Telegram-herald., 1889-08-05

f>Eect-l Cosres2oz6ezoel
WAzEfS1TcS Aug Nov that It's
pension ole i attracting a. I1-1A a.
telliol IL tie press II tL4 country ald
"a - -stigzEioa Is 5sans u ale ~ charges
sgaillss tie management. II nay - IN
te1esllag - llq qulls - -zr tls psls-oa OF
Ice i, and ~ t4ks los9Z Il i-s great cls-
tTiDutloa scAeEns "A operation Il Is lot
easy - con- Drehe1d tie magnitude Il
tie processes carried on Ia the huge red
b14ldlag All unless we pat ourselves ia
tie hands 0f one who knows the bureau
Ia al Is com p.exities ani r2naI1c2tlons.
~e snzll MAKE ouE a. e. work II our sI-
fort % earn something about the Mys-
terIss u pensloR paying. Luckily We
fail into the hands u s-ca "a good Samari-
tan. and he taxes Is watk Of = mile or
more round the long corridors. showing
Us where applications sor pensions come
IN, where they ara fled aad indexed,
~ here they are assigned 10 various divi-
si0ns for examination and review, first
~ lzW officers and then by medical ex-
4alll-rs. where appeals are heard and
the assistance Of the board Of re-Teview
called IN ~ disappointed applicants,
where the reports % the 5000 local ex-
aminers scattered throughout the coun-
try are received and fled, where hun
dreis O. clerks So day after day doing
nothing but writing letters - pension
ers. applicants aad inquirers; and after
No have completed the long circuit and
taken this superficial LOOK az the ma
cAins we appreciate better than ever be-
fore its wonderful capacity and the mag
niruie of the war which left such ne
cessi,y behind is pages OF blood and de-
st-uctl0n.
This is the hardest working depart
ment OF the government, SAYS our guide.
I'VE are now paying out money 70 pen
si0ners at the rate OF 81. 500, 600 week,
but tlil IS the smallest part Of our trou-
b.r ior the payments are made az the
he4i pension Offices. located at eighteen
cities Tho pension agency ~ Columbus,
| o., IS tho largest ono Ia the country,
! paying ont more than s.. coz. 600 a year.
| Next 10 that Is the one at lndianapoiis
| Chicago being third and Topeka. Kan,
| fourth. Topeka is a small city, and Kan
| sas Is By no means one of our mos: popu-
| lous states, but so many old soldiers have
| gone out there 20 make homes for them
selves on the prairie that our pension
| payments are very large at that Office,
| SIX and hal, millions yearly. 1t may
| surprise you 10 lea-n that the agent at
| Knoxville, Tenn, pays out nearly four
millions I year, and the one at Louis
vile. KY, two and half millions. So
you'see a good deal Of our money goes to
the southern and border states
"A new senator from one of the north
crn states was in here one day. and he
said: Wei. there is one thing I an glad
of-we don't have 70 pay any pensions TO
the southern states. That Is where you
are mistaken replied: we pay q great
many pensions IN the southern states.
We have nov on our rolls $4,000 pen
| si0ners in Kentucky, 5000 in Tennessee,
| 4 900 IN Texas. and about = thousand in
each OF tho other gulf states. In the
northern states there is not a county
| without all the way from half q dozen 10
Eve or SIX thousand pensioners. OF the
states New York has the greatest mum
ber, 5000. Ohio coming second with
nearly 1900. and Pennsylvania third
with 1900. Indiana has 1000 more
pensioners than Illinois, though the
| population OF the latter state is much
| greater. Why this IS so can't tell. Into
each OF these FIVE states the pension Office
sends more than million dollars quar-
ter, in sums ranging from S. TO 300 to
each individual
zone Of the curiosities of the pension
laws IS the large number of different
rates that have been allowed. Between
the rates Of 81 q month and sl66.GG
q month. tho highest and lowest rates,
there are 149 different rates on the
rolls. It seems odd TO pay $2.G6 PEI
month 10 some pensioners and s.. .66f L
| others, or $13.33 TO some and $13 333 tc
| others. Yet this Is done under the various
laws passed By congress. Twelve dollars
q month ia the pension drawn by % ,0OC
invalids and IS. 600 widows. minors and
dependents. I larger number than at any
other rate. All but 5000 OF the widows
draw this sum per month. Seventy thou
sand invalids draw 81 q month. 30. 00C
e6. 6. 900 s. 10000 $40, 12, 900 3iG. IA. .00C
s24. Il. 900 $50. 5000 $50, $500 SIS. 800
$50. and 1000 s72 Three widows and
orphans draw 500 month. and -four
Sf65.C6 q month. More than 5000 O!
the pensioners get from the government
TIE piltance Of g q month or less, sev-
cral hundred oi these getting only 81 q
month
..It has bsc1 ssid that al tho veteran.
OF tha late war, or nearly ali. Srs on th1
pension rolls. This Is n0t trls. For oi
2.S90. 900 men who went into ths war oi
the rebellion. only A.. .0o0 pensioners nrr
now carried on tho rollA So you go
thai there IS bat enc pension for every
seven soldiers. Tie rolls show 2o,90s
reusiouersof Tho war with Mexico, - Co.
- chem survivors. There arc moro thar
10. .oo0 pensioners q The war q 1912
about zoo q them being survivors,. No
a single survivor rernslns o. tie Revo
lusonsry var. though 30 pensioners 0r
account Of thas war are stiii o. 'ha rolls
cl of them widovs This is rathsr
strsn-e. considering that the last batti'
, oI the Ee~oiution vzs fou-he aeou- io
v-srs a-5. bus some of the survivors o