New-York tribune., 1886-03-25
BLACK BEFORE TIE COMMITTEE.
PRESENTING A GOOD APPEARANCE FOR A
PHYSICAL WRECK.

PRESENTING A GOOD APPEARANCE FOR
PHYSICAL WRECK.
fFRoM SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRtBuNhI
WAsu1SGToN. March 2i.-For a man who is
officially designated ubyslcal wreek' PENSION
Commissioner Black makes good showing. Watched
him while before the Senate Committee which trying
10 ascertain the ground his assertions that poucH
tests had been applied by his predecessors In granting
pensions and was SURPRISED to md him so ROBUST
locking man. His right arm Is bent out OF shape III"
while no can hold papers in bis right hand nc cannot
write with It, But he his Left hand for that purpose
with appatcnt ease A. he Is required TO sign MS pano
great many times IN the Of day. ease in writ
ing ia absolutely necessary In performing the work Tor
which the Government pays him salary OF So.oOo'
Outside OF this injury his the Commissioner looks
sound and he walks and talks and moves about ike
nerson I'm good health He Is rather pleasant spoken
man with large eyes and hair turning gray In the
room sitting near him was his predecessor, Colonel
Dudley who lost a leg at Gettysburg and who am told
draws pension General logan looked 10 at tho uoor
for moment ami passed on. General Logan was
entitled TO pension two three years before Genera
Black was wounded; bHt he never applied for one ana
though lie has often needed money he Las never hough
Of getting It in that wav. was entitled tc pension
early in the war; no said tho other day. and have been
ever since. but I never asked for 1t and never
expect TO-" There at least one other soldier an tue
room who was wounled and entitled to pension but
who has never applied Tor IT, Under these clrcum-
!
Black who addition to his salary draws pension thaV
is SIS month greater than that OF any other person OF
the entire 100000 tho pension rolls, should on this
subject OF pensions appear In the light OF false accu'er
against such soldiers as Colonel Dudley and General
Tom Bennett OF Indiana
glanced over the list OF persons dismissed by Com
missioner Black during the first year le was in Office
aud four that fyof tnem 81 per cent OF the whole
number, soldiers, some OF whom had Deei III lhe
Office ,or seventeen years-l0ng enough TO be united for
almost any occupation. Ard this from politician
whose stock IN trade ia his prOessed love for his ola
comrades. But the large percentage OF soldiers
dismissed in the Pension Office appears to have been
exceeded in other Offices, by recent report OF
the Employment Committee OF the Grand Army of the
Republic that while the soldier elencnt constituted 80
per cent OF the employees in the departments when this
Administration came into Office. about 40 per cent OF
those since discharged have from that class IL
no wonder that thfs committee asks What great un-
parlOnahle political sin have our comrades at thiS latc
da,o committed to cause boycott to be placed upon
them I" It would seem that the laws which give
preference to the soldiers in appointments and which
protect those in the Government employ from discharge,
like some other statutes, have under tais Administration
fallen into desuetude" The Grand Army committee
found that these removals we're not made occaue OF
ineiciency by of reduction OF fOrce ana IL
adds Nor IS this the worst feature OF the case oad az
il may be- Not satisfied with looking with distavor upon
the bovs in blue it has sometimes seemed IL the
boys IN gray were he recognized as prodigal sons
returning from their wanderings for whom the fatted
calf was be especially devoted. We rave seen COM
rade whose army record Of the very best and whose
civil service record rreprOachable degraded from
high position that he by meritorious service ana
his place filed by one who was in armed rebellion
against the Government" AIT speaking Of Other cases
of this kind the committee quotes remark " made ny
one holding prominent position under the Administra-
ton" said: The soldier business is played out
This seems the key to the situation in the eXeeu-
tive departments as the Grand Army committee s'ates
that it was ory able to get ten soldiers reinStated
after constant and repoated importantly, though much
misery and suffering was caused by the discharges
significant fact in connection with this wholesale
removal OF soldiers brought out In Comnissloner
Blacks testimony. He remarked, with apparent see'
that 90 per cent OF the appointments made in MS bureau
we're Democrats and that the politics OF the other 10
per cent were unknogn From this It would not be an
unfair assumption say that every man appointed was
either q Democrat or Mugwump. Speaking OF the
modi( al examiners, whom he avOweily removing
for partisan the Commissioner testified: was
proceeding TO replace the gentlemen in office by AT least
fair quota OF Democrats when the rules were Amended
and the eighteen medical examiners in the office we're
taken under the protection OF the civil Service AIter
that time the remaining changes made under the
Evil Service rules" Right here is the significance OF
the testimony as the Commissioners said; = made
seventy-seven appointments under the civil service
rules Of which number seventy two were Democrats
and five politics unknown Here is the sworn test'
mony OF bureau officer that under the Civil Service
rules as now administered practically all the appoint
ments made are OF Democrats; and at the same time IL
has been claimed the eligible lists were made up OF
Republicans. This IS the only sworn evidence yet
brought ont on this subject and it is probable that Wnat
is true Of the Pension Oice is equally true OF every
other Office under the Administration. And yet the
President is not satisfied but wants TO have the C'il
Service Commission still more partisan by making such
a spokesman as Obery "A member OF IL.