Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1889-02-01
PENSlON-CRAZED WOMEN.
Peculiar Persons Who Imagine They Have
Claims on the Government.

Peculiar Persons Who Imagine They Have
Claims on the Government.
Almost any day persons, majority
of whom are women, may be seen
flocking to the clerks Office of the
United States District Court to make
oath to application for pensions. Some
OF the number are regular and period
ical visitors. and have become known
TO the officials as pension cranks.
Their mania is pensions" said an Of
fetal. They present no evidence on
which to frame an application to the
Department ut Washington, but are
filed with the idea that the Govern
ment owes them pensions. and talk
wildly on the subject. We soothe
them with the assurance that their
money will soon be forthcoming, and
they go away quietly, only to return
after the lapse of week or two and
renew their demands. Several OF them
have been coming here at intervals for
years"
One of the women, who is continually
haunting the Federal offices with her
appeals for a pension, is known as
the "one-eyed bride" A court Off
Ger told how she got the appella-
tion. Some years ago she Was
drawing 4 pension Of So a month
as the widow of veteran of Com
pany y of the famous Sixty ninth
Regiment. who was killed in the war
Complaint was made that she had got
another husband, and she was hauled
before Commissioner Shields on a
charge Of perjury. The man claimed
to be her husband was brought into
court. The clergyman who performed
the marriage ceremony identified her
as the bride, but was not sure about
the man being the bridegroom
He knew the woman because of her
being minus an eye. She was dis
charged but the testimony was deemed
sufficient for the annulling of her pen
sion. Since then she has behaved as
if she We're demented and is clamorou,'
for a pension. One of Commissioner
Shields steady visitors is q black
robed woman of middle age and quasi
espectability, whose stereotyped greet
ing is: Il want my money" what
money. MADAME Says the Commits
sioner. My pension money. You
have got it and | want it. Here are
my papers, and the visitor begins
fumbling through an ancient reticule,
from whica are produced a doughnut,
piece of cheese and other articles,
but no papers.
You will have to apply at Wash
ington, madam" soothingly replies
the Commissioner. Very well, but
You will hear from me again" and he
always does.
General Franz Sigel, the pension
agent, who pays out $4,000. 900 at the
Canal-street agency, says that he is
often worried by women, and men also,
who have delusive claims for pensions
None of them are violent. and go away
after receiving assurances that Con-
gress is considering their claims. Gen
eral Sigel says that there are "a ,OO2
pensioners on the rolls, and that the
number is increasing annually in the
ratio, as compared with the decrease
from deaths and other causes, of 10
to 100.
The bulk of the pensions are from 81
to IS a month. Only two instances arc
known by the General of the voluntary
surrender of pensions. One was the
case of cOlOred woman, who gaveup
her pension because of the pesterings
of agents and others for a share of her
income. The other instance was that
of an eX-soldier, who relinquished his
pension so that the money might 90
toward paying the Nations debt Mrs.
General Grant and Mrs. General Han.
cock are the two most distinguished
widows on the roll. The former i,
paid ZOO a year and the latter 81, 800
year. N. Y. Press.
TWO COSTLY COFFINS.