Mexico weekly ledger., 1886-06-10
Extract from u Speech OF Hon. Geo. Il
Vest, Made Friday, May IL, 1856.
PENSIONS 10 SOLDIERS AND DEPENDENT
RELATIVES.

.ENsIoYs 10 SOLDIERS AND DEPENDENT
RELATIVES.
Mr.. President. / shall not be de-
erred from performing what l CON
,eive to be my duty in regard to the
bending measure, or from expressing ,
.he reasons which will influence the
vote / cast, because Of the fact that
was upon the losing side during the
last war. That struggle ended TWEEN
" years ago, and the animosities anu
nreiudiccs which naturally grew out
of il should cease to be invoked, es-
pecially as to matters of legislation.
AS for myself, without any sort of
bitterness or any retrospect that has
the slightest acrimony connected
with it, l am conscious that have
kept my oath of loyalty to the gov
ernment of the United States in letter
and in spirit, and propose hereafter
10 make no other promises or profess
sions. | shall answer any allegation
or intima,ion that | am not the equal
of any Senator here in patriotic de-
yotion to this country and in loyal
aspiration for its welfare and honor
as Lord Marmon answered the
Douglas:
And if thou said'st am not peer
TO any lord in Scotland here,
Luwland or highland, far or near,
Lord Angus, thou hast lied!
The soldier who risked life and
limb for his country is entitled to
know that his country will repair all
damages he has received in the line
of duty. If disabled and not able to
perform manual labor lie should re-
ceiye liberal pension so as to be
placed beyond penury and want. Ii
! his life be sacrificed, his last hours
should be cheered with the certainty
that the loved ones depending upon
him shall be the recipients of the
country's bounty in whose service he
died. This is the contract between
the country and the soldier who en-
ters into its service, and the nation
that would not keep this contract as
a sacred obligation deserves to be
blotted out from the map of Christ
endom.
How well the people of the United
States have kept this compact is eVi-
denced by the fact that by the votes
of Senators and Representatives from
the South as we'll as the North the
enormous amount S744,0iO, 34 l.oI
has been voted for pensions since
1861, and more that S7O0,0O0,OO0 OF
this amount has been voted to the
, United Satates and the confederacy.
Although the South was impover-
ished and desolated by that war, the
people of the South as we'll as its
soldiers have borne without complaint
: or murmur their portion of the debt
necessary to pay the sacred obliga
ton to the soldiers Of the Union
their widows and orphans. The
Southern soldiers and the widow:
i orpans of the South have asked ano
S will ask nothing from the victors ex
! cept the right to weep for their dead
and to defend the purity of purpos'
for which they died.
Steadily and rapidly since 1866 th'
pension-roll has increased. The re
s port of the Commissioner Of Pension
= shows that while in 1866 there wer
6 12G,722 pensioners receiving S13,
= 459, 1886, in 1885 there were 345, II
J! pensioners receiving S65,G93, 7QG.
3 Now can it be expected from on
;G experience in the past that this Won
= derful increase will pause even for
Z moment? The generosity of a grea
&c people toward the men who Tough
n for their flag, and the anxiety OF bot
le political parties to secure what
: known as 1.-The soldier VOTE hav
- caused this generosity and this oil
i ical anxiety to be utilized by clam
re agents and curbstone lawyers in tn
ID city of Washington to invent ne
IN laws creating new classes of pension
10 ers and to increase the pensions an
the arrearages which they claim
40 be already due.
II, At each recurring session of Con
" gress we are flooded with petitior
at to increase pensions, to original
If pensions; and charge here and no
:, that this demand does not come fro
&c the citizen soldiery of this countr,
ne 1t comes almost entirely from Wasl
m ington City and from the class
ell lawyers who are engaged in worklr
20 up and making available for the
own purposes these classes of claim
III Mr.. President, l am tired for OF
-ic of being used by the pension -ciai
ee agents of Washington City to increa
in their spoils, or by ambitious state
;. men to enhance their political fc
~ tunes. / am determined to ma
re this issue with my own people, and
ed declare here to-day that L am
IN, going any further in the direction
,;o which we have been recklessly hurl
- ing. This bill means an indefin
in' raid upon the public treasury for
is, indefinite time. 1t means that
lc- peoples money shall be taken fri
'ok the treasury for the purpose of p'
els ing for length of years beyond
w. prescience of any mortal man an
we definite amount of money, and | sh
Go vote for no such measure.
ION How does the editor of the Int
en- gencer like the ring of the abb
III speech? Does it make him feel
at kicking the 'Little GiaIt'' out of
ele- United States Senate? The edi
en- of the Mtelligencer may rear and k
ieir as much as he pleases but he ca
our shake Vest. "He is a man anon
on men, and has the courage to sp
can his convictions. Go On, most nc
for Senator! The people are your frie
ght because you are their friend.
and howl of the few who failed to get
'ws- office amounts to simply nothing.
I The Pike county delegates are
WV Robinson for Congress, Blair
~ Judge and Brace for Supreme Jut
- The Judicial delegates are c. b.
~ lum, w. w. Anderson, J. w. A
son, J. B. Simpson, I. A. Dono'
j. B. Jones, Hunter Lewis, Johr
rare Smith, VIM. Saffel, W. B. Buchal