The National tribune., 1888-03-08
TIE NATIONAL TRIBUNE: WASHINGTON d. c. THURSDAY

in almshouses9 They are not there. / am
tired and sick Of being forced into this process
sion of robbery and pretense and hypocrisy in
the name of the true and gallant soldiers of
the Union. / have personal friends among
them. / have said before, and / repeat here
to-day, that 1 will give to the disabled or de-
pendent soldiers of the Federal army, their
widows and orphans the last acre of land and
the last dollar of money that belongs to this
country, and / would have done the same to
the soldiers of the Confederacy if God had
blessed our cause.
1--WE hear this talk that we have not done
enough for the soldiers. We have spent since
the close of the war 1888, 900 in pensions, a
sum unparalleled in the history of the whole
world. We passed laws that preferred them to
appointments for Office above their fellow citi-
zens, and to-day we are told that we owe them
debt of eternal gratitude because they did
not seize with mailed hand the Government of
this country and convert it to their own pur-
poses.
"The great military and political organiza-
ton, the Grand Army of the Republic, throws
its iron glove into the debates of Congress and
sends to us bills through its accredited Senators
and when the President of the United States
honestly and bravely discharged his Executive
duty and vetoed an enactment which he con-
sidered improper, he was threatened by the Off
GERS of this organization with personal insult
city where it held its last meeting.
"There is a limit to human endurance.
have stood here and voted for these bills, CO.
creed by my own position, because / have been
Confederate although | knew / was as hon.
estly anxious for the glory, welfare and ad-
vancement of this country as any one could
possibly be. The Senator tells me now l voted
for enactments similar to that in this bill.
Yes, Mr.. President. voted for them because
wanted to evidence TO the whole world that the
men with whom Z acted in that unfortunate
strife were honest and magnanimous; that we
respected the brave and gallant soldiers of the
Union, and We're willing to give them even
more than they demanded.
"But there is limit to human patience on
this subject, and / have reached it. / will be
driven no further by claim agents and pretend
ers in the garb Of soldiers. To the honest and
brave and real soldiers of the Union army l
am willing to vote any amount of pension, but
/ do not believe they are here asking for addi-
tional largess from the Government.
"In this city are corps of men engaged in
inventing legislation to take more money out
of the Federal Treasury. Here is the report of
the Commissioner of Pensions showing that in
1879, when we passed the arrears-of -pension
act, there were some Sc, S35 applications for in
valid pensions. We passed that act, and in 1880
the applications jumped to 110,673 The war
had closed in 1865; ID years had elapsed. Where
were these $4,000 and more invalids who were
entitled to pensions from this Government
through all those Is years? They did not
know that they needed the money. They did
not know that they had been disabled, but the
claim agents invented law, and when Con-
gress put limitation upon the time for apply
ing the number of applicants jumped in one
single year, by the record, from 10000 to
10000, and the amount of disbursements from
$30000,000 to So, 100000
"The pensiOn-rolls show that out Of 2 100000
men enrolled in the Federal army 100000
were disabled by disease or by shot and shell.
Nearly so per cent. of all the men enrolled in
the Federal army according to the pension re-
ports are now applicants for pensions, or have
been. Such mortality and such military exc
cution have never been known in the history
of the whole world. The Confederates were
not properly equipped. We deprecated the
quality of our powder; our soldiers were half
clothed aud half-armed, and half-fed; yet ac-
| cording to this report, making due allowance
for the effects of climate and disease, every
Confederate soldier disabled three of his adyer-
saries.
''There has been no such destruction in mill
tary annals since the children of Israel marched
through the wilderness and destroyed whole
nations in a single day. Talk of marksman-
ship Why, sir, we have read in the Arabian
Nights of that Persian prince to whom gent
gave an arrow which went to its mark across
| whole continents through mountains, over
rivers, despsing space in its flight. The arrow
| in the Arabian Nights was nothing to the
/ bullet of the Confederate soldier. 1t must
! have hit two more at one time and struck
where if was not aimed. 1T produced strange
and subtle diseases which lie dormant for q
! years in the system, and then suddenly break
| forth under the effect of some new pension law
| NEARLY 80 per cent. of all these hosts to day
are applicants for pensions Who believes that
! all these are honest applicants? Who believes
/ that this thing has not degenerated into po-
/ litical abuse, which cries aloud in the face o.
| all honest men for redress?
Mr.. President, / speak for myself With the
/ change of a single word / could adopt thai
celebrated prayer in Timon of Athens
Immortal gods crave no pelf
speak for no man but myself
81 have great regard for many Of my friends
upon the opposite side OF this Chamber, and il
the few words / have spoken l wanted TO give
opportunity to some Of them who have Jagged
back IN the contest of the last two days t,
throw his shining lance, TO use the words O
/ that great ecclesiastical authority, Col. Inger
soil, among the Confederate Brigadiers,' anC
carry off the Republican nomination for th'
/ Presidency.
"a recent dispatch from Europe has caused
| Presidential candidates to be as thick as au
tumnal leaves that strew the brooks in Yallom
DtD5l. BclDIe ludt uiSpdbCu CAME uDOef Iu
ycasty waves Of ocean from the city of Paris
the Republican party was very much in tn
condition of q married gentleman of my &C
quaintanee, who was in the habit of remaining
away from home until or 4 o'clock in tn
morning. Upon one eventual evening he ar
rived at O'Clock, and his wife in the profound
est establishment inquired: Why, husband
what has brought you home SO early? M,
dear said he, every other place in town j
shut up" [Laughter.]
He closed by snceriug at the advocates Of tn
dependent pension bill as men who had tn
Presidential bee in their bonnets and were bid
sding for the support of the Grand Army of tn
Republic, characterizing the GAR. as an auc
tioneer which was bidding for the Presidency
and concluded with
Mr. President, when is the auction to close
When are we to see the last and final bid
service pension TO every man who served in tn
Federal army during the war? The propositiO
comes here now to pay pension of one cent
day for the term of service. That will no
satisfy the demand. Nothing but service pen
sion in accordance with the demands ofthe clair
; agents, in accordance with the demands of tn
men who are making a business of pension!
will ever close this bidding for the highest o.
, fee within the gift of the people.
What will be the expenditure Of publ
money il legislation goes on as has been th
case within the last few years. Eight hur
; dred and eighty three millions have been e1
pended since the close Of the war If this bi
passes as amended now on the motion