
H. w., Hanorer, IH.-l. The mother of deceased
soldier desires know how she find his grave.
He died and buried mt Savannah Tenn. April
10, 1862 and is said to have been subsequently
moved by the Government. =. If Il prayer for APP
no attention. what Is the next step necessary to
further consideration of claim for increase?
insurer. l. She should write to the Quartermaster-
General, L. =. ~, this city, giving name, rank,
company and regiment Of the soldier date and
place of death and any other known facts. ,. An
appeal uoutd receive attention i'll due time. Wait
the result. 'rI
G. B. s., Park City JRdh.L--In case a soldier en-
listed at the beginning OF the war for three years
and served two years, then re-enlisied for three
years more under what was known the veteran
act then discharged at The end of year by
reason of consolidation-being Il supcrnumerary, TO
what portion of the Sl02 bounty Is he entitled? IN
If mustered out after april %, 1863 to the tdt
bounty. Ifmusered out prior to that date, only to
the insiallnlents of bounty which had accrued up
To date of discharge.
j. b., Co,yies Ne6-Did Secretary Stanton at any
time during the IN 1861 and up to 1865 inclu-
sivc modify the oath that soldiers took who enlisted
III the army of the United States? 1t is claimed he
modified the oath for Il sect called Covenanters."
Aaisioer. lie did not, but hcailewed them to a6ir,
to the cath instead of requiring them swear it.
That all the difference
Poplar Flat. A pensioner (late war; dying
having two months or less than three months pen
sion due who should apply for the arrears and what
steps necessary to obtain it? =. Does the Gov
ernmcnt pay arrcaragcs widow OF war 1872? If
not will the funeral and last sickness expenses be
paid? If so, who shoud apply and to whom and
how? dRStcer. l. If the pensiouer was the soldier,
his widow. or if there be no widow, his minor
children secure the accrued pension. No other
persons are entitled thereto unless claim for
endorsement of expenses of last sickness and
burial in he did not leave sufficient assets to
meet the same. >. AS above. Application should be
made TO the Third auditor of the Treasury. Appli
cations for such reimbursement can be made in
the case of any pensioncr.
J.CB. HnrifoTd ky-Snppose widow (of sol
der drawing pension reElarrieS soldier drawing
a smaller pension than she did In case of his death
can she draw The former greater pension
4HS'Cer. Her pension as widow OF her first husband
ceased upon her rcmarrIage. To be restored to the
roll she would have to establish the fact that the
cause of her second husbands death was due his
service and line OF duty therein. This established,
she could again draw pension as the widow of the
a Sl,n 1T,
pension would be the same as her first pension,
viz IS per month.
to,nrGde ELLSWORTH Kan--Is Commissioner of
Pensions Black drawing a full pension for total
disability? If So what constitutes total disability
under the pension law? Insurer. He is drawing
pension for the highest grade OF total disability
There are several grades Of total disability, and
variations IN each grade for certain specific dis
abilities, the rates for which have been fixed from
time TO time by Congress. The commissioners
pension not given him under the general pen
sion law, but by apecial act of Congress. No
person could be rated under the general pension
law for the amount OF pension which he receives.
Mrs. j. X, NeiHsUiUe lFis.-Soder dies six years
after close of the from disease contracted in the
army, and leaves wife and one child two years
old. Wife marries again. Can sls draw pension
for that child from the time his father died until he
is 10 If she applied before he was 10, she being
guardian? 4nsuer. Not unless she filed her claim
prior 10 July /, 1850.
e. 4. b., Little Rock, Wyo-l. Has Congress re-
pcaied the desert land act? .. How much is a per-
entitled TO enter, and the cost of he same? IN
SlCer. l. No. 2 Gi0 acres; S.2o per acre, as fol-
lows: - cents per when entry is made, and
81 per acre when final proof is made
j. II. X, Springfield, GA veteran volunteer dis
charged to accept promotion was only entitled to
the installments of bounty which had accrued up
TO the date OF his promotion, less SO received by
him in advance. The recent decision of the Con
trolier has no bearing such cases.
j. H. A., Marion, O.-All land warrants are good.
They be laid upon any public land that is open
for se,temcnt,-that is, they are the same cash.
They can be used in paying for pre- empton entries
III committing homestead entries after six months
residence upon the lands. There are no lands that
be purchased for cash without residence thereon,
that cannot be purchased with land warrants. The
only lands that can be taken with land warrants
purchased for cash tCH,om residence thereon
offered" lands, and these can be found in all the
Southern public land States and III most of the
States III the West, also in New Mexico and Wash
iugton Territories.
j. n. H., Carlisle, Ld.-In q claim for invalid pen
sion, where several diseases are alleged does IL i'm
ply when the claim is allowed, and only or two
of the diseases mentioned in the certificate, that
the claim is rejected the other diseases alleged?
or does it imply that the Diseases not mentioned i'll
the certificate are not complete to the proofs
A,sper. 1t implies that theirsnander of the claim
las been rejected for so{1e cafase, and that may be
Qmcria Oshkosh, Wis. Eff assoldier receiving $50
per month pension for disability incapacatng
him for all manual labor dies, will his widow
ceive $50 or IS per month, provided he dies with
disease for which he IS peusioned? The ambiguous
language used i'll the decision of the case OF Mrs
Hattie A. Burnett leads me ito ask the question
A,,Siccr. She would receive but IS. Mrs. Burnett
pcnsioncd at so, as the widow of Brigadier-
General. She claimed aT22 th,lt being the amount
t,cv