The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1886-06-03
WASHINGTON LETTER.

WASHINGTON, May %, 1ss6.-The |
president continues his good work of |
critically examining, dissecting and |
vetoing private pension bills. II he
cannot defend the governments treas |
ure vaults against avaricc and fraud he
Is az least narrowing the opening
through which the money is dragged
out.
For each veto sent to the senate the
president has given conclusive re aeons,
and he added that he was by no means
insensible to that influence which leads
the judgment towards the allowance of
every claim alleged to be founded upon
patriotic service in the nations cause.
Yet he did not believe it to be duty
or a kindness to the worthy citizens for
whose benefit the scheme of pensions
was provided, to permit the division of
the nations bounty among objects not
within its scope and purpose.
The republicans hare no intention of
| trying to pass these bills against the
veto, but they hope to make some polit-
| ical capital out of them. Some of them
have been writing to applicants that it
| is useless to present their claims to
congress as the president will not let
them become laws. Their idea is that
the neutrality-suspicious. will not be
likely to vote for another democ ratio
president.
This is the way in which the senate
pension committee is enabled to report
fifty private pension bills week. Sem
ator Sawyer of Wisconsin is its most
active member. He employees two men,
one an ex-clerk of the pension Office
and the other physician, to look over
and arrange the papers in each case re-
ferred to him by the committee. The
senator only glances at them to decide
how they are to be reported. It is not
surprising that to some of the pension
bills which the senate passes on Mr..
Sawyer's favorable reports the presi-
) dent is unwilling to attach his sigma
ture.
1t was during the discussion of pri-
, vate pension bill that Senator ingalls,
took occasion to make venomous at.
tack upon Gen. Black, the present com
missioner of pensions. The republican
senators and representatives have beer
very DESTROYS offlnding fault with the
commissioner since he accused his re-
publican predecessor of and proved tina
he used the pension Office as a party
machine.
After Mr.. ingalls, had charged tina
Gen. Black was not now and never hat
, been entitled to the pension now draw
by him, and that he had willingly Sian
dered Col. Dudley, word passed quickly
: through the capitol that he was stir
ring up the senate with sharp person
! al speech. Senators hurried to thei
seats, representatives came into thu
chamber and additional visitors appear
ed in all the galleries.
e The Kansas senator with his charac
~
? made one of the most bitter denuncia
, tions ever heard in the senate. FL,
paced back and forth rapidly as ii i'm
patient of the res friction of Parliamen
tary language, and the veins of his fore
t head stood out as he declared over an,
e oyer again that Gen, Black was an i'm
poster.
: The face of Senator voorhees, ais
l flushed when he arose to defend Gen
Black and squarely denied the truth O
2 Senator Ingalls, accusations. He men
: toned that Gen. Black never knew tn
f cessation of pain for a moment, bone
had been removed from both his arms
rendering them useless, and that to thi
day his wounds had to be dressed DAHL
by physician. 1t was in this condi
ton that Gen. Black was performing
;. his official duties, and the Indiana sen
: ator thought ii the senator from Kan
2 sas felt any pride in assaulting a maj
! who was suffering thus, he should b
r allowed to enjoy it.
Senator Cockrell also defended Gen
Black, who, he said, had allowed NOR
1 pensions during the first year of his aa
e ministration than any other pension
{ commissioner. He suggested that Mr.
, Ingalls, ought to have the courage ant
, manliness to introduce bill for the re
, peal of Gen. Blacks pension il he real
ly thought it had been obtained under
false pretense as he had charged.
, The Ingalls, attack upon the commis
sioner of pensions was nothing NOR
than the malice of an irritable man WHIT
is disappointed because the integrity o
: the new administration is sufficient tt
stand in the way of the reckless pen
sion giving which is going on. Gen
Black is a democrat who received hi
wounds while fighting in the Unior
: army. If he had been a wounded re-
publican and democratic senator ha(
made such an attack upon him a cry
would have gone all along the republic
can line,. accusing this senator of dis
LOYALTY to the Union.