The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1889-10-25
ALL AsouT PENSIONS.

Order.
wAsHINerox, Oct. 1s-Ths following
authoritative statement prepared at the
Interior Department in support of the
action Of Secretary Noble. in resembling
Commissioner Tanners order advancing
pensions from g to a per month in GER
tain cases has been given to the press:
In view OF the recent decision by the Depart
ment of the Interior relating to the authority Of
the Commissioner OF Pensions to arbitrarily of
his own will rerate some $1,000 men By advanc-
ing their pensions on his order from q to a per
month. II is worthy of attention n that section
4s9st. OF the revised statutes Of the United
provides that: Except in case OF permanent
specific disabi tiles no Increase Of pension shall
be allowed TO commence prior TO the date Of the
examining surgeons certificate establishing the
and also that a rating made by the Commits
sioner Of Pensions except In certain cases where
by Law q specified amount is attached by statute
to the disability named Is determined by the
degree Of disability found by medical ex-
animation of the claimant" Thps where Q
claimants disability is total he Is given under
the statute a fixed amount. This was formerly
ferent cases, among others sIs total and the
amount that would be SIS for total disabil-
ity'' is subdivided in fractions that is less
than total for lesser degrees OF disability. Thus
if one man is found to be very little disabled by
the medical board he is given one-eighteenth
or 81. or If he is still more disabled two-eight-
eenths or p and IL still more disabled three
eishteenths or 81 and so on
A man, for instance. has lost portion of his
finger and is thus TO an appreciable degree dis
abled. he may have been rated BIZ some exam
lining board at 81 for that; and so in some other
case for some other slight disability. II. how
ever, he has suffered from chills or malaria or
some other disease contracted by him in the
swamps during his services as a soldier and
which may not prove permanent or may in
crease. he may have been thought slightly dis
abled. II ct all, and entitled at the beginning
and almost 10 a small fraction of the total say
T., which is the amount fixed in many of the
disabilities allowed. In this latter it N ght
have possibly been a question with The board
whether he was TO get any thing or was dis
abled at ALL but from lenient construction OF
his case they have given him 81. II now, BY an
order Of the Commissioner, without regard TO
this medical examination, the man who has
thus been receiving - is advanced to 81 without
the man who was more disabled and who has
been rated at e. being himself advanced it is
obvious that injustice is done the higher graded
man, because he Is put upon par with man
evidently less disabled. And so between sol
der and soldier there is an unfair preference OF
the less injured. II these cases, however, are
all referred to the examining surgeons and they
find the disability to be equal to "a and it Is
then allowed. every thing has been done in due
order and according tolaw.
On the contrary. II arbitrary orders OF the
Commissioner are the basis, il must result that
a few are made favorites and given a particular
amount and great masses of men who have 10
depend upon medical examinations are put at a
great disadvantage. Therefore it was decided
that there was no authority in law for an order
arbitrarily increasing a great mass of mems
pensions in the face of the statute already
cited and which order is not extended TO all the
pensioners cases. The Commissioner. whose
order has given rise TO this decision, in his re-
cent letter 10 Mr.. Dalzell did not claim that his
order was 10 be construed according to its
terms, for he said: while Commissioner I
issued two orders which 1 thought and still
think were mighty good ones: First, that the
$1,000 men on the pension roll at less than "a a
month should all unless they had a medical
examination within a year, be ordered for ex-
animation before their home board with view
TO putting them up 10 at least 81 per month pen
sion or drop them OF the rolls for it was and is
my opinion that for a man who is worthy Of any
pension at all dollar a week is small enough
to consider pension" The order itself read:
april %, 1889 In all cases where pensionable
disability is found the rate allowed shall not be
less than 81 per month, to date from and includ-
ing March 25, lsS9."
The decision that was made by the Assistant
Secretary is in accordance with these two prop
ositions- The Commissioner announced one be-
fore he resigned his office; the other, after, to
Mr.. Dalzell- The Assistant Secretary states
them together and not separately. The order
as made was arbitrary unqualified and required
an advance without examination TO the amount
specified az 81 per month 1t did not propose
10 drop any one, as the letter pretended it did,
and 1t did not order any one for examination be-
49,, .1a1 80
did. It VS. an unauthorized, unqualified and
Illegal order for every pensIoner 10 be advanced
10 81 who was receiving less 1t was made
Apr Is and it was proposed TO have it take ef-
feet March %.
A slight consideration of this matter will
show that to give away $4,000 month Of the
public money on such an order as this would be
but the ginning of a system by which iIlions
could be expended uncontrolled by law, as it
was unauthorized by precedent There would
be no more harm N giving to Senator Mander-
son 81, 0 or more than there would be in giving
to 1900 men s56,ooo. In eithercase it would be
an unauthorized distribution Of the public
moneys and the door of the treasury might as
well be open to actual invasion as to have such
warrants drawn upon il to be cashed without
questioning. II is al o obvious that such q
course as this would not be of benefit to the
soldiers ultimately, as it is intended only to
beue dt those Woo are the least disabled: in
other words. those who have the least claim for
disability II one may Judge that these men
are to be advanced upon a mere opinion as to
what should be the least amount OF pension,
the others might justly claim that their more
severe wounds and disabilities were quite as
uncompensated as those of less degree. In
other wor l, whenever the opinion OF Commits
sioner without investigation is substituted for
actual examination to disability every mans
pension is put at risk. either to be so exagger-
ated as thai the Government or people would
not allow il or TO be so disparaged as that moth
ing could be obtained.
II you can drop a man who is receiving e per
month from the pension rolls on a mere opinion
of a Commissioner you can drop OF great
many others receiving more on the same prin-
ciple. 1t is mere question OF within and caprice.
It is upon this that it has been insisted that the
Law should be adhered to and the precedents
established should have weight. 1t must also
be obvious in all this that there is expression
as there is no disposition to prevent any deserv
ing soldier rom acquiring all the pension his !
disability entities HIM to- either by original ap
plication or application for increase. All that
is being done is to maintain the Law. to be lib
orally construed, but by no means disregarded, |
and to allow each in his turn without partiaIity,
the weak, the distant and those without power |
flourish. |
Another Brown Missing.
CHICAGO, Oct lS-The News says ". II. |
Brown, a real estate dealer, is at present |
out of the city and is said to be a de- |
faulter to the extent of S, 900. Many of 1
L